Emilija writing...
We didn't have to go to the center yesterday, so the kids were really excited to see us today. Because it was going to be one of our last days here, we wanted to plan extra special activities for them. We decided that it would be really fun to make home-made ice cream, which we could freeze and eat later. We bought milk, sugar, and vanilla sugar (they don't have vanilla extract here), and let the kids mix it all together to their liking. We put the soon-to-be ice cream in little cups, put it in the freezer, and went on to start our next activity.
Beforehand, we had organized a scavenger hunt list, which ranged from running to the soccer field, making little popsicle stick houses, running around the center acting like birds, and taking pictures of a stork's nest. The kids LOVED it! They were free to run around, be wild, and just have a lot of fun. Even the kids who normally don't participate with us were just as into it as the others.
Aurimas, one of the older kids, decided to show us how to make bee's wax candles. We really enjoyed that some of the kids helped us make them and even made some for us. All three of us probably made about 5 candles, not including the ones that were given to us. Not only are the candles cute, but they're also fun and easy to make.
After eating our usual lunch, we brought out the ice cream that we had made earlier in the day. It had not frozen all the way, and kinda just looked like soup. The ice cream had turned out too sweet, but most of the kids finished off what they were given anyways.
As we were washing the dishes in the kitchen, Remigijus thought that it would be funny to start squirting us with a spray bottle. It quickly escalated into a water fight, ending with us all being soaking wet. (After a long hot day, we just couldn't resist getting him back.)
After we came home from the center, we decided to go to our host family's garden and pick some fresh strawberries. There were rows and rows of beautiful strawberries and we picked about 2 buckets full of them (there probably would have been more, but we ate a lot while we picked). As we were picking the strawberries, Silvija stopped by and took us to see a dam. Even though the dam was gorgeous, we couldn't spend a lot of time there because it was getting late. I think we might have lost track of the time because the sun set A LOT later here (it could be 11 p.m., but it feels like 7). When we got back, we went straight to bed because we're going to have to get up early tomorrow.
We're sad because tomorrow is our last full day here, and we really don't want to leave yet. Labanaktis!
Friday, June 26, 2009
Thursday, June 25, 2009
All grassy fields lead to the Basilica
Andryte writing...
The past few days have been eventful yet exhausting. Yesterday, Tuesday, we took an 11 km (about 7 mile) hike with the kids to a chapel on a hill called Panų Kalnas. We hiked for approximately 3 hours as we sang Lithuanian folk songs (it turns out we know more than the locals), took lots of pictures (at least the kids did...), and observed the beautiful nature of rural Lithuania. The day before we had made little crosses, so we carried them with us on our pilgrimage. When we finally arrived at our destination, we squeezed into the tiny yet beautiful chapel. According to legend, several women had been buried alive in that area as they hid from Swedish soldiers. A chapel and many crosses have been built in their memory. We carefully placed our crosses alongside the icons, paintings, crosses, and other religious items. We said several prayers and then left to set up our picnic lunch. Our adult supervisor roasted hot dogs over a bonfire as a religion teacher led the kids and us in a series of activities. We played games, relaxed, ate, and enjoyed ourselves for about four hours before a bus came to drive us back to the center. We were exhausted, so thank goodness we didn't have to walk all the way back! The kids were kind enough to walk us home once again.
As we had been hiking, our new friend Ieva invited us to join her and her family at a huge celebration of Jonines (Feast of St. John and a pagan midsummer celebration) by a lake near Zemaiciu Kalvarija. When we finally got home from Panų Kalnas, we got ready for a night of fun. When we got there, w set up our tent for two and set out to find Ieva's family. We found them all right, setting up a HUGE tent (it could probably fit about ten people). Luckily they had room for the four of us, so we didn't have to squish into our tiny shelter. We then set out to the lake, where we wove ourselves wreaths from flowers and various grasses. We ended up wearing these wreaths for most of the night. As we came back to our campsite, we saw a huge bonfire being lit and tons of people dancing Lithuanian folk dances near the blazing fire. We ran to join them, dancing most of the night away. We learned several new folk dances and danced some that we already knew. It was an incredibly fun way to meet new people and celebrate. We went to sleep as the sun began to rise (at 3:30 a.m.). The next morning we were exhausted but really happy to have participated in such a traditional and energy-filled event.
As soon as we got home this morning, the three of us went directly upstairs to sleep for a few more hours. Our host family then invited us to join them for lunch, so we ate delicious chicken and vegetables. We then set out on an exploratory walk during which we picked ground berries (žemuoges) and enjoyed relaxing among grassy fields. We made sure that we always had the Basilica in sight in case we got lost. At one point, I think we accidentally left Zemaciu Kalvarija. Our friend Silvija then invited us to her house, so we walked home and quickly made ourselves scrambled eggs for dinner before leaving for her house. We spent several hours showing each other pictures and chatting.
Tomorrow we'll be at the center again with the kids, so it's time for us to catch up on some sleep. Labanaktis!
The past few days have been eventful yet exhausting. Yesterday, Tuesday, we took an 11 km (about 7 mile) hike with the kids to a chapel on a hill called Panų Kalnas. We hiked for approximately 3 hours as we sang Lithuanian folk songs (it turns out we know more than the locals), took lots of pictures (at least the kids did...), and observed the beautiful nature of rural Lithuania. The day before we had made little crosses, so we carried them with us on our pilgrimage. When we finally arrived at our destination, we squeezed into the tiny yet beautiful chapel. According to legend, several women had been buried alive in that area as they hid from Swedish soldiers. A chapel and many crosses have been built in their memory. We carefully placed our crosses alongside the icons, paintings, crosses, and other religious items. We said several prayers and then left to set up our picnic lunch. Our adult supervisor roasted hot dogs over a bonfire as a religion teacher led the kids and us in a series of activities. We played games, relaxed, ate, and enjoyed ourselves for about four hours before a bus came to drive us back to the center. We were exhausted, so thank goodness we didn't have to walk all the way back! The kids were kind enough to walk us home once again.
