What was a typical day like for you? What did you spend most your time doing?
Each day brought our group new adventures. The mornings started with a light breakfast at the hotel around 7:30, and then those working at the clinic would leave the hotel around 8:30 for a 20 minute bus-ride while those of us teaching had a short 5 minute walk to the school.
School volunteers taught two classes per day, one with middle school students in the morning and one with high school students in the afternoon. Each class had about 8-10 students and lasted about 2 hours. With the middle school students we worked primarily with vocabulary (e.g., playing bingo, using flashcards, playing “Simon Says,” etc.). The high school students knew English well, so most days we went with them to visit Barlad’s zoos, museums, and other points of interest, all the time focusing on developing their conversational English skills. The teaching volunteers all felt our greatest asset was being native English speakers, so we knew the more time we spent speaking English, the more we benefited the students. 
After volunteering our week nights were fairly mellow. The teachers were typically finished by 3 p.m., so we were not nearly as tired as the clinic volunteers who did not return until roughly 5 each evening. The teachers devoted a portion of each evening to making lesson plans for the next day’s classes, but we also had time to go out for dinner at local popular restaurants, check out concerts, stop by cafés, and spend time checking e-mail on the internet.
At what moment did you feel you were really making a difference?
One day in class I was drawing pictures of faces with middle school students while we were working on vocabulary. From their giggles and laughter I could tell they were having fun working on their art (in part because I do not think art is taught in Romanian elementary and middle school like it is in America). Following our class I was packing up our supplies when each student began coming up to where I was standing at the front of the room to have their artwork signed by me. At first this struck me as odd since they had created their work on their own; I certainly had never asked a teacher for their signature. But later I felt these gestures were tokens of appreciation for my work at the school. Since Barlad was in a rural part of Romania, I may have been one of the first Americans these students had seen in person, and I was certainly among the first Americans they had been taught by. I was as novel to them as they were to me, and I think they genuinely appreciated my teaching each day.
How was life in Romania different from life in the United States?
I spent just over 2 weeks in Romania, so I did not become a cultural expert, but I did notice a few differences between Romanian and American life.
First, Romania is known to have one of the largest Gypsy populations in the world. Gypsies are essentially an ethnic group comprising an entire Romanian social class. Gypsies are very poor: they often followed me in the street to beg for money, and once a Gypsy even came into a restaurant and begged me for a sip of Pepsi. There was an obvious social tension between the Gypsies and other ethnic Romanians, which made my encounters with the Gypsies some of the most memorable parts of my trip.
The other big differences were in food, housing, and transportation. As for food, I always had plenty to eat in Romania and much of it was good, but there was little variation in my diet: grilled meats, steamed vegetables, and bread. One of the great parts of coming back to America was indulging in fresh fruits, cheeseburgers, and pizza. Apartments – called “flats” – dominated Romanian urban living, similar to city life in the U.S. The primary difference is that the flats were nearly identical from Barlad to Bucharest and to any other parts of Romania we traveled through; each had a beige, stucco façade that provided a clear reminder of the country’s communist past. Finally, it seemed the primary mode of transportation in Romania was by foot or bus, although some Gypsies rode horse-drawn trailers through town. There were very few cars, and some Romanians said this was because the licensing process was expensive. However, the price of gas and cars may also have made public transportation the popular choice.
What was your favorite part about the trip?
Spending time with Romanian students was great. In particular, I enjoyed working with the high school students. I did not have any teaching experience before arriving in Barlad, and although none is necessary, working with the high school students gave me the chance to get outside the classroom, get to know the students personally, and explore Barlad with them. The high school students were eager to show off their city, and this gave me an opportunity to help them with their English while at the same time learning about their city. The teaching with these students was definitely reciprocal, and I always looked forward to these sessions.
Did you do any sightseeing? What did you think about your free time?
