...to be continued

NGOs

And now for a little technical talk - ever since I was accepted into the Peace Corps' Kazakhstan program I wanted to know what my specific job would be and while the answers came slowly I think I have enough now to have a basic understanding of what I'll be doing. In a nutshell I'll be working for a non-governmental organization (NGO) in Kazakhstan and will be providing them with any help that they might need. A NGO is an entity that is centered around a specific cause be it the environment, youth services, women's rights, etc. A volunteer would help by writing grants, teaching English, assisting the NGO with internal projects and so forth. Of course there are plenty of obstacles to prevent this from being an easy process; some of the bigger ones are the language barrier, cultural differences and the potential lack of structure and unclearly defined/overambitious goals within the NGO. From what I've gathered Peace Corps volunteers aren't expected to change the world when they begin work at their NGO but they should keep an open mind towards their new environment and shouldn't be opposed to changing themselves so that they can adapt to it. As an example everything I've heard points towards a more slowly paced working environment than in the U.S. so going into a job with a "go get 'em" attitude would probably be counterproductive. This doesn't mean that you should slack off for the next two years but rather that you should accomplish your goals in ways different than you had originally planned. Many volunteers take on secondary projects which sometimes prove to be more fulfilling than their main ones; some of these projects might consist of teaching a sport or hobby or creating a summer camp where English is taught - there are all kinds of possibilities. Once I get to my site in mid-May I'm going to assess the whole situation before I make a decision as to what I'll be doing. Until then I'm sure there'll be plenty more to learn!

Address

Here's my address for the next two months in case anyone would like to send snail mail, care packages, etc.:

Peace Corps
P.O. Box 376
480001 Almaty
Kazakhstan
Attn: Tom Dalcher

Keep in mind that I will be moving to my permanent site in mid-May and that my mailing address will probably also change at that time. This address should still be ok to use though - it'll just take a little longer for me to get anything sent there.

Center of Attention

One thing that we were told almost immediately as Peace Corps prospects was that we'd have to get used to people staring at us once we go abroad. I thought that that was an exaggeration until I spent some time here in Issyk. Americans stick out like a sore thumb here no matter what they wear or how they act. Whenever I walk down a street it's pretty much a given that someone will stare at me but people react differently beyond that. Sometimes children will say hello and I'll respond with a hello back which can lead to more conversation if they're up to it. I've actually had good talks with older kids in mixed English/Russian and I'm looking forward to be able to have "real" conversations in the future. Yesterday a group of teens behind the school invited me for a chat and some vodka but since the latter wouldn't have mixed too well with my afternoon classes I had to turn it down. Some merchants in the bazaar already know me by name and I'm always amazed at how friendly people are here. Even though I'm staying with a Russian family I'm trying to pick up a little of the Kazakh language so that I can pleasantly surprise some of the Kazakhs that I talk to. It's rumored that we'll find out next week where we'll be placed which would affect whether I'd have to concentrate on learning more Russian or Kazakh. Either way I'm looking forward to beginning work at a non-governmental organization in two months and becoming a little more independent, so to speak.

Connectivity Issues

Just as a FYI: my weblog was locked when my free trial expired and the credit card address on file didn't match the one on file at my credit card company. When I attempted to change the address online I was prompted for a security code which I couldn't access because I had handed in my credit card for safekeeping at the main Peace Corps office in Almaty. If you're reading this then it means that I navigated my way there safely (Peace Corps just moved to a new office this past week) and that things should be all set. Internet access in Issyk has been very sketchy as of late so weblog entries and email replies might take longer than usual, but I'll take care of them and will take some pictures of Issyk and my host family soon.

Medeo

This past Saturday I went on a cultural trip to Medeo; Medeo's main claim to fame is its skating rink which was built for the 1972 Winter Olympics and which is still used for training purposes today. On weekends it's open to the public and while I didn't try skating myself it was still an interesting trip. Shashlik (various meat kebabs) and vodka is served at the skating site for the less athletically inclined and our group decided to climb the thousands of stairs to the top of the mountain. The stairs climb a series of inclines which were built to stem any potential avalanches that might come down from the top of the mountain and I realized just how out of shape I was when I reached the top after almost everyone else had already made it. Clouds moved in quickly once we reached the top and we left before it started raining but all in all it seems to be a nice getaway for people who live in Almaty. Medeo will also comprise my first set of pictures which will hopefully be uploaded by the time you read this.

Learning Russian

Russian isn't turning out to be quite as daunting as I expected but I probably owe a lot of that to the Peace Corps training techniques. Most of the teachers aren't expert English speakers which really isn't necessary anyways since our classes are conducted completely in Russian. Although there are still a few letters that give me trouble I can read the Cyrillic alphabet for the most part and am able to have basic conversations with people on the street. My classes are held in my teacher's apartment in Microregion 3, a Soviet style apartment block about 15 minutes from where I live. I have classes with three other trainees and while there's no consistent time or length to the classes they're mostly four hours long. Since we'll probably be interacting with people with little or no English skills once we get sent to our job sites the instruction is intense; we're already studying grammar and while that has never been my strong point, even in English it's necessary so that we can recognize the different forms of verbs when people use them. A Clockwork Orange also makes a lot more sense to me ever since I've begun studying Russian; for those who have only seen the movie "real horrorshow" really means "real kharasho" which means great/very good in Russian. It's frustrating to keep running into language difficulties but I know that I'll be doing much better in a month or even a week or two. Considering that I didn't know any Russian a few weeks ago I think I'm doing pretty well.

