Calm and Peaceful!

I’m slacking with the blog posts this month, I’m sorry. This country has been going through a lot these past few weeks and as volunteers we have too. The good news is everything is looking good for the government as of now and the people of Kyrgyzstan. It has been very difficult to witness many of the things that have happened to this country in the past six months that I have been here, but at the same time some great changes and leaps forward can come out of it. I’m a strong believer in everything happens for a reason and good can come out of anything! Right now I am sitting under several layers of blankets and still freezing. My heater in my room is on so far today I have gotten the temperature up to a blazing 61 degrees. I have a rough winter to come and the weather is just taunting me. There is another volunteer who lives near me and there are days when I am wearing shorts and she is wearing pants with long underwear. This is the start of her second year and that shows me that if she could make it through a winter year last year I can do it too. It’s kind of funny because I obviously want to do Peace Corps because I want to help people but also this challenge of the crazy winters is intriguing too. I will be able to go out the other side of it and tell stories that will be epic!
This past weekend many volunteers got to spend a lot of time together and do some fun things. One of the nights I made dinner for 22 people and it really brought back memories of cooking in the kitchen at Corbett. Granted I was cooking for 350+ but similar. We made homemade mac and cheese and a veggie salad. All the volunteers loved it and were so grateful to have American food. The cheese here is not so great, but one of the volunteers had pepper jack that was sent from the states and it really helped the flavor a lot. The host mom of the volunteer’s house we were at kept telling me that I need to come back and make food with her and spend more time over there. She said that I would make a great Kyrgyz wife. I take that as a compliment because from her it was intended to be that way. I know that I would make a horrible Kyrgyz wife.
Tonight at the dinner table it was just me and my two nieces eating dinner because everyone else was watching something on TV. They are so cute. They are 10 and 8. It is really amazing because the older one can tell when I don’t understand something and she will stop, thing, and then try to explain it in a different way for me to understand. Her mother is a teacher and I think she takes after her. Those girls make me laugh a lot and I am so happy that I got put with such a great family where everyone is so willing to talk to me.
My host mom went to Bishkek on Monday because she has been very ill for a while now. I’m not sure what she has, but my host sisters have been coming in shifts to take care of the house and the family. She finally went to Bishkek to see a good doctor. My host sister told me today that she will be having an operation sometime soon. Please send good thoughts her way. Her name is Alma (it means apple). I really hope that this helps and that she heals quickly! She is such a caring, loving, wonderful woman and it is so hard to see her in pain. Thanks!
People have been sending great care packages. It is so great to get something in the mail. It really looks like everything is going to be calm and no problems, so if you have been holding out because of a possibility of me leaving the country feel free to send the package now! :) They are much appreciated! Thanks,
Brooke

Here are some pictures of one of my attempts to teach girls to play soccer. :)


Me "playing" soccer with the neighbor girls. They were more interested in taking pictures. HA I remember that age!


My little niece loves to pose for pictures.


This niece doesn't live with me. I only get to see her once in a while. She is probably one of the cutest kids I have ever seen and she has the personality to match!

What is life like for Brooke in KG

It has been brought to my attention that it might be a good idea to have a blog entry solely dedicated to what life is like here on a day to day basis. Let’s start off with the amenities that I have at my house.
• We have an outhouse (which is conveniently called a toilet) that is going to be so cold come February. I am a little nervous to squat in the freezing cold. I have also heard rumors that there are these things we volunteers like to call “poop mountains” which are in the toilet hole. The feces in the toilet freezes because it is so cold outside and it begins to build upon itself. In the more shallow toilets the mountains begins to peak over the edge of the hole. Luckily (or not so luckily) my toilet is very shallow and I’m sure within a month of the ground freezing I will have a beautiful “poop mountain.” Don’t worry, there will be updates on this to come… but I will practice my tact and not post pictures. Even though I will be very temped to. For those of you who know me well know that I’m not lying about that!
• My family also has a banya (where the Kyrgyz people bathe and it is similar to a sauna), but since I’ve lived here I have only see it heated up three times. I go to the public one in town once a week. It’s really helped my self confidence. Next to our banya is our outdoor, summer kitchen. That is where my family makes our their jams, winter salads (salads full of veggies so they can get veggies in the winter) and can them. They also have their kazan out there. A kazan is a huge iron pot kind of like a wok that is heated below it. In these kazans they make lots of different foods. Mostly, they boil meat and make the traditional Beshbarmak which is boiled meat broth and noodles. Sometimes potatoes too. They also butcher sheep in there and dry their hide.
• Next to that is the garage where my host dad stores his 1983 Niva Lada. If you don’t know what that is look it up because it is an awesome old soviet car and I love this thing. It is mustard yellow and it looks like it is going to pass out at any moment. The really cool thing about the garage is that is has a middle section under where the car goes where he can climb down and work on the bottom part of the car like they do at some body shops in America.
• And then lastly attached to all of those things is a chicken coup. They are directly behind my window and I hear them all the time. Once the roosters woke me up at 4am. I was not happy about that. Usually I can sleep through it, but not that day.



