Slept 11 hours last night, had some delicious turkish coffee... training is going well!

We'll see you later, Boston...

Last 7 days:
Many sad goodbyes (work, church, family)
200 lbs. of our stuff packed & airplane-ready
Both of our last days of work this side of the ocean
Filling up on as much Mexican food as we can
Last road trip (no more driving! yay!)
LOTS OF EXCITEMENT

Formula for this next week:
2 days in Virginia
+ 2 days in the Carolina's
+ 2 days in Philly/NY
+ 1 Lufthansa Flight
= Sofia, Bulgaria!

We'll miss you, Boston... until next time!

Randall: Top Reasons to do something like this

We are so close to leaving I can taste it! That is, if I knew what Bulgaria was going to taste like...

1. Exploring. Bulgaria is a place that most people can't name an associated food, city, or mountain. When we get there, we will be able to explore an amazing place.
2. Variety. America is nice and safe and boring. Everything is sterile and fake. This is a nice place to live, but not forever, not constantly. We are going to get so much of that famous spice of life.
3. Learning. Very similar to exploring. We get to learn a new way of thinking. A new way of looking at people. A new way of approaching relationships. What did you learn today?
4. Beauty. Part of variety is beauty. When you live somewhere it becomes less beautiful. When you go somewhere new, you see more beauty in ordinary things. I want to see (and photograph) that beauty.
5. Avoid the rats (at least the racing ones)! I hate sitting in traffic for 2 hours every day, let alone the bad days when I sit in twice that. I look forward to reading on a bus or walking or riding a bike to work. Exercise built into my day will make me healthier and wiser (hopefully)!
6. Making a difference. I know that that is a little nebulous, and is hard to measure, but I would love to help people live an abundant life.
7. Time with my wife. I hope that we will have more time together without the rat race.
8. Experience a different way of looking at Christianity. I'm excited about finding a church to participate in and I hope that it gives me another perspective on my faith that I'm missing out on. Jesus was a middle eastern person and Paul was from Tarsus. I would love to experience a little more of eastern Christianity.

There you have it, my top reasons for volunteering in free association order (not importance). What are your reasons for staying? You make that choice every day you stay and it's probably more to do with inertia than with the reasons. Think about them and stay for your reasons and not because of inertia. You may end up being a more thankful and happy person when you know why you are where you are.

Bulgaria's Independence Day

Here's to Bulgarian nationals today, their Independence Day.  

They were liberated from the Ottoman Empire by the Russian Army, with support from Bulgarian volunteer forces and the Romanian Army, and the Treaty of San Stefano on March 3rd, 1878.

The more we learn about this country, the more we respect so much of what they choose to implement and stand for.  Though Bulgaria has a long way to go (don't we all?), they have come a long way since their 3rd-Empire Independence in 1878, since their first free elections in 1990, and since 2007, when they joined the European Union.

Поздравления (Pozdravlenia), България (Bulgaria)!
We're proud to soon be a part of you!

Training, here we come...

We just found out that our 11-week training will be in a town, in the northern foothills of the majestic Vrachanski Balkan mountains.  Exciting much?!
In this area, is the Vrachanski Balkan Nature Park, apparently a very attractive destination for all nature lovers.  It contains Bulgaria's highest waterfall, Skaklya (463 ft.).  Sounds like we might become even more serious nature lovers...

Also, in this region, is the Ledenika Cave.  Its biggest "hall" is the Concert Hall.  Supposedly, there is a Crocodile, a Giant’s head, a Falcon, a Santa Claus, and a Witch’s house, all created by erosion.  There's also the White Hall, in which you can see the Mother-in-law’s Tongue, the Giant’s Wife, the Elephant, and the Bathing Lass.  And, the highest point of the cave is called the Seventh Sky, accessible only to the most enthusiastic tourists.  Hoping to be two of those!

All of this and more will be close by!  At least, for the first few months...

Isn't this country lush with places to discover?

A Bulgarian Valentine

What would a Bulgarian Valentine's Day look like?  It would probably include two very lovely things...

First of all, February 14th is, conveniently, St. Trifon's Day, the pruner.  Every year, on this day, Bulgarians drink wine to commemorate this Saint.  Sweet.  Being the world's second-largest exporter of bottled wine, I can only imagine the variety of wines to choose from there.  Can't wait to partake of that next year...

