my life as a gossip, or how i am destined to become a baba

people talk in a small town, they say, and oh do they talk here. i guess i've always grown up being slightly ashamed of my affinity for gossip, though it has provided me with many good friends who also enjoy it. i suppose i just didn't expect that my finely honed skills of listening, observing, and then talking would be so useful in such a provincial setting, but it is. even without understanding everything, i get the jist of who people are talking about, and sometimes, even what they are doing and what everyone thinks about it. nothing escapes the gaze of the people in this town, or at least, the babas generally make sure that it doesn't go unnoticed. i love this sense of interconnectedness, but more honestly, i just love the gossip. in bulgarian it's "bloo bloo bloo" (blah blah blah), or, the sound that chickens make. amazing; even in bulgaria i'm still a biddy.

i can finally dance like a white girl

you might be able to guess that even after a few weeks my communication skills are more than lacking. my most effective tactic has become repeating what the person says, and generally agreeing. sometimes this means that i end up on long field trips, often to places i don't know and with people i've never met. more than a week ago i thought i was going to bed but instead ended up a large family/friend gathering across the street at the chitalishte (community center). the daughter of a family had finished high school and now was her time to celebrate her accomplishment, semi- 1980's prom style.

the dj was a friend of my host sister from Vratsa and it didn't take long til i was up dancing the Horo with everyone in the room (a good thing that they covered this subject in the first days of traning). after the traditional music was turned off i thought i'd be off the hook, but oh no. some pop/electronica came on and once again was roused to dance. generally i try to look cool while dancing, slightly dissinterested maybe but definetly rhythmic and smooth. what a surprise, as i looked around i found that none of these attributes were expected of me! ladies and men were slowly bopping to the music, dancing as we might call it in the US, like white people. finally! i don't have to pretend to be a good dancer anymore.


pop beats from the streets,