General Fulbright Impressions

Now, at the midpoint of my time here in Romania, I am feeling especially grateful to the Fulbright program and the support it receives from the US and Romanian governments.   A week ago we had the spring orientation and gathering where we officially met the 3 new Fulbrighters who have arrived in Romania for the next 5-6 months. I must say I am grateful that I chose to come for a full academic year.  In many respects I have only just learned enough of how to navigate both literally and figuratively in this country that now in this second term I get to relax and enjoy. At this point I am old friends with several of my American and Romanian colleagues and I cherish the time the Romanian Fulbright commission creates for us to spend time together. 

The formal orientation on Thursday was a program very similar to the one I heard in early October.  What a difference 4 months of living here has made in my perceptions as I listened to Embassy folks provide their briefings on the economics, politics, health & safety issues, etc relative to our being here.  Much of the information was received by me the first time with wide-eyed wonderment and it was difficult to process it all.  Now I am comfortable in this country and the same information had little if any emotional impact.  There were a few good reminders, however, of resources that are available to me.  I would like to investigate the Embassy library, for example.

The fun part of the gathering occurred on Friday as we traveled to Sinai for a tour of Peles palace - definitely over the top in its opulence, but I so admire the craftsmanship and artistry!  Peles was the summer palace of the monarchy.  It was returned to the royal family in the late 1990's.  We even had a royal sighting!  While we were in the lobby awaiting the start of our tour, Prince Nicholas, grandson or King Mihai (who was forced to abdicate in the 1940s), came in and was discretely pointed out by our guide.

Already I am looking forward to a return visit to see some parts of the palace in more detail. I loved the carving in the first reception room, the Venetian mirrors that provide an illusion of infinite space, the rich woodwork, and the studio on the top floor.  Here are just a few pictures:

The approach to the palace...

 The front door

 An interior door

 The view from the terrace

 a house in Sinaia

A cross on a mountaintop, viewed from the bus as we traveled a little north of Sinaia to a winery.

After visiting the palace, we loaded ourselves into the bus and went to a winery, known for its sparkling wine.  After a brief tour of the process and wine tasting opportunity, we had lunch at the restaurant.  As it was served family style, all the vegetarians were seated at one end of the long table.  We observed that one fourth of our party of Fulbright associates, Americans and Romanians, are vegetarian.  The conversation was lively, the food was good.  What more could one ask?

Sunday after these activities, David and I traveled to Brasov to see Eli and to support his wife Anne, who was opening an exhibit of her paintings.  We had enough time to wander around Brasov for a bit before the reception.  I admit I am jealous of them for living in Brasov - it is a mountain town and so has much nicer scenery than Bucharest.

 David and Eli on Europe's narrowest street

 A fortress

Detail from a door of the Black Church

 One of the gates of Brasov

 The synagogue in Brasov

 The Hollywood-type sign all lit up, in case one is so very confused to not know one's location...

A few of Anne's sketches - I love her choice of displaying these clothing sketches as hanging on the line.  Clothes drying on lines are ubiquitous in Romania - I don't know that anyone owns an electric dryer.

And the invitation Anne sent out, with one of her portraits shown.

Last week I participated in a research seminar hosted at another University: A.S.E., The Academy of Economic Studies, which has a large department in Business Administration.  I was invited to the seminar at which several doctoral students were presenting preliminary work toward their dissertations on the topic of Corporate Social Entrepreneurship.  I titled my remarks, "The Psychological Underpinnings of Corporate Social Entrepreneurship".  I believe my part was well received, I appreciated listening to the students and was able to contribute some useful feedback, and afterwards a group of faculty members took me to lunch, where we had a most enjoyable time.  This kind of connectivity is fundamental to what the Fulbright program is all about.

I am planning several activities and/or collaborations with Fulbright colleagues:

In April, there is an Appalachian-Carpathian conference.  I will participate with Eli and others (I was able to meet some of his colleagues on Sunday and we did quite a bit of talking and planning) in the conference itself and will also present a bookbinding workshop.  Some time later this spring, I will also collaborate with Karen to provide a bookbinding workshop to her students in Cluj. I received helpful information from Ilya regarding an invitation I received from some folks at SNSPA about being a journal editor.  Again I will say that I am most grateful for the connections I am making through the Fulbright program.

Mediterranean Adventure - Part 3 (Ephesus)

From Athens the ship went to Izmir, Turkey's second largest port. After discussing with Amanda, she decided to sleep in a bit and do some exploring of Izmir on her own.  On the recommendation of the cruise director, I chose to take one of the guided tours today, as he had said that public transportation to Ephesus and back was not as available as with the other locations.  We started out at 8:30 and the guide used the 50 minutes to Ephesus to provide a little background on Turkish history and specifically some history of the town of Ephesus.  I found an especially nice website here: http://www.sacred-destinations.com/turkey/ephesus, if you are interested in learning more.

 different colors/types of marble...

 resident stray cat - this picture for Amanda

 Looking down the marble road to the library, the most photographed piece of Ephesus.

