Shaved Snow

Volleyball Tournament

Fri, 21 May 2010 22:08:27 -0700

I played in a volleyball tournament a few weeks ago, and we managed to get 2nd place finish. Our prize was “cash” - 15,000 manat (Turkmenistan’s currency, it’s about $1.00 in US.) If we won 1st place, we would have won a sheep or a goat? Ha...ha...

I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw them hauling a big sheep into the gym and awarding it to the 1st place team. I wish I had my camera with me. I was laughing inside myself. Everyone around me, however, was not the least bit surprised - It’s a normal gift/prize for competition.

I suppose that is what is important to a former nomadic culture.

Be There for You

Tue, 9 Feb 2010 14:58:01 -0800

Whew! It’s freezing here! Almost all of January was filled with hot, summer-like weather, but now February has brought on true cold.

Life in Babadayhan is moving along nicely, though hard times certainly still visit me. Just yesterday I was felling unproductive and unmotivated for no reason. So I spent entire afternoon and night reading Pride & Prejudice.

I am writing this letter during class time. There are no teachers left in the school. Every one went to a nearby city to attend a so-called “funeral-feast.” Brother of our school’s director (principal) just lost a daughter, who died in a car accident. The family in mourning makes a giant pot of soup or food and invites every one, neighbors, co-workers, and some random people to join the event to remember the lost. Teachers in my school were among the categories of the “co-workers” and school was virtually emptied so every one can go to this event.

There are many reasons that some students just “excuse” themselves from attending school. Among them -

“My father bought a new car the other day, I must help him prepare for the “New Car Feast”?”

“A visitor is coming from far away, I must go home early to prepare for his arrival.”

This is a good one : “I am getting married, I’ll be absent for two months.”

The list can go on and on. It is extremely frustrating for an educator like myself, but thankfully, I do have a few group of students who are faithfully in attending my classes. This helps me maintain my sanity in this “schedule-less” country.

“Be there” is the fundamental “character” of a real Turkmen, always willing to “be there” for a friend just to show your respect.

Snow is coming down very strong today, and now the floor is covered with all the white powder. It is breathtakingly beautiful.

Darvaza Well

Mon, 18 Jan 2010 21:19:46 -0800

Turkmenistan has one of the largest natural gas deposit. In the past, they were selling their natural gas ONLY through Russia’s oil company. Russia would not pay market pricing so they have been actively seeking for new buyer, and they found China.

China help building a transcontinental pipeline starting from Turkmenistan, running through other Central Asia countries, and ending at Shanghai. Natural gas sales to China started flowing just last month.

Darvaza Well is a huge hole in the ground. It was created during the Soviet Union time. Natural gas exploded and blew a bid hole in the ground and gas continues to burn up to this date.Locals call this hole - “Devil’s Gate”

Click here to see the picture.

Why did the young lady cover her mouth?

Sat, 12 Sep 2009 22:48:00 -0700

This is a picture of my new hosting family. I have moved so that I do not have to walk 40 minutes every day to get to my school. Now it takes only 15 minutes.

In the picture from left -

My hosting father - Gudorat
The grandson,
His daughter-in-law,Merjen
Sonya, his wife (my hosting mother, remember the Camel picture?)

Why did Merjen cover her mouth, what is your answer? Pick one from below -

She is shy.
She forgot to use Listerine.
She just pulled her teeth.
She did not want to talk to the elders.
She is showing respect to her Mother-in-Law.
She is showing respect to her Father-in-Law.

My Camel Friend

Sat, 12 Sep 2009 22:45:58 -0700

Sorry, this picture is a little bit blurry. My hosting mother could not hold the camera steady.

Care to give this big fellow a name?

Singing for the kids

Sat, 12 Sep 2009 22:43:49 -0700

Summer time, school is out.

Peace Corps sponsored a 15 day summer camp for disabled kids in the capital area. We were able to get away from our assigned post and conjured at the camp just to have some good time with these kids.

It was quite relaxing. Here I am singing for the kids.

Traditional Turkmen Food

Sat, 12 Sep 2009 22:37:34 -0700

Clockwise from

The cup: Chal, or camel’s milk

The large dish: Dumpling that my mom mailed me? No, These are Turkmen dumplings (stuffed with ground beef.)

The bowl: Turkmen Yogurt, they call it - Gatyk

The Melon: Honey Dew

Small plate: Salad (Tomatoes and Cucumbers).

Everything is made from scratch and there are not ready-made or frozen food. Ground beef is actually ground at kitchen. So a full meal takes a long time to prepare.

Boston Vacation

Sat, 4 Jul 2009 21:23:48 -0700

Some of you may already know that Russell came back to Boston to attend his cousin’s wedding. The entire Hsieh family spent a week together in Boston as well. Here are some pictures that Russell brought back to share.

Click here to see these pictures.

Like a Maniac!

Tue, 24 Mar 2009 20:21:51 -0700

I was invited to a teacher’s New Year’s party back in December, where all the teachers of our school pooled some money together and threw a pretty cool party with lots of food, vodka, and a live band with one of the teachers as the main singer. Men drank vodka, and women huddled in their corners to talk, and overall I had a pretty good time. The band started to play a little while later, and that’s when things really got started. All at once, almost all the women stood up in unison and walked out onto the dance floor (the open space of a classroom, and began dancing.