Volunteers had plenty of free time during the week to explore Barlad, and there were also opportunities to take weekend trips through different parts of the country. During the week, I often ventured into the streets of Barlad – sometimes with others, sometimes by myself – to visit markets, tour streets “off the beaten path”, and stroll through parks. I really enjoyed the market in particular. It included a farmers’ market, clothing merchants, craft-makers, and other salesmen. The merchants were all eager to sell, but none were uncomfortably persistent. Walking down side streets and touring parks was also fun because the old buildings and monuments were constant reminders of the country’s rich history. Of course, wherever I went I was recognized as an American, so it was fun to watch peoples’ reaction and engage in conversation with the little English they sometimes knew, and the little Romanian I knew. 
On the weekend I went with a group of volunteers to Transylvania – a Western region of Romania home to “Dracula’s Castle.” Transylvania was beautiful country; Barlad and the Eastern region of Romania essentially had the topography of Kansas, but Transylvania was lush and mountainous. We spent time in Brasov and at Peles Castle, but Dracula’s castle was the main attraction. The trip was not too expensive, and Global Volunteers arranged a tour guide and bus driver to ensure we didn’t get lost. The other options for our weekend get-away would have been visiting the famous Romanian painted monasteries or sunbathing on the beaches of the Black Sea, but all of the volunteers who went on a weekend trip went to Transylvania.
What about the trip surprised you the most? 
There were many surprises on this trip, and I found that I had several misconceptions about Romanians and the way they lived. First, I expected Romanians to be terribly impoverished, but that was not the case in Barlad. Certainly, Romanians do not live the way Americans do. However, in Barlad there was significant construction work going on, new banks, new clothing and grocery stores, thriving markets, and most of my students had cell phones – even the middle school students! Although we did not spend much time on the outskirts of Barlad or in rural areas, poverty was clearly visible, but there was much more economic activity than I expected. Second, Romanians were very friendly, for the most part. The students and teachers we worked with were especially friendly, but even strangers we met were polite. Some on the street casted odd stares in our direction, but I think that was more because they were unfamiliar with foreigners than anything else. Finally, our living accommodations were a great surprise. A new hotel was built in Barlad in early 2007, so our June group was one of the first Global Volunteers missions to stay there. The hotel was not large, but the rooms were comparable to a 3-star American hotel. Much better than a Super 8!
Is there any advice or are there any stories that you believe are important to share with people considering this trip? 
Before I went on this trip I did not know exactly what was expected of the teaching volunteers. I had a pretty good idea from Global Volunteers’ promotional materials, but none of the past Magid scholarship recipients had volunteered at the school. As it turned out, volunteer teachers are expected to run the show. Rather than assisting a Romanian English teacher (which I expected), I was the only teacher in the classroom. We were expected to create our own lesson plans (games, exercises, etc.) for each class. The school had several closets of board games, flash cards, and books that were helpful, but I also relied on my own experiences in middle school and in learning foreign languages to develop activities. There were times when I had to keep the students’ attention focused on learning, and I found this could be difficult when I spoke a different language from the students. Ultimately, I really enjoyed the teaching, but it was challenging. Anyone considering teaching should keep in mind they will need to plan enough activities to teach English to two groups of 8-12 students per day.
What did the experience teach you?
Public service has always been a priority for me, and this trip taught me how easy it can be to serve abroad. It’s not quite as easy as working at a food pantry or cleaning up trash along a road side, but working through an organization like Global Volunteers – based out of Minneapolis – greatly simplifies the process. Our Romanian host was an employee of Global Volunteers and also a Barlad native, and she and her husband took care of everything for our group of 20 volunteers, from picking us up at the Bucharest airport to making sure the air conditioning in our rooms worked. 
Anyone that seriously values volunteerism and public service work should consider this trip. Volunteering in my hometown is rewarding, but helping teach English on the other side of the world was an entirely unique experience, and it has piqued my interest in global public service work.
A big thank you to Brett for sharing his experience in Romania with us. Please contact us for more information on this tour or the Dr. Ken Magid Child Advocacy Scholarship.
Chelsea