 Mosaic work, still beautiful after almost 2000 years!

 Yes, even the latrines are interesting - a communal and social activity, complete with running water for both moving waste along and for washing oneself and also a fountain for providing more pleasant visual and auditory stimuli.

Ephesus was a mix of pagan and Jewish religions that largely converted to Christianity during the peak period of the city.

 Footprint directing travelers to the brothel...

I thoroughly enjoyed walking around Ephesus, but feel I wasted money on tour: I was rushed and unable to see several things I wanted to stop at;I  rarely heard what tour guide said and when I did it was little different from what I could read by myself.  There were a number of locations I would have explored more thoroughly had there been opportunity.

At 12:30 we boarded bus again and went to “handicraft center”, where we learned a little about Turkish carpets, obtaining silk threads, and the hand knotting process.  It was certainly interesting, but I would have preferred more time in Ephesus.  I did especially like a couple of carpets that were called Kurdish style – more colorful and a little more primitive in design than others, but still well out of my price range.

 Silkworm cocoons are soaked in water, then a brush grabs several strands, which get wound together to make silk thread.  Many, many cocoons are required to make a spool of thread.

 Each thread is hand knotted.  For most carpets only one person (woman) works on it in order to keep the same kind of tension.  They typically work for a couple of hours then break...

3:00 + - back at ship, with almost 2 hours to spare…

Amanda had gone out and walked about in Izmir by herself and bought a few souvenirs.

Mediterranean adventure - Part 2 (Greece)

I am a well-educated, well read person and so I know a fair bit about the Roman and Greek civilizations; their overlapping histories, and the ancient treasures that remain.  But none of that knowledge was able to fully prepare me for seeing these ancient sights up close and in person.  To wander the location of the first Olympic games and to stand in the stadium area, knowing I was standing where athletes from 2500 years ago had stood filled me with awe.  My spirits were in no way dampened (pun intended) by the pouring rain we had that day (Friday, day 3 of the cruise).

 The same arch, through which all the competitors walked...

 What looks like a lake in this picture is a reconstruction of the sprint field.  The first Olympic games were mostly running races.  You can see the rise in the sides where spectators would have been...  And I know this picture is unlikely to create in you, my reader, the same sense of wonder I had being there.

 Amanda was impressed by seeing the location where the original Olympic flame burned and where still today it is lit prior to being carried to whatever modern site for the games...

I was interested to realize that the site not only included several temples - after all, the area was both a religious and athletics center - but also numerous buildings for the various sports that were added over time.  It is indeed a very large complex.  The building I am posing before was a guest house for athletes.  The heating system (ductwork for heated water) is still intact after 2000 years.  This building was next door to one of the swimming pools available for the athletes.

I will share one story I found especially interesting:  If an athlete was found to be cheating, he was fined a sum of money.  That money was used to erect a statue to one of the gods.  On the statue would be a plaque that included the name of the disgraced athlete and the infraction.  These statues lined the path leading to the stadium as a reminder.

When we decided we were too wet to enjoy more of the outdoor sight, we went into the museum.  I found the display of the many tokens and effigies that had been found in the altar to Zeus fascinating:

The above statue depicts Zeus and Ganymede.  It is a 5th century BCE terracotta statue that depicts a very humanistic Zeus.  The story is that Ganymede, a hero from Troy, was abducted by Zeus to serve as cup-bearer in Olympus.

I was also impressed by the statues below, also from the 5th century BCE, first of  Hermes holding the infant Dionysius and below, in not quite as good condition, the goddess Nike.

The following day, Saturday, we woke up as the ship was docking in Athens.  Here we spent the entire day at the Acropolis and the New Acropolis Museum (just opened last year - and "new" seems to be part of its official name).

 It is definitely a bit of a hike to reach the top, but well worth the effort!  We were also rewarded by a beautiful sunshiny day!

I learned that Acropolis is the name of the whole rocky area, on which the Parthenon is but one, albeit the largest, of many temples.  I don't know that I had been clear on that distinction prior to this trip.  

 There are stray dogs all over these ancient sites, always ready for a little bit of loving attention, which Amanda is always ready to dispense.

 Above, I am holding the guidebook in my hand.  I remember the awe-inspiring art, immense-ness, and walking on marble -- for the details you can read your own guidebook (smile).

Looking across modern Athens at a monastery on another hilltop.

We had taken a bus arranged by the ship from the port to the base of the Acropolis.  The driver said, "be back in 4 hours - that is plenty of time" (and then he would have returned us to the ship a full 2 or more hours before we needed to be there).  After 4 hours we were still only part way through the museum, having spent well over two hours on the Acropolis.  We never did get to two other sites I had hoped for.  I don't understand how anyone can zip through something this amazing in 2 hours or less and say they have experienced it...  In any case, we missed the bus and instead took a taxi that returned us to the ship with about 20 minutes to spare.  Perfect timing!