As we had been hiking, our new friend Ieva invited us to join her and her family at a huge celebration of Jonines (Feast of St. John and a pagan midsummer celebration) by a lake near Zemaiciu Kalvarija. When we finally got home from Panų Kalnas, we got ready for a night of fun. When we got there, w set up our tent for two and set out to find Ieva's family. We found them all right, setting up a HUGE tent (it could probably fit about ten people). Luckily they had room for the four of us, so we didn't have to squish into our tiny shelter. We then set out to the lake, where we wove ourselves wreaths from flowers and various grasses. We ended up wearing these wreaths for most of the night. As we came back to our campsite, we saw a huge bonfire being lit and tons of people dancing Lithuanian folk dances near the blazing fire. We ran to join them, dancing most of the night away. We learned several new folk dances and danced some that we already knew. It was an incredibly fun way to meet new people and celebrate. We went to sleep as the sun began to rise (at 3:30 a.m.). The next morning we were exhausted but really happy to have participated in such a traditional and energy-filled event.
As soon as we got home this morning, the three of us went directly upstairs to sleep for a few more hours. Our host family then invited us to join them for lunch, so we ate delicious chicken and vegetables. We then set out on an exploratory walk during which we picked ground berries (žemuoges) and enjoyed relaxing among grassy fields. We made sure that we always had the Basilica in sight in case we got lost. At one point, I think we accidentally left Zemaciu Kalvarija. Our friend Silvija then invited us to her house, so we walked home and quickly made ourselves scrambled eggs for dinner before leaving for her house. We spent several hours showing each other pictures and chatting.
Tomorrow we'll be at the center again with the kids, so it's time for us to catch up on some sleep. Labanaktis!
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Covered in Paint
Vija writing...
Okay, so if you've been following our blog, you've probably noticed that we haven't posted anything lately. That's because we accidently used up our host family's internet minutes. It's not as bad as it sounds - that "free, password-less" internet that I wrote about a few posts ago...yeah, that was their internet. The thing is, our host family didn't even know that their minutes were limited, and they didn't know that htier internet was out there for anyone to use. We had told them we were using some free wireless we had found, and they assumed it was a neighbor's. Needless to say, we apologized and even gave them some money. (They now have unlimited internet access, so we'll be writing our blog regularly.)
Also, we spend this weekend by the beach. Lithuania has gorgeous beaches by the Baltic Seas, with lots of sand dunes. We stayed with Emilija's and my relatives who had rented our a vacation apartment near Palanga (The California or Florida of the U.S.). Our relatives have two girls (ages 2 and 4), so we didn't actually get a break from kids for the weekend, but it was still nice to take some time off.
Over the past few days, we've started to really get to know Zemaiciu Kalvarija - not just its pretty outer shell. We found out more about the kids and their individual situations and how they affect them. Also, the past few times that we have taken the kids outside to play soccer, basketball, or dodgeball (their favorite game at the moment), we have seen drunk men. While we urgently herded them away from the scene, the kids seemed completely unphased, and some of the boys even approached the men and swore at them. This is really distrurbing to us, and we feel like it's only a small glimpse of what really goes on here.
The more time we spend with these kids, and the longer we stay here with the locals, the more we notice how poorly people look upon and treat these kids. We know that they mignt not act like the angels they are to us towards other people, but we definately think that they are underappreciated here. There have been several occasions where people have blatantly put them down for minor reasons.
Today, we came to the center just as the church bells rang to announce one o'clock. There was already a small group of kids on the steps, waiting impatiently for one of the center supervisors to unlock the door. Other than the small group we met at the door, not many other kids came today. We each made a cross that we are going to bring to a chapel tomorrow. (We're going on an 11 km hike with the kids tomorrow...not really sure what to expect.) :) Vygantas, one of the youngest kids here, decided to paint his cross with drops of blue, acrylic (non-washable) paint. He ended up getting his entire sweater dirty four times! Andryte just stayed in the kitchen for about 15 minuts, as he went back and forth - getting his sweater covered in paint, and then getting it washed. The kids found this as amusing as Emilija and I did.
On the 20th, Marija celebrated her 13th birthday, so we decided to give her a present of our own. We carefully selected several small things that we thought she would appreciate, like a necklace, a mini dreamcatcher (aciu t. Mirga), and pencils for writing us letters once we leave. We also wrote her a very nice card, on which Andryte drew her guardian angel. :)
Nothing else very eventful happened today. (Although, we've noticed that some of the younger boys who used to eye us playing on the basketball court have started to come to the center -- which thrills us.) By now, we've become very tired, and the day felt especially long for some reason, so we only played dodgeball for a little bit after we left the center.
When we came home, we made ourselves our regular dinner of pasta and sauteed vegetables, and then went for an exploratory walk around Zemaiciu Kalvarija by ourselves. We didn't just want to see the pretty views it has to offer, but also some of its poorer areas. Thankfully, we didn't get lost, and we got a chance to pick some groundberries along the way. :)
Right now, we're going to finish making all of the kids' personalized bracelets so we can give them to them soon.
Okay, so if you've been following our blog, you've probably noticed that we haven't posted anything lately. That's because we accidently used up our host family's internet minutes. It's not as bad as it sounds - that "free, password-less" internet that I wrote about a few posts ago...yeah, that was their internet. The thing is, our host family didn't even know that their minutes were limited, and they didn't know that htier internet was out there for anyone to use. We had told them we were using some free wireless we had found, and they assumed it was a neighbor's. Needless to say, we apologized and even gave them some money. (They now have unlimited internet access, so we'll be writing our blog regularly.)
Also, we spend this weekend by the beach. Lithuania has gorgeous beaches by the Baltic Seas, with lots of sand dunes. We stayed with Emilija's and my relatives who had rented our a vacation apartment near Palanga (The California or Florida of the U.S.). Our relatives have two girls (ages 2 and 4), so we didn't actually get a break from kids for the weekend, but it was still nice to take some time off.
Over the past few days, we've started to really get to know Zemaiciu Kalvarija - not just its pretty outer shell. We found out more about the kids and their individual situations and how they affect them. Also, the past few times that we have taken the kids outside to play soccer, basketball, or dodgeball (their favorite game at the moment), we have seen drunk men. While we urgently herded them away from the scene, the kids seemed completely unphased, and some of the boys even approached the men and swore at them. This is really distrurbing to us, and we feel like it's only a small glimpse of what really goes on here.
The more time we spend with these kids, and the longer we stay here with the locals, the more we notice how poorly people look upon and treat these kids. We know that they mignt not act like the angels they are to us towards other people, but we definately think that they are underappreciated here. There have been several occasions where people have blatantly put them down for minor reasons.
