Tuesday, October 18, 2011

Finally Some Photos

Sheki
  
View of Sheki ( my PCT Site Visit)
My Room! (And no, the t.v. does not work)  

My CED Cluster 
Lobeya cutting party (Lobeya are like giant green beans, that must be sliced very fine to jar for the winter months when produce is scarce. My family sliced 15 kilos (about 8 pounds) with giant knives. I cut a little slower lol, but did my part.

Monday, October 17, 2011

A trip to Sheki

Hey everyone. Sorry about the lack of posts, the non-internet/computer thing is rough. So yeah, things are good. I am currently on site visits in the Northern city of Sheki. Peace Corps sends us to a Volunteer from the previous year (AZ8's) to spend 4 days with them talking and getting to know what they do. Sheki is beautiful, it's in the mountains up near the Russian border. Our site visits are sometimes potential placement sites (where we go for the full 2 years after training ends in December) so it's great to see. Even if we get a totally different site, it's helpful to share your experience with whichever trainee gets the assignment.

Things in general are good. Training is busy and for some really difficult, but I'm honestly enjoying it. The language is definitely a challenge, but getting to visit the AZ8's and seeing how far their language has come in just 1 year is so encouraging. It makes me feel like maybe one day in the future I can do more than say, Hello my name is Corina lol.

I will say that we are dealing with harassment a bit. The trainees & volunteers of minority backgrounds have it the worst, which can be hard. We have been given a list of useful things to say though and I'll be studying up. As a white woman I don't necessarily get harassed, but I certainly get starred at. I have never in my life been more watched. I am wearing the same clothes and not showering for days and the men act like I'm Julia Roberts walking through town...very bizarre lol. I did get the comment yesterday that I looked Turkish, which is a compliment here but not something I would have ever thought about myself.

In general things are coming along. I know this post is a bit general, mostly because time is so limited. I will say that I observe so much and then want to share it, and yet by the time I make it to an internet connection I can't think. I hope everything is going well at home and anywhere else people may be. My experience so far has been good, definitely a lot of absorbing information and trying to process. I will try and post some more in the next few days. They have internet cafes in Sheki (!).
 

Saturday, October 1, 2011

Through the Wardrobe and into Narnia...

I am officially in Narnia.

So in today’s Azerbaijani language lesson, we discovered (by total accident) that there are a shocking number of Azerbaijani references in C.S. Lewis’ famous Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe. For starters the word for lion in Azeri is “aslan”; there is a reference to Turkish delight; there is a Prince Caspian (Azerbaijan borders the Caspian Sea); and there is an island named Nargin. Possibly a coincidence, but I’m certainly looking forward to reading it again and looking for clues.

Me vs. the Marshrutka

  Salam from Azerbaijan!

A Marshrutka is a small bus. Although our weather has been (up until today) beautiful...today it is pouring. The walk to school involved very flooded viallage roads, with lots of mud. I had the ultimate game of chicken with a marshrutka and the giant puddles...I won. :)

***Disclaimer this blog will be very real. If you are delicate or sensitive, I suggest you stick to something easier. Also, if you are a grammer fanatic, I apologize. These are foreign keyboards and the spelling errors will be many. If you can handle it, read on :)

The daily stuff. For starters I will say that the Peace Corps program here in Azerbaijan is doing wonderful work. The in-country staff really does everything to prepare us for life and work in Az. Having said that, there is a lot of uncertainty in the work that will be done here and in our current daily lives. Life as a PCT (Peace Corps Trainee) is not an easy one. 

There are different levels of challenges, some expected and some unexpected, but both equally difficult. Expected challenges include language, host family assimilation, culture, food, etc. Everything is different and new, I walk to school, past geese and cows and ducks. Communication within host families is almost non-existent and extremely frustrating. We work tirelessly at language skills, both in and out of the home. These challenges are something you would assume will be hard, and they are. It is, however, the challenges that we take for granted, which brings us to…

The Toilet. In Azerbaijan, squat toilets are typical. Toilet paper is not. Our host families understand that Americans use toilet paper and many have gone to the trouble of placing it in their outhouses. This leads to a more difficult problem of where to put it, because there are no trashes. Yes, you must take it with you and dispose of it later and while Azeri food is great, it is not kind to the foreign stomach at first meeting.  This therefore creates an even harder time with squat-style outhouses. I’ll let you put 2 and 2 together….
It is these types of tasks that make daily living a rough adjustment. This experience is truly like nothing I’ve ever encountered, but in a good way. Life is simpler here. The language is beyond hard, but I know there will be a moment when it comes together and that will feel so amazing. 

For now, my posts may be limited as internet pretty much does not exist in my village, Jeyranbatan. There are a few internet clubs nearby, but they are forbidden for women. I will do my best to post with my limited resources. 

For anyone that wishes to do some research and call me, my number is (994) 51-770-62-78. I don't know how much it is to call it from the U.S. but if you get a calling card and do a little google-time, it shouldn't be difficult. Annnnd it is free for me to receive, so please text and call! I am 9 hours ahead, so after 7pm my time is perfect. For now I will leave you with that, I h ave to go back into the rain!

Miss & Love everyone back home!!

Sag olun!

Xx Corina