• In front of all those things is where we grow potatoes raspberries and black currents. There is one cherry tree there too but this year’s summer was too cold and it only produced one apple. Our clothes line goes through all of that and after I wash my clothes by hand I hang them up there to dry. I have gotten used to hanging my personal items up out in the open for everyone to see because if not, they will not dry.



• That is everything that is on the left side of my house and on the right side is the stables for the animals to stay in during the winter. My family said that we have over 50 sheep and I’m not sure how many goats, cows, and horses. I think we probably have about 10 chickens. It sounds like we would have a large farm with lots of land, but the property that I live on is about the size of my parents property in Buckley which is only two city lots. We now have a covered area where some of the hay is stored and I think that some of the animals will live. I am lucky though because our whole front driveway area and area in front of the stables is all paved with cement. That is a luxury.



• We do not have indoor plumbing and that is very common living in a village. We do have a well in our yard and that isn’t very common. Many people have to go get their water from a communal pump. I am glad that I only have to walk outside and take a bucket and drop it down into the well to get water. Some of my friends who are volunteers here have to walk 10-15 minutes just to get water. Living in the cities it is much more common to have running water, but hot water is something everyone wants. There are maybe one or two volunteers in Naryn city (out of 10) that have a functioning regular hot shower. Many have to heat their water and bucket bathe.
• Inside my house we have an entrance that has a since that needs to be filled with water to work. It has a faucet and if you pour warm water in it, then it doesn’t freeze your hands.
• Then as you enter the rest of the house there are three doors. One goes to the kitchen. In our kitchen (this isn’t normal) we have an oven/stove that is half gas half electric. This is nice for when the power goes out. We also have a refrigerator/freezer which is bigger than the one I grew up with in America. There isn’t a sink. All dishes are washed in a large bowl with boiling hot water. The dining table is in here and this is where we have all our meals together.



• Across the hall is my room. It is very tiny, but that is good for the winter when I only have to heat a tiny room. I have a bed that is small than a twin, a desk with a chair, a wardrobe, and a coat rack. Not much, but perfect!
• The third door goes in to the family area which has a TV and couch. This is where many people in my family sleep. It matters on who is at my house at that time. Our door is a revolving one and people are moving in and out all the time. Any given day we can have anywhere from 3-10 people living here. There is one other bedroom in this house and it is connected to that room.
• The last room in our house is connected to the family area. This room is set up for guesting. There is a large table in there and when we have people over for a party this is where everyone eats. This has happened twice since I have been living here. It’s fun but at the same time very awkward because they all want to talk to you for about 5 minutes then they all have a conversation with each other.
That is everything that we have at our house and everything that my family needs to function on a daily basis. I have found that there is so much that I have in America that I don’t really need. It is nice to be here and enjoy the simple life. I know one day I will go back to America and back to my old ways just out of convenience, but I will never forget the rewards I have gotten from living a more simple life! There is something be said about the joys of having a neighbor just stop by to say hi and drink a cup of tea.


Next I will tell you about the amenities in my village.

One more thing that makes me happy!

Oh and also... having power when no one else has in my village. It has been out since Saturday and for some reason I have it at my house and my school is a 5 minute walk away and there isn't power there.

Things that make me smile:

1. My counterpart’s daughter (who is three) coming in the room that we were planning in eating a carrot that was the size of a baseball at the largest part. She had eaten the rest of it already. I was so sad that I didn’t have my camera with me that day.
2. The mountains full of snow!
3. A herd of sheep and goats (probably 50+) walking down the middle of the main road that goes from At Bashy to Naryn. I saw this three times in two days
4. Men painting the large welcome to At Bashy sign with regular sized paint brushes.
5. School being let out because of snow. No not because it is too dangerous for the school buses to drive in the snow (we don’t have those) but because the kids need to be home digging up potatoes and getting animals home from jailoo (the place where animals go for the summer). Winter came two months early this year.
6. Riding in a taxi with four grown men while listening to Pit Bull, Lady Gaga, MJ… Any pop music from America. They have no idea the song is about.
7. Being asked what a song is saying when it is really dirty. I usually lie and say that I don’t understand it when they are rapping. HA.
8. Going to a volunteer’s apartment who lives in the city and making American food! SO good! Roasted veggies, pasta, tomato sauce, and homemade garlic bread!
9. Going to the American Center in Naryn and getting 5 new books to read!
10. Reading a really good book and talking about with a friend! (East of Eden was so good!!!)
11. Being finished with washing my clothes. I hand washed my jeans for the first time in six months and now my body hurts from all of the wringing! Blah!
12. Eating peanut butter. I have always loved it, but for some reason it tastes so much better here… even if it is from America. Probably because it’s not sheep fat!

