tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17967122770258438822024-03-13T16:24:49.817+02:00Sophia in Bulgariateaching, traveling and everyday lifeSophiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05134778583025311467noreply@blogger.comBlogger124125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1796712277025843882.post-35678709046800493912013-08-19T19:01:00.000+03:002013-08-19T19:02:05.033+03:00Welcome, new ETAs!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Last week I was back again at the orientation for Fulbright English Teaching Assistants. I am a former ETA (2010-2012) and presented one of the topics last year at the same orientation, which was two days long. This year, however, the program has changed; it is longer, more detailed and designed to provide a more comprehensive preparation for the new teachers. Working closely with other English teachers as well as the Department for English and American Studies at Sofia University, I helped carry out a five-day training for the majority of the 28 American Fulbright Fellows who will be teaching in Foreign Language Schools across the country for the next ten months. My sessions included lesson planning, online resources, classroom management, teaching multilevel students and cultural adjustment. I also presented information about some of the extracurricular activities and projects some ETAs have become involved with in the past, including my own (<a href="http://learningtod.weebly.com/" target="_blank">Learning Through Our Differences</a>).<br />
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When Iliana at the Fulbright Commission emailed me to invite me as a lecturer at the ETA orientation this year, I was more than thrilled. I've had the pleasure to meet more than 70 American Fulbrighters in Bulgaria during the time I've lived here; I've also met many Bulgarian alumni who have studied in the United States and have since returned home. All of them have very different backgrounds, lifestyles, beliefs and interests but the one thing they do have in common is the desire to build bridges across nations, mountains and oceans, or perhaps more importantly, between people. As U.S. Ambassador Ries said in her welcoming remarks to the new grantees, the core of the Fulbright program is people-to-people diplomacy. I am proud to be a part of the Fulbright legacy in Bulgaria and a continuing supporter of the activities carried out by the Commission.<br />
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Now that I have had some more time and experience between my former role as an ETA and my current one as an elementary school teacher, it was easier for me to reflect on the early days of my teaching career. Three years ago I really had no clue what I was getting myself into; the first day of classes I just sort of showed up at school and hoped for the best because I had no idea how or what to prepare. Eventually I settled into a routine (at least until the second semester) and figured out what worked best in each of my classes. But in hindsight there are many things I would have done differently had I had the experience and knowledge I have now. I don't think that any experiences we have can be labeled as bad, really, because we always learn something from them. And it was through reading about (and observing) good teaching practices that I realized just how many mistakes I made that I didn't even know I was making at the time. I have just a few quick tips, most of which are based off some mistakes I definitely made, and a couple of which I continuously need to work on:<br />
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1. Don't sweat the small stuff. When an unexpected problem arises, find a way to diffuse the situation or simply move on. It's not worth it to over-dramatize trivial things, like a broken printer or last-minute schedule change.<br />
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2. Be an enthusiastic leader for your students. Accept the responsibilities of being a role model with grace, and listen to their needs. Give them whatever support you can to help them achieve their learning goals.<br />
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3. Be over-prepared. That means planning for lessons to take less time than you think they will, and having a back-up lesson or activity in place. Plan for technology to fail. This will happen, but you don't have to let it ruin your day.<br />
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4. Spend more time in Bulgaria. Yes, the opportunities for traveling abroad are enticing, and this may be your first time living in Europe. But don't overlook the amazing places to see here, or underestimate the importance of learning the language. See #5.<br />
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5. Learn Bulgarian! To the best of your abilities, even if that means hiring a tutor or spending some time online with a program like <a href="http://www.livemocha.com/learn-bulgarian" target="_blank">LiveMocha</a>. Tell your friends and colleagues to correct your mistakes so you can be sure that others will understand you. Even if you can't roll your Rs, people will warm to you immediately if you start a conversation in their own language.<br />
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I hope that all of the new ETAs, researchers, lecturers, students and scholars will enjoy their time in Bulgaria. And I look forward to meeting all of you again (or for the first time) in Sofia. </div>
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<span style="cursor: pointer; font-weight: bold;">Добре дошли!</span></div>
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Sophiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05134778583025311467noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1796712277025843882.post-8726108004136288902013-07-08T21:32:00.001+03:002013-07-08T21:34:40.988+03:00Demanding a better future<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="color: #4a4a4a; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px;">For more than three weeks now, tens of thousands of protesters have been marching through central Sofia, each day at 6:30 P.M. Their demands include the dismantling of the current government, which did not win the snap elections in May but barely managed to piece together enough members of parliament for a 51% majority. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #4a4a4a; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px;">The political situation here has been ignored and under-reported not only in the foreign press but also at home. Many local media networks, most notably newspapers, omit any information about the protests from the headlines. Some television reporters have begun masking their identities and choosing not to display their network logos out of fear of retribution from angry protesters who resent the lack of accurate news coverage on the protests. However, the protests here have been largely peaceful, with no violent clashes with police as in Egypt and Turkey. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #4a4a4a; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px;">The limited international news coverage of the situation in Bulgaria begs the question: "<a href="http://www.euronews.com/2013/07/02/bulgaria-protests-continue-is-the-world-listening/" target="_blank">Is the world watching?</a>" and if not, what happens next? The current government seems satisfied enough to carry on with business as usual while further protesters assemble outside the National Assembly during the workweek, and denies or plays down the protests' influence. The leader of the ultra-nationalist right wing "Ataka" party, whose neo-fascist, xenophobic and racist ideology is an ugly smear on Bulgaria's image within the European Union, began carrying a gun with him and declared his plans to make protesting "illegal." His inflammatory statements have already merited the creation of <a href="https://www.facebook.com/hashtag/ignorevolen" target="_blank">a new Facebook and Twitter hashtag</a>, encouraging protesters to ignore him completely.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #4a4a4a; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px;">What could a long-term solution to this deep-rooted public anger be? </span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #4a4a4a; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px;"><i>"Bulgaria’s best hope is a technocratic government that reforms the judiciary, changes the electoral code, fights organised crime and corruption, and ends the opaque dealings of the government so that young, untainted and talented people find it attractive to enter politics." </i></span><br />
<span style="color: #4a4a4a; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px;"><i>- <a href="http://www.economist.com/news/europe/21580522-new-government-looks-unlikely-last-long-noresharski-noligarchy" target="_blank">The Economist</a></i></span><br />
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<span style="color: #4a4a4a; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px;">The people currently protesting down Tsarigradsko Shose, past Sofia University and towards the National Assembly are the future of this country. They are not only young people, but the majority of them are. Many of them want to stay here and raise their families here, despite the lure of better conditions abroad. They deserve the attention and support of the whole world, just like so many peaceful demonstrations before them.</span><br />
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Sophiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05134778583025311467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1796712277025843882.post-12485751153912648712013-06-23T23:21:00.001+03:002013-06-23T23:53:25.599+03:00Bulgarian Road Tripping with Dad<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
As you may be aware, I recently had to cancel a trip to Seattle (where I had hoped to catch up with my family and friends after a year and a half away) because of <a href="http://sophiainbulgaria.blogspot.com/2013/06/dvt-cautionary-tale.html" target="_blank">a serious medical condition</a>. Although I have been out of the hospital for several weeks now and I am feeling much better, it's still dangerous for me to travel for long periods of time. That's why I won't be visiting my family for a while. :(<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dad's first Bulgarian meal</td></tr>
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Luckily, my Dad was able to come visit me and also see Bulgaria for the first time. It was so great having him here, and really brightened my mood. During his two weeks here we were mostly at home, as I find myself getting tired easily and needing more rest. But we were also able to take him on a short trip around the country, our final destination being the Black Sea. With Kiril driving and Dad in the front seat, I was able to stretch out across the back seat and keep my leg elevated while on the road.<br />
