Next Week I'll be Official!

Next week at this time I will be an official Peace Corps Volunteer, so that's an exciting thought. Training is winding up, I've had my language test, and really, all that is left for me to do is pack up my belongings and bid farewell to my wonderful host family.

The bus comes to collect us from our training site Monday morning. My host family will be working, so they can't see me off; however, grandma and grandpa will be there, so I'll have people to wave to dramatically as the bus pulls away.

The thought of grandma and grandpa host family taking me and my MANY MANY bags to the bus is funny to me. First of all, there is the fact that I have MANY MANY bags. Even more bags then I first came to country with because Peace Corps has given us tons of language books, training manuals, health binders, health kits, the list goes on and on. Monday morning it will be me and the 'ol grandfolks and that might be a little awkward. Even though I can usually get the gist of things that are being said to me, for some reason, when it comes to my babushka, I cannot understand a damn work. I always just end up staring at her in a daze. She must think I'm dim because after all this time, I still can't communicate with her. Oh well, at least I know how to say good-bye and thank you. She can understand that I'm sure.

I'm nervous and excited about this next big phase. My regional manager called me last week and told me that (thankfully!) I won't be living with the crazy woman I stayed with on my site visit. She's still interviewing families and she doesn't know for sure where I'll be living as of yet, but it won't be with the crazy bitch. That's what she was. I never blogged about her, but suffice to say, she was a crazy bitch: only speaking to me in English, always correcting me, telling ME when I was saying things wrong, laughing at my Ukrainian and worst of all, always making classict and racist remarks. I was scared I was going to be stuck with her, but thankfully, God answers prayers.

I'm in the Peace Corps office right now. I had the medical office check out my ear because it has been hurting for over a week. There is no infection, but my ears are constantly popping like I'm under water and it's really no fun. I'm on more meds, but thankfully there is no need for antibiotics. The doctor thinks I'm allergic to the dust in the down pillows and sheets that I'm sleeping with at my host home. She said she's going to send me to site with a synthetic pillow and blanket. More to lug, but hopefully I won't be allergic to Bar too.

Well, that's all for now. Next time I write, I'll be an official volunteer. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! I love and miss you all.

I've been to the Russian Sauna

Today I went to a Russian Sauna and had what ammounts to the experience of a lifetime. Hours later, I am still in shock. The Sauna experience was shared with my clustermates Christa and Sean and my language instructor Olena, though really, it was Christa, Olena and I who shared the most. We shared it all because we bared it all.

The sauna was in the home of a middle-age Russian couple. The four of us went around eleven in the afternoon. The Russian couple had a seperate log building that housed the sauna and its various facets.

To begin with, I had no idea what to expect. I thought that I would wear my swimsuit, perhaps drap a towel over myself and enjoy some intense heat. Instead I ended up naked, being beaten by Birch branches, slathered in a sourcream and salt body scrub, beaten with Birch leaves again and then washed --that's right washed-- from head to naked toe by a half naked Russian woman. It was to say the least, a crazy cross-cultural

Our first stint in the Sauna was co-ed. I was wearing my swimsuit bottoms and a towel. It was steamy and incredibly hot and I sweated like a pig. Our second stint in the Sauna was ladies only. This is when the Russian woman offered to beat us with the Birch leaves to give us the full, Russian Sauna experience. Christa and I went into the Sauna and laid down on our towels, both of us still wearing our bathingsuit bottoms, which we were promptly told to remove. Then the Russian woman made the Sauna extremely hot and steamy and started beating us with the Birch leaves. She started at our feet, moved up our legs, beat our bare butts, our backs. She did this for a few steamy, hot minutes and then she had us flip over. She beat our naked front sides, and at one point she shoved the birch leaves into our faces, smothering us, and told us to breath deeply.

Our third stint in the sauna involved a sourcream-salt scrub slathered all over our bodies. It smelled awful and made me sweat like I didn't know I could sweat. The Russian woman beat us again, lightly this time. After our third stint in the sauna, we went into another room where she had use lie down and she washed us. I mean, she got a sponge and soap and washed us head to toe, front side and back side. It was rather bizaar; nobody has given me a good cleaning like that since I was wee.

I didn't expect to be so naked today, and really, I'm still kind of in shock. My muscles are incredibly relaxed and I feel like the toxins have indeed been beaten out of my body, so it was worthwhile, especially since now can say I've been to the Russian Sauna.