The last few weeks I've been rather busy, considering that I am no longer teaching. My parents came to visit me for a week and a half at the beginning of June. I spent the time showeing them around the country and my village. It was interesting to see their reactions to things in country, to Kyrgyzstan through their eyes. So many things are just so commonplace to me that I never even think about them anymore.
When they first arrived we immediately took a taxi straight south to Jalalabad. U hadn't been on the Bishkek-Osh highway for a couple of months, and things were much different this time. The drive was beautiful. Snow was beginning to melt, and things everywhere were turning green. Families had started to set up their summer residences, in yurts along the highway.
Kyrgyz culture is still nomadic, but today it's more of a vertical nomadism. During the colder months, people and the herds spend time in the warmer valleys, while in summer they head up into the cooler mountains. When we were driving down, it was time for all of the animals to head up to the jailoo (mountain pastures). So the road was clogged with swarms of sheep, cows, and horses. Our taxi driver spent much of the drive using his horn.
With my parents and Ariel, my sitemate, we headed to the lake region and went to Karakol. Ariel and I were largely disappointed with the town. After everything we had heard, we expected more. I still definitely prefer the more vibrant south. My mom really took a liking to Karakol- but that may have had more to do with the hotel.
After my parents let, the new volunteers (the K-17s) arrived at permanent site. I have four new sitemates. One is actually in my village, and the other three in surrounding villages. They seem nice- hopefully we'll all get along and not have too much drama.
Since it's summer, I also went on a mini-vacation to Talas, an oblast in the north, the visit Cameron. Other volunteers are always hating on Talas, but I liked it. I got to see my friend Patrick, we studied Kyrgyz together last summer. And I played Frisbee golf. K-10 volunteers set up a Frisbee golf course outside Talas city and volunteers still use it! It was an awesome way to spend the day.
The rest of my summer is turning out to be very busy. Joni and I have been planning a number of things. We're having a series of teacher training seminars for English teachers throughout our rayon (a rayon is sort of like a county). Also, we are having TWO summer camps! We're a little nuts. I'm already stressed about the planning and conducting of two summer camps, and it's not even July! But both camps will be fun… I hope.
Our first camp is for 10th and 11th form girls from throughout the Jalalabad Oblast, and our second camp is for 5th, 6th, and 7th form boys and girls from our rayon. We've had a bit of stress with the funding for both camps, but it's looking like we're going to get both completely funded.
Also, we are having a 4th of July party with our local friends, families, and counterparts- to introduce them to an American holiday. We're going to have a bbq and have fireworks. One of the three goals of Peace Corps is to share American culture with HCNs (host country nationals). So Joni, Ariel and I thought this would be a good way and time to work on the second goal of Peace Corps service.
The last thing on my summer list is working on a grant project for my school. Initially, my school wanted a resource center with English language books and materials, but after speaking with my director, my school has decided on something else. My school's director feels that students' health should be our first priority, and I agree. So, we have decided to construct a new toilet for our school. I have no idea how old the toilet we have now is, but I can say that it is disgusting. During the school year I would wait all day until I got home, rather than use that toilet. Once, I even ended my afternoon club twenty minutes early because I really had to use the toilet and I didn't want to use the school one.
I'm about a week shy of having been in country for a year. I still cannot believe that I have been here that long. Especially now that the weather is hot, it really does feel like I got off that plane last week. I continue to be surprised by Kyrgyz people and culture, I'm still learning the Kyrgyz language, and I still feel like an outsider. I'm not sure if I'll ever really feel like I'm a part of my village- there really are too many cultural differences. I love my village, and I love the people I get to interact with, locals and volunteers alike, but every time I go to the bazaar, or to the ice cream place, I still feel like I have a long way to go with my cultural and community integration. I'm excited to see where this next year and couple of months goes. I can't even begin to imagine what I will feel like at this point next year.