Good thoughts!!

Hey all,
Life is good right now. Tonight at sundown is the end of Ramadan and that is awesome because that means parties. I’m excited for tomorrow and nervous because it is tradition here on the day after Ramadan ends that you go to neighbors’ houses and drink tea and eat lots of meat and plov (a rice dish that has carrots and meat in it… it’s actually one of the better foods here). I’m really excited for the cultural experience and to meet more neighbors but I’m nervous for the massive amounts of Kyrgyz that will be spoken at me. I hope that I understand at least some of it! The down part about Ramadan ending is that because of the religious importance that this month long holiday has it has held back some of the potential problems that may have happened here because of the unstableness of everything. Starting on Saturday there are rumors that things might start happening again and I ask that you send helpful peaceful thoughts for Kyrgyzstan and its people! I joined the Peace Corps because I wanted to help and get an awesome experience and that won’t be possible if we leave the country because of problems. I want to be able to stay here and I believe that the Peace Corps is needed here and is doing great things. Again please send good thought starting Saturday and all the way through the elections on Oct 10th and after. Thanks!
On a lighter note, on Saturday I’m going to Naryn with some students to take them to a test. This is the first test of a long process for students to be able to study in America in the FLEX (Foreign Language Exchange) program. I am very excited to introduce students to this opportunity. Diana (who lived with the Hodel’s, my best friend’s family) was a FLEX student and I got to see firsthand how much she affected their lives and the whole program affected hers. This program is funded by the US government and gives opportunities to students from other countries to study English and experience American life.
I hope everyone is well and it looks dark out now… so let the parties begin.

Just another day in the KG

Let’s just start with today because today was just one of those days. I started off heading to the post office because the lady who works there told me that I had a package there (she told me on Saturday so you can only imagine the excitement that I have had for the past few days). I get there at 9am when people told me it opened. Please explain to me why the front door would be open if there is no one in the office to help you. They aren’t post office boxes to get your mail yourself. I have to ask her if I have anything. Ugh. There were five other people there and I had class in 30 minutes so I left. I walked all the way back to school… at least a 20 minute walk. We had our first class, and then during the second class my counterpart left for about five minutes. When she came back she asked if I could teach a class because the teacher wasn’t there. I had no idea what I was supposed to teach. She said teach about America. Well that’s kind of a broad topic. So I just went in there and talked about myself and a little about where things were in America. After that class we went into the teacher’s room and about five minutes after being there we found out that there was another class that had no teacher, so we went there and taught. Since we had covered those other classes we didn’t have to teach our classes (I’m not exactly sure why but it’s was a nice surprise). It was lunch time and then we were to come back in two and half hours for the afternoon class. I decided that I had enough time to get to the post office and get my package and eat lunch. I went home, ate lunch and then headed out again back to the center of town. When I got to the post office there was only one girl there (not the normal girl) and she couldn’t find my package. She said that the normal girl would be back in 20 minutes but I didn’t have time to wait because I would have missed class. So I went over to fax something for a friend. After waiting for 10 minutes there and getting cut in front of two times (sometimes it’s really hard not being in America and not having lines) I faxed a paper. I then walked back to school. We taught our one class. My feet were hurting and I was really hot wearing my professional clothes so I walked home first and changed and then walked back to the post office. On the way out a huge truck drove up with the most amount of bales of hay on it that I have ever seen. And there were six people crammed into the front cab of the truck. They were delivering it to our house. Glad I missed that unload!! On my way I stopped and got a huge ice cream cone because I needed something to make me feel better. I got to the post office and finally the girl was there and I got my package. I opened it and some how… I’m not sure how, but I think something got stolen out of it. The outside of the package looks untouched, but there is something that was on the customs slip that wasn’t in the package. Grrrr!!! Anyway… on my way home I stopped at another store to get some water and there were three people in there. They tried talking to me in Russian and I told them that I speak a little Kyrgyz and no Russian. I talked to them for a little bit and then the guy offered me some of their disgusting fizzy pear pop that all Kyrgyz people love. I happen to despise it! I tried to politely decline and no dice. So I drank a cup of the disgusting pop just so I could leave. It was very nice of him to offer, but I hate the stuff. OK… then I went to the tiny store around the corner from my house to by units for my cell phone so I can call America and the units wouldn’t go on. It must be something to do with the system, but I gave here 300 som to put on my phone and nothing. Grr again. She said come back in an hour and kept my money. I really hope it works out and I’m not out 300 som. I went back after an hour and her father was there. He told me that the whole system is down and he will have to do it with the computer later. He told me he would call me when it went it, but the problem is that the simcard I’m putting units on is my international simcard and I don’t have that one in unless I’m calling America. Try explaining that one. I spend at least 5 minutes trying to tell him that. I think a little bit of that came across but having the random people on the street come up and try to help made matter worse because they all just started shouting random words at me in Russian and Kyrgyz and that just got confusing. Oh well. At least I know he knows who I am and I hope that he will give me my money back if it doesn’t work.
Sorry about the run on paragraph and many sentences… today has been that crazy!!


