I met the Cuban Ambassador in hair and makeup

I received a call last Friday from program staff asking if I would mind participating in an hour-long studio interview with Bulgarian National Television (BNT). BNT was putting together a series of impressions of Bulgaria from the perspective of its foreign residents and wanted to interview a Peace Corps Volunteer. My first reaction was to say no. After spending much of March speaking English with other PCVs, hanging out with Palma at site, and general departure planning anxiety-the thought of thinking critically in Bulgarian scared me. I didn’t want to embarrass Peace Corps or my community. Certainly there are volunteers with better language skills who would be better representatives. I changed my mind over the weekend, deciding it would be a great way to leave my community with a positive impression. And, since I would already be in Sofia for administrative appointments, I wouldn’t be taking additional time away from site. I agreed to the interview, emailed BNT for additional information, and began prepping my answers to the questions they sent me.

The actual interview was nothing like I'd anticipated. I arrived around 4 o’clock, spent an hour in hair and makeup and waiting. Then I joined the host and five other guests on set. For 90 minutes, we watched short clips of foreigners living in Bulgaria, discussing their motivations and offering our impressions. The eclectic group gathered for the interview included the Cuban ambassador to Bulgaria, an American actor living and working in Sofia, and a showman named Kofe Babone who is originally from Ghana, wore a du rag, and sang twice. It was more of a panel discussion than interview and none of the questions I’d prepped came up. But it was still a good experience, my first time doing something of the sort. I’m hoping the sparkly barrette, super tight ponytail, and orange glow face paint appears better on screen. The edited version will air on BNT 1 in a few weeks.