Turkmen people absolutely love dancing. Their style of dance is much more conservative than our version of what we call “dancing” back in America. Women shuffle their feet in a box step, hardly moving their hips but swaying their arms and bending their wrists in such a fashion that they resemble waves. They dance in circles, shuffling along in a counterclockwise motion in step with Turkmen dance music, which is basically an electronic techno beat played on an electric keyboard. As for the men, they can either stand to the side and clap until ready to enter, or slyly dance their way into the circle. Actually, the best male dancers usually force their way right into the middle of the circle, much as how breakdancers take “center stage” in the middle of a crowd—except without all the crazy acrobatics. Turkmen dancing, like I said, is very conservative. No fist pumping, booty shaking, head bobbing here. But when the “DJ” or band begins to play, what I call the “face-off” dance beat, that’s when the center male dancers really “turn it on”.

At first, the beat keeps a slow, swaying pace but then quickly speeds up into these hyperspeed beats (don’t know how else to explain it…think along the lines of techno music). Two male dancers, usually the best of the group, smoothly make their way into the center of the circle while the rest of the group immediately stops their shuffling to stand and watch the competition. As the beat quickens, what ensues is something that resembles something like a cockfight. The two center dancers suddenly turn to face each other, pounding their feet rapidly and aggressively into the floor, increasing the speed of each step to the increasing beat of the music. They flail their arms side to side chest-high, or keep one hand behind their backs, still kicking up dust with their wicked quick feet. The rest of us encircle the dancers, clapping along, and some men yell out random Turkmen phrases egging them on. Finally, the DJ thinks we’ve all had enough and slowly fades away the music, and consequently the intensity that goes with it. All of us breathe a sigh of relief.

Just another small tidbit about the Turkmen dance culture. Most Americans are usually at first a tad bit shy when it comes to dancing, but Turkmen here are completely unabashed. In fact, I think it is expected of you to dance if you aren’t handicapped. Anyways, I just thought that was neat because Turkmen don’t seem to suffer from the ailments of self-consciousness as we do in America. At least in dancing, anyway.

I cook for myself...

Thu, 19 Mar 2009 23:33:56 -0700

Russell has no access to internet, so what you are reading here are parts of the letters he wrote to his parent.

“Hmmm... what else is going on here? Even though sometimes I find myself alone, I rather enjoy it. I have my work to occupy my time and I am reading a lot. I love to read...”

“My hosting mother is supposed to cook for me but she is quite busy with her bakery shop and with tending her two sons, so in many occasions, I need to cook for myself. This turns out to be a blessing, because I can cook the food I like instead of easting something greasy, which is quite common with Turkmenistan food.”

“Guess what, I have opportunity to play volleyball again. People here love playing volleyball. Please send me my contact lenses, I need to wear them to play.”

“ I am receiving letters not only from you guys (mom and dad), but also from old friends. Even some aunties (mom’s friends) whom I have never met wrote me letter. Some said they are inspired by my volunteering for PEACE Corps.”

“Mom, you want to know what my daily life is like... here it is... Every morning I wake at 7, have breakfast at 7:30, then I walk about 30 minutes to get to my school (sometime, I am offered car ride along the way). I teach English from 8:30 to 1:30 pm. From 3pm to 4pm, I teach the English Club that I have formed (mostly teachers). I got home around 5pm usually. For lunch, I eat at a local cafe. Lunch hour is long (1:30 to 2:50pm). I spend the evening mostly preparing my material for next day’s teaching.”

I have started teaching

Mon, 12 Jan 2009 20:00:06 -0800

Partial excerpts from Russell's recent letter to his parents -

Life here in a completely new country certainly is very difficult. As newcomers, we must re-learn how to do many things like washing clothes by hand, squatting in bathrooms, taking "bucket" showers, learning a new language, buying groceries, etc. It certainly feels overwhelming at times. Luckily, Turkmen people are some of the nicest people in the world. Every one I have met so far has always said that their doors are always open to me, whenever the time. It is easy to find a place to stay and find something to eat for free.

I have actually finished with teaching a class. It was very successful, I think. Teaching English is very difficult but I hope I will get better as time moves on. There are a variety of factors that really hinder the learning process of the students I teach. First of all, the books are made by the government. These books are old, outdated, incoherent, and just plain wrong. Teachers have to use these books because government mandates it. Many of local "English Teachers" do not even know how to speak English. Most of them were previously either Russian or Germany teachers so they do not know exactly what they are teaching.

It certainly is a giant challenge to work here, but I'm glad that I have the opportunity to be here to give some of the students a chance at a better life.

Merry belated Christmas everyone!

Sun, 28 Dec 2008 09:31:00 -0800

Merry belated Christmas everyone!

The only reason I am able to write to you guys is because Peace Corps Staff has graciously allowed volunteers to stay in Ashgabat for one night this weekend. Originally, the rule was that no volunteer was allowed to spend the night anywhere else during the first 3 months at site. But Christmas is Christmas--so they budged.