This is the huge truck with the massive amount of hay bales. There is more coming too! :)


I was at the bazaar with some friends and my friend Annie was taking a picture of us. These men wanted their picture taken too. It was too awesome not to include. They are eating shashlik. This is one of my favorite things in country.

First bell like no other!

I just finished my second day of school… Well technically my first day because the actual first day (they call it “the first bell”) is just a big all school meeting and then the ringing of the first bell. It is really cute because the new first grade class stands in front of everyone and they are wearing their little suits or black and white dresses. Girls have huge bows in their hair which are about the size of their heads. They are adorable. Then all the teacher gather in the zowich’s office and figure out what their schedule will be (the zowich is basically a step down from the principal and they are in charge of a certain group of teachers). It feels more like a student picking their college classes then high school. The teachers only teach certain classes and they don’t work the rest of the time. I don’t start until 9:40 in the morning because the teacher I work with didn’t want to start too early, but at the same time I don’t work on Friday or Saturday because she needs the time off to be with her children.
Today I just sat in the back of the classroom and observed my counterpart teach. I am going to just observe for the first week or so and then I’ll start team-teaching. It was a little nerve wracking for me today because my school is partly taught in Kyrgyz and partly in Russian. There are students who take all their classes in Russian and some that take them only in Kyrgyz. Such my luck, all the classes I will be teaching will be in Russian. Looks like I’ll be learning Russian more than I thought. All of the students know Kyrgyz and speak it in their homes. That’s the nice part about Naryn. But since I am white and they are at school, they will probably try to speak to me in Russian. I guess that’s not such a bad thing because Russian will be more useful back in America, but it will make things a little more difficult.
Cute story: After my morning classes today I was leaving the school and my little niece came out of her classroom. She said hello to me and I asked her how she was in English. She got a little confused and started answering other random questions like, “My name is Aidana” “I am 10 years old.” Then she finally figured out what I was saying and in Kyrgyz she just would only say “I’m not saying, I’m not saying.” Ha… so cute. She and her sister always run to me at school when they see me and all their friends follow along and want to talk to me too. I’m a freaking celebrity and they love it because they live with me half of the time.
School went pretty well today. There are some things that will be difficult to adjust to. The older the classes are the less respect is given to the teacher. Grading here is very different and doesn’t really reflect what the student does in class. You never know how many students will show up any given day. In a class of 30 today only 16 were there. But there are some things here that I really like. The students dress up for school and look really nice. They stand when a teacher walks in the room. I got flowers on the first day of school too. It was awesome!
Another funny story: Today I walked into the teacher’s lounge to meet with my counterpart and a teacher asked me why I carry such a big bag. I was only carrying my messenger bag. But I just told her because I am American. They all carry the really cute large purses, but I like my messenger bag because it is durable. I really like that I can use the American card anytime they want to know why I do something. Because I am American and Americans a weird. :) It’s a good way to get off the hook of doing something that they think is strange… which is most things I do. That’s ok, I’m getting used to being the one who stands out. I don’t really blend so much here… not that I usually do in America, but at least I can a little better than I can here.




This is an 11th grader carrying a 1st grader on his shoulder as she rings the first bell of the school year. So cute!


This is my little niece who is in 2nd grade now. Her name is Aichuruk. Her sister is the one who didn't want to tell me how she was doing. :)


This is a picture of my two counter parts on either side of me and two other teachers who wanted to be in the picture.