Funny turn of events: I will be teaching English in a school! In fact, that is a large part of my job, it seems. I will teach some combination of 3rd, 6th, 7th, and 8th grade English, either by myself or helping Jarka, the current teacher of all those. (Possibly also an evening class for adults.) In addition I will be (get this) teaching piano lessons and trumpet lessons, of all things, as well as other instruments that people want to play. Since I just happened to have taken classes in how to teach every instrument, I am (supposedly) equipped to do this! Also will be helping with worship – administering Communion (wine, probably) and such – and playing my oboe as often as I want or am able to, as per request. Oh, and apparently I am welcome to preach if I want to (um, small language barrier problem there).
Though all these things sound fun and interesting, I am feeling awfully homesick as well. I started crying during church yesterday. We’ll pretend it was because I was so moved by the experience of worshiping the same God with the people of a totally different culture, but it was much more the fact that I was not able to share that experience with anyone I know. I was near tears all day long. Today is better though, and I know familiarity will make things better. Tomorrow I will actually start doing stuff (teaching, 8:00), so that will be even better yet.
Today we went to Trencin to do the next thing for my visa. I will get it in 2 weeks, I think. We drove through Stara Tura on the way (where the Gustavus band will play in January) and it is about 15-20 minutes – close! I will also have pretty regular access to a car here, since my driving is important to being able to collect people for youth group (since not everyone in town has such access to a car, and many live out on farms and such). So Viktor (the German volunteer in Vrbovce) and I will both be doing some driving. Funny thing is that it is a manual transmission. Doggone. So I will learn. (Where is Alan Gaines when I need him??) Apparently having a license in Vrobvce is not necessary, so I’m golden as far as that goes.
There have been some German girls staying with Kristina, my host mom – they lived here 3 years ago and are back to visit. They are very, very sweet, but I have been frustrated because between them and Viktor and the fact that everyone here speaks German as a second language (not English), all I am hearing is German! This is okay, since I actually understand about half of what is being said, but meanwhile my German is improving far more than my Slovak! I would almost rather not understand but learn some Slovak than be able to follow the conversation. (I say that now, but who knows how true that really is.)
I have learned that I am scared to death of driving with Slovaks. My goodness. Zipping down country roads at 110 km/hour, passing people when an oncoming car is in sight (or worse, when a curve is in sight), casually going from one side of the road to the other because heck, no on is coming the other way… I actually had a stomach ache and found myself praying I would make it through alive. It is like a roller coaster, but with fewer safety precautions. Yikes.
Food is delicious, weather is gorgeous, people are very nice, village is cute. Church yesterday was with much singing and a very long sermon (service was about 90 minutes long).
Ok, I think that is it for now.
Johanna
Dear Johanna,
I was overwhelmed to learn that Vrbovce has an English teacher
My ccousen told me that yesterday when I talked to him.
When I went back to the Vrbovce web site I looked at all of them.
Yours was the last one. I was tickelled pink when I foound it.
The first web site in Vrbovce has some of my photoes that I took
over there in 1980 and 1990
I was born over there and came to the USA in 1947
My Slovak isen’t very good and my english is not much better.
I there is anything that I can healp you with please let me know.
Hope to hear from you soon.
Sincerely,
John Jediny