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The southern highway to the Black Sea (Sofia-Burgas, or Thrakia Highway) passes close to Plovdiv, one of Bulgaria's oldest and largest cities. We spend a little time walking up to the Roman amphitheater and then having lunch in a former Dervish monastery that was constructed atop one of the old city's Roman walls (visible downstairs and from the patio outside).<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Me and Dad in the center of Plovdiv</td></tr>
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Our next stop was a Thracian temple and royal tomb, recently discovered near <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Starosel" target="_blank">the village of Starosel</a>. The temple, which dates back to the 4th century B.C., is the largest one found so far on the Balkan peninsula. A tour guide explained that the temple was used for worshiping the three dimensions of sky, earth and underworld. Three natural colors were painted in a repeating pattern around the walls and are still visible today. After that we stopped in <a href="http://bulgariatravel.org/en/object/73/Hisarya" target="_blank">nearby Hisarya</a>, a town famous for its mineral water and Roman history. There are many resorts there where you can try out the healing properties of the famous water for yourself. It took us longer to find the southern gate of the late Roman wall, nicknamed "The Camels" than we spent looking at it, but it was getting very hot so we kept driving to our next destination.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">In front of "The Camels" southern fortress wall in Hisarya</td></tr>
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We spent the night in Veliko Turnovo, but on the way passed through the Shipka Pass. This landmark is an important part of Bulgaria's independence period, and a fierce battle was fought there between Bulgarian rebels and Ottoman soldiers. Last year I visited the monument and museum on top of the peak, but this time we just drove through on our way to Bulgaria's medieval capital. Our hotel was located right next to the Tsarevets fortress in the old town, which would have been perfect for watching an evening light show on the fortress walls. However, after a long day of driving and waiting a long time to eat, we had dinner in the hotel restaurant and went to bed early before starting another day of sightseeing.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Holy Forty Martyrs Church in Veliko Turnovo</td></tr>
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The next morning, after exploring the ramparts of Veliko Turnovo's medieval fortress walls and church (I opted to wait on a shady bench while Kiril and Dad made the hike), we drove down to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holy_Forty_Martyrs_Church,_Veliko_Tarnovo" target="_blank">the Holy Forty Martyrs Church</a> on the banks of the Maritsa River. This church has an interesting history, and has also borne witness to some of Bulgaria's historical milestones. Tsar Kaloyan, one of Bulgaria's most legendary rulers, is buried in the church. Under Ottoman rule, the church was refashioned into a mosque, and many of its paintings and murals were destroyed. In 1908, Tsar Ferdinand declared the independence of the whole territory of Bulgaria inside the church. There is one remaining section of the church with original foundations and the rest has been restored. The newer interior is bright with white painted walls, which is uncommon for Bulgarian churches but has a very airy and calming feel.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Foundations of a pagan temple and first Christian Basilica at Pliska</td></tr>
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After leaving Veliko Turnovo, we headed east towards Shumen and eventually got to <a href="http://bulgariatravel.org/en/object/39/Pliska" target="_blank">Pliska</a>, the capital of the first Bulgarian Empire from the year 681. It was founded by Khan Asparuh, who established the first Bulgarian Empire. Not a lot is left of the original buildings in the complex, as many of them were made from wood, but the stone foundations of a pagan temple, two basilicas, the royal palace, a bath house and several outlying buildings remain. A small museum describes the site's history and provides reconstructions of all the original structures.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">On the Black Sea in Sozopol</td></tr>
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Finally, we reached our end destination and checked into our hotel in Sozopol, just a half hour south of Burgas. Incidentally, we stayed at the same hotel as <a href="http://sophiainbulgaria.blogspot.com/2010/08/sozopol.html" target="_blank">the first time I visited the Black Sea</a> almost three years ago. I love staying in the old town because it is so charming and peaceful. And Sozopol is easily my favorite town on the coast, as it boasts small, charming cobblestone streets, two beaches, ancient walls and ongoing archaeological investigations. A recent one was <a href="http://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/news/%E2%80%9Crelics%E2%80%9D-associated-with-john-the-baptist-dated-to-the-first-century-c-e/" target="_blank">the reported discovery</a> of some relics of St. John the Baptist, which were probably transferred to the island of St. Ivan (St. John in English), just a kilometer from Sozopol's public marina, by a Christian monk in the 5th or 6th century. The relics are on display in the restored Church of Saints Kiril and Metodi, and the waterproof container likely used to transport them is in the regional historical museum. That museum also currently houses <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-18334106" target="_blank">one vampire skeleton</a>, part of another exciting and fascinating recent find near the town.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Medieval ruins of a monastery on the island of St. John the Baptist</td></tr>
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We were able to visit the island by boat, and the roundtrip only cost us 40 leva, or roughly $9 per person. Our captain Dimitar told us that he has worked with the archaeologists working on the island, and that his boat actually transported the relics to the mainland. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Ivan_Island" target="_blank">The island</a> is small, and today mostly a nature preserve. We saw lots of young seagulls getting ready to take their first flight. A lighthouse built in the late 19th century still stands there, and the ruins of two churches can be viewed easily by tourists. The older one is where the relics of St. John were found, buried under the altar, in the summer of 2010.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Me and Kiril, on the boat ride back to Sozopol</td></tr>
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We didn't make any more stops on our return trip to Sofia, so it was much faster, and Dad had just enough time to get his bags packed up before heading home to Seattle the next day. He was very happy at the end of our trip that he got to see so many parts of Bulgaria. But still, there are many more to see so I hope that he will come back again soon!</div>
Sophiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05134778583025311467noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1796712277025843882.post-7053666374946208842013-06-18T19:39:00.000+03:002013-06-19T14:50:41.996+03:00"The world is on fire"<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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In case you haven't seen Bulgaria in the news headlines lately (which is usually the case, unfortunately) there have been massive protests all over the country, much like what is happening on now on the streets of Istanbul and Brasilia. You can follow the protests on Twitter with the hashtag <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23%D0%94%D0%90%D0%9D%D0%A1withme&src=hash" target="_blank">#ДАНСwithme</a>. </div>
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For more information on the background of the current protests, and how they are different from the earlier ones that led to the resignation of the previous government back in February, <a href="http://iliatemelkov.wordpress.com/2013/06/18/%D0%B4%D0%B0%D0%BD%D1%81withme-or-why-are-bulgarians-protesting/" target="_blank">read this blog post</a>. An imploring and heartfelt open letter asking Europeans and others to help publicize the current situation <a href="https://medium.com/better-humans/6644463c9a96" target="_blank">can be read here.</a> After a brief web search I came up mostly empty with current articles from the major international news agencies. Following the Twitter page and reading the English-language sites in Bulgaria (or better yet- Google translated versions of sites like <a href="http://www.dnevnik.bg/" target="_blank">Dnevnik</a>) will probably remain the best ways to keep up with events until they get more international coverage.</div>
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Hence this blog post. If you are reading this outside of Bulgaria, please share information about the protests in Bulgaria with your friends or find a photo of the protests to share on Twitter. While I am in no way informed enough to make speculations about Bulgaria's political future, I do believe that the only way for Bulgarians to make their voices heard is by exercising their right to protest against the corrupt practices of the current government. And others can help support them by speaking out against political corruption and abuse everywhere. So please spread the word about Bulgaria and help the protesters make their voices even louder to the rest of the world.</div>
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Sophiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05134778583025311467noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1796712277025843882.post-44582285589625114382013-05-03T11:27:00.000+03:002013-05-03T11:27:57.478+03:00Kambanite: International Children's Monument and Park in Sofia<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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This was only a two-day workweek because of several holidays that got mashed together the first weekend in May: the 1st of May (for everyone outside the United States, this is labor day), the Bulgarian Orthodox Easter holidays (which happened to fall very late this year, about a month after the Roman Catholic ones) and St. George's Day (a religious feast day and national holiday, as St. George is the patron of Bulgaria's military). Anyway, all this celebrating means a six-day weekend and I have already done quite a bit of sightseeing in my time off.<br />