My new family

I'm sure that a lot of you are wondering what it's like to move in with a brand new family for 10 weeks so let me try to enlighten you! I first arrived here about 10 days ago and was picked up at one of the local schools my my host mother and host sister. As I mentioned earlier my family consists of the parents, two older brothers, a younger sister and the family dog - a boxer named Christi (or Chrissy as I like to call her). I have my own room in the house which consists of a bed, table and closet and which can be locked if necessary. The first few days were a little awkward but after working on a few family projects like making dumplings for dinner and chopping wood I started to become more of a part of the family. Even though nobody in the family speaks English I'm able to communicate with my fledgling Russian and lots of hand gestures. My host mother takes good care of me, cooking all meals and giving me a packed lunch if I won't be at home as well as bundling me up if it's cold outside. When I had stomach problems last week she even called my language teacher to make sure that I was ok - having lived a very independent life in the States this is an unusual situation for me but not one that bothers me in the least. The host father gladly gives me his opinions about all the places in Kazakhstan that I ask about, even if his opinions aren't always flattering. I do keep an open mind though and actually hope that I get placed with a Kazakh family when I'm sent out to my assignment in May so that I can get a balanced look on things. Last week I also received instruction last week as to how one properly uses the banya by my host father; getting scrubbed down by another man while you're both in the buff is a very weird feeling at first but it's really not so bad once you've done it. Besides, there's no better way to get clean than to sweat and to chat about the benefits of Lasik surgery in Almaty for 30 minutes before beginning the washing process. I've met several of the family's relatives and friends as well and while communicating with them isn't easy we still manage to have a good time. My host father performs all repairs around the house himself and yesterday my host mother bought a fish at the bazaar, cleaned it and had it all ready for dinner a few hours later. People here may not have much money but they still remember how to do most things around the house while most Americans are caught up with the temptation to buy something ready-made or new instead of taking the time to fix something that's broken. I was guilty of the same thing but living here has made me realized how wasteful American society can be in this respect. Anyways, I'm happy to be living here and am looking forward to learning new things as part of the family over the next 9 weeks.

Cars

I'm convinced that cars are shipped off to Kazakhstan when they've outlived their usefulness in Western European countries. Most cars here are either German (mostly Audis) or ancient machines from the Soviet era (Ladas, etc.). My host mother joked that the Kazakh car is the donkey when I asked her if Kazakhstan had an automobile industry but to be honest a lot of people have made importing cars from other countries such a good business that there's really not much need for one. When I first saw a van with decals from a German cleaning service I was confused but since then I've seen French tour buses advertising all its comforts within in French and tons of other vehicles with German auto club stickers, etc. People here seem to wring as much as they can out of their cars which is why you see so many old cars still on the road here. To be a driver in Kazakhstan you need nerves of steel and a good memory for potholes so you don't wreck your car. There are no speed limits here from what I've seen but the potential of potholes and open manholes will keep the sane people from going too fast. Cars will pass each other whenever it's convenient though; sometimes you can even see three abreast as the two quicker ones maneuver around the slower car at the same time. Motor oil and gas is commonly sold in little stands at the side of the road in the true spirit of entrepreneurialism and it's a common sight to see people perform major repairs to their vehicles on the side of the highway. In spite of all this I feel comfortable waving cars down if I need to get to the center of town in a hurry but there's no way that I'd try driving here. Even if Peace Corps policy didn't forbid it I don't have any real desire to shorten my life expectancy!

Delayed Response

I just wanted to leave this note to let people know that I haven’t forgotten about you if I haven’t responded to your comments or emails after a few days. The way I have to send these things in Kazakhstan is to write them up at home and to bring them in on a floppy to the Peace Corps hub site in the center of Issyk. Once I get there I download new letters so that I have a point of reference when I respond to them at home. There are three computers available for the 26 people in my group so when I’m not waiting in line there’s usually someone behind me waiting to take my place which is why I really can’t write responses at the hub site. Sunday the disk I was carrying got corrupted and today I forgot the disk at the hub site – bad string of luck but I’ll get back to everyone who writes me eventually. Just thought I’d write this ditty because I love emails and responses – keep them coming!

Lessons in haggling

I said that I’d have at least one interesting story to share after my visit to the Almaty bazaar yesterday and it looks like I’ll be able to follow through on that promise! In Kazakhstan most things aren’t bought in supermarkets but in the stalls in the local bazaar. Most towns have at least one bazaar, even if they aren’t very big. The one in Almaty is huge and is called “The Green Bazaar”. I decided to check it out and saw everything from sheep’s heads and horse sausages to the wooly hats that are popular in Turkmenistan. On my way past the fruit seller the merchant there immediately offered me a dried apricot and some other fruits before packing half a kilo into a bag and asking 1200 tenge (about $9) for it. I didn’t have any interest in buying the apricots at that price and counteroffered him 100 tenge, hoping he’d give up on a stingy customer. He persisted though and since I could only count up to 100 in Russian at that point we used a calculator to haggle back and forth. After a few minutes he offered me the bag for 250 tenge which apparently is a good price for dried apricots here. A lot of Americans aren’t used to bargaining for their groceries so the merchants charge them higher prices. I really didn’t have any intention of haggling in the first place it was fun and once my language skills improve I’ll be trying it out on a few other things. Before I leave I really want to get one of those wooly hats…