A Year in, a year to go…

Honestly, I should probably break this blog into three parts 1 being a reflection of the last year and where I am half way through my service, 2 being a report about possibly the single best vacation I could have taken, and 3 being a description of my current working conditions. But Since all three are happening simultaneously (or that’s how it feels) that’s how I am going to write up this entry.

September 15th was AZ4’s one year mark, I was at an alumnus party in Germany. It is an amazing feeling to look back at finishing grad school two years ago while looking forward a year as everyone asks the inevitable “what’s next” question. One night I was at a Chinese restaurant with my friend Christof and I remarked about how much Kassel had changed; he let me go on for a little while about this and that changing. Then he said that it hadn’t actually changed. I responded with that this restaurant was never here before, I was wrong it was. He looked at me and said it’s not Kassel, Magda it’s your perspective of Kassel that has changed.

Here are some of my thoughts of my first year of service, or my first 15 months in the country, or if you will things that may have changed my perspective…

When we first moved to site we were told to greet people, make friends, make your presence as a local known, after my first day of work I decided to give this a try. Looking around I noticed an old woman smiling, determined she’d be my first hello, it wasn’t until I was standing face to face with her that I noticed she was drooling… Now I live on the corner she frequents, I see her everyday. Often when I pass her she puts down her imaginary cell phone and utters her best approximation of Sabah Xaniz Xeyr (Good Morning).

I have never been good at even walking by the meat counter in grocery stores in the states, not that I am a vegetarian. I just hate the smell of raw meat. My first dozen or so trips to the bazaar would always yield a moment or two when I thought I might loose it as I walked past the fresh meat. I started to notice several months back that although I still don’t buy the meat, because I am not quite ready to grind my own sheep’s meat, I don’t mind the meat section in the bazaar anymore. And while in Germany, was easily able to approach the meat section while we were buying ingredients for lasagna.

Two nights ago I helped my friend move, her apartment is so nice and so clean. This is something I am constantly wowed by. I turned on her faucet and there was water, I was impressed. This is one respect where I no my perspective has changed. My relationship with water is definitely different for having lived here a year.

I noticed on the transatlantic flight in June that my concept of long had changed, by new definition is anything over six hours is a long trip, however, if it is six hours on a plane where everyone sits in their own seat, no one is touching me, and I can control the air conditioning, let alone get up and go to a relatively clean bathroom whenever I want, food is brought to me and there are movies I can watch at whatever volume I choose. Well in that case six hours is brief.

Some things have not changed…
I am still friends with the same people even though some of them aren’t here anymore.
I still feel the same way about both of my host families as I did the day I showed up on their respective doors.
I still LOVE Kelem dolmasi (stuffed cabbage).
I still believe with absolute certainty that Sheki is the most awesome city in Azerbaijan and I still feel at home here.
I am still confused about the large talking scales in Baku, I mean who wants to get weighed publicly.
I still like drinking a cold beer and sitting with friends at Tequila Junction and ordering the same thing we did the very first time.
I still am impressed with my Program Manager.
And above all else, I am still constantly surprised by this country.

One day Ashely and I were walking through Fountain Square, in Baku, and we saw a guy on a Harley riding down the steps in the pedestrian zone. We looked at each other and I said you know what, I honestly think at this point if I saw a man riding an Ostrich through Fountain Square I would be surprised. And today, the street my office lies on is getting paved, for maybe the first time ever, because we are having our grand opening party on Saturday and the Norwegian Ambassador is coming, I mean how fancy is that!!!

One year in and one to go my staff has formed a new program got and remodeled a building for our offices, furnished it, moved in, got internet, started trainings in multiple cities, improved our materials, started new courses, improved the internet, build a beautiful garden and is now having our official opening party. Yesterday the city informed us that they were repaving the road. And also yesterday my office got filled with plants. 3 months ago when I showed up and our company’s name was spelt out in grass in our garden, I texted my friend and said the day we have Hawaiian Shirt days I am leaving cause this place is done.

Ok well I think that is enough blog for now. I will right again soon to really describe my trip back to Kassel, and put up picks.