I'm hanging out in Sofia for just a few hours to take care of some medical and administrative fun things. Terrible bus ride in. It involved seven hours next to a chubby person who kept complaining about lights being on and never slept. Also, after a fun-filled Halloween weekend (I wore a kilt!) not sleeping more than a couple of hours on a crowded bus is not the way to get me going for the week.
Fortunately, I have Monday off, which explains my being in Sofia. There's a holiday of some kind that's just for teachers and students. Everybody else still has to work. Hardy har har, I say. it's about time. Peace Corps office gets American and Bulgarian holidays off. It's about time I get some holiday payback.
Ummm, details though, people like details. Well, Friday afternoon I had to do to Silistra's police station. It's always disconcerting when the house staff at the school runs up to you, urgently hands you a note from the police, and says they haven't the slightest idea what it's about. I spent the whole day pondering, and it turns out it was a pretty basic thing. You see, the case of my missing GSM is now being thoroughly covered by both Silistra and Sofia. Silistra even has a folder on it and I was on the other side of the country when the thing was stolen. There are at least two detectives trying to track down my secondhand Motorola, and I, sadly, can't give them too much help, not having the serial number they seem to so desperately want.
That was what my meeting with Silistra's detective was about, the serial number. He wanted to know if I'd found it yet, and after I said no, he and I hammered out a letter for the file and for Sofia on his ancient Goldstar word processor. He was certainly nice, all "zapoviadiete"s and "priyaten den"s, and he had a fascinating office. On one wall were these two yellowed maps. One was a giant map of the Balkans that charted each of the battle during Russia's war with the Ottoman Empire over Bulgaria's freedom. I actually learned a couple of things about the war just sitting there. There was also a map, posted high above shelves, of the world with CCCP front and center and big as life. East Germany was there too, and the U.S. was shoved far to the left, in a tiny corner. The map was torn and old, but it gave the room and the meeting a James Bond feel that I had fun with.
Later on that night, the first phase of Halloween Party: Silistra began in our local "jazz" club Infinity, where the local cover band was unveling their new singer. 12 years old and she looks and sounds 20, and the numbers sound alike in Bulgarian so I went through about five minutes thinking she was just a spritely little twenty year-old. She's scary good and was belting, absolutely belting American classics until 2 or 3 in the morning. She actually managed to triumph over a bad soundcheck, which is something the band always struggles with. Their singers have a tendency to disappear. And here she was at 12. Absolutely incredible.
A lazy Saturday melted into an early observation of Halloween. I, as noted, was wearing a makeshift kilt. The other Americans present were in a Harry Potter get-up and pajamas. The partying Bulgarians were also into it. There was a "rich villager" (A guy in dark shades and a bad, gray suit), a statement against Che Gueverra from a guy dressed as Che Gueverra, a pirate or two, and several things that I just never figured out. It was a good time, we all had our fill of food and drink, and went home happy.
And a long, Daylight Savings Sunday later brings us to Monday, where the weather, as it always is when I'm in Sofia, could be a little bit better. Oh well, I'm heading home in the afternoon. Tomorrow's a big test day that I have to gear up for.
Posted by Rob at November 1, 2004 11:16 AM