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On May 1st Kiril and I went to <i>Kambanite </i>(The Bells) monument and park, dedicated to children all over the world. The monument was erected by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lyudmila_Zhivkova" target="_blank">Lyudmila Zhivkova</a>, the daughter of the former Communist leader Todor Zhivkov, who was deposed in 1989. Zhivkova was a controversial figure but also a respected patron of the arts, and she established the monument through the "Banner of Peace" organization with support from UNESCO.<br />
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The park is made up of a circular pattern of bells donated by different countries built around a concrete tower holding seven more bells, meant to represent the seven continents. Having been created during the Communist period, the monument and park were neglected for many years until Zhivkova's daughter (also a fashion designer) started a campaign to restore it. Today many of the original bells are missing, but there are still signs of a bygone era there: a bell from Yugoslavia, Czechoslovakia, the USSR and both the German Deomocratic Republic and the Federal Republic of Germany. The are also bells from North and South Korea, Syria, Angola, China, Thailand, Nicaragua, Zimbabwe and many other countries around the globe. The United States' bell is quite small compared to Bulgaria's whopping 1300 kg one (commemorating 1300 years of Bulgarian history in 1981). But there are also some new additions, including bells donated by NATO and the Rotary club. I found Poland's bell, too...<br />
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On one side of the park there is a wall with plaques acknowledging the accomplishments of young Bulgarian athletes, artists and scientists. One of them is Ivet Lalova, Bulgaria' famous record-breaking sprinter. Read more about her in <a href="http://sophiainbulgaria.blogspot.com/2012/03/celebrating-bulgarian-women.html" target="_blank">my post for International Women's Day</a> last year.<br />
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These bells represent all the Bulgarian children living abroad. During the Communist period many families were forced to flee the country because of political differences. This was the case for my grandfather, who left Poland when it was invaded by Nazi Germany and could not return after the war when his country had joined the socialist bloc. As a result, there are many Bulgarian, Polish and other Eastern European families living abroad, especially in the United States. Unfortunately, there are still large numbers of young people who have to move abroad for economic opportunities. This is a growing concern within Bulgaria and many other European countries with struggling economies and limited options for employment.<br />
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And finally, behind the central tower (which reads "Unity, Creativity, Beauty" in Bulgarian and English) there is a small sign asking visitors not to ring the bells loudly. It also states that only children are allowed to ring the bells. :)</div>
Sophiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05134778583025311467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1796712277025843882.post-62696990604840329632013-04-05T18:52:00.000+03:002013-04-05T18:52:49.946+03:00Project Update and New Website!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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*This post re-posted from the new "Learning Through Our Differences" <a href="http://learningtod.weebly.com/" target="_blank">website</a>.</div>
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<span style="color: #868686; line-height: 21px; text-align: left;">After a long trip from Sofia, Irena, Kalin and I arrived in Shumen very late the night before our training. With just four hours of sleep, we showed up bright and early at Nikola Ionkov Vaptsarov Foreign Language High School to meet our colleagues Kremena, Dimo and Tsveta. The Language School in Shumen is lucky to have such dedicated and enthusiastic teachers as them.</span></div>
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The day got off to a good start with all 26 participants actively engaged in the workshop. We started with some "getting to know you" activities and then moved onto more thought-provoking ones intended to break down social barriers and challenge traditional stereotypes. The 9th and 10th grade students were so enthusiastic, we didn't even notice the lack of sleep. Towards the end of the day, small groups began working on their "Community Action Plans," which are proposals addressing local problems like pollution, library accessibility, disadvantaged children and out-of-date athletic facilities.<span style="line-height: 1.5;"> </span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 21px; text-align: left;">Once we had finished handing out certificates and taking our final photos, we received extremely positive feedback from both students and teachers. They were impressed with the project and excited to get started on their community action plans. We look forward to seeing the results of their hard work in the near future. A big, heartfelt thank you to everyone who attended!</span></div>
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Sophiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05134778583025311467noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1796712277025843882.post-87219657548946795672013-03-21T19:22:00.000+02:002013-03-21T19:22:44.394+02:00Finally Spring<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
This post has been a long time coming, but I've felt less inclined to blog this year for some reason. It has been a long, although mild, winter here in Sofia and yesterday was supposedly the first day of spring. Accordingly, the weather was beautiful and sunny, even hot for March! Then today it just rained for most of the afternoon. Oh, well...<br />
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Summer cannot come soon enough. Kiril and I are going to be visiting Seattle for about a month, and I will stay a couple of weeks longer to spend some quality time with the family. I am really looking forward to it is as it seems like forever since I've had a real vacation!<br />
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In other news, I took the written exam for the Foreign Service again (for the third time, in case you haven't been reading for long). I am happy to report that I passed and completed my essay responses for the second stage of the selection procedure. I will find out sometime in May whether or not I am invited to an interview in Washington, D.C. this summer.<br />
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There have also been some very difficult times for my family over the last few months. My aunt, who had been battling cancer for two years, passed away in early Feburary. Since I went back to Seattle in December 2011 for Christmas, we said our more personal goodbyes then. It was heartfelt and deep, and I don't think I realized how much I would miss her until she was gone. Then my uncle unexpectedly died of a heart attack just three weeks later. It was a huge blow to my Mom and her siblings, and everyone is still reeling from the shock. These moments are when I feel very far away and helpless against the things I cannot control. I want to be home but I am here, and the distance seems to magnify as time goes by.<br />
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But still, there are good reasons for me to be where I am now. My project, Learning Through Our Differences, is finally taking off and we will visit the first high school on our workshop list this weekend in Shumen. I haven't been there before, but I know that it is a medium-sized town not far from the sea, and still remote enough to suffer from the same regional underdevelopment that exists in so much of the country. The workshop will focus on individual and group identities, breaking down stereotypes and bridging cultural barriers. There is also a component that will require participants to create their own "community action plans," which are projects aimed at addressing specific local problems related to intolerance. I have a lot of nervous energy about it, but I am really excited to see my ideas, and those I've collaborated on with others, finally put into action. <br />
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Stay tuned for Shumen pictures and another big project update, including a soon-to-be-live website, soon!</div>
Sophiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05134778583025311467noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1796712277025843882.post-75409390676833535352013-01-01T17:01:00.000+02:002013-01-26T13:02:57.810+02:00коледа в българия (Christmas in Bulgaria)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
This year I stayed in Sofia for the winter holidays. We have two weeks off from school (yay!) and, lucky for me, I got to spend Christmas with my Bulgarian family. Kiril's folks are absolutely amazing and have welcomed me into their lives in every way.<br />
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For Christmas Eve (<i>Budni Vecher</i> in Bulgarian) we arrived early to help his mother, Mimi, prepare the meal. This mostly entailed making two large <i>banitsas</i> (homemade layered pastry filled with cheese and eggs) with fortunes wrapped in foil inside. These fortunes are a very special part of the tradition, as they tell you what kind of luck you will have in the coming tear. Kiril and I also made desserts ahead of time, which was my American contribution to the meal. We made one of my holiday favorites, peanut brittle, and toffee-nut blondies, which were a big hit. <br />
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In the Bulgarian Orthodox tradition, very much like the Catholic one I grew up with, Christmas Eve is the bigger event and is always spent with the family. Unlike the Christmases I know from my childhood, however, in Bulgaria the meal is always vegetarian. There must also be an odd number of dishes on the table, and at least 7. I think we had 11 dishes total (more dishes are supposed to bring more good luck). Usually, the dishes are fairly simple with a few traditional meatless favorites making an appearance. We ate stuffed peppers with sultanas, <i>lutenitsa</i> (roasted red pepper spread), fresh sheep and goat cheese, <i>banitsa</i>, pickled vegetables, dried fruits and nuts, and a special bread called <i>pogacha</i> which Kiril's brother Kalin prepared. The bread also had fortunes inside, as well as a hidden coin. When the meal begins, the oldest member of the household breaks the bread and gives it to the youngest member. And of course, the meal wouldn't be complete without a glass of delicious homemade wine.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">From left to right: Kiril, me, Mimi and Kalin</td></tr>
