Happy Easter everybody!

It was busy week of political crisis, writing, new bikes, realizing we were actually starting to speak the language, and celebration! Today, I'm having some alone time, thinking about stuff.

Almost everyone in Chernivtsi is Orthodox and, in the Orthodox world, Easter rivals Christmas. Food, food, and more food!

On Sunday morning (6:00am!), Vitaliy and Inessa picked us up and we went to the church together. At the church, the parishioners gathered with their baskets filled with Easter bounty (eggs, sausage, bread, fruit, water, onions, tomatoes, radishes, butter and cheese). They formed a semi-circle around the entrance to the Church and lit candles. As the sun rose, the priest and his young cohort came out of the Church and sang hymns. When they were finished, they walked around splashing water on the parishioners and the food, blessing everything.
Afterwards, Vitaliy and Inessa invited us to their home for the feast! (At around this time, my mom phoned to wish us a happy easter! Thanks mom!)

Mary and I headed home dazed and content. Luckily, it was incredibly sunny, so we headed to our spot on the hill to digest and sleep.

Later, we headed out to the Kozachuks on our new bikes for our Sunday meal. There we feasted, then crowded on to the sofa to watch a really long movie. Aahhh. The only that could have made Sunday better was a call to my sister, brother and grandparents. To bad no internet and no Skype. Oh well, there is allllllways tomorrow.

Both Mary and I send our very best.

Love, Eric