Today, we came to the center just as the church bells rang to announce one o'clock. There was already a small group of kids on the steps, waiting impatiently for one of the center supervisors to unlock the door. Other than the small group we met at the door, not many other kids came today. We each made a cross that we are going to bring to a chapel tomorrow. (We're going on an 11 km hike with the kids tomorrow...not really sure what to expect.) :) Vygantas, one of the youngest kids here, decided to paint his cross with drops of blue, acrylic (non-washable) paint. He ended up getting his entire sweater dirty four times! Andryte just stayed in the kitchen for about 15 minuts, as he went back and forth - getting his sweater covered in paint, and then getting it washed. The kids found this as amusing as Emilija and I did.
On the 20th, Marija celebrated her 13th birthday, so we decided to give her a present of our own. We carefully selected several small things that we thought she would appreciate, like a necklace, a mini dreamcatcher (aciu t. Mirga), and pencils for writing us letters once we leave. We also wrote her a very nice card, on which Andryte drew her guardian angel. :)
Nothing else very eventful happened today. (Although, we've noticed that some of the younger boys who used to eye us playing on the basketball court have started to come to the center -- which thrills us.) By now, we've become very tired, and the day felt especially long for some reason, so we only played dodgeball for a little bit after we left the center.
When we came home, we made ourselves our regular dinner of pasta and sauteed vegetables, and then went for an exploratory walk around Zemaiciu Kalvarija by ourselves. We didn't just want to see the pretty views it has to offer, but also some of its poorer areas. Thankfully, we didn't get lost, and we got a chance to pick some groundberries along the way. :)
Right now, we're going to finish making all of the kids' personalized bracelets so we can give them to them soon.
More bracelets!!
(Emilija writing...I wrote this on a Word document Thursday night when we couldn't connect to the internet...we're only getting a chance to post it now.)
We woke up and made ourselves a delicious breakfast of eggs, which filled us up enough to skip oiur usual school lunch. We decided to just eat with the kids at the center.
After a chaotic day with the kids at the center, we decided that we needed a more structured and oragnized afternoon. We had the entire afternoon planned, even with backup activities if needed. We thought it would be smooth sailing from there...guess not.
We decided to go to the center early, to prepare examples of a craft we were going to do with the kids today. Instead of going to the center at one (like we usually do), we got there at about 12. The kids usually arrive at one, which is when all of the activities start. We were only in the center alone for a good 10 minutes, when we heard footsteps pounding up the stairs. What was going on?? In the next few seconds, we saw a bunch of kids happily running at us. We were confused as to why the kids were here so early. After we finally calmed them down, we got the kids to sit down and help us prepare anything we needed for the upcoming hours.
Because there were many new kids today, we introduced them to the art of friendship bracelet making. They worked on those bracelets for about 5 hours!! Some kids didn't even do any other projects today, even though we had other activities lined up for them. Because some got bored of making bracelets, we had the opportunity to start another one of our projects. We showed the kids how to make frames out of colorful popsicle sticks - it turned out to be a success!
Some of our 10th grade friends came, and invited us to join in on one of their Ateitininku meetings. We talked a little about our organization in Chicago, and they discussed their previous and upcoming year. After that, they joined us and helped out with the kids. (Actually, they sat there and made bracelets with them.)
After we finally put the bracelets away and ate, the kids, once again, wanted to go outside and play with us. We went to the basketball court and played dodgeball until it started raining. After the local kids walked us home, we made a delicious "spaghetti" dinner (noodles, sauteed tomatos and onions, and LOTS of garlic.) We're finally starting to get the hang of making nutritious and tasty meals.
We have to go pack now because we're going to the beach tomorrow with some of our relatives. We're really excited, and we hope to get some good weather for the trip!
We woke up and made ourselves a delicious breakfast of eggs, which filled us up enough to skip oiur usual school lunch. We decided to just eat with the kids at the center.
After a chaotic day with the kids at the center, we decided that we needed a more structured and oragnized afternoon. We had the entire afternoon planned, even with backup activities if needed. We thought it would be smooth sailing from there...guess not.
We decided to go to the center early, to prepare examples of a craft we were going to do with the kids today. Instead of going to the center at one (like we usually do), we got there at about 12. The kids usually arrive at one, which is when all of the activities start. We were only in the center alone for a good 10 minutes, when we heard footsteps pounding up the stairs. What was going on?? In the next few seconds, we saw a bunch of kids happily running at us. We were confused as to why the kids were here so early. After we finally calmed them down, we got the kids to sit down and help us prepare anything we needed for the upcoming hours.
Because there were many new kids today, we introduced them to the art of friendship bracelet making. They worked on those bracelets for about 5 hours!! Some kids didn't even do any other projects today, even though we had other activities lined up for them. Because some got bored of making bracelets, we had the opportunity to start another one of our projects. We showed the kids how to make frames out of colorful popsicle sticks - it turned out to be a success!
Some of our 10th grade friends came, and invited us to join in on one of their Ateitininku meetings. We talked a little about our organization in Chicago, and they discussed their previous and upcoming year. After that, they joined us and helped out with the kids. (Actually, they sat there and made bracelets with them.)
After we finally put the bracelets away and ate, the kids, once again, wanted to go outside and play with us. We went to the basketball court and played dodgeball until it started raining. After the local kids walked us home, we made a delicious "spaghetti" dinner (noodles, sauteed tomatos and onions, and LOTS of garlic.) We're finally starting to get the hang of making nutritious and tasty meals.
We have to go pack now because we're going to the beach tomorrow with some of our relatives. We're really excited, and we hope to get some good weather for the trip!
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Balloons - our best idea yet.
Andryte writing...
The kids were absolutely NUTS today. We started off our day early to go to the kids' end of the year awards ceremony/performance. We were late and cranky because my coughing fits had kept us up all of last night (Emilija finally gave me Niquil to keep me quiet). We saw some of our friends receive awards and before we knew it we were back at the children's center - EXTRA early...some of the kids were already waiting for us. The center supervisor had invited her tenth grade homeroom class to the center to have some cake (because tenth graders get recognized at the end of the year). We spent some time getting to know them and then were left to our insane group of kids.
