by It hasn’t been a bad day at all. After a good night’s sleep I had breakfast consisting of porridge, slices of watermelon, and a cup of tea, then I printed off what I needed for my three lessons. My first lesson from 9 till 10:30 was with a bloke of about 25; at one stage we discussed all kinds of names for all kinds of body parts. That gave me just enough time to pack and set off for my two hours with the woman who is afraid to speak English, and two more hours with Matei. I think the woman likes to have lessons with me because she’s a bit lonely. Predictably, about two-thirds of everything she said (and she says a lot) was in Romanian, although if anything that proportion has dropped a bit.
After the session, I FaceTimed my parents from the small park next to my student’s apartment block. Whenever I call them from outside, Mum is amazed; she says she wouldn’t dream of making a video call without WiFi because of all the data it chews up. In Romania, for a few quid a month (and without any contract) I have more data than I could possibly need. It’s a great pleasure to contact my parents. Perhaps Dad’s ordeal has brought us all together, but mostly it’s just that I get on so much better with Mum these days. Starting up a new life in Romania has helped a lot. I think she respects me for having the oomph to do my own thing, for being independent. It doesn’t feel that long since she saw an online job ad, and I felt I had to apply to keep her happy even though I knew it would damn near kill me. I got the job. I took it (to keep her happy?). It damn near killed me. I was 30, nearly 31. How bloody ridiculous. Those were the dark days. I’m so glad they’re over.
I had sandwiches and fruit in the park (the bread I buy is excellent but very sandwich-unfriendly), then I was off to Dumbrăvița to see Matei. The “lesson” was really just a chat in an outside café. He’d been to Tunisia and on a basketball camp in Serbia. After a quick stop at Piața Lipovei (the market) on the way back, I was home at 5:40. Unusually, I was done for the day. My first instinct was to pour myself a beer, as I often do whenever I get a free evening, but I didn’t because I’d read what alcohol can do to your sinuses.
Before today, you see, I’d gone through hell with my sinuses. Absolute agony. And all I could do was take painkillers. As well as the pain to contend with, I had virtually no energy, I was irritable, clumsy, hopelessly slow. For two nights I hardly slept. Yesterday I somehow survived my session with the six-year-old. I had the presence of mind to at least bring my laptop, and he just watched Peppa Pig non-stop. Are you bored with this yet? No. Fantastic! His mother wanted a chat with me afterwards. Please, just let me go! Today, after a proper night’s sleep, was a blessed relief.
