Well, it’s now been a few days at my permanant site! There is plenty to talk about, but since family is so important here, I’ll start with that. I live with a great family. My father is a architect/builder, my mother an administrative aide, two sisters (13 and 14,) and a 7 year old little boy. My two sisters speak a little English, enough at this time for me to communicate simple things like what I’m doing, what I need, etc. etc. They seem to have a real desire to communicate in English, and often whip out there little Uzbek-English dictionaries when a difficult word comes to their minds. So that’s a relief. I guess I realized things were really different just yesterday when I was summoned into the TV room for an hour of watching Mr. Bean. The whole family was in stiches for the entire time. My take is that if a family can laugh together (something sadly lacking in my 1st family I now realize,) then they can probably get along just fine. It was a great cultural/bonding moment.

In terms of location, the area in which I live is very beautiful. There are big trees all around, and mountains serve as a backdrop in nearly every direction. We even have a little stream running behind our house. My counterpart is very hands on, maybe a little smothering, but nonetheless energetic and enthused, something not as common here as back home. My classroom is kinda dumpy, but has books, a TV and VCR courtesy of the previous volunteer at my school. I’ll start teaching this week for a month at which time school lets out for the summer…

And okay, I’m gonna brag a little here. Today I met up with some other volunteers from the region and we had lunch with the American Ambassador to Uzbekistan. It was a good time because, 1) we had a delicious meal at no cost and 2) some interesting discussion. It made me feel a lil special 😉 So, now I’ll be heading back to town and unpacking (you know that always take me a while.) Lets keep our fingers crossed that things stay well for as long as possible.

For now,

I just have to make this post. So last night Peace Corps put us up in a hotel nearby the office here in Tashkent. Since the place we stayed at during our counterpart conference was kind of a dump (or as I dubbed it, Soviet Nouveau,) I was not expecting much. Thankfully, such was not the case. After a wonderful dinner at a place called the Greenhouse – where we sat in a wooden teepee – I headed over to the place. My supposed roomate had already checked in, but the guys at the front desk decided to give me my own room. Hey what the heck, I’m certainly worth it. I walk into the room and it is clean, the bathroom is not nasty, AND is stocked with western style toilet paper. To my dear little Peace Corps self this was quite the victory.

The next plesant surprise came when I turned on the little TV mounted on a shelf – Cable! But I was tired and went to bed. Turns out I wake up at 5 in the morning today, so I turn on the TV and flip through the channels. This is big time, folks: BBC World, CNN, Cartoon Network, Discovery Channel, an English language German station and an English language South Korean station. So I spent a few hours blissfully in bed watching TV.

Now I must mention something here. Of course the cable lineup offered the standard Uzbek fare – i.e. the state run channels. So, after watching the incredibly slick German station’s newscast for a while, I flip over to 1TV, the gem of the Uzbek broadcast system. From the polished news anchor in modern Berlin I’m transported to the image of an 84 year old Uzbek woman, with about 2 teeth total, playing her little round drum. It’s amusing, and the contrast is still registering in my mind, so I stick with it. After she finishes playing her drum, it’s time for her to sing – yep, I said it, sing. Now imagine an 84 year old woman singing a song best performed by a much younger artist. On some of the high notes (dear old thing,) it sounded like she was being mauled by a pack of wild dogs – – I could not help but laugh.

Other TV experiences included the Jetsons in Russian (yes, the opening theme song was also in Russian,) a man in Africa feeding a giraffe from his 2nd floor bedroom window, plenty of info on the Michael Jackson trial and a touching story about children sans limbs on News Night with Aaron Brown. To top it all off, a delicious all you can eat buffet breakfast was included.

I know, to you folks back in the US or other 1st world countries, this hardly sounds like somthing to inspire great joy. But after three months here it was very well appreciated. And now I’m off, wish me luck.

Good News!

I have received a visa from the Republic of Uzbekistan. This means that I am now able to go out to my site! In fact, I’m writing this from the Peace Corps office in Tashkent. Tomorrow, at 9 a.m, I will leave for my permanant site by taxi.

So, last night and this morning I said goodbye to my family in Chinobod. I will certainly miss them and the comforts that came with living there. Although I will not miss the toilet, which another volunteer dubbed as the “nastiest he’d seen,” I will miss the good food, the hands off treatment, and the moments of family bonding. That said, I’m pretty sure that time spent at my next family will be as, if not more enjoyable.

I expect to be met by the Director of the primary school at which I will be working when I arrive tomorrow, so let’s hope I make a positive impression. Here we go again…

Here are a few selections from my journal on all things Uzbek:

Funny:

My host father, Furkat, is a pretty manly man. So I’m in the front seat of the car, he’s driving, and my little host brother is in the back seat. We are going to Tashkent so that F can conduct some kind of businesses (the fewer questions asked the better I’ve learned.) My window is rolled up. We are pulling into a gas station to fill up. This big bug materializes on the inside of the windshield. It’s kind of like a flying daddy long legs. Wanting it out of the car, I roll down my window and prepare to shoo it out. But before I can do so, Furkat, as he’s pulling up to the pump, reaches up with his fist bunched and smushes it. After doing so there is a little streak on the windshield, and he just wipes his hand off like nothing happened. I’m laughing for five minutes and the group of guys selling lottery tickets at the gas station laugh and smile back at me.

Sad:

So I’m in Chirchik and it is about 7:00 pm on a Thursday night. I’m standing by the main taxi stand waiting for another volunteer to arive. The geography of this area consists of two squares bisected by a pretty major road. On one side a large ornate set of stairs and the other a square with many cafes and little shops. This is the point at which people cross the street. As I’m standing there, I notice a little boy holding the hand of an older man and leading him across the street. What catches my eye is that the man is so drunk he can barely walk. You know when you get drunk and walking is more a sequence of staggering steps rather than a fluid movement? Well he was like that. The boy, ostensibly his son, led him across the street and into the darkness, to what I can only hope is a loving home.

Random:

My family goes all out the other night by buying chicken! Chicken, though readily available here in Uz, is quite expensive. We sit down a half hour before diner and I decide that because they are busting out the chicken, I’ll bust out the Baltika. Now, to those of you who have not been in these here woods, Baltika is Russian beer. As with most consumer products, the quality of Russian goods is far superior to their Uzbek equivilents. So the Fster and I sit around and knock off about four bottles of good strong dark beer – we’re feeling just fine. Then the chicken emerges and it is delicious. As we are eating the chicken and finishing off the beer, the TV is blaring out Outkast and Snoop Dog music videos. An odd combination for sure, only to be found in, the Twiligh Uzbekistan.

Dear Friends,

All is well here in Uzbekistan despite the current events unfolding in neighboring Kyrgyzstan. In my town, day to day life continues as usual as far as I can tell. Although it appears that none of the physical unrest will spill over into Uzbekistan, my concern is regarding the long term ramifications of this event. The UZ govt, which has already proven difficult for the Peace Corps to deal with, may use this event as yet another reason to look upon us with suspicion. Hopefully this will not jeopardize the Peace Corps program in this country, but regardless it will have an effect, as many ethnic Uzbeks live in Kyrgyzstan and visa versa. Be assured, though, that PCUz is carefully looking after this issue. We did receive word from our Country Director that he is in touch with the people he needs to be in touch with, and that information will be provided to us as it becomes available.

On another note, thanks for all the feedback on the last post. Check out the comments section for WD’s personal responses to all of you who were so kind to share your thoughts.

Interesting times,