I'm really not even sure what happened today at the center...I just know that it was crazy and pretty out of control. The same art teacher had the kids make decoupages once again. It seems
like they have been doing this same type of art project for quite a while. Not everyone could do the project at the same time, so there were lots of kids on the loose. We amused them by playing the piano, taking out Twister, teaching them how to play the flute (Vija brought her old one), and leading them in a game of Pictionary with clay. The kids loved the game at first but because they had to wait so long for their turn to come along, they got bored. So then, we had the BRILLIANT idea of bringing out the balloons. They were the long ones that can be shaped into animals. At first we just gave them to a few kids to keep them occupied. A balloon then popped and fifteen others raced upstairs. It was CHAOS. Everyone was begging for more balloons and asking us to shape them into all sorts of animals. The constant squeaking and popping of the balloons seemed to really stress out the art teacher. Eventually most of the balloons popped and we stopped blowing more up.
The kids finally calmed down. Vija herded them all into one room and we played with a few of the kids at a time...Emilija and I played chess and checkers with Aurimas and Vija took out her flute once again. By the time everyone was ready to leave we were EXHAUSTED. Today we learned an important lesson. In order to avoid utter chaos, we need at least a little bit of structure. Today we had too many things going on. Tomorrow we plan to have a more detailed schedule and to take the kids outside for a bit so that they aren't as energized when we return to the center.
We were planning to make our own dinner, but our host family had already prepared some chicken noodle soup for us. It was delicious, but we were still a little hungry so we experimented with bread, butter, and garlic, eventually making fried bread with a butter-garlic dipping sauce...not much of an experiment but it was very tasty.
Now it's time to take some Niquil and go to sleep. Labanaktis!
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Hi class, we're from America.
(Vija writing...)
After we had eaten our lunch at the school, we went to the main part of town to wait for the President of Lithuania - Valdas Adamkus (Dalia Grybauskaite hasn't been inaugurated just yet). The street slowly filled up with impatient onlookers. A coach bus even brought a bus-load of "tourists" from a neighboring town. When the president finally arrived (he was a bit late) we caught a glimpse of him going into the basilica....and on his way to lunch, he waved to us! :) Hoping that we would get yet another chance to see Presidentas Adamkus, Andryte, Emilija, Ruta, Silvija (one of the girls who showed us around on our first day) and two of her friends and I sat on the sidewalk between the basilica and the parish center. While we were waiting, a photographer from Plungės news took a picture of us....basically looking like bums on a sidewalk. :)
When we realized that we probably weren't going to get another chance to see the president, we decided that it was time to go home and relax. At home, we were calmly making some friendship bracelets for ourselves and the kids at the center, when we heard a loud buzzing noise. I looked up to see an enormous wasp fly into our room through our open window. The wasp was really about 2.5 inches long....and pretty scary. However, because it's so big, maybe it's more intelligent than most insects, because it soon found its way out. The weather was gorgeous today and we wanted some fresh air, so thought we could avoid more encounters with unwanted visitors by closing the window halfway. After having to catch/release about 5 more bees (smaller ones) in the next hour, we decided to close the window all the way.
Later today, we were told that a group of students from the other side of Lithuania had come to Zemaiciu Kalvarija to sightsee and that our host dad was going to be their guide. We were invited to come along with them, and we ended up going on a little field trip to the birthplace and resting place of a famous Lithuanian poet (Macernis). Once again, when we got on the bus, we received strange looks from the new students, but we're getting used to it. "Hi, I'm Bronius, and I have three Americans with me today. Emilija (wave), Andryte (wave), and Vija (wave)." Sometimes, we even feel like we're famous! (We don't feel like that every day in America.) :)
After we got back from our little "excursion" (as they called it), we hung out with Ruta, Silvija, and her friend Tadas. There wasn't much to do, so we just sat on a public lawn and hung out for a bit, until a girl from the "excursion" asked if she could join us. After a while, Silvija and Tadas decided to show us around Zemaiciu Kalvarija some more, so we got a chance to see some beautiful nature again. We also picked some wild strawberries (zemuoges!), saw a stork in its nest, climbed some hills (ZK is known for being hilly), and walked through an evergreen forest to a beautiful field. By 9:30 the sun was finally starting to set and the temperature was steadily dropping, so we split up and went home (where we had some nice, hot tea, fresh strawberries, and homegrown cucumbers with homemade honey - delicious!)
Tomorrow, we have been invited to see a special end-of-the-year performance of all the "best" students in the school. We heard that students will be singing, dancing, and showing off other, various talents. (Earlier, our host family had suggested that we also perform - but it doesn't look like that's going to happen...) :)
Iki rytojaus!
Monday, June 15, 2009
Liux
Emilija writing...
After a pretty boring weekend, we woke up and got ready to start another week with the kids. Because the president is coming to Zemaiciu Kalvarija tomorrow, we weren't allowed to go into the center because they were cleaning it. Instead of playing games with the kids inside, we were told to hang out with them outside.
We went to their school's stadium and played soccer for about an hour. After that, we had a picnic outside on the top of a very windy hill. We ate some bread, sausage, cookies, and tomatoes, along with some orange juice. Even though it was a simple lunch, it was very filling.
We then played basketball on half of a court (the other half was taken up by a local flea market) and some local kids joined us in
our game. After getting our butts kicked by some 10 year olds, we decided it was time to start playing dodgeball. Ohh wait...we got out butts kicked in that game too :( When we first saw them, they looked tiny and innocent, but once they started whipping the ball at us, we quickly changed our minds. We switched between basketball and dodgeball until it was time for the kids to go home. As al
ways, the local kids walked us home.
When we got home, we went to the grocery store and bought ingredients for our delicious and very cheap dinner. It cost us only about $1.50 each!! We bought 2 carrots, one tomato, garlic, an onion, and some rice. It was phenomenal (even our host family liked it!). Even though I spilled some (maybe it was a little more than some..) unground black peppers into the pan, it still tasted pretty good. Because it was our first time making our own real dinner, we're still thinking of ways to make it even tastier.
Our host family also asked us to make them an American meal. Our thoughts so far include onion rings, hamburgers, chicken parmesan, and brownies for dessert. If you have any suggestions, please let us know. We would really appreciate it. Just keep in mind that our supplies here are really limited and we can't make a lot of traditional American dishes.
