Second Sunday

Today marks exactly our second week in Bucharest. We went to an English speaking church of about... 8. We made up half of that church. It usually is a bit larger group, but the other 8 were on Christmas break in the US.

On the way back, we walked to our temporary residence, a walk of about an hour. Being a little warmer it was an excellent day for a walk. The other very nice part was the fact that there hardly any people on the streets. Quite a different story than weekdays.

The news that we see on TV and read in the paper here are dominated by major news in the US, so, in a way, we inadvertently stay in touch with life back home. Today, however, the news are dominated by the strong earthquake and tidal wave originating in Indonesia. We were concerned about Sri Lanka primarily as we have friends visiting the island, though fortunately they are a little more inland than the affected southern coast. With thousands of people dead and the country in a state of emergency, we are praying for our friends' safe return to the US.

Romania is situated over an active earthquake area and in the past 20 years the country has experienced about 3 or 4 major earthquake, one with thousands of deaths and widespread destruction. Unfortunately, what is not know is how earthquake-safe these tall buildings are.

Most city dwellers in Romania live in apartments situated in tall buildings, often 8-10 storeys high. On average these apartments measure no more than 800 or 900 square feet, 1000 square feet being a good size flat for a flat with 3 bedrooms and a living room. Apartments are referred to by the total number of rooms they have: a four room apartment has 3 bedrooms, a kitchen, a bathroom, and a living room. In terms of quality, these apartments are rated as "1st comfort" and "2nd comfort." A "3rd comfort" apartment is usually no better than a cave in the side of the mountain. The difference between 1st and 2nd 'comfort' is the access to bedrooms, entrance is from a common hallway rather than chain system where you have to walk through a bedroom to get to a second, etc. Otherwise there is not much difference. Generally speaking, an apartment contains no furnishings whatsoever, whether in the kitchen, bathroom, or elsewhere, besides wall-mounted sinks and toilets. This means no cabinets or under-the-sink storage.

Bye for now...

-C