two things I forgot

okay, so BILLA opened up in pernik on thursday! this means nothing to America, but we europeans know that BILLA is the german's answer to kroger (or, for non-southern educated folks: safeway, albertsons, HiVee, etc)!!!! it is quite lovely to browse around shopping- picking up packages, comparing prices, thinking in english... Anyway, its been really fun watching this building get constructed and wonder about the glory day when it finally opened. I passed by the construction site everyday on the bus, so i've been able to keep excellent watch on the operation. I've been curious to observe how people traffic changes at the adjacent bus stops (which are typically empty), what will happen with the near-by run down cafes, and how people's shopping patterns in general will change. yes, i have a boring life and I'm well aware! On the second day of bussiness, I braved the lines. I found some great stuff (westernish cheese, wheat bread) and observed some funny things. On of my favorite moments was an older lady walking with her grown daughter, commenting on whether or not the prices were any better, and then on the fervrent shopping of her fellow countryment.

which leads me to my next point...eavesdropping. genearlly, i would say this is a VERY bad thing, and that people shouldn't do it. Unfortunately, I've also discovered that its an extremely useful language learning tool for me here in bulgaria! i find myself listening to all sorts of conversations in order to increase my comprehension of the language and observe usage of words, etc. Eavesdropping is now second nature for me, so hopefully I can rid myself of this habit when i'm in the US!

alright, so i really forgot 3 things! last sunday, a fellow volunteer (lincoln) and I went to mass. We thought we were going to the latin mass, but it turned out to be a children's mass! This has never been on the schedule before, and it was SOO fun! first off, everything was designed for children, which meant that the words and sentences were much easier. The lesson had something to do with how we know that jesus is a real person (or something like that...). It was hilarious though, because the priest started asking all the kids why people lie. Then he asked one specific child why she lies...and when she wouldn't answer, he simply said "don't worry! we all lie! just tell us why you do it!" it was pretty cute and definately funny. We're hoping to catch more of these masses...as we comprehend more and they are at 11:30am. two good things!