Peace Out

November 27, 2011

 

Well ladies and gentlemen, I have truly heart-breaking news for you: Peace Corps Kazakhstan is suspending its program in this country.  As a volunteer this means I am leaving my Kazakh village and going home to the United States. The decision was well deliberated by a committee in Washington, but the news was startling and devastating for me as a volunteer.

 

The past 15 months in Kazakhstan have been full of challenges, but those challenges yielded returns higher than I'd have thought possible. I have made wonderful friends, worked with remarkable students and teachers, and was just starting to understand this place and culture I've learned to call home- if only for a while. 

 

My homecoming is earlier than planned and I am still a bit shell-shocked by the whole thing.  Goodbyes will be abrupt and I can't fully comprehend how I can say "thank you" to my community for all the hospitality and love they have shown me.  Of course, it will be wonderful to see my family, especially in time for the holidays, but most volunteers have 3 months to physically and emotionally prepare for this sort of departure.  We have exponentially less time to digest it here in KZ.  And perhaps worst of all, the Peace Corps Staff must walk away from jobs and posts where many have served for a decade.  Prayers, thoughts, juju, whatever you believe in, would be much appreciated.

 

 

I'm not sure what to conclude with, perhaps because I feel no conclusion myself.  But I just wanted to let you know, with a tear in my eye.  It's been a wild ride and worth every minute.

Umm… Not the skill I was expecting

November 5, 2011

I knew I had it in me… I'm a fighter, not a lover!  My student's father is a general outdoors man and he and one of my teacher friends have taken it upon themselves to host me as if I were Queen Elizabeth herself, showing me all the best of Kazakhstan.

 

This is the same guy who took me fishing and now wants me to try my hand at hunting.  In addition to all that, he's a boxing champion in Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan.  I like to mess with this guy, so when he asks me about hunting, I ask: "Agai (sir), when are you gonna teach me to be a champion boxer?"  Of course, it's a joke on two levels.  One: I don't really want to fight anyone and everyone here knows me as being all smiles all the time. Two: Girls don't really box that often.  So I ask him and everyone starts to laugh.

 

Last week I ran into "my coach" in the school cafeteria.  The usual conversation ensued:

-       "Anne, when are we going fishing again?  Wanna go hunting."

-       "Sure, I'll go hunting, agai.  But more importantly, when are you teaching me to box?"

-       "How about tomorrow at 5 o'clock?"

 

I almost died.  Uh… sure.  I can't be all talk, right?  So Thursday evening, at 5 o'clock I showed up at the sports school.  For an hour I practiced sparing, jabbing, and some foot shuffling technique with about 20 ten-year-olds.  They left, and I got another hour of self-defense training.  I can't say I'm really a fan of boxing to box, but I am a fan of knowing how to protect myself. Best of all- I love being in a gym and working out with a coach and everything.  Today, it was hard to pull my sweater off because my arms were so sore. 

 

Most volunteers learn a new skill while they're in Peace Corps. I never expected my skill would be boxing.

Do I Settle for Jack-O-Squash?

October 30, 2011

 

In my neck of the woods it's a little tricky to find a good old-fashioned pumpkin.  Most are about the size of a cantaloupe and you're really in the money if you can find one that's orange rather than green.  But this is Halloween, so you've gotta carve something. 

 

At the bazaar, I asked the lady: "Do you have any pumpkins?" She showed me a squash.  I asked another saleswoman to no avail.  After wandering the bazaar I was prepared to buy a stout squash and call it a Jack-O-Squash.  But then I saw it… the most beautiful pumpkin I've seen in ages (or since 2009) It looked like Bert from Sesame Street and was dull orange- but orange none the less.  I bought it. 

 

Back at home, a friend and I tried to cut into the thing, but remember the two days of snow we've had?  Well the darn thing was frozen.  

 

No problem… we shall overcome.  I decided to de-thaw it in my toaster oven.  It was too big. (Really, it's like, 15 inches tall and 10 inches in diameter.)

 

Next step: turn on the gas stove.  We roasted the poor pumpkin like a marshmallow for about five minutes before a knife would pass through its flesh.  It was slow going, but maybe that added to the adventure.  After 2 hours we have a beautiful ORANGE pumpkin to greet the abundance of trick-or-treaters who will rush to my door!

PS- I'm trying to attacha picture... would someone email me to tell me if it works?