One week. Countless memories. Here are some numbers that tell some of the story of #TurulMoldovei2016 - a volunteer tour throughout Moldova intent on promoting libraries, literacy, and volunteerism.
Nine of us made the journey together, supported by countless others.
The seven PCVs involved represented all four sectors of Peace Corps Moldova: Small Enterprise Development (Adrin Vargas, Daniel Crofoot), Community & Organizational Development (Chris Flowers), English Education (Hillary Vargas), and Health Education (Israel Collier, Sandra Woodruff, & Rebecca Lehman)
Veaceslav Guzun and Dorin Țîbîrnă, both from Sîngerei, joined the tour through their connections with EcoVisio.
We had planned to do 150 km primarily on foot. Days of downpours and last-minute housing cancellations helped us flex our flexibility muscles and we changed up our plans. In the end, we covered a whole lot more distance with a whole lot less walking.
One of the most memorable aspects of this journey will be the ever-present mud. Moldova’s soil is reknowned internationally for its richness. We now have a new layer in our personal relationship with the land.
We ventured into many parts of Moldova on this excursion!
For me, the most rewarding travel was what we did on foot. We met people in every village we stopped in. We were the first Americans many had met in person. We introduced many people to Peace Corps Moldova and gave resources to hopefully help them get Volunteers in the future. We made personal connections and lasting memories at each stop.
All of the travel was driven by the Story Hour programs we held in four different cities. We partnered with Novateca (a national organization working to modernize libraries in Moldova) to develop the program, find resources and donations, and set up the appointments. These provided a great way to get to know the cities and to meet great people!
In preparation for the tour, three of us participated in a Story Hour Master Class hosted by Novateca. Through this, we learned that there is so much more to promoting literacy through Story Hours than just sitting down and reading a book to silently listening children. With the help of Novateca and their connection with a master storyteller, we developed a robust bilingual program with stories, song & dance routines, and yoga.
Of course we packed a selfie stick!
Working together makes everything better. Three groups came together for this tour to happen: Peace Corps Moldova through its volunteers and support staff; Novateca through their network and resources; EcoVisio through its community work. Many thanks to all who made this amazing week possible!