Our host mom teaches an English class at the local school and invited us to come to her class on one condition: we can only speak English to the students. It's going to feel really weird because we try to speak Lithuanian amongst ourselves, and we don't speak English to anyone else here. Even though we're kind of nervous, we're excited to meet some people our age!
We need to get some sleep because we have a big day tomorrow: speaking to some kids AND possibly meeting the president of Lithuania!!
Sunday, June 14, 2009
Charging up for another week
Andryte writing...
Bronius, and Ruta for mass. The mass lasted 2 hours and the church was freezing, but the experience was worthwhile. We sat with the choir in the balcony (Vija actually sang with them, sitting in the front by herself), so we could hearthe singing first hand and see the entire church from a distance.
After an exciting yet exhausting week with the kids, we spent our first weekend here at Zemaiciu Kalvarija mainly catching up on sleep. Yesterday (Saturday) I woke up sick (probably because of our freezing hikes, sleep deprivation, and exhausting work with the kids). I ended up sleeping for all but 2 hours that day. During those two hours of consciousness, I consumed maybe twenty cups of tea. Today I feel much better :)
As I slept through all of Saturday, Vija and Emilija enjoyed watching our host family collect honey from their bee hive. They filled about twenty jars of honey that day! We got to chew on delicious honey comb (left-over wax with honey) at lunch that day.
Today, Sunday, we woke up early and walked to the basilica with Milda,
Bronius, and Ruta for mass. The mass lasted 2 hours and the church was freezing, but the experience was worthwhile. We sat with the choir in the balcony (Vija actually sang with them, sitting in the front by herself), so we could hearthe singing first hand and see the entire church from a distance. We walked home in the rain and pretty much hung out at home, charging up for another week with the kids. We can't wait to see them again tomorrow!
Saturday, June 13, 2009
I don't wanna be tough. Man šalta.
(Vija writing...)
This morning, we actually had to wake up when the 7 o'clock church bells rang - we had to get ready for our field trip! :) Like we mentioned before, our host dad Bronius took us with his 8th graders to Plateliu Lake and an abandoned soviet military base nearby.
We ate our meager breakfast of bread with butter (we're not very confident cooks...even though Emilija supposedly watches the food network, and promises some sauteed veggies for dinner sometime...) and then quickly left for the school with Ruta, our host sister. The four of us, not having looked at today's forecast and only depending on how the weather looked at the moment, wore capris and t-shirts. Turned out that we were the ONLY people not prepared for the cold, rainy, and windy weather. I swear it was sunny and warm this morning!!
As we crossed the street to the mini bus, we saw about 15 pairs of eyes staring at us...examining us foreigners. I guess we're still not used to being "new." :) We first drove to the Zemaitija National Park where we were lead through some museums, and then we saw the old military base, which apparently, when it was still armed (with four atomic bombs), could blow up almost any major city in Europe. (Oh, and our guides ALL spoke in the local dialect, which, again, we have a lot of trouble understanding.)
The entire time, we were freezing. We had come completely unprepared - without long pants, umbrellas, or shoes that repel water (Emilija even decided not to wear socks because she thought they'd look tacky....I guess socks with capris just don't go. The best part is that she had socks AND and umbrella in her purse the whole time.) Every time we thought we were done being outside in the bitter weather, it turned out that we were going on another "mini" hike to see another "amazing" lake. We'll admit that the views were amazing, but seriously, we had perpetual goosebumps, our teeth were chattering the whole time, and I'm amazed none of us lost a toe to frostbite. The bus driver (who was actually really nice) mentioned that he had gone the day before, and the weather had been gorgeous. Thanks a lot. At one point, some of the 8th grade girls kept pushing their teacher to take them on MORE hikes to see MORE things...and basically just torture us more. At that point, Andryte mentioned that she thought that they were trying to look tough, to which Emilija responded (through chattering, but gritted teeth), "I don't wanna be tough. Man šalta. (I'm cold.)" What she said basically sums up the entire field trip. Oh, and before actually ending up at home, we made three more stops (when we had been told we were going straight back).
The school is right next to the children's center, so we quickly ran inside after we had been dropped off, to let the kids know that we were going home to eat lunch and change into some warm, dry clothes. We were told that Ruta's aunt was preparing lunch for us at home, but it turned out that the soup was only going to be ready in the next couple of hours...sooo...we drank some tea, and took some bread to go.
As soon as we walked into the kids' main room upstairs, all of their faces lit up and they ran to greet us. Did we mention that we're absolutely in love with them? Lucky for us, we ended up eating a small, warm lunch with the kids. Straight after eating, someone suggested we play a game of soccer, er, I mean futball, at the school's field. With half of us never really having played futball before (me and Andryte included), the game was really interesting, to say the least. Although, to their credit, a couple of the smaller girls, Aušra and Marija, really got into the game and played the entire time. :) The game lasted over an hour (no breaks)...and the kids still wanted to keep playing! I couldn't believe it, because we really had played an intense game.
I then suggested that we play STOK (SPUD, but in Lithuanian). The kids loved it, and we played that game for a good hour, too, until the sky really looked like it was going to rain. When we came back to the center, the kids were still really riled up, so we promised them a new game if they promised us to relax for 5 minutes. (I guess it's pretty obvious who really needed a break at that point...those kids never run out of energy.) After they all sat down and calmly listened as Aurimas played around on his guitar, we brought out a homemade game that some Lithuanian 7th and 8th grade girls had made especially for them in Chicago. Because there are no such things as "jelly beans" in Europe, the girls had decided to make the game one in which the point was to guess the flavors of the candies. The kids had a BLAST. I've never seen kids have so much fun with a board game!
After everyone decided that they didn't want to finish the game today so that they'd have enough jelly beans to play another round another day, Twister was brought out (again). By this time, the kids somehow had gotten really rowdy, and the room we were in really echoed...and I was teaching Aurimas how to play piano. It was pure chaos. Jonas hit his brother Remigijus, who hit him back, and then decided to tease poor little Aušra. The Twister spinner fell apart and needed to be fixed (again). Vygantas was running around with one of our cameras and the flash was blinding everyone. It was getting pretty close to time to go home, but all of the kids were still in "play mode."
I swear, these kids have the most energy in the world. After spending the whole afternoon with us, they still wanted us to come play a game of basketball with them - so we promised them an extra half-hour with us...which easily turned into an hour and a half, but we didn't mind. Like I said, we're in love with these kids.
