GLOW 2011

Last week was Girls Leading Our World (GLOW) Camp 2011! It was a fabulous time, even better then last year! My friend and counterpart Zeynab's daughter went as well as another student of mine from Qazax. Total there were 44 Azeribaijani campers, 10 Azerbaijani trainers and on average about 10 PCV's at camp each day. It was in Gabala again but at a different "resort" with a beautiful lake we could swim in.Can you find me?! ;)
Thanks to Grandma Scott and mom for sending the glow sticks for "Disco GLOW," the gils thought they were SO cool and wore them as jewelry even after the glow went out.
On the talent show night there was a really special moment where the Azerbaijani trainers wanted to sing the Americans a song. It was in Azerbaijani and about friendship, it gets me chocked up now just thinking about it again. They brought out this Azeri flag and a picture they had drawn of an American flag and told us how much it meant to all of them that we came here to help them through a beautiful song. Everyone got up and danced along, there wasn't a dry eye in the room.
We made tie-dye and had special markers to write all over them. They girls had a blast with that. This was an awesome spot right out on the lake where we had a bonfire the last night.
GLOW Azerbaijan is a mix of doing fun, creative games, crafts and what not, normal American summer camp fun as well having an empowering theme for two work sessions and a guest speaker each day. This years themes were Leadership, Gender, Career Sacrifices of Women (in Azerbaijan) and Goal Setting. The Azeri trainers were the leaders of these sessions and a special Azeri woman was brought in as a guest speaker each day. This camp is about showing these Azeri girls that there can be more to their life then being a housewife (if they wish to do something different that is). It also just gives them an experience they may never have again-a week away from their family, in a region they may never see again, with girls their own age and the freedom and space to be absolutely themselves in. Most of these girls probably had never left their own town/village before this and unless they go to Baku sometimes (everyone seems to have family there!) they may never again. They will also live with their own family and soon their husbands family in a confined space where there is no room to be independent or individual. I hope that their time at GLOW gave them freedom, at least for a week, and that they will never forget it. I myself feel so lucky that I was able to work so closely with GLOW for the past two years. It was a major part of my Peace Corps Service and it is something I know I will never forget.

Thank you again to you all that donated money this year and/or sent supplies this year and last year. You know who you are (and so do I) and I am so grateful for your help!

Magic Carpet Ride

Ever since I found out I was coming to this part of the world for the Peace Corps I knew I wanted to buy a carpet.Today I made my dreams come true ;). I bought this beautiful, antique rug, handmade in Qazax (where I have been living and working for the past two years), to take home with me as a very special keepsake.

Happy Birthday Dad!

I wanted to have this up before my Dad woke up but my internet was slow and I had to go to a wedding this evening- so here you are now Daddio... HAPPY BIRTHDAY to the best man I have ever known! I love you Dad! Have a great day!

(PS Just saw I forgot the "h" in birthday on my sign, I could lie and say I'm spelling it in Azeri but...)

A 15 Cent Delicacy

During the summer months in Azerbaijan watermelons are literally falling off of trucks and rolling down the street waiting to be sold. At the cheap price of 15 "gapik" (cents) a kilo, you can imagine that Peace Corps