Then, relating a little bit to what characterizes St. Valentine's Day in the US, Bulgaria is also one of the biggest producers of rose oil in the world (85% of the world's rose oil).  The Kazanluk rose ("Kazanlashka roza"), from which this oil is extracted, is a special type of rose that was cultivated after many years of production and development.

Also known as the “liquid gold of Bulgaria," it is a very expensive product, used mainly for the making of perfumes, chocolates, liqueur and jam, all of which sound lovely.  Rose oil is even 3 times more expensive than real gold.  Crazy.

It doesn't matter what your "relationship status" is, people... who wouldn't love to spend Valentine's Day in Bulgaria, enjoying their wine & the fragrance of rose oil?  We're in.

Happy Valentine's Day,

Joy & Randall

Joy: Top 10 Reasons to do something like this...

It's getting closer and closer to our leave date (7 weeks from today), and I'm sitting here, thinking of how excited I am & of all the opportunities and challenges that lay ahead of us, being Peace Corps Volunteers.  And, I thought it'd be fun to write down my top 10 reasons for doing something like this!  So, here they are, in no particular order:

1. You get to travel.  Enough said.
2. You get to step outside of the rat race.  Very exciting :)
3. You get to experience & appreciate another culture.  You also learn to appreciate your own culture more than you would otherwise, having a comparison.
4. You get to simplify your life... minimalize, if you will.  I know I have way too much stuff that I don't use.
5. You get to learn another language.  That may not sound so fun, if you're not into that sort of thing, but it reaps great benefits & is quite fun!
6. You get to make friends outside of your normal demographic! :)
7. Since living in another culture can make you feel a little discombobulated and powerless, at times, your dependence on God really increases.  This is definitely an indirect result, but such a true one.
8. You stop taking for granted many of the benefits of living in the US.
9. Your sense of adventure is peaked... you'll never be the same!
10. "You're far happier giving than getting" (Acts 20:35).

I'm sure there are more really good reasons, but these are at the forefront of my mind today.  There are also many more ways to serve than internationally or, especially, with the Peace Corps.

Why would you do something like this?  Have you done something like this?  What was it?  What would your top 10 be?

Favorite Fotos of Bulgaria

Here's some photo goodness for your Friday afternoon!

Comment & let us know which is your favorite...

1. Nesebâr

2. Bulgarian Man, 2005

3. Veliko Tarnovo

4. Plovdiv Region

5. Kaprivshtica

6. Sunflowers

7. A 1980's-style Bus Stop

8. Bulgarian Beach

9. Plovdiv (2nd largest city in Bulgaria)

10. Southern Bulgaria

11. Bachkovo Monastery

12. Milanovo

13. Blagoevgrad

14. Golden Sands Beach

15. Golden Sands Beach

16. Golden Sands Beach - Pentecost Holiday

17. Bulgarian Winter

18. Pamporovo

19. National Opera House

20. Tryavna

21. Blue Bulgarian Truck

22. Rila Monastery

23. Tombul Mosque

24. Stara Planina

25. Sofia

26. Sofia

Welcome!

Welcome to the Mason's Bulgaria Blog Launch!  We're so glad you're joining us on this journey.  It's been a bumpy one so far, and we're not even there yet!

We've gone from leaving for an African country in November 2010 to leaving for Bulgaria in March 2011.  From a place where cell phone coverage is spotty to a European Union country.  From thinking we were leaving before Thanksgiving, Christmas & New Years to leaving after one of Boston's snowiest winters!  This whole process has kept us on our toes, that's for sure.

Nonetheless, we are stoked to go to an area of the world where our hearts are: Eastern Europe.

Here's a quick tour of our Blog:

This Blog? - the purpose in creating it... if you're curious.

Our Digits - keeping in touch via more than just this blog.

Guest book - if you ever want to leave an encouraging message for us or just want to say hello, leave a message here!

Fotos - a photo album... more to come, as we start our journey in Bulgaria.

Peace Corps - various informative articles on what it'll be like working with the Peace Corps.

Navigation to these various pages is at the top of the blog:

If you're not sure about something, just ask.  More than anything, we covet your prayers and encouragement while we're on this journey.  We're hoping this blog facilitates that better than we could otherwise.

Welcome to the journey, folks!

Joy & Randall