I'm officially been at my site for about 3 weeks now, but like any difficult endeavor we take upon ourselves, the beginning feels the longest. I miss my training group a lot and the proximity of being close to the capital, Ashgabat (civilization). And recently the homesickness has hit me a little harder. The funny thing is that I thought i would be a lot more nostalgic come Christmas season, but actually Christmas kind of came and went without much bruhaha and fuss. Advertisements and repetitive Christmas songs certainly have an effect on "holiday spirit" or psychology. Maybe it's because i haven't smelled anything yet, like a christmas tree.

Anyways, while everyone is still in the holiday cheer back in the States, I just wanted to say a BIG thank you for all the kind emails and mails that I've received so far during my service here in T-Stan. I've received a lot of encouragement from you guys back at home that it makes living here that much easier. A special big thanks to you who have taken the time to go old school and tediously write a litter by hand and spend 94 cents for a stamp. It's nice to see the handwriting sometimes because I can identify the style of script with the author.

Well, these past 3 weeks, like I said, have been rather more difficult than the other weeks in Turkmenistan. As I anticipated, the transition from being around Americans everyday in a foreign country to being a 40 minute car ride from the nearest volunteer has been like trying to quit smoking. Well, not quite. But I think you guys know what I mean.

Babadayhan is a quaint little town. Actually, it's an "etrap", a sort of really small county that encompasses several other small villages. It's funny because some of the names of the local villages reflect Soviet era times (for i.e.-- "Communism", "October"). I live in the "central" town, which means that there's a bazaar, a good school with students who actually care somewhat more about school rather than picking cotton, and government buildings like a post office.

The neat thing about living in a small town like B-han is that everyone, quite literally, knows everyone else. For example, when my co-worker invited me for dinner at his house one day, he told me to simply ask any driver if he knew "Oraz mollum" (Oraz teacher), and to take me to his house if he did. To my disbelief, it worked! Haha, not in a million years would that work in the States.

So far, Turkmenistan hasn't confronted me with any major challenges, but lately I've been a little more concerned about my living situation at my new site. I currently live with a young single mother and her 2 sons, Sohbet (So-wet), 10, and Umhyut (Ohm-wheat), 3. Haha, there was one point in my life where I thought that I was good enough with kids and posessed enough patience to raise a family if I absolutely had to. Living with a 3 year old for 3 weeks quickly dispelled such silly notions. Umhyut is deceivingly cute, but tests the limits of my patience every moment when he's around. He asks for candy all the time, and bellows out cries at least 3 or 4 times a day depending on his mood. Every morning I get to wake up to the wails of a crying child around 6am.

Not that i would know, but I surmise that being a single mother anywhere in the world would be challenging, to say the least. My hostmother, is not an exception. She wakes every morning at 6am and works until 6, 7, or even 8pm and comes home to more chores for her to do. On top of that, she needs to devote herself to her 3 year old son (the other she sort of ignores and bosses around). She makes dinner, cleans the house (she's very OCD about cleanliness), watches television for awhile and then crashes for the night. One day when I came home, I found her laying on the floor completely exhausted from work.

Since she comes home so late, I often have to cook for myself, as well as for the 2 boys. I don't really mind too much, but most volunteers have families that will provide both breakfast and dinner everyday. Right now there isn't much work at school for me to do, so so far I've been okay making dinner for all of us. But come January/Feb, when I start up English clubs and take on a greater teaching load, I don't know if I can come home to 2 misbehaving boys and house chores. I know it sounds rather selfish of me, but adjusting to an entirely new culture, learning a new language, as well as learning how to teach English, and then adding the home responsibilities feels a little overwhelming. I don't really want to blur any social lines and become the boys' surrogate father, though I know I could never fit that role.

Peace Corps requires us volunteers to remain with our current host families for at least 3 months, and after that time expires, should we think our living situation unsuitable, we can begin to search for new housing. I've certainly begun to consider that option, but I have contradicting feelings about my host family that I need to work out. My wanting to alleviate some burdens off my host mother's insanely difficult life is pitted against my own need for solitude, practical support (like meals), and social boundaries (like not becoming a father figure). At any rate, I have 2 months left to sort out how much I can take on, how much do I want to take on, to balance and figure out what the "right thing to do" is, and what's practical. So, pray for that if you guys can for wisdom.

Since I've had a lot of time on my hands recently, i've occupied myself with a lot of reading. I've read 4 books since coming to Turkmenistan, and it feels great! haha. That's four more books than any given year in college.haha jk (kind of). If you want to take a look at what's been influencing my thoughts lately, here's the 4 that i've read thus far:

Animal Farm, George Orwell
The Places in Between, forgot author's name
Siddhartha, Herman Hesse
In Cold Blood, Truman Capote

"Places", "Siddhartha", and "Cold Blood" have all been EXCELLENT reads, so if you folk who have a lot of time pick up those books.

Anyhow, it's time for me to head back to Babadayhan in 30 minutes, so I'm going to end here. Sorry if the email seems scattered and incoherent, I still need to get a lot of things done before I head out.