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On Christmas day we went over to Kiril's father's apartment for lunch. He had prepared a very hearty dish called <i>kapama</i>, which is made in a big clay pot and slow-cooked for at least 8 hours. Inside of the pot were layers of sauerkraut, pork, beef, chicken, two kinds of sausage, red wine, bay leaves and other seasonings. We ate this with another big <i>pogacha</i>, more cheese and a dried sausage called <i>lukanka</i>. I was the person to find the coin in the bread that time, so I should be very lucky this year. After two days of eating so much delicious food (and drinking spectacular homemade wine), I was exhausted! The rest of the week was rather a blur, and I'm happy to report that I've caught up on some very much-needed rest and relaxation. <i> </i><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ac_9mNR4Hhg/UOL5nwDH5HI/AAAAAAAAFeI/Mqz1Yhk1-hA/s1600/pogacha.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="278" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ac_9mNR4Hhg/UOL5nwDH5HI/AAAAAAAAFeI/Mqz1Yhk1-hA/s1600/pogacha.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photos I found online of the food- this is <i>pogacha</i> (bread)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-L8j2HiQGRPk/UOL5plbS6JI/AAAAAAAAFeQ/_BDboV1LJuQ/s1600/kapama.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-L8j2HiQGRPk/UOL5plbS6JI/AAAAAAAAFeQ/_BDboV1LJuQ/s1600/kapama.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">And <i>kapama</i>, cooked in a clay pot</td></tr>
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Sophiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05134778583025311467noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1796712277025843882.post-31485224335558444182012-11-27T20:11:00.000+02:002012-11-27T20:11:51.434+02:00Why, hello there.<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Yikes! I promise that I am still here and have not gotten into any serious trouble. The last few months have been really busy...<br />
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In September I started a new job- yay! I'm officially a first grade English teacher. I also teach Science and Nature Studies/Geography, which is very fun. We get to make experiments and I like to pretend that I'm Miss Frizzle from <i>The Magic Schoolbus</i> (only with less awesome outfits, obviously).<br />
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The only problem about my job is that the school is really far away from where I live, so I travel for about an hour on two metro lines, a tram and a bus to get up to the mountain. The area is very beautiful, though, and right at the foot of Mt. Vitosha. This also makes it colder and snowier than the rest of the city. <i>Oh, well.</i> <br />
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For Halloween Kiril and I dressed up as a cowboy and 50s housewife, respectively, for a costume party here in Sofia. It was a lot of fun, and Kiril's homemade chocolate chip cookies were a big hit once again! People kept asking if I had made them, but alas I am not the baker of this relationship. I can whip up some great pancakes, though. ;)<br />
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Last week we spent Thanksgiving dinner with some friends here, mostly current Fulbrighters. I'm really happy that I get to meet the new researchers and English teachers every year, and that there are so many Americans who want to spend a year here in Bulgaria. A couple of prospective applicants have even emailed me through this blog, which is awesome! I guess that means I've done my job promoting how wonderful it is here.<br />
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In other news, I've been exercising more often and cooking a lot at home. It's getting colder now but we've had a relatively mild November compared with last year. October was downright hot. But winter has to arrive at some point... I've got my boots and heavy coats prepared anyway. Perhaps we'll be lucky and this won't be another record-breakingly cold winter.<br />
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Do skoro!</div>
Sophiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05134778583025311467noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1796712277025843882.post-28594903778843254942012-09-25T00:01:00.000+03:002012-09-25T00:01:28.815+03:00Bulgarian-American Partnerships<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Just a few tidbits on current Bulgarian-American political and economic relations:<br />
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Touring the United States ahead of the upcoming UN Summit, Bulgarian President Rosen Plevneliev spoke about the Bulgarian economy on an American financial news program. <a href="http://video.cnbc.com/gallery/?video=3000117945&play=1" target="_blank">Watch the interview here.</a> The commentators didn't seem to know much about Bulgaria, except for rumors of high corruption, but President Plevneliev made plenty of references to recent statistics like Bulgaria's growing rate of GDP and decreasing budget-deficit in order to persuade them that the Bulgarian economy will pull out of the current slump soon.<br />
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I think that a lot of what he says is true- Bulgaria seems to be an attractive place to do business for investors (apart from the bureaucratic nightmare which accompanies nearly every official procedure) and there are many opportunities for growth in lots of sectors and industries.<br />
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In related news, the next U.S. Ambassador to Bulgaria, Marcie Ries, released a YouTube clip (see above) in anticipation of her arrival here in Sofia after a few weeks. It will be interesting to watch new developments unfold as the American Embassy changes staff- most Foreign Service Officers and other diplomats serve three year terms and right now there is a big overhaul in process. I had the chance to meet a few new staff members last week, and it was exciting to see so much enthusiasm to promote mutual understanding between our two countries. I wish Mrs. Ries and the rest of her new team the best of luck here in Bulgaria!</div>
Sophiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05134778583025311467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1796712277025843882.post-63454962338916221472012-09-01T14:48:00.000+03:002012-09-01T14:48:04.600+03:00Hiking in the Polish Tatra Mountains<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
As I wrote in an earlier <a href="http://sophiainbulgaria.blogspot.com/2012/08/summer-update.html" target="_blank">post</a>, this summer I visited Zakopane with my cousin. Zakopane is a small touristy town nestled at the foot of the Polish Tatra Mountains, which are part of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carpathian_Mountains" target="_blank">Carpathian Range</a>. It was a fun trip, and relaxing for the most part- except for the day when we got stuck on the mountain in a storm. That was a bummer. I should mention that I have a very low threshold for discomfort, and previous travel companions of mine (you know who you are) will confirm that I can get a bit *something* when things aren't going the way I expected. So when we ended up hiking for seven hours up some very steep slopes in the wind and rain, you can imagine the temper tantrum I wanted to throw. But everything turned out alright in the end. We found our way back down and made it into town for dinner after sunset (<i>zurek</i>- a delicious soup made from sour barley, sausage and boiled eggs).<br />
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Here's a view of the mountains from one of the city parks- the peak you can seen is named Giewont, and it's supposed to resemble a sleeping warrior. Can you see his head in the middle of the frame?<br />
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Going up the ski lifts to the peak where we started our hike. By the way, the line for the lift was huge so if you're going to Zakopane for hiking I'd recommend getting there early (before 9am) on a weekday if you can. When we got to the top if was too foggy to see much, but the view was still impressive.<br />
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When the rain started coming down- I wanted to take a photo at the Slovakian border. The whole time we were hiking my cell phone kept going in and out of range between Polish and Slovak phone services. Also, the look on my face sums up how I felt about most of the hiking adventure (not thrilled). But I think it was worth it for the experience, and spectacular views (once the fog lifted, of course).<br />
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This is the backside of Giewont from a neighboring peak. Now the warrior's head is on the left side!<br />
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In retrospect it probably would have been a good idea to check the hourly weather forecast before going up the mountain. It's really difficult to plan anything up there because at that altitude the conditions can change drastically within minutes. That being said, we both survived and it was a good bonding experience. My family in Poland are always trying to show me something different, and since there isn't much left that I haven't done in Warsaw it's nice to travel to new places, too. Next time, however, I'm going to suggest a less strenuous excursion.</div>
Sophiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05134778583025311467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1796712277025843882.post-65815877104233139182012-09-01T14:08:00.000+03:002012-09-01T14:08:10.504+03:00There's Just Something About Mary<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Walk through any town in Poland for ten minutes and you will find at least one of these iconic shrines to the Virgin Mary. A shrine or grotto built to venerate the Catholic Church's most worshiped saint can be found on many street corners, next to churches or even in national parks throughout the country. </div>
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A grotto next to a small river in the Chocholuw Valley nearby the Tatra Mountains resort town of Zakopane.</div>
