Long awaited short stories

I apologize for it being so long since I have updated my blog but, as most of you may know, things were a little crazy over here for a while. Although violence never did reach anywhere close to where I live, as a precaution all PCV’s were brought to a safe consolidation point while the country voted on a referendum. Thankfully, during this vote no violence was reported and all volunteers in the northern parts of the country were able to return to their sites following it.

The southern part of the country continues to be in need of aid and support following the events that took place so please continue to help that effort in any way you can. Thank you to those who wrote or called their representatives and asked for the US to send aid, as that has been done. There are US and other international aid groups now working in the south and some of them are employing former PC volunteers who have lived in this area of the country.

Despite the unrest that arose in the south I have had a great time at my site so far. It is incredibly beautiful and I will try my best to get some pictures up when possible. The school where I teach is big with about 1,500 students. It is three stories high with an indoor gym, outdoor basketball hoops, soccer field and a small playground. I have been teaching some summer school English classes and have about 60 students spread out in four classes that meet three times a week. Students range in ability from just learning our alphabet to pretty advanced 11th graders. It has been a great teaching experience as I have been teaching these classes alone and have probably been learning just as much Kyrgyz as the students have been learning English. After teaching I spend many of my afternoons at the lake relaxing on the beach and planning lessons for the next day. The lake is about a 45 min walk from my house so I’m hoping to buy a bicycle soon.

Below I’ve included a few short stories about some of my adventures—and misadventures. I seem to have mastered the weekly bath but always find a way to make my life interesting.

I CAN’T STAY CLEAN
I’m starting to have the same trouble in KG when it rains that I had in Kenya as I am unable to walk anywhere without both of my pant legs becoming covered in mud. Just as in Kenya, locals are able to navigate rain puddles and mud with ease and come out without a spot of dirt on their clothing. I, however, do not possess that skill.

A couple of weeks ago this lack of cleanliness skill was really highlighted. While walking in the rain to and from school I—like always--covered my pant legs in mud even though I had rolled them halfway up my calf; still muddy. We were moving to consolidation the following morning so I really needed all of my clothes to be clean. When I got home from school I washed my pants in a bucket in my kitchen--easy enough. However, as I ran outside in the rain to throw the water out after finishing up I apparently decided it would be a brilliant idea to dive head first in the mud covering myself from head to toe and spilling the dirty bucket of water all over me. Needless to say I had a little more laundry to do.

4th OF JULY FESTIVITIES
I spent the 4th of July in 2009 supplying the best and the brightest of
America’s mid-20ers (and those who thought they were still in their mid-20’s) with massive amounts of alcohol at the world’s longest bar. This year was a little bit different. In the morning my host sister- who is 11- and I attempted to make black bean burgers- which really ended up being lentil burgers but were pretty tasty still. We also made an apple, walnut, and raisin parfait salad and of course we had watermelon. My host family was super sweet and sent the needed ingredients by mashuka (bus) to the house from the closest city on their way to Bishkek the day before and then called to wish me a happy holiday. My site-mate who lives about a 30 min drive followed by a 30 min walk away came over for lunch and then we all walked to the beach where we sat for about 10 minutes playing Uno before the rain chased us back to the house.

Although this year’s celebration was a little different from last year’s, it was still fun—and unlike any I’ve had before. I hope everyone back home had a great 4th!

MY ATTENTION WHISTLE VS. SNAKES
Most of you have been acquainted with my very annoying attention whistle. You know, that high-pitched sound that I tend to make when I’m bored because nobody is talking to me? Since I know you are all missing it back home I think you will be happy to know that it has made a short appearance in Kyrgyzstan--an extremely short appearance. While finishing up tea a couple of days ago I started whistling without thinking and my host sister informed me that I must stop because my whistle will attract snakes, who will then kill us. She was very insistent about this and for all I know she’s right so now I must spend my next two years whistle free, I’m not gonna lie this may be the hardest cultural adjustment that I have to make. I deal fine with squat toilets; I’m pretty used to showering once a week; and I actually enjoy only understanding half of the conversations I have. But no attention whistle for two years? I now understand culture shock.