AH! last notes! My new mailing address (Letter only, no Package)

Ahal-Welayat
Babadayhan Etrap
Merkezi Pocta
Russell Hsieh

And there should be a zip code, but I forgot it. Sorry. haha..hopefully it will work. I'll send an email out with the zip code later.

ANOTHER THING! I know that I said awhile back that writing would be best, but actually I'll get internet access once or twice a month so please send me emails if you don't feel like writing by hand. But letters are always nice! =)

Much love to you all.

Some Turkmen for ya:

Taze yyl ucin, gutly bolsun! (For the new year, may you be happy! OR Happy new year!)

Russ

Letter from My Supervisor

Thu, 18 Dec 2008 08:20:18 -0800

Dear Ann and Paul,

I was just speaking to Russell and asked his permission to write to you, which he gave gratefully. I know it is hard being out of communication with your son when he is so far away. (I have two sons in their 20's one of whom lives in Taiwan.) It does get a bit easier as time goes by. Anyway Russell is
doing very well and is settling-in nicely in Babadaihan. It's a nice little community and the people are kind and welcoming. I've attached a couple of pictures from the swearing-in ceremony at which Russell won over the hearts of the Turkmen guests by playing his guitar and singing a wonderful song
all in Turkmen. He plans on coming to Ashgabat in a couple of weeks and said he would e-mail you then. Please continue to send packages to the address you were using during training and he'll be able to pick them up when he comes to Ashgabat. Again Russell is doing fine and I hope you have Happy Holidays.

Peace,
Stephen
Stephen Kutzy
Country Director
Peace Corps Turkmenistan

Hey friends, How are you all doing?

Sun, 7 Dec 2008 16:22:24 -0800

Hey friends, How are you all doing? This will be a little short.

Life here is pretty crazy. Yesterday we just got officially sworn in as "volunteers"--o we're not baby trainees anymore! I'm an official volunteer (they gave us a certificate). Anyways, getting sworn in usually means pomp and circumstance as well, so there were a lot of speeches from our Country Director and one from the American ambassador as well as the Ministry of Education head of Turkmenistan. A lot of people came, like our host families and co-workers, to witness the event.

My Language Coordinator asked me to learn and play a Turkmen pop song for the event! And being the obliging person that I am, I, well, obliged. hahaa. So yesterday I had a pretty good adrenaline rush playing and singing a Turkmen song in front of embassy folks and a room of about 100 or so people. Whew. I think God, or at least the thought of God, certainly helped me get through the moment. I was pretty jittery the day before, and a few minutes before I had to perform, but then I realized that if are ever to be happy we should not attach our emotions and our state of being to the approval or disapproval of others. That would be slavery. Anyhow, having God's approval--which does not depend on any work or performance--helped me through the situation and everything went swimmingly. The Turkmen in the room were ecstatic.

Tomorrow I'm going to go my permanent site in Turkmenistan-- a small town called "Babadaihan" which is about 2-3 hours East of Ashgabat, the capital of Turkmenistan. That's where I'll spend my next 2 years! Whew. It's all settling in.

On another side note, yesterday people got together and went to a sort of bar where people were eating and drinking and smoking a lot. It wasn't quite my scene, but I guess I have to get used to it--smoking and drinking is the norm for men here, and considering that I don't do either, I have a little bit more of a hard time integrating into society.

My Turkmen language is going along swimmingly, however, so it helps to impress the locals often with my broken Turkmen. People here get ecstatic when they hear us speak any Turkmen.

At any rate, I'm not going to get internet access for a long while, so, SO LONG for a little bit.

Oki doki, take it easy everyone.

Nothing big is happening

Mon, 1 Dec 2008 11:53:42 -0800

Nothing big is happening except this is my last week of training, and therefore my last days in Ashgabat. I will be moving to Babadaihan on Sunday, and thereafter will not be able to use internet for awhile I think. Everything so far has been really great--yesterday the Americans got together and had Thanksgiving dinner complete with mashed potatoes, chicken, pumpkin pie, cookies, salad, and other goodies. It was a potluck, so I brought fried rice! Haha, I used the soy sauce that you sent me mom! By the way, one of the packages exploded during transit, and so there were black stains on the mail you sent me. Don't wory, I could read everything, but my mail smelled good.

Babadaihan is a very small town, and according to everyone else here, it's very "Turkmen". This probably means that everyone there is very traditional and conservative. I'm excited, and alittle nervous at the same time-- I am following 2 super volunteers who apparently spoke Turkmen very very fluently. I hope my Turkmen will get to that proficiency level after a year. Hopefully after a year I will have the motivation to learn Russian still.

Whew, am I tired...

Mon, 17 Nov 2008 10:12:48 -0800

Whew, am I tired. I just got back from my permanent site visit in Babadaihan, which turned out to be a real eye-opener of an experience. Nothing out of the ordinary, just the realization that I'm here for good for the next 2 years and that it's going to be one heck of a trip.