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This one is located in what looks like an abandoned lot on one of the main streets leading to the bus station in Zakopane. Southern Poland is considered to be more deeply religious than the north, and the town even has a chapel financed and built by local citizens as an offering of thanksgiving when the late Pope John Paul II survived an assassination <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pope_John_Paul_II_assassination_attempt" target="_blank">attempt</a> in 1981.<br />
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This alcove is on a street corner in the old Praga district of Warsaw, adjacent to a <a href="http://sophiainbulgaria.blogspot.com/2012/08/searching-for-pre-war-architecture-in.html" target="_blank">newly restored</a> vodka factory-turned art facility that currently houses the Praga History Museum. I think that these shrines are quite beautiful, and wonder who takes the time to so carefully maintain them?</div>
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Sophiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05134778583025311467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1796712277025843882.post-34686218028418842612012-08-31T14:03:00.002+03:002012-09-01T14:08:23.343+03:00Settling In for Year Three!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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About a month ago I moved into a new apartment, which isn't very far away from my old neighborhood in Sofia. I love my new place for a couple of reasons. First, it's well-connected by public transportation to the city center and other places of interest. I have a metro stop, two trams, several buses and a few <i><a href="http://polezni-linkove.hostzi.com/marshrutkisofia.html#statia29" target="_blank">marshrutki</a> </i>(also known as shared taxis) within easy walking distance. Second, the layout is great for having guests over because there is a separate room with a pull-out couch and the living room (which doubles as my bedroom) has a big sofa with comfy chairs and plenty of room to sit, chat and watch movies with friends. As you can see, I had a few friends over shortly after I moved in:</div>
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I hope to have many more gatherings like this one here. The only drawback is that there really isn't enough space for more than ten people here at a time. But I prefer more intimate settings, anyway. Third and most important is the amazing view I have overlooking Mount Vitosha and the sports high school next door. Why is it advantageous to be located next to a sports high school, you ask? What is a sports high school, you ask? It's a fantastic spot because with two large football fields directly behind the building, my windows look out onto green grass and open space rather than directly into other people's apartments. And a sports high school is another category of specialized secondary schools that have been established here in Bulgaria since the socialist period. It was thought that education should be highly specialized into different practical fields so that students could be more prepared to enter the workforce upon graduation. The foreign language schools where I used to work in both Pleven and Sofia are also legacies of that system.<br />
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I really can't emphasize the view enough. It's simply wonderful, especially at sunrise and sunset when the mountain is illuminated by pinkish or orangish light. From the eighth floor I also have a view of the southwestern corner of downtown- including the Military Hospital and the distinctively unappealing Hotel Rodina, one of the tallest buildings in the city at just 25 stories in height. <br />
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In other news, I'm still working on getting my project ready for implementation in the fall and waiting for the paperwork to be filed so I can really start canvassing schools. Ideally I'd like to work with one school in Sofia as well as one school outside of Sofia, mainly because there are a lot of differences between urban and rural (or less urbanized) regions in Bulgaria. This is largely due to high levels in unemployment resulting in dwindling small town populations. Many factories which once dotted the countryside have closed over the last twenty years, displacing hundreds of thousands of workers who have left in favor of higher wages in urban areas. Parallel to this trend is the so-called "brain drain" of educated professionals such as doctors, lawyers and educators who move abroad for better pay, resulting in local deficiencies in numerous sectors.<br />
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So my goals for this year are to see "Learning Through Our Differences" through to its completion (and reapply for future funding, as well as disseminating information about its results across the country) and to study more Bulgarian! I keep getting frustrated with my lack of vocabulary when talking with colleagues and friends, but it's really up to me to stick with it and push myself to learn more.</div>
Sophiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05134778583025311467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1796712277025843882.post-41784976913976885822012-08-26T22:32:00.000+03:002012-08-26T22:32:32.005+03:00Searching for pre-war architecture in Warsaw<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
A little over a month ago I was in Warsaw visiting my relatives on my mother's side. I've been making pretty regular trips to Poland over the last several years, at least since I've been living in Eastern Europe. I wrote about my visits during my <a href="http://sophiainbulgaria.blogspot.com/2010/11/i-love-warszawa.html" target="_blank">first year</a> as an ETA in Pleven, again <a href="http://sophiainbulgaria.blogspot.com/2011/07/polish-breakfasts-will-be-end-of-me.html" target="_blank">that summer</a> as well as during <a href="http://sophiainbulgaria.blogspot.com/2011/11/all-saints-day-in-poland.html" target="_blank">the fall</a> of my second year. Over the course of these visits I have become more and more interested in my family history. And this time I got to do a little more research on putting together the puzzle pieces of that story.<br />
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My Polish grandfather was born in 1909 in a small town in the south called Częstochowa, most famous for its shrine to the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Madonna_of_Cz%C4%99stochowa" target="_blank">Virgin Mary</a> which is believed to have saved Poland from Swedish invasion in the 17th century. We don't know much about his life there because the family moved to Warsaw when he was still a young man. His father was an auto mechanic, I imagine a lucrative profession in the first decade of the 1900s. Back then Poland was still partitioned into three sections by the Prussian, Austro-Hungarian and Russian Empires. My great-grandfather used to travel to Russia often on business, but mysteriously disappeared on a trip there in 1914 at the onset of the First World War. His family never heard from him again and he was presumed dead, leaving his wife with four children to look after. After the war ended Poland was re-unified and became an independent country, but this was to be short-lived; in just over twenty years Nazi Germany would invade Poland and set off the beginning of World War II. At some point between the wars my grandfather's family moved to Warsaw, where they lived in an apartment on Puławska Street. I found the address on my great-grandmother's German identification document issued under Nazi occupation and while I was last in Warsaw my aunt and cousin took me to visit the building. We weren't even sure if it would still be there, but it was!<br />
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The exterior wasn't very remarkable (although it did have a fresh coat of paint, something lacking in most of the older Warsaw buildings outside of Old Town or New Town) and the ground floor on one side is currently occupied by a supermarket chain and a gym. One surprising detail was that there is a pharmacy which has been standing there since 1930. They even have a display case full of antique medical equipment. Going inside of the inner courtyard, however, was the biggest highlight. Tall, cream-colored walls surrounding curved balconies with wrought-iron railings and an open patio decorated with bright red geraniums awaited our discovery. Although I don't know the floor or apartment number where my family lived (or if the building has ever been remodeled or changed) it was still an exhilarating experience to stand there and imagine my grandfather walking into that building every day as a university student. </div>
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After finishing his degree as a mechanical engineer at the Politechnical University, my grandfather enlisted in the air force. Just a few years later he would become one of thousands of Polish airmen who fled occupied Poland to the United Kingdom, where they were incorporated into the Royal Air Force as a separate Polish division. I recently came across military archives from his service there and found out that my grandfather was promoted twice and awarded the Polish silver cross medal of valor. Due to political reasons he was never able to return to Poland permanently after the war. I also know that he didn't like talking about what had happened; it must have been difficult leaving his life and family behind. His mother actually died on Victory Day in 1945 without knowing the fate of any of her four children (one son had been arrested as a prisoner of war and summarily executed, another had joined the Warsaw underground resistance army and her daughter was also working with the underground). There are so many stories from that turbulent time that have probably been forgotten, but as I put together details and facts that I come across it makes me feel like I'm making our family story more complete. </div>
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On a related note, I also visited a former vodka factory that was recently converted into art galleries and loft space. It's located on the right bank of the Vistula River in the Praga District, one of the least damaged areas of the city after its destruction at the end of the war. You can still find old brick buildings left standing from the 18th and 19th centuries there, a rarity in a city that was made 90% rubble just over 60 years ago. The outside walls are covered in colorful graffiti, and inside the main building is a <a href="http://www.muzeumpragi.mhw.pl/mhw/index.jsp?place=Lead08&news_cat_id=493&news_id=2226&layout=7&page=text&lang=en" target="_blank">temporary exhibition</a> of old photos from Praga before the war. The Museum of Praga is temporarily located in the old Koneser factory until the original building (formerly a Synagogue) reopens after restoration. </div>
