Natalie and Cris having coffee in Timisoara
Sometimes the universe does some pretty amazing things. Like presenting me with some really great opportunities to meet people who have the same soul for travel, writing, culture, and friendship. Since meeting Cris Dobrin, a native of Romania, online by way of ACUM, I’ve come to know my literary self, been able to publish more than a few photos and articles, and had the opportunity to create a bigger voice for Romania and it’s people, not only for the purposes of tourism, but to fulfill the third goal of my service in the Peace Corps which is to bridge the ideas of one foreign country with another. As a Peace Corps volunteer, our mission is to bring back to America that which we’ve learned about another culture and in turn to share our own traditions and culture with others far away.
When I met Cristina finally after a year of correspondence through our ACUM connection, I was so happy that we are truly like sisters, and at our first meeting in Timisoara we had such fun, not to mention the best and sweetest desserts at the cafe in the square! Cristina treated and even more so, she gave to me the energy and the kindness which is sometimes lacking in others. We talked and talked and talked some more and then said our goodbyes until I was able to visit Toronto, where she now lives with her family (super people!) and see a part of the world I’d never seen in all my years in the northeast of the US.
Thanks to my new friendship with Cristina, I know many more things about myself by way of what I am able to send to others in pictures and stories in the newspaper online, I have met a whole lot of generous and interesting people, and I will always think of Cristina as one of my dearest friends.
From the United States to a strange place, one photo sent over the internet to add to the daily page of a countryside view in my new Romanian Peace Corps life, turned into a connection that will last forever between the readers of this volunteer’s experience abroad in this old world country and a unique connection between two friends who can now speak about their own families, their own friends and their own days and lives to each other anytime.
It doesn’t really matter where you are born. The fact remains that if you are open to conversation and giving a bit of yourself, then good things will always come to you. My friend Cristina is one of the good things that will be remembered long after my tour with the Peace Corps is over. I’m looking forward to contributing more to ACUM in Intercultural Dialogue about the Romanian experience for this volunteer and looking forward to Cristina and her family visiting me and my family in America so that I can return the favor. Wishing all the ACUM family peace and prosperity and of course the best of friendships for the holiday season and the New Year to come.