First, when I got to Babadaihan, I found out from my counterpart, the local English teacher with whom I am working, that I didn't have a family to stay with because the family I was supposed to stay with requested a girl volunteer. So, since I didn't fit the requested description of being a female, I was pretty much homeless. I understood the family's choice to not take me in though since they were a family of only women—2 daughters and a mother—and to have a foreign man in their house could mean a permanently tarnished reputation for the family.

Well, I was homeless. Lucky for me, a current volunteer whom I am replacing in December, Hans, lives within walking distance of the school. After strolling with my counterpart for 15 minutes, we arrived at Han's host family's house. Hans wasn't there, but his family was, so my counterpart helped me negotiate with the mother to see if I could stay in Hans's room for the next couple of days. We met the mother, asked if I could stay for a week, got asked if I smoke or drank alcohol (no and no), and badabing badaboom! A house for a week for free! I love Turkmen for their incredible generosity. Their reputation for generously receiving guests is well deserved.

Babadaihan is a small, idyllic agricultural community. Like everywhere else in Turkmenistan, the landscape is a dusty desert deprived of lush greenness. Though a river runs along the town, it doesn't produce much.

Everyone here owns a small plot of land, chickens, a cow(s), goats, sheep, and possibly a camel(s). The host family that I was staying with owned a coop of chickens, several goats, and 2 tiny dogs. They plant watermelons, pumpkins, eggplants, cotton, and other various crops during planting time, probably at the end of winter or early spring? Don't know, but I'll find out soon enough. The cotton industry here seems to be a staple source of income for many families here. The current volunteer told me that it wasn't unusual if both students and teachers don't show up to class during cotton-picking season because they're out in the fields pickin them cottons.

Upon arriving in Babadaihan, I quickly found out how how much of city-boy I really was, for I soon found out how cotton is grown and what it actually looks like in its raw, unnatural stage. Did you know that cotton grows inside golf ball-sized green buds? Haha. The second I picked it up and cracked open the bud, I smiled and chuckled out loud because I realized how far removed I am from the farm life. I wear the stuff everyday, but didn't have a clue what it looked like or where it came from. Anyhow, that was neat.

Anyways, as for realizations and epiphanies, nothing profound or philosophical has come across my mind in recent days. I was, however, slightly lonely at one point during my site visit to Babadaihan. After finally finding a place to stay and settling in, I had nothing else to do but lie on the floor staring blankly at the ceiling. Laying there, I listened to my host mother outside clunking buckets doing whatever chore she was doing at the moment. I wanted to go out and talk with her (later on in the trip I gathered the courage to do so), but I felt self-conscious about my Turkmen and didn't want to interfere with her daily schedule. She, along with most women in Turkmenistan, carries the heavy burden of all the house work as well as raising 6 children, making her a sort of sharp and somewhat crabby woman. I certainly did not want to make a poor impression on the one who was to feed me the next couple of days, so I decided to be like the chickens in their backyard and stay cooped up in my room (pun intended).

Not being able to communicate with the family and not having anything to do, I sort of just laid on the floor, watching the ceiling and wandering off. I thought to myself that this was sort of a dull, depressing moment. At our training sites we at least get to teach and hang out with fellow volunteers everyday, but now, no such outlet was available to us. Well, not too long afterwards, I suddenly came to an obvious but painful conclusion: What I am experiencing now—the vacuuming of anything remotely familiar, and extreme isolation— will often be the case for the years to come. Many volunteers say that life will certainly feel empty, boring, and rather lonely during our 2 years of service because we will feel so out of place and uncomfortable in an entirely new environments. During training it's not so bad because I see fellow Peace Corps volunteers everyday, but in a couple of weeks, I will be alone in a village full of people whom I don't understand and who also don't understand me far removed from any other American.

It's fall here in Turkmenistan as it should be in California, and even though it is a desert landscape, the land still nourishes a few redeeming trees that sparsely line the rocky, dusty roads. The trees, responding to the call of the sun and to the changing weather, are beginning to shed their bright, goldenrod leaves. Fall is my favorite season, and just seeing a yellow leaf, no matter how dull or brilliant, begins to trigger images of the ginormous oaks and maples and other beautiful trees of the Bay Area and Davis, which of course, made me begin to miss home a little. It's early November, which means people at home are slowly yet surely, even subconsciously, preparing themselves for Thanksgiving and Christmas and reviving the holiday spirit. I think by now I would have had a conversation with my mother about Thanksgiving dinner, whether it be about assigning food responsibilities or making a guest list or creating a centerpiece for the dinning room table. And yes, back at home I would often think of Turkey long before Thanksgiving week.

Anyways, holidays and seasons and weather and food always make people compare and contemplate. Laying on the floor cycling through these memories made me not only miss home, but forced me to think about the realities of the coming years. This next year might be one of the loneliest, which means lots of time to think, overthink, or go insane. Hahaha. Hopefully not the latter. But I wouldn't completely laught it off—Hans says that these past 2 years have been the toughest in his life, and to quote him verbatim: "When the demons come, you better be ready". Granted, Hans has a flare for melodrama since he lives a much more extreme life than me, but I'm still going to take his words of caution seriously. Anyhow, to all of my college buddies and newly grads, I encourage you all to spend some good time with your fam and be sure to help out in the coming holiday festivities.