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Sophiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05134778583025311467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1796712277025843882.post-42535475759230212462012-08-19T20:20:00.000+03:002012-08-19T20:23:20.179+03:00New (and Old) Beginnings<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
This week I returned to the <a href="http://www.fisi-bg.info/" target="_blank">Fulbright International Summer Institute</a> as an alumna to share my experiences with the new group of English Teaching Assistants. Now that I've been in Bulgaria for two years, I keep thinking back to those <a href="http://sophiainbulgaria.blogspot.com/2010/08/zdravei.html" target="_blank">first couple of weeks</a> in Bansko: adjusting to life in a new place, making wonderful new friends, getting confused all the time by the language (oh wait, that still happens to me every day), and most of all being excited to learn about everything around me. I'm still just as curious as ever about everything Bulgarian, but things seem to move more slowly now. I feel comfortable here in Sofia, and I never would have imagined two years ago that I would be getting ready for yet another year of teaching in Bulgaria.<br />
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Meeting the new group of ETAs was a great opportunity to make acquaintances (hopefully many of them will come visit throughout the year!) and also to reflect on my time as a Fulbright grantee. I'm happy to have been able to share some of the best and worst parts of my tenure as an English Teaching Assistant, and I hope that through networking and sharing new experiences, this year's grantees will be even more successful in their projects. By the way, the topic of my presentation was "lesson planning and resources." I know that Maria promised to email all the presentation to the FISI group, but I wanted to also publish it here in case anyone else teaching English to high school students might be interested.<br />
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<a href="https://docs.google.com/presentation/pub?id=1JAlv1D1fvWB2y5QsAU0nnqbN0Ffj17wAktKGqfXJnZU&start=false&loop=false&delayms=3000" target="_blank">Fulbright ETA Orientation 2012</a><br />
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In the slideshow, I give a rough overview of what ETAs can do in the classroom, an example of a standard lesson plan, 12 activity plans and 9 links to helpful websites.<br />
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Now that I'm moving ahead and away from teaching high school, I wish the best of luck to anyone taking on the challenge of working with teens in the language classroom- especially the new ETAs working in Bulgarian foreign language schools. Have a wonderful school year!</div>
Sophiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05134778583025311467noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1796712277025843882.post-26619251656121056942012-08-03T17:16:00.001+03:002012-08-03T17:16:55.965+03:00Summer Update<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
A lot has happened in the past month or so. A lot of months have been like that over the last couple of years, in fact, but July 2012 was a particularly intense exception. I finished my last day as a Fulbright English Teaching Assistant at the end of June, attended the farewell party for U.S. Fulbrighters and Bulgarian Fulbrighters who are going to study in the States next year, and I left for Poland to visit my family in Warsaw for three weeks.<br />
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Staying with my relatives is always a relaxing experience (lots of reading, picnics and swimming in the river by their summer cottage), and once again I took a trip with my cousin to a new destination in Poland. <a href="http://sophiainbulgaria.blogspot.com/2011/07/polish-breakfasts-will-be-end-of-me.html" target="_blank">Last year</a> it was the Baltic coastal city of Gdansk, but this time we headed south for the Tatra mountain resort town of <a href="http://www.zakopane-life.com/" target="_blank">Zakopane</a>. While there I managed to check my email only rarely, but I did receive some startling and exciting news about my <a href="http://sophiainbulgaria.blogspot.com/2012/04/learning-through-our-differences.html" target="_blank">project</a>, ""Learning Through Our Differences" (working title). Several months ago I applied for a grant from the Open Society Institute, who agreed to fund my project!!! So I'm working hard on that (more updates to come).<br />
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I hope that everyone is having a sunny and restful summer! </div>Sophiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05134778583025311467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1796712277025843882.post-62012119073172584932012-06-10T15:27:00.000+03:002012-06-10T15:27:05.446+03:00Forget Your Past<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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On our recent <a href="http://sophiainbulgaria.blogspot.com/2012/06/earthquakes-road-trips-and-birthdays.html" target="_blank">road trip</a> through Central Bulgaria, Kiril, Laura, Sydney and I stopped off at what has become a popular off-beat tourist attraction: the space-like Bozludja monument near Shipka. This monument, built in 1981 to commemorate the founding of Bulgaria's communist party a century earlier, was once a proud symbol of the ruling government. Today, it sits crumbling atop the windy mountain where it was built over thirty years ago, and is very likely to fall apart completely if nobody steps in to preserve the structure.</div>
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Up until about a month ago, visitors could (illegally) enter the building because although there was a sign warning that the structure was unsafe, there was no lock on the gate. When we went there was a very sturdy lock and chain on the outside doors- comforting to me, because let's face it I am just not <i>that</i> adventurous. I'd rather not have pieces of ceiling tiles falling onto my head or breathe in the toxic asbestos that surely insulates the walls. Anyways, the building itself isn't very interesting, except that it looks like a giant spaceship perched on top of a hill. There's even a tail section with the socialist red star painted on either side. All of the letters on the outside are falling away, the roof is leaking and birds inhabit the upper floors. There is some graffiti scattered around the sides, but it's mostly just poorly drawn scribbles, with a few exceptions.</div>
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This message (intriguingly written in English- begs the question of who actually put it there) proclaims one current attitude towards the recent past. Or maybe it's supposed to challenge the complacency with which many choose to forget painful, although important, memories. One thing is certain: this structure has been forgotten by those in charge of its maintenance. Even the attempts to bar access are laughable at best- besides the aforementioned door lock, the only other effort to prevent people from visiting the monument is a road block with a warning sign. Taking a closer look, however, one sees the tire tracks where many cars have simply gone around the road block, onto the grass and back on the road again.<br />
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Whatever the future may hold for Buzludja, it is definitely a distinctive landmark for Bulgaria in more ways than one. If it wasn't for its remote location, I'd say it would make an excellent extension of the Sofia Museum of Socialist Art. For now, it's just another roadside attraction, although quite far off the beaten track.</div>Sophiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05134778583025311467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1796712277025843882.post-42587320275494431142012-06-10T09:54:00.000+03:002012-08-26T22:49:00.422+03:00Hiking Mt. Vitosha- Kamen Del<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
This year on May 1st, the international worker's holiday, I decided to get out of the city and go for a hike on Mt. Vitosha with Kiril and Elana. The mountain is one of the first things you notice when approaching the city, either with a car or by plane. It looms over the city, snow-capped in winter and vibrant green in summer, and has an almost magnetic pull for Sofia's outdoor enthusiasts. There are hundreds of trails and paths all around the mountain and and endless array of activities there, including horseback riding, skiing and soaking in the mineral-rich hot springs.<br />
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For hiking, there are lots of options. We chose to drive up to the <i>hija </i>(lodge) closest to <i>Kamen Del</i>, one of the most visible peaks from the city below. It's also one of the lower peaks- <i>Aleko</i> and <i>Cherni Vruh</i> are much higher up the mountain- but we didn't start early enough to summit either of those. On the way to Kamen Del you pass a natural rock formation called <i>Zlatni Mostove</i> (Golden Bridges) made up of huge boulders leftover from an ancient river. There are also waterfalls and caves scattered around the outskirts of the mountain.</div>
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Admittedly, the path we chose wasn't the most strenuous of hikes- there is a longer way to go starting from the Golden Bridges area, but we didn't have that much time. It took us about an hour or so to get from the lodge to the peak, and it was mostly a gradual climb; we moved through muddy forest, grassy field and rocky outcropping as we approached the peak. We were rewarded with a gorgeous view of the city below, and met two mountaineers who were attempting to summit every peak in Bulgaria, carrying the same flag around with them on every hike. </div>
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Now that the weather is getting hotter and the snow has mostly melted from the other peaks, I hope we can go back to the mountain soon and explore its other beautiful sites. There is a very famous trail in the Rila Mountains that traverses across seven mountain lakes- aptly named the Seven Rila Lakes. They're supposed to be breathtaking, although more difficult to reach, and weather is a huge factor there because the wind and rain can really ruin a hiking trip. Hopefully in the summer it will be warm and dry enough up there to go for a daytrip. There are almost too many places I still need to visit here in Bulgaria!</div>