The local kids walked us home, as usual, and we reluctantly said goodbye - it was kind of a sad goodbye, because we're only going to see them on Monday! (Two whole days are going to feel like an eternity! Hopefully, we'll see some of the kids at church this Sunday.) Speaking of church, we really don't have any other plans this weekend besides going to mass. We're kind of in the middle of nowhere... :) (We don't mind, though.)
Oh, and some people were wondering how we get internet access in such a rural area. Actually, Zemaiciu Kalvarija is pretty developed - especially the school. But to tell you the truth, I found some wireless internet that didn't require a password here at home (sweet!!) ...but it looks like something happened to it around 12 am, so I wrote this blog on a word document, and I'm using our host family's computer to post this right now. (It doesn't look like that free internet is going to come back...)
This morning, we actually had to wake up when the 7 o'clock church bells rang - we had to get ready for our field trip! :) Like we mentioned before, our host dad Bronius took us with his 8th graders to Plateliu Lake and an abandoned soviet military base nearby.
We ate our meager breakfast of bread with butter (we're not very confident cooks...even though Emilija supposedly watches the food network, and promises some sauteed veggies for dinner sometime...) and then quickly left for the school with Ruta, our host sister. The four of us, not having looked at today's forecast and only depending on how the weather looked at the moment, wore capris and t-shirts. Turned out that we were the ONLY people not prepared for the cold, rainy, and windy weather. I swear it was sunny and warm this morning!!
As we crossed the street to the mini bus, we saw about 15 pairs of eyes staring at us...examining us foreigners. I guess we're still not used to being "new." :) We first drove to the Zemaitija National Park where we were lead through some museums, and then we saw the old military base, which apparently, when it was still armed (with four atomic bombs), could blow up almost any major city in Europe. (Oh, and our guides ALL spoke in the local dialect, which, again, we have a lot of trouble understanding.)
The entire time, we were freezing. We had come completely unprepared - without long pants, umbrellas, or shoes that repel water (Emilija even decided not to wear socks because she thought they'd look tacky....I guess socks with capris just don't go. The best part is that she had socks AND and umbrella in her purse the whole time.) Every time we thought we were done being outside in the bitter weather, it turned out that we were going on another "mini" hike to see another "amazing" lake. We'll admit that the views were amazing, but seriously, we had perpetual goosebumps, our teeth were chattering the whole time, and I'm amazed none of us lost a toe to frostbite. The bus driver (who was actually really nice) mentioned that he had gone the day before, and the weather had been gorgeous. Thanks a lot. At one point, some of the 8th grade girls kept pushing their teacher to take them on MORE hikes to see MORE things...and basically just torture us more. At that point, Andryte mentioned that she thought that they were trying to look tough, to which Emilija responded (through chattering, but gritted teeth), "I don't wanna be tough. Man šalta. (I'm cold.)" What she said basically sums up the entire field trip. Oh, and before actually ending up at home, we made three more stops (when we had been told we were going straight back).
The school is right next to the children's center, so we quickly ran inside after we had been dropped off, to let the kids know that we were going home to eat lunch and change into some warm, dry clothes. We were told that Ruta's aunt was preparing lunch for us at home, but it turned out that the soup was only going to be ready in the next couple of hours...sooo...we drank some tea, and took some bread to go.
As soon as we walked into the kids' main room upstairs, all of their faces lit up and they ran to greet us. Did we mention that we're absolutely in love with them? Lucky for us, we ended up eating a small, warm lunch with the kids. Straight after eating, someone suggested we play a game of soccer, er, I mean futball, at the school's field. With half of us never really having played futball before (me and Andryte included), the game was really interesting, to say the least. Although, to their credit, a couple of the smaller girls, Aušra and Marija, really got into the game and played the entire time. :) The game lasted over an hour (no breaks)...and the kids still wanted to keep playing! I couldn't believe it, because we really had played an intense game.
I then suggested that we play STOK (SPUD, but in Lithuanian). The kids loved it, and we played that game for a good hour, too, until the sky really looked like it was going to rain. When we came back to the center, the kids were still really riled up, so we promised them a new game if they promised us to relax for 5 minutes. (I guess it's pretty obvious who really needed a break at that point...those kids never run out of energy.) After they all sat down and calmly listened as Aurimas played around on his guitar, we brought out a homemade game that some Lithuanian 7th and 8th grade girls had made especially for them in Chicago. Because there are no such things as "jelly beans" in Europe, the girls had decided to make the game one in which the point was to guess the flavors of the candies. The kids had a BLAST. I've never seen kids have so much fun with a board game!
After everyone decided that they didn't want to finish the game today so that they'd have enough jelly beans to play another round another day, Twister was brought out (again). By this time, the kids somehow had gotten really rowdy, and the room we were in really echoed...and I was teaching Aurimas how to play piano. It was pure chaos. Jonas hit his brother Remigijus, who hit him back, and then decided to tease poor little Aušra. The Twister spinner fell apart and needed to be fixed (again). Vygantas was running around with one of our cameras and the flash was blinding everyone. It was getting pretty close to time to go home, but all of the kids were still in "play mode."
I swear, these kids have the most energy in the world. After spending the whole afternoon with us, they still wanted us to come play a game of basketball with them - so we promised them an extra half-hour with us...which easily turned into an hour and a half, but we didn't mind. Like I said, we're in love with these kids.
The local kids walked us home, as usual, and we reluctantly said goodbye - it was kind of a sad goodbye, because we're only going to see them on Monday! (Two whole days are going to feel like an eternity! Hopefully, we'll see some of the kids at church this Sunday.) Speaking of church, we really don't have any other plans this weekend besides going to mass. We're kind of in the middle of nowhere... :) (We don't mind, though.)
Oh, and some people were wondering how we get internet access in such a rural area. Actually, Zemaiciu Kalvarija is pretty developed - especially the school. But to tell you the truth, I found some wireless internet that didn't require a password here at home (sweet!!) ...but it looks like something happened to it around 12 am, so I wrote this blog on a word document, and I'm using our host family's computer to post this right now. (It doesn't look like that free internet is going to come back...)
Thursday, June 11, 2009
Skanaus tiems kurie valgo, neskanaus tiems kurie nevalgo...
