The first year of my masters brought:

• a return to the States after 3 years. Sorin, who I consider my American dad, was waiting again for me at the Washington DC airport. For a little while, I lived in Baltimore again and I was welcomed back as if I had never left. I stayed again in the Flack’s family house, where I had first talked about my Gypsy identity.
• an eye-opening class on Economic Development and International Organizations. I was happy to find that a school on education policies has such a multidisciplinary approach. In collaboration with three other colleagues, I wrote a paper on Roma Inclusion. A few months later,  the subject of the paper became a theme of a debate about the Roma population that was part of a Vanderbilt program on international hot- button topics.
• driving, biking and swimming lessons. Almost a year later, I can float, keep my head under water and I am now learning how to breath while swimming; I can change speeds, I learned how to park (even if sometimes in two places), I went driving on a real road and tried not to yell whenever passing near a pedestrian; falling off the bike, I left some lovely blemishes on my knee but finally managed to ride the bike more than a mile despite wobbling like a drunk.
• a new record for consecutive tearful nights. Changing my computer clock from Romanian time to Central time took months because I was home-sick. I spent Christmas with myself; for the first time, I was away from home during spring holidays. March 1st was especially difficult because it is ‘such a Romanian’ celebration. My soul had some lovely blemishes too.
• me in NYC for the last days of 2009. I got to know Wendy Khan better, a woman with serene eyes and an artistic spirit, and we attended cultural events together. In a warm Manhattan apartment, Cleo, Wendy’s cat awakened me to a snowy New York morning. I dragged Ovidiu, my Fulbright colleague, out shopping but before long he was making me wait for him at stores.
• a New Year celebration on a plane to Romania, in between countries, in between cultures - an expression of my life. On January first I was walking  in the centre of Bucharest as if I had never left. I met with people who are dear to me. I was received wonderfully by my colleagues at Policy Center; I reconnected with Adrian Nuta, Anca Harasim and Marian Stas - mentors to who I owe so much. I was pleasantly surprised to meet Tincuta Baltag and discover that she is not only the director of Dinu Patriciu foundation, but also a genuine seeker of knowledge. I spent an evening with Taz and his owners, Elena Marineci and Rares Manolescu, a couple exceptional both together and as individuals. I left Romania dancing and knowing that things will get better.
• new classes at the Owen Business School. I discovered that I am also a perfect ‘auditor’ and not only learn the information but also enjoy the professors’ teaching style. I realized that I am well adapted to the new department when I got a locker there and my new colleagues organized my birthday party. One of the classes involved a study visit to Guatemala, a trip that kept me awake many nights after, writing a diary with impressions and insights.
• back to NYC. I worked from Columbia University library, the university where I initially wanted to go; on my 10 minute walk ‘home’ I could buy fruit at midnight. I got to understand that a familiar place is where you remember where the dental floss is, where you clean up the bathroom and the doorman knows which apartment you are going to. It brought me time in Central Park, buying gloves on the street, running after a taxi in order not to be late for a meeting in a sky-scraper. I met with Leslie Hawke in her home town where she organized a fundraising event.  I saw how food was prepared in Wendy’s kitchen and taken back home, to avoid waste - all these efforts to provide the Ovidiu Rom Foundation with as many resources as possible to support Romanian children to go to school.
• my first wobbly steps in the academic world, moving from exclaiming, “academic writing - is that boring style?” to writing two academic papers.  One was on affirmative action, and my professor recommended I send it to UNESCO.  The other, on philanthropy, was translated to Romanian and published on Tincuta Baltag’s blog.
• a class on federal policy that was not the best match for me. I may have been so attracted by meeting experts from the White House that I didn’t see I might have been a better fit with a class on Diversity. I wonder…does this apply to other plans too? For example, to be attracted by the allure of “foreignness” without realizing that we might make the greatest contribution in our own countries? In the last minute, I contacted the Diversity teacher and she actually invited me to have a speech during the last class about my ethnic Roma identity.
• three months of embracing a spartan life, after my dearest computer named Pampi ‘retired’. In April, close to my birthday, I brought Brightishor, a MacBookPro of extremely rare beauty, into my life. I can no longer grumble over spending 10 to 14 hours a day at the library :-). At the same time I was ‘invaded ‘ by other super cool stuff: a kindle that soon after became the ‘love of my life’,  a special ink pen, that explains why I write so much lately :-), a medallion inscribed with NGC, my initials. Now that I have all these resources I plan to use them to their maximum potential.
• a ridiculously beautiful and comfortable place where to live. Before coming here, when my friends asked me where I am going to study, I offered them two versions - in Romanian, “la dracu’n praznic”, or in English, “the middle of nowhere”. After almost a year of living in Nashville in the middle of… nature, I cannot have enough of it. On top of that, I have friends who invite me to classical music concerts, do outdoor activities together with me, and who care to bring me medicine when I am yelling and crying, unable to move my neck.
• a Fulbright reunion in Seattle, where I met colleagues from Afghanistan, Argentina, Germany, Hungary, Pakistan etc. What an intense experience with extraordinarily talented colleagues! I had the sense of performance as I rarely have; I somehow resonated with athletes at international competitions who represent their countries. I made a presentation about LEAP in a non-formal style, leaving the microphone and panel and involving the audience. Even after the discussion was opened to all presenters, the audience continued to ask questions about how to Link Education And Practice.
• learning with people from different parts of the world and really understand the cultural differences and talents that vary from case to case. In an Indian, I discovered real capacity to work, but also a hunger for creativity that an educational system too focused on hard skills doesn’t allow; from a Chinese I had a sense of structure and discipline; from an Afghan I learnt how determined one should be to get educated even in such an unsafe environment; from a Jew I learned, both in conversation and by observation, about pluralistic philosophy and religion; with an American I had discussions about human rights, democracy, and freedom.
• a sushi addiction. In the absence of a good Chinese restaurant I compensated with sushi. If I go without for too long, I dream of shrimp wrapped in seaweed with crunches and soy sauce…yum-yum. Sushi was like a gate-way drug, soon I had a passion for Thai food, especially soup with coconut milk. Further, I discovered the best cheesecake in Seattle. Luckily, the city is on the other coast or I would certainly be adding yet another addiction to the list.
• discussion with a new Fulbrighter, Ana-Maria Vrabie who is preparing to start her masters in the fall.Though we are the same age, I have a protective urge to support her having an experience that will lead her ‘to the highest heaven’ (here I quote Marian Stas, don’t accuse me of plagiarism so fast :-P). I hope that at least some of the advice and experience I shared with her will smoothen her way.
• the anxiety of figuring out how to pay for year two. I left the country with a one-year Fulbright scholarship and I return having been awarded two more: full tuition from Vanderbilt University and a Dinu Patriciu scholarship. As full as this year was with experiences, I feel like I barely scratched the surface of learning, and I am left wanting to explore more deeply the space of knowledge.