A Home with Heaven's Help

The "before" kitchen in a home for young adults who were infected with HIV as babies and were all orphaned or abandoned. Although there is a small stove on the other side of the room, what you see is what they had.

The "before" bedroom.

We go with Ana Filip, one of the people who has looked after these young people since they were 2 years old, to buy appliances.  Ana is "blown away" by the generosity of the Church. Little does she know we are just getting started!

The missionary "moving crew" arrive to help bring all the stuff  we purchased into the apartment.

They assemble the chairs...

and the dining table.

They assemble the beds

and do a little quality test.

A new fridge, washing machine, microwave and kitchen cabinet are installed.

New bedding and towels along with...

dishes, pots, pans and other household items await the new young residents.

The girls talk to Ana about their plans to start university in the fall.  After they cleaned and set up house, the girls invited us over to express their gratitude and to show us their cozy new home.  We witnessed more than one miracle as this project came together.  It was a humbling experience to be a part of it. 

Berca Mud Volcanoes - Google it!

On July 9th we decided to join the members of the Church in Bucharest on an excursion to the Berca Mud Volcanoes.  After a 2 1/2 hour bus ride through lush green farmland we came upon this!

Feeling like we are walking on the moon, we climb to the top.

Here, we come upon these volcano shaped structures full of bubbling mud. 

I must have taken 20 shots in an attempt to capture the bubbles full blown.  Finally, I had to settled for this.

Randy talks with the guide who explains the volcanoes are caused by an eruption of mud and methane gases from 3000 meters deep through layers of clay and water.  The mud is only about 4 degrees above ambient temperature.  The big eruption occurred in 1878.

A contrast in landscapes in one photo. The mud kills the vegetation because the mud is salty.

Here are another couple of salty characters.  It got to be 37 degrees C that day, so no one lingered at the top of the "crater" for long.

We found some shade, ate our lunch and after a bit of a rest, we boarded the buses for home.  A good day spent with the members of the church.

One of our Heroes

This is Noreen O'Gorman. She first visited Romania in 1998 as a volunteer for a British charity. When she witnessed the suffering of sick children living and dying in abject poverty, she resigned her job as a community nurse in London and returned to Romania.  She has devoted her life to helping severely disabled and chronically ill children.   

We visited her facility in Slobozia and met some of the children who are under her care.

A project started by the humanitarian couple who preceded us is now completed.

Among other needs that were addressed, the floor was damaged by a leaking sink.  The leak was fixed and the floor was replaced.

Access to hot water was sporadic at best..until they received their own water heater.

When we came to see the finished work, we gladly brought Noreen a few wheelchairs.  She is an amazing woman.  We hope to be working with her again!

On the way home we saw some interesting sights. These little roadside "chapels" for example.

We wondered if they are built as a memorial to someone.

Portable beehives! They move around the countryside, depending on what crops need pollenating.

We couldn't resist getting a couple of bottles of this delicious honey being sold right in front of the hives. The bees were buzzing around but these folks must be used to them because they didn't seem to be bothered.

There were fields like these as far as the eye could see. Stunning! and the flowers were beautiful too!

Patriot Games

Happy Canada Day!  Canadian Ambassador, Philippe Beaulne invited us to a Canada Day reception at the Hilton Hotel.  We met other Canadians who are working here or have business interests in Romania.  We spoke to ambassadors from Japan, Philippines, Indonesa and Nigeria - all charming and interested in the work we are doing.  It was a beautiful outdoor reception with red and white balloons and massive bouquets of red roses and white lilies.  Why didn't I get pictures of those???

This jolly threesome are (L) President of the Romanian Senate (Geoana Mircea), Canadian Ambassador, Philippe Beaulne, and President of Romanian Parliament (we didn't catch his name). Fortunately, their speeches were much better than their expressions during the playing of our national anthems.  Randy and Vicky were the only ones singing O Canada, and we didn't care.  We sang out heartily!

On the 4th of July we joined the young missionaries for a barbecue and a game of water balloon volleyball. The fellow poised under the balloon in the dark shirt is from Norway - the only other non-American missionary besides us in Bucharest right now.

Some had better technique than others...

These two wore their national pride enthusiastically - if a tad weird. 

Hot Town, Summer in the City

We thought we would post a few things we see and do on the "strada" almost everyday.  Here comes the tramvai. The fellow just pushing past me and my camera wants to make sure he is first in line for a seat.

His chances are looking good!

Well, maybe next time. The tramvai is so full you can't even see the people that are lucky enough to be seated!

Apparently wiring codes aren't what they ought to be!

The street sweepers are out almost every day - 95% of them are women.

Blossoming shrubs help to soften the concrete jungle.

Flowers are very important in Bucharest.  There are flower shops like this one (which is just outside of our apartment) at almost every bus and metro stop in the city.  You cannot walk down the street without seeing both men and women carrying cut flowers. Gladiolas and sun flowers are at their peak right now.  

We've made friends with these two sweet ladies at the machelaria (butcher shop) down the street.

This is another sweetheart - she works at the Safe Way store just one block away.  It is not the kind of Safeway store we are familiar with at home.  It is more the size of a 7 Eleven.

Taxis wait right out in front of our building.  It's just a matter of finding one that feels like taking you to the place you need to go. 

Street vendors are selling this stuff everywhere right now.  Apparently it is used to make tea.

A common sight - old women begging on the street.  Less common is what I caught on camera - the lady in the white scarf giving the women in black some money.

On the way to Kaufland's (the big grocery store a block further down) you pass vendors selling all kinds of things.

Dill anyone?  The lady with the green box has an assortment of cleaning products.  You can see another flower shop behind her.

This lady was looking pretty glum until Randy handed her a Werther's candy.