Oki doki!

BABADAIHAN here I come!

Wed, 5 Nov 2008 10:43:55 -0800

So I misspelled my town in my last email. I was pressed for time so I couldn't really search through my backpack to accurately spell out my future hometown for the next 2 years. Sorry folks!

So here's the lowdown on the place—it's a small oba, or village, which has approximately 10.000 inhabitants. It's 30-40 minutes away from a bigger city, Tejen, which is apparently the narcotic capital of Turkmenistan (they have something called "Tejen Tea" which is code for opium). Haha. Hopefully won't get mixed up in that crowd. Luckily, Tejen/Baba(for short) is only a 3-4 hour bus ride away from the capital Ashgabat. I know that kind of sounds like a long time, but in Turkmenistan hours, that's pretty darn good compared to other volunteers who live a 20 hour train ride away. I would have loved to take a train ride across the sandy deserts of T-Stan, but tis not to be. Well…I can still probably take it but it will cost me vacation days, darn!

The site that I'm going to already has a volunteer there, but he's making his exit, or Close of Service (COS) pretty soon as he's finished his 2 year service. Apparently, he's going to be a tough act to follow because I hear he is extremely fluent in Russian, Turkmen, and possibly another language and is probably very chummy with the entire village. Yikes! I'm going to meet him 2 days from now, but I already feel like I'm under somebody else's shadow.

I am going to stay with a host family that doesn't seem to have any male figures in their family at all! For safety reasons, I'm not going to release their names, but my future host family will have 1 mother, and 3 daughters, one of whom is my age but I am pretty sure that she should be married by this time or next year. Who knows? I'll find out tomorrow when I leave for my site 2 days from now to go 'check it out'.

Now for some Turkmenistan education. There are 5 states within Turkmenistan—Ahal-Welayat, Lebap, Dashoguz, Balkan, and Mary. My town is in the same "welayat" (state) as Ashgabat, Ahal-Welayat. This state is the most traditional of the 5 states, and therefore the most conservative in terms of conduct and behavior. Women and men are separate from each other and hardly have any sort of friendship with the other sex. When they eat, men eat with men and women eat with women. In honest, this scares me a little because I feel like I get along with women better because they're more friendly and more wiling to chat. Men simply smoke, drink, and make jokes. Haha. They hardly share in the domestic chores. The upside is that Ahal-Welayat is more traditional, and therefore speaks traditional Turkmen unlike the other welayats (with the exception of Mary). We're learning traditional Turkmen during training, so I'm glad I don't have to get used to another dialect or learn another language entirely, though by the end of 2 years I hope to be proficient in Russian. The other states are much more liberal in their behavior so I've been told. Lebap is the most liberal welayat of the 5 as it borders Uzbekistan (east) and has a greater population of Russians and Uzbeks. Girls there can wear pants and shorter skirts whereas girls in Ahal-Welayat MUST wear a dress everyday in order to be considered a proper Turkmen. Dashoguz is way up north and it's people are supposedly very hard working and very welcoming. Balkan shares a border with Iran and the Caspian sea. I don't know anything about the people, but the land is a barren desert so there's nothing but sand there. Lastly, Mary is the most ancient of the 5 welayats as it features the oldest city in all of Turkmenistan, I believe. The state has a lot of ancient ruins and cool historical sites since it was the main stop on the famous Silk Road. Neat huh? I had my hopes set on Mary, but my site is about 2-3 hours away, so I'm sure I'll make a few trips to that area of Turkmenistan. Hope you enjoyed my brief on the states of Turkmenistan. Be sure to look at a map as you read the descriptions.

Ah, what else to tell you? I am, unfortunately, a little ill as of late as I've developed a tough cough and have spit out some darkish-green phlegm. It was bound to happen though. We eat communally here in Turkmenistan which means one common plate of food, 1 giant bread (chorek) and greasy hands dipping into the same plate. I wouldn't exactly call washing dishes here sanitary either. Sometimes they just dump hot water onto the plate, rinse off the food bits, and it's ready to serve the next meal! Tea cups are shared and spoons are licked sometimes by multiple tongues sometimes. Haha. I, being a good, "culturally sensitive" volunteer, partake in all this communal lifestyle of my fellow Turkmens. So yes, I break bread, dip it into a communal bowl, drink from a cup that's been sipped by others, but I certainly don't lick spoons that have been licked by another. Gotta draw a line somewhere right?

Taking a bath here in T-Stan varies from volunteer to volunteer—some have showers, some have running water, but I have a bathroom with a boiling pot of water, and a tin cup to dump over my greasy, dusty self. And it's not as bad as it sounds. All you do is fill the tin cup about 1/4 of the way with pipin hot water and fill the rest of it with cold water so the product is a lukewarmish cup of water that you can dump over your back. The toilet is a sort of outhouse—it is a tiled floor with a 10-12 foot hole full of…well, who knows what. I don't mind it—the smell is like any school bathroom in Taiwan, squatting definitely clears the path if you know what I mean ;).

