First Week in Romania

It has been a week since I left the US to come to Romania. Here are a few highlights from the past few days:

I arrived in Bucharest on Tuesday, but my neither of my suitcases did. Since I had packed several days worth of clothing in my carry-on, this really wasn't a problem. In fact, it turned out to be a blessing. The airline delivered my bags directly to Sighişoara, so I did not need to take them with me on the train!

I spent the first 2 days in Bucharest with the Nazarene missionaries there - Michael & Tamara Hudson, and their three daughters. They also recently returned to Romania, so we were able to discuss potential ministry opportunities. While in Bucharest, I was also able to attend the Blessings Church of the Nazarene for Wednesday evening prayer meeting.

On Thursday, I took the train to Sighişoara (about 5 hours from Bucharest) and got settled in with the Romanian host family with whom I will be staying for the next couple months.

On Saturday, I spent the majority of the day in the orientation session for the American students who have come to Sighişoara to study for the semester through the Romanian Studies Program. I will continue to participate in their orientation the next few days. This semester's group of students is the largest in the history of the Romanian Studies Program (since 1994) -- 12 students. (I first came to Romania as a student with the Romanian Studies Program in 2001.)

On Sunday, I attended church here in Sighişoara in the morning and then went to the church in Ţigmandru in the evening. It is good to reconnect with people I have not seen in 5 years.

In many ways it does not feel strange to be back here at all. In fact, it feels like I've been away for only a few weeks. My Romanian language skills have come back almost completely, and I look forward to starting language classes in a week or so. Right now I am especially enjoying the tastes of Romanian foods I haven't eaten in several years.

I don't plan to post a summary every week of what I've done. I posted this since it is my first week and I'm just getting settled.

The view when I leave the house in the morning: