Being Social

We haven't gotten much (that is to say, any) snow so far in Obedin but it's only Jan 1 so there's plenty of time for the weather to change. 

In the meantime, we've been seeking out snow-related activities and when I say seek, what I really mean is that we've been getting invitations to do snow-related activities. Normally I would feign a lack of comprehension which makes it easy to decline the majority of social events but since we're here with four boys, I feel obligated to accept all invitations. This is not without personal sacrifice.

Part of my great love for Romania is the opportunity it affords to push my anti-social ways to the limit, with countless hours spent in the confines of Villa Ionescu, either lounging upstairs with music and books or downstairs on the couch eating popcorn while watching Romanian TV. Seriously, it's one of my favorite things in the world. 

However, in the interests of providing all four boys with an engaging and interactive holiday, I've said yes to every proposal.

What follows is photo documented proof that I have momentarily set aside my anti-social ways and engaged, no matter how taxing the constant translation is on my brain. 

Ice skating in the city center with pizza and beer after (we've finally discovered a decent pizza place in Romania-no small task as they traditionally use catsup instead of tomato sauce)

Lunch with Amelia and some of the other friends from Gară (Amelia is on the far right, blue shirt, her daughter Adnana and husband, Marius are to her left. They walk 50 minutes each way to the meeting, rain or shine. So they're kind of my heroes)

Dinner at Silvia's after the meeting (yet again we got no photos of the meeting at Gară, it's not just me, folks, even the Rummels didn't take photos)

Rânca with Andra and an assortment of friends whose names I couldn't keep track of and who I also failed to get a photo of since I sustained an injury within 30 minutes of arriving at the snow park. Folks, this is what happens when you don't get your cataract removed prior to taking a holiday, let this be a lesson.

The photos below are all from Mercedes and Logan

Of note: we almost didn't make it to Rânca due to a situation involving a new addition to Villa Ionescu, a certain dog name Rexi. Rexi is that particular amalgam of dog who is large, vicious, and intelligent all in one obnoxious package.
Prior to our arrival Rexi had already bit more than one person and so Silviu has built a pen of sorts for Rexi. "Of sorts" being the operative phrase here. It's nothing more than chicken wire and spare pieces of lumber and it's about as secure as it sounds. The end result is that Rexi escapes with great regularity and terrorizes the property.
The morning we left for Rânca, Rexi escaped from his pen and when we opened the front door to leave, what greeted us was Rexi's growl and lunging, snapping jaws. It's about 15 meters from the front door to the garage where the van is parked and what followed was like that scene from Jurassic Park with the velociraptors in the kitchen. However, unlike Dr. Grant, Ellie and the kids, we were not successful in escaping. We had to call Silviu (who had spent New Year's Eve at Silvia's apartment in the city) at 6:45 a.m to get him to come home and put Rexi in his pen so that we could make it to the garage and get on our way.
Never a dull moment.