So I've heard that Obama has won. Congratulations to him and all who were adamantly (formally or informally) campaigning for him (Arian, my sis, and other fellow Californians). As for me, I remain skeptical of his ability to affect "change"—he's promised to expand Peace Corps, but guess who made a similar promise during his campaign? That's right. George Dubya! Goes to show how slow our government can be when you have an endless game of Republican v. Democrat Tug-o-War game going on 24/7. We'll see how much change Obama can conjure up when he and his Democrat chums need to "ace" their midterm exams (congressional elections). By the way, I stole "ace midterm exams" from a TIME magazine title when George Bush "aced" his midterm elections right after the Iraq war? Or was it Afghanistan? I can't remember, but I just remember the front page saying that Bush aced his midterm elections and that the title referred to the majority of Republicans winning their congressional elections.

Take it easy everyone!

BTW—I've seemed to have forgotten a few people on my reader's list—like my mom and dad for one (yikes!). If anyone else wants to read these updates, can you please send me their emails so I can add them?

Thank you to those who have sent me mail so far (you know who you are). I treasure each one that I receive and reread them over and over.

I find myself craving ...

Mon, 3 Nov 2008 15:30:30 -0800

Happy Halloween! Unfortunately, I think America is the only country that takes this holiday seriously. Nevertheless, I have eaten my fair share of candy while in Turkmenistan. I don't know what it is, but I've developed such a sweet tooth ever since arriving here. In the States I would hardly touch a candy bar, but now I find myself craving Snickers and Kit Kats and Butterfingers and chomp 3 or 4 pieces when they're available. I gotta watch myself or else I'll find myself with my first cavity.

Today was sort of a rough day because my Turkmen is coming very, very slowly. Language learning is so tough especially since English doesn't have a lot of suffixes like Turkmen or a lot of other languages. I'm glad I'm around people who understand my limited ability so they don't expect too much out of me which makes life easier yet quieter. I like it that way though. I've found that the way people party in the States is pretty similar in Turkmenistan and I'm guessing around the globe. Men just eat, hang out, drink alcohol, smoke and make obscene jokes. Not that that isn't fun sometimes, but I don't drink, smoke, and don't really enjoy vulgar humor. Well, I guess I'm contradicting myself. For me, parties of that type are never fun. I just choose to sit and eat the peanuts or kishmish (raisins) and munch on whatever is in front of me while the rest of the party consumes copious amounts of dirt-cheap vodka and smoke packs of cigarettes (bleh). Nevertheless, it's always an experience hanging out with very buzzed men. People here who attempt to talk with me will always ask about the whereabouts of Michael Jackson, Jeanne Claude Van Dam (sp?), or 50 Cent. Sometimes I wish I was plugged into pop culture when I was in America so I could answer their questions instead of disappointing my inquisitors with a "bilemok" ("I don't know"!).

Well, after a long day of sitting in classrooms and learning Turkmen I got home and washed my clothes. My family doesn't have a washing machine so we do it by hand. While washing by hand certainly takes a great deal of effort and time, it is a sort of therapy. Drench, scrub, wring, scrub, wring, rinse, and then repeat. I don't think about anything else except scrubbing the dark brown lines off my collar or wringing all the water out of my clothes.

Anyhow, that's all for now. Tomorrow morning we're leaving for the "Underground Lake". Haha, it sounds like a fantasy place, but it's true! There's supposedly a gorgeous underground lake in Turkmenistan near the capital, Ashgabat, and all the Peace Corps Trainees are going there for some well-deserved R and R.

Ah, Halloween. I don't particularly enjoy this holiday, but it serves as a marker for the changing seasons as well as the coming of Thanksgiving! O Thanksgiving, how I'll miss thy Turkey and mashed potatoes and gravy and sweet potatoes and corn and pumpkin pie! Even though Turkmen food is really quite good, I do miss home food quite a bit. What would I give for a burger right now? Quite a lot my friends, quite a lot.

Free Photographer

Wed, 22 Oct 2008 15:24:17 -0700

Tomorrow we're starting our ECA camp, or English Club Activity. This camp is basically a rough experiment to see how we do as trainees to organize a giant camp. We're hoping for about 30 students, but I project numbers to be way off the mark--I'm guessing that there will be far more than we anticipate.

So basically what we do at this 4 hour camp is play games with the local school children using English in hopes that they will learn a little and have fun at the same time. We're hoping for 30 students tomorrow and another 30 the day after so that the camp can be manageable and everyone will have a lot of fun and therefore make a good impression on the teachers, the children, the school, and the town. The main medium of communication here is the rumor mill so the whole town will hear about how well our camp goes through the gossip wire.

