Despite waking up with an awful cold, I had a great birthday here in Macedonia. Conor and my friends went out of their way to make it a special weekend, full of surprises. The morning of my birthday I had a meeting at the PC office and Conor was also in Skopje as he had been invited to be a guest lecturer on Lewis and Clark at a university there. After work we went to eat with some other Volunteers and then enjoyed the beautiful weather by listening to a Mariachi band that the US Embassy brought to Macedonia. Our good friend Benson surprised me by asking them to sing me happy birthday:
The next day I led a Kids' Club session focused on St. Patrick's Day (as you can see by the leprechaun hats) where I was surprised by a cake, juice and presents. I had a little trouble keeping a few little "leprechaun" fingers from digging into the frosting every time I turned around.
Immediately following Kids' Club I joined the high school girls for another Club GLOW session focused on the environment. There was a great turn-out and we hiked to the old fortress above the city to have a picnic. Little did I know that the girls had another idea in mind as well! Some of the girls had gone up earlier to prepare things and as the larger group reached the top they started singing to me and again surprised me with a delicious cake and gifts! I was given a cute stuffed bear and a great t-shirt that you can see below.
I'm so grateful to have such great friends - and of course Conor! - to celebrate with me. Thanks to everyone for making me feel so special!
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