(Emilija writing)
Happy 18th Birthday to me!!
I woke up this morning to find about 20 birthday cards lying all around my bed. There were little notes written from some of my Lithuanian friends wishing me a happy birthday! I even cried a little..
We woke up late so we didn't really have to eat a big breakfast. After eating lunch at the school, we headed to the center to start setting up for our day with the kids. Since there was no school for the kids because of senior exams, not a lot of kids showed up at the center. The first thing they did when they got to the room was make me birthday cards! We then taught them how to make friendship bracelets, and they were amused for the next two hours! They also fell in love with our digital cameras. We have the most random pictures right now (Vygantas took pictures of the tiles on the floor). Since there was not a lot of kids, we really got to know the ones that were there.
Vygantas - The most lovable but crazy first grader we have ever met. He's the same one that only speaks to us in the local dialect. We're starting to understand him a little more today :) He loves being with us, taking a lot of pictures, and is a very quick learner (his friendship bracelet was one of the best today).
Marija - She's Vyganto sister, but they are very different. She's much quieter but still very lovable. She's very artistic and acts like a mother to her wild little brother. She's become pretty attached to us and has started coming out of her shell. She's one of the girls that the supervisor is the most proud of!
Remigijus - He should be a child model! He has the sweetest, most genuine smile, but it shows how big of a trouble maker he is. Today after he finished eating his snack, he said to everybody, "Skanaus tiems kurie valgo, neskanaus tiems kurie nevalgo!" In English, it translates to, "Good eating to those who are eating, bad eating to those who are not eating!" It was really funny, but you probably had to be there..
Jonas - The brother of Remigijus. He has a tough exterior (haircut included), but is really a sensitive kid on the inside. It seems like he really wants to participate in the activities, but is trying to keep a tough guy appearance. He's one of the younger, but more mature kids at the center.
Agota - She is the most attached girl at the center, which may be due to her social and learning disabilities. Even though she's in 8th grade, she acts almost like a 5th grader. She's very lovable and eager to please us. She even bought me a bracelet and made me a little wallet for my birthday!
Ona - She's one of the older girls who really tries to help out with the younger kids. We think she might also have a learning disability, but that doesn't keep her from participating in all the planned activities. She even wrote me a nice and heartfelt birthday card.
Silvija - We were warned beforehand that she is the quietest girl in the entire center. She sometimes refuses to talk, but still fully participates in whatever we are doing. She's starting to get used to our presence and is even nodding or shaking her head in response to our questions. When were playing Twister (the kids' favorite game), she was laughing and having a really good time with the other kids!
Aurimas - He is the best mannered, most helpful, and spends a lot of time at the center. Because he's older, he is always offering to help us and the other kids. Everyone at the center really looks up to him and tries to follow his good examples. The first day, he even helped Andryte deal with some of the unruly younger boys. We are so grateful for his presence!!
Ausra - She has the cutest curly hair in the world, the most gorgeous doe eyes, and a very beautiful singing voice. Also, she's only about 9 years old.. We've never heard anybody giggle SO much during the game of Twister! She's grown attached to Vija, but finds a way to talk to everyone at the center. We were really disappointed that she wasn't at the center today, but we still had to talk about her.
Julius - He's the gamer of the group even though he's only 8 years old. He made me one of the most creative and artistic birthday cards (it was shaped as a heart). Even though he doesn't socialize with us that much, he's a genuinely sweet kid.
Zilvinas - He's a fellow volunteer (17 year old) who travels about 11 km. to get to the center everyday. He really helps out by helping the kids with the computer, preparing the snacks, and helping the kids clean up after themselves. He even went out and bought ice cream for my birthday to share with all the kids. Even though he doesn't talk, we can tell that he has a good heart.
We hung out with some of the local kids from the center, and they took us to see their beautiful church. We even got to go the balcony where the choir sings. We also met the priest who showed us around. They showed us their soccer field and little playground.
We went to the grocery and bought our daily carbs (bread and butter). As a birthday special, we even bought some noodles!! The noodles, butter, and two loaves of bread only cost about $4. It was a GREAT deal!
Overall, today was a good day and we had a blast with the kids. We can't wait until tomorrow because we're going on a field trip with our host dad and his geography class. We'll let you know how it goes tomorrow...
PS - It's after 10 right now, and the sun hasn't fully set yet!
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Meeting the kids...
Andryte writing...
Hello again from Zemaiciu Kalvarija! Today was eventful because we finally had the chance to meet the kids. This morning we woke up to the sounds of church bells ringing (and me snoring :/). At ten a.m. we headed to the school and met the head of the center who is also the school's psychologist. The school was small but homey. We were surprised to hear that students from first through twelfth grade attended the school. She offered us tea (of course) and then we discussed our responsibilities at the center. We then headed to the lunch room, where we ate traditional Lithuanian food (they offered us soup, a large meal, and something to drink - our first warm meal here!). We ate by ourselves because everyone seemed scared of us outsiders. They would walk in, see us, and quickly run away.
After we ate we went to the center where we were asked to organize a huge bookshelf/cabinet of random crafts, paper, many candles, and even a microscope. As we turned the room upside down, two boys (who claimed to be 18 and 19 years old but, as we later found out, were 16) walked in and introduced themselves as Mantas and Tadas. We talked about sports, music,and a variety of other topics. They asked us to compare real high school life to what they have seen in movies. They left us to our work as soon as kids started arriving.
Approximately twenty kids trickled in over the next few hours. We introduced ourselves and socialized with some of the kids while waiting for others to arrive. While we were waiting, I played a boy in checkers...I was losing but the game was fun until several boys talking to me disrespecfully and swearing at me. They were testing my limits, so I cut the game short, we cleaned up, and let the supervisor know what had happened.
We gathered in another room where a teacher came in to lead the kids in a craft. We cut out images from napkins and glued them onto cups and plates (decoupages). We then decorated them with gold and silver paint. The results looked pretty cool :) We then sang a prayer and ate (some of the kids had helped a volunteer make casserole).
It was our turn to formally introduce ourselves (although many of the kids had left on the bus). We played an ice-breaker memory game in which everyone said their name and something that they like, starting with the first letter of their name. (For example, I said "My name is Andryte and I like arklius (horses)"). I had a little bit of trouble remembering some of the relatively difficult names.