Yesterday night was one of my worser moments in Turkmenistan, albeit in retrospect I think life could be worse and overall it wasn't that that bad. My host brother sings in a band, which means that he along with his buddies perform at "toys" or wedding receptions. Think "Wedding Singer" except more chaotic and cheesiness x1000. haha. Unlike us Americans, wedding receptions are a very public event, and almost the entire neighborhood is invited to partake in the crazy festivities. The "dance floor" is actually an enclosed nearby street surrounded by 2 giant crate trucks. each truck has a suped-up or modified crate that transforms into a flashy makeshift stage for the band. The second truck-crate is decorated with drapes and contains chairs for the bride and groom to sit and oversee the dancing. It's hard to describe the scene because it's so lavish and ghetto at the same time. Turkmen really love their gaudy flashing lights though. Flashing Las-Vegas-like lights are somehow wired into both trucks and they flash all sorts of colors throughout the entire night. I'll send pictures as soon as possible to give you all some idea of what a "toy" looks like.

The foreignness and newness of a toy certainly makes for a good time...but after a while the novelty wears off and you just want to sit or leave or find someone to talk with--being the ONLY American there makes you uncomfortably unapproachable at these occasions. Well, it wouldn't have been that bad if I didn't have to sit in one of the trucks with the makeshift stage--musicians sitting next to me in the back smoked about a pack in 2 hours, and I was lucky enough to get stuck where the smoke has nowhere else to go but into my smoke-sucking nostrils. To make the headache worse, I sat RIGHT NEXT to the loudspeaker that blared out Turkmen wedding music--aka 80's like synthesizer beats coupled with high pitched synthesized coronets. Haha, and for you soundtechs out there, the speaker was situated behind the singer, which of course we all know is a big no-no that leads to screeching feedback. I was able to enjoy the full effect of that phenomenon having sat right next to the speaker.

Even then, I thought to myself it could be worse. But it did get worse. My host brother told me to bring my camera with me to the reception, and told me to take pictures of the wedding. BIG BIG BIG MISTAKE. I basically became the wedding photographer for 3 hours. At first, I was thrilled because it gave me something to do and it got me out of sitting in smoke next to a blaring speaker, but then everyone kept poking me and asking me whether or not I could take their picture with the bride and groom. Of course, I couldn't understand them, but then we would play charades and i would understand. It felt really awkward for me to walk through the crowd and at times stand in the center of everything and take pictures. I wasn't a hired hand, I'm obviously American, I was at the center of all the ruckus, so I felt like everyone (100 plus people) had their eye on me. They were probably judging at what pictures i was taking, looking at my facial expressions (tired/bored/frustrated) and making stories. Well, this is all speculation, but in a small town atmosphere everyone is always saying something. Well, after awhile, people began to catch on and began to treat me like the wedding photographer! People left and right kept yelling for me ("gel! Gel!" which means "come! come!") and told me to take their picture. I felt very used throughout the whole night and it was as if I was everyone's slave to be honest. I really just wanted to sit and relax and take a few photos. Instead, free labor (PCVolunteers are under no circumstances allowed to receive payment for any service rendered). Oh well. I just keep telling myself it could be worse, and frankly, it could, so I'm generally very happy with my stay here in Turkmenistan so far.

We got home at 1:00 am this morning, and I had to get up at 7am to get to the Bazar so we could drive to Rhuhabat (20 minute drive) to meet with Peace Corps staff. I was pretty tired, but felt fine throughout the day. Anyways, I'll try to keep you guys more updated. See you!

PEACE Corps first day

Sun, 28 Sep 2008 15:21:52 -0700

I had my first Pre-Service Training today. It was pretty neat, and a lot easier than I anticipated. Meeting everyone at first was a little nerve-racking of course, but eventually I got into the groove of things and it was actually fun! It feels like freshmen year all over again, except everyone is 22 and older. Everyone also is extremely talented, intelligent and friendly.
I was surprised at how many future Turkmenistan volunteers there are! There are 44 future English teachers and health administrators heading off to Turkmenistan this Monday. Young people from all over the United States have come here to Philly to convene. My roommate is from Hawaii, there are countless Michiganians (sp?), and a lot of people from the midwest. Not too many from California, but I did meet a girl from Cupertino. The Peace Corps website statistics don’t lie about the girl/guy ratio either. There are many more girls than guys here. So guys…another good reason to join the Peace Corps. haha.
Today has been pretty fun because meeting new people challenges your social skills. But seeing old faces is always welcome as well! I saw Jon Chang (bald) and Jess Lee today in Philly and Jon generously treated us to brunch at an Amish restaurant/food court place. I feel pretty fortunate compared to the rest of the volunteers because I get to spend some extra time with home folks and prolong the “goodbye” experience a little longer. Ah, Davis, how I miss thee.
So far, I’m enjoying myself. I really like the diversity of Peace Corps and the goals that the organization promotes, which I will list here:
1. To meet the expressed needs of the host country
2. To promote understanding of American and American values
3. To educate fellow Americans about the outside world
Of course they put it more eloquently in the Peace Corps Act 1961 in the Constitution, but it basically asserts the same goals as above.
Anyhow, I’m stuffed and pooped. Two slices of pizza and a 1/2 Philly Cheesesteak (again!). I think I’m going to have cheesesteak everyday. haha. Oh yes! Internet in Turkmenistan is very limited, so, don’t expect too many updates for the first week and a half. I’m leaving for T-Stan Monday afternoon, so if I don’t update tomorrow, Sag Bol until whenever I get internet!