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Sophiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05134778583025311467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1796712277025843882.post-3279719885768338332012-06-04T18:25:00.001+03:002012-06-10T09:27:08.662+03:00Earthquakes, Road Trips and Birthdays<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
The last several weeks have really flown by. One of my best friends from Seattle came to visit me here in Sofia, and we spent a few days traveling around the Bulgarian countryside in order to show her something more "authentic" than the busy atmosphere of the city. We also had a terrible shock when we were awakened one morning by a 5.8 magnitude <a href="http://www.novinite.com/view_news.php?id=139582" target="_blank">earthquake</a> and several smaller aftershocks. Growing up on the West Coast, we are both used to earthquakes happening every now and then. But usually when they happen at night, I sleep through the whole thing. This time it was a very shallow quake, and the epicenter was only 15 miles from Sofia. This made it nearly impossible to sleep through it (or fall asleep afterwards, for that matter).<br />
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More interesting than the earthquake was the road trip we took to the center of the country where villages and towns with architecture preserved from the 19th century sit nestled between the rolling green Stara Planina (Balkan) mountains. We stayed in Gabrovo, a town whose citizens are famous for their sense of humor and thriftiness and which is also conveniently located close to other interesting sites nearby. Only a few kilometers outside of town is the Etara museum complex, featuring an old mill, traditional shops, scarecrows, crafts and a very well-stocked sweet shop. We tried their specialty- kisses from Etara, two big white meringues filled with almond cream but decided against trying "Gabrovo chocolate," made out of prunes.<br />
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We also visited the monument at the Shipka pass- where a famous <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Shipka" target="_blank">battle</a> was fought during Bulgaria's war for independence from the Ottoman Empire. We drove up to the massive stone tower and climbed the steps, through the accompanying museum exhibits on the way up, to the top where we enjoyed an incredible view of the surrounding mountains. The clouds were gorgeous that day, and we could see all the way to our next destination, Bozludja- an abandoned communist party monument that sits on a hillside like a spacecraft waiting to return to the mothership (more about that in another post).<br />
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After the monument we visited a beautiful church in the town of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shipka_(town)" target="_blank">Shipka</a> before continuing along the mountain-hugging highway that connects the rose growing plain region with Sofia. Along the way we stopped in the town of Karlovo, one of two towns famous for its rose festival every June. I hope to go back there soon, if only to have lunch in the same place again. Prices are usually cheaper outside of Sofia (except for the Black Sea resorts) but not only was the food there cheap, it was also incredibly fresh and delicious. After stopping for lunch we continued on to Koprivshtitsa, another town famous for a battle fought (or at least started) there. Koprivshtitsa is also famous for its beautifully preserved old houses and idyllic setting in the mountains. We got there a bit later in the afternoon so there wasn't much going on, but we took some photos and began our return to Sofia through the windy mountain roads. I was ecstatic to see these horses grazing by the side of the highway, so we stopped there to take photos. I do love horses.</div>
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Side note- I turned 24 on May 23rd! I had a very relaxing day at the spa in Pancharevo (on a lake just outside of Sofia), hung out with some close friends and went to see a movie in the evening. It was extra nice because I had the whole week off school and didn't have to worry about work or deadlines or anything like that. Now we're in the final stretch of school, and while I'm sure it will just fly by as the last month has, June 29th seems too far away just now.</div>Sophiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05134778583025311467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1796712277025843882.post-87378463880056540342012-05-07T13:06:00.001+03:002012-05-07T13:06:48.426+03:00TED-Ed: Lessons Worth Sharing<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I've been a fan of TED Talks ever since learning about the program a little over a year ago. You may be familiar with Sir Ken Robinson's widely shared talk on <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zDZFcDGpL4U" target="_blank">changing educational paradigms</a>. This animated version was created by RSA, which has a <a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/theRSAorg" target="_blank">channel</a> on YouTube. RSA has several animated Ted Talks, making already stimulating subject matter more engaging with stop-motion hand-drawn cartoons to paint a mental image. I think that these are great to use with teenagers to start a discussion in class, and they have worked particularly well with English language learners aged 14 to 18. Another great RSA animate is Philip Zimbardo's "<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A3oIiH7BLmg" target="_blank">The Secret Powers of Time</a>"- it usually inspires a good discussion about understanding differences in perspective and the problem with stereotypes.<br />
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Another cool new project to come out of the TED program is TED-Ed, a <a href="http://ed.ted.com/" target="_blank">website</a> dedicated to sharing lesson plans based on short video lectures on various topics. One very cool new video explains two of Shakespeare's most famous insults (from Hamlet and Romeo and Juliet) and the importance of language used to create specific moods in literature. There are lots of other subjects, including science and technology, with lesson plans built in that feature comprehension and discussion questions, and extension activities with related content. There is even an option to "flip a lesson" when you register with the site. This way, teachers can modify and create their own versions of the lesson for videos they want to share with students. I love using videos and websites in class- if only we could make lessons like this every day!</div>Sophiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05134778583025311467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1796712277025843882.post-57728016578948311052012-05-05T17:21:00.001+03:002012-05-05T17:21:53.129+03:00May Day Weekend: Varna and Balchik<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
This week was shorter because of the four day vacation that extended through Tuesday, May 1st. May Day, or International Workers' Day, is officially celebrated in many countries around the world- but not the United States. From what I remember, this had something to do with a general fear of the popularity of socialism in the early 20th century. Americans celebrate Labor Day in early September.<br />
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But to get back to Bulgaria, we had a nice long weekend and I decided to take advantage of the gorgeous summery weather and visit my friend L in Varna, on the Black Sea.<br />
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It was a much-needed break. I am feeling a little overwhelmed by deadlines and the end of the school year quickly approaching with too many things to finish, so it was great to go to the beach and relax. I was joined by our friend A, who is also living in Sofia, which made the whole trip felt like one big extended sleepover party (fun!). We dipped our legs in the still-freezing water, worked on our tans/sunburns, enjoyed lots of delicious food (Varna has an amazing Thai restaurant and a sushi place, not to mention great seafood) and took a day trip to the botanical gardens in Balchik.</div>
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Here are L and A enjoying a beachfront meal of mussels, fried fish, calimari and beer.</div>
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The botanical gardens in Balchik are on the grounds of what used to be Romanian Queen Marie's residential palace. It was built during the interwar period when Southern Dobruja was under Romanian control. It is now part of Bulgaria, and the gardens are maintained by Sofia University. Fun fact: the queen's heart was buried in a special part of the gardens, but were transplanted to Bucharest after the region was returned to Bulgaria in 1940. </div>
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One of the most distinguishing landmarks of the palace is this minaret, which looks like what you would find attached to a mosque. This building, however, was neither designed as a mosque, nor has it ever been used as one. Apparently Queen Marie had<span style="font-family: inherit;"> it built as a symbolic gesture to the architecture of the region. She also professed her belief in <span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px; text-align: -webkit-auto;">Baha'ism, which explains the coexistence of Islamic and Christian symbols in this part of the complex.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px; text-align: -webkit-auto;">I returned to Sofia on Tuesday night feeling well-rested, but the rest of the week was a blur. I guess that happens when the working week is only three days long: you feel much more exhausted afterwards than you would normally! </span></span></div>
</div>Sophiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05134778583025311467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1796712277025843882.post-48525652377387403062012-05-02T17:09:00.003+03:002012-05-07T11:55:29.825+03:00Deaf Awareness Week<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Next week (May 7-13) will be Deaf Awareness week in the UK. I received an email today about the launch of an online platform for students and teachers to learn more about communication with deaf people, particularly teenagers: <a href="http://youngpeople.ndcsbuzz.org.uk/looksmilechat/deafawarenessweek" target="_blank">"Look, Smile, Chat"</a> aims to improve understanding and communication between deaf and hearing teens. I thought it would be an excellent topic to explore with my 8th grade students. Tomorrow morning, I will use parts of the lesson plan (available for free download <a href="http://youngpeople.ndcsbuzz.org.uk/looksmilechat/stuffforyou/ref:S4F69BBBA05F51/title:Lesson+Plans+for+Teachers" target="_blank">here</a>) to get students talking about and recognizing the steps everyone can take to improve communication with deaf people. The website has several videos which would also be very interesting to use as discussion starters for students of any age.<br />