We then split up into two groups and played Trouble and Twister, two games which we had brought. The kids absolutely LOVED these games (especially Twister). They finally came out of their shells and laughed a lot, so we really had a chance to bond. Some of the little girls have already attached themselves to us :)
We can communicate with most of the kids because they speak in normal Lithuanian, but one kid named Vygantas doesn't understand that we don't understand ANYTHING he says. That's how different the two dialects are. He tells us intense stories and asks us millions of questions, so we ask him to repeat himself and have other kids translate. Sometimes we find ourselves just smiling and nodding. Our goal for the end of the trip is to understand what Vygantas is trying to tell us.
We love ALL of these kids so much already...some even walked us home to make sure we didn't get lost on the one main road in Zemaiciu Kalvarija. They are so incredibly sweet but we know that their lives are more complicated than they show. We're looking forward to befriending them and hopefully leaving a positive impact.
We just came back from a three-hour tour with our two new friends - Agne and Silvija. They showed us the best views in Zemaiciu Kalvarija and told us all about their local customs, classmates, and social lives. We showed them Vija's pictures of Dainava (our Lithuanian summer camp), but they were more interested in her pictures of prom and school events.
Today was an eventful day, but now we're ready to go to sleep. Labanaktis!
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
Off to Žemaitija!
(Vija writing...)
Labas from Žemaičių Kalvarija!
This morning, Emilija and I woke up especially early (7:30), compared to our normal, relaxing 8:30 or 9 wake-up, to get ready to leave the capital, Vilnius, to the small, small town of Žemaičių Kalvarija (approx. 800 people). We made the three-hour trip accompanied by Andryte and her two sisters, Lija (15) and Liuce(10), Liuce's friend, Nida(11), and Andryte's mom and grandmother (no ages needed) (We think that the adults had a blast bonding with our van driver, who apparently is from the same region of Lithuania as Andryte's grandmother...they really hit it off.)
When we reached the first cafe, we all piled out of the van, and got the biggest table at the restaurant. We really looked like a huge family :) Having eaten a delicious, traditional Lithuanian lunch, we only had to drive 20 minutes to reach our home for the next three weeks.
We got the grand tour of the children's day center, at which we'll be working, right when we arrived. The kids were a bit apprehensive to talk to us, but we're sure that will change as soon as we start work tomorrow. Of course, we couldn't have left without having been served some tea and fruit (they even washed our bananas!). (Emilija and I have stopped counting the number of cups of tea we have been served after it reached 50)
Later, we were introduced to our host family - Milda, Bronius, and their college-aged daughter Rūta. I was especially happy to meet the animals of the house - a German shepherd named Nika, and a cat named Eura!
Because we're responsible for most of our food here, Rūta took us grocery shopping at some local grocery stores. We bought Lithuanian bread, butter, jam (my choice), tea (fruit for Andryte and Emilija...black for me), juice, and some peaches. It was fun to be able to take a short walk from our house to the center of town. Everything is so localized here - we love it already!
Here in this north-western part of Lithuania, they speak in almost an entirely different language, which most native Lithuanians claim to have trouble understanding...we've heard a bit of it spoken here, but people can speak to us mostly in traditional Lithuanian.
We spent a good two hours getting to know our host family - we sat in their spacious livingroom, discussing school systems and general schooling issues (both parents are local teachers), the Lithuanian community abroad and how we uphold Lithuanian traditions, the differences between our countries, and our plans for the upcoming weeks -- and even plans for our futures. After we got on the topic of music, they learned of our various musical talents and asked us to perform at an upcoming school event :) ...we're in trouble... ;)
We really like our host family, and the town is quaint but gorgeous (it was even voted the prettiest village in Lithuania!) We can't wait for tomorrow, when we'll get to meet the kids!
(We'll put pictures up as soon as possible!)
Labas from Žemaičių Kalvarija!
This morning, Emilija and I woke up especially early (7:30), compared to our normal, relaxing 8:30 or 9 wake-up, to get ready to leave the capital, Vilnius, to the small, small town of Žemaičių Kalvarija (approx. 800 people). We made the three-hour trip accompanied by Andryte and her two sisters, Lija (15) and Liuce(10), Liuce's friend, Nida(11), and Andryte's mom and grandmother (no ages needed) (We think that the adults had a blast bonding with our van driver, who apparently is from the same region of Lithuania as Andryte's grandmother...they really hit it off.)
When we reached the first cafe, we all piled out of the van, and got the biggest table at the restaurant. We really looked like a huge family :) Having eaten a delicious, traditional Lithuanian lunch, we only had to drive 20 minutes to reach our home for the next three weeks.
We got the grand tour of the children's day center, at which we'll be working, right when we arrived. The kids were a bit apprehensive to talk to us, but we're sure that will change as soon as we start work tomorrow. Of course, we couldn't have left without having been served some tea and fruit (they even washed our bananas!). (Emilija and I have stopped counting the number of cups of tea we have been served after it reached 50)
Later, we were introduced to our host family - Milda, Bronius, and their college-aged daughter Rūta. I was especially happy to meet the animals of the house - a German shepherd named Nika, and a cat named Eura!
Because we're responsible for most of our food here, Rūta took us grocery shopping at some local grocery stores. We bought Lithuanian bread, butter, jam (my choice), tea (fruit for Andryte and Emilija...black for me), juice, and some peaches. It was fun to be able to take a short walk from our house to the center of town. Everything is so localized here - we love it already!
Here in this north-western part of Lithuania, they speak in almost an entirely different language, which most native Lithuanians claim to have trouble understanding...we've heard a bit of it spoken here, but people can speak to us mostly in traditional Lithuanian.
We spent a good two hours getting to know our host family - we sat in their spacious livingroom, discussing school systems and general schooling issues (both parents are local teachers), the Lithuanian community abroad and how we uphold Lithuanian traditions, the differences between our countries, and our plans for the upcoming weeks -- and even plans for our futures. After we got on the topic of music, they learned of our various musical talents and asked us to perform at an upcoming school event :) ...we're in trouble... ;)
We really like our host family, and the town is quaint but gorgeous (it was even voted the prettiest village in Lithuania!) We can't wait for tomorrow, when we'll get to meet the kids!
(We'll put pictures up as soon as possible!)
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