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Because we don't have have access to a multimedia projector in the classroom, I printed worksheets out for students to complete in pairs with the "Mythbusters" section on deafness and an unlabeled diagram of the human ear. After working on the worksheets in pairs I will have students try to lipread short statements read silently by their partner. After that I will ask some of the pairs to act out everyday communication tasks, such as simple questions and praise, in front of the class without speaking to see how easily we can understand them without words. I also printed out four posters with tips about communication, and we will discuss these as a class, including how we can incorporate each of them into our everyday communication with others.<br />
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I am really excited about using these resources in the classroom and very thankful to the NDCS for making them available!<br />
<br /></div>Sophiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05134778583025311467noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1796712277025843882.post-26512393609261275862012-04-25T20:58:00.003+03:002012-05-01T22:06:51.730+03:00"Learning through our Differences" project- part two<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
This post tackles some basic information about my side project, including its goals, my ongoing research, some favorite resources and an example of one very successful tolerance education program I participated in years ago.<br />
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Here's a quick list of my goals and objectives for the project:<br />
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1. To help make schools safer spaces for both students and teachers through dialogue and mutual understanding<br />
2. To break down communication barriers, such as negative stereotypes, through hands-on activities that encourage critical examination of those barriers<br />
3. To challenge students to be more self-reflective as well as empathetic, tolerant and understanding towards others<br />
4. To develop a workshop curriculum, tailored specifically for a Bulgarian high school context, that can be further adapted for other contexts within the EU and the world<br />
5. To help organize a network of facilitators prepared to carry out these workshops in schools across the country<br />
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A large part of my work so far has been researching the best methods and activities from professional organizations committed to tolerance education. There are tons of similar programs out there. Corporate diversity training, for example, often uses the same activities I've been researching to create more open and inclusive work environments. When I was in college I remember doing some of these activities for a seminar class in a Living-Learning Community Program. There are plenty of online resources available for teachers who want to incorporate tolerance and multicultural understanding into the classroom.<br />
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Some of my favorite websites:<br />
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- <a href="http://www.edchange.org/multicultural/activityarch.html" target="_blank">Multicultural Education Pavilion</a> from EdChange (Paul C. Gorski)<br />
- <a href="https://wiki.uww.edu/other/diversitylearning/index.php/Main_Page" target="_blank">Diversity Learning Wiki</a> from University of Wisconsin Whitewater (they also have a list of published resources <a href="http://www.uww.edu/learn/diversity/diversitybib.php" target="_blank">here</a>)<br />
- <a href="http://www.tolerance.org/" target="_blank">Teaching Tolerance</a> at the Southern Poverty Law Center<br />
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The only problem I've had with these is that most of their activities are very US-centric. So using them will involve some serious editing and adaptation for Bulgarian high school students to benefit from.<br />
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I gave a presentation last week to a group of high school principals, teachers, English Teaching Assistants and Fulbright staff on the project and I showed a segment of this <a href="http://vimeo.com/30160046" target="_blank">documentary</a> from Dutch television called "Over de Streep." This was the first time that Challenge Day, a San Francisco-based youth program, came to Europe and you can read more about it <a href="http://www.challengeday.org/overdestreep/" target="_blank">here</a>. I actually attended Challenge Day when I was 13 at my middle school in Seattle. This program is particularly effective, and it's been around since 1987. I hope that what I can bring to Bulgarian schools with this project will also provoke discussion, awareness and understanding of differences in a similar way.</div>Sophiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05134778583025311467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1796712277025843882.post-28212509523532846432012-04-24T21:35:00.000+03:002012-04-24T21:35:17.288+03:00"Learning through our Differences" project- part one<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I wanted to dedicate a couple of posts to this project I've been working on for the past year. When I accepted my Fulbright grant in 2010, I had the intention of working on a side project in addition to my teaching responsibilities. Apart from my <a href="http://sophiainbulgaria.blogspot.com/2012/04/daycare-center-in-kazanluk.html" target="_blank">volunteer work</a> here in Sofia, I am now putting together grant proposals and meeting with local partner organizations and individuals to make this project a reality by the beginning of next school year.<br />
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"Learning through our Differences" is meant to address various problems with intolerance, bullying, name-calling and other issues in Bulgarian schools which I don't think are being discussed very often. In the past two years I have witnessed and heard about all sorts of incidents like these, from homophobic insults and racial slurs to actual violence or isolation from social groups. Like teenagers everywhere, Bulgarian high school students are susceptible to negative peer pressure and low levels of self-esteem. This leads to social anxiety, which can cause major behavioral problems (including self-destructive ones) in the long and short-term. I firmly believe that a sense of safety within the school community, backed up by a strong network of supportive adults and peers, is fundamental to assuring the emotional, physical and intellectual development of our students.<br />
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With that in mind, I am using existing models of tolerance, diversity awareness and community-building activities to adapt within the context of Bulgarian high schools for a series of one-day workshops with both students and educators as participants. I am lucky to have several contacts with years of experience in human rights education who have been kind enough to share their knowledge and also listen to me as I tried to formulate my ideas into a coherent plan. (THANK YOU!!!)<br />
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Stay tuned for more updates on the project, as well as example activities I plan to incorporate into the curriculum (still in the works, to be translated into Bulgarian for the final phase of the project). If you want to know more, or have a friend who might be willing to collaborate in either the planning or implementation of the workshops, please contact me at sophillarosa@gmail.com.<br />
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<br /></div>Sophiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05134778583025311467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1796712277025843882.post-63384046966968884932012-04-17T20:42:00.000+03:002012-04-17T20:42:37.572+03:00Honey, please!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Bulgarian honey is a <a href="http://www.novinite.com/view_news.php?id=137802" target="_blank">big business</a> for the small, family-run honey producers across the country. It's also extremely delicious, healthy and 100% organic and pesticide-free. Honey is a natural sweetener, antibiotic and immunity booster. The best places to buy honey are from the local producers in outdoor markets (there is at least one of these in every Bulgarian town). When I lived in Pleven I used to buy honey from the Iliev family beekeepers, and enjoyed learning about the health benefits of honey from one of the owners. I even brought home some samples of different types of honey to share with family and friends over the holidays.<br />
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Here in Sofia there are lots of markets where you can buy honey, and plenty of shops selling it along with other honey-related products (natural soaps, wax candles, tinctures, etc.). You can find pretty decent honey at the grocery store, but this removes the added experience of meeting the producer. A more interactive option just arrived this week: the <a href="http://www.agro.bg/events66/article29364.html" target="_blank">"Week of Honey"</a> exhibition. I happened to be passing by the Central Baths on my way home from work when I noticed the white tents and different vendors selling all kinds of honey products. There were lots of different types on offer: linden, lavender and herbal bouquet varieties to name but a few. I bought my honey this time from beekeepers in Razgrad, in the northeastern part of the country. I had the option of buying the clarified version or the raw, unfiltered kind that looks solid and milky rather than syrupy. I decided to go with the advice of the vendor and bought the crystallized raw one, and it is certainly yummy! The "Week of Honey" is also happening in 9 other places around Bulgaria, through this Saturday.<br />
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<img src="http://radiosofia.bnr.bg/shows/current/sofia-dnes/PublishingImages/149/12-04-16-92141_1.jpg" />
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Sofia's "Week of Honey" Exhibition at the Central Baths (photo <a href="http://radiosofia.bnr.bg/Shows/Current/Sofia-dnes/Pages/17.04.12_Med.aspx" target="_blank">credits</a>).</div>
</div>Sophiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05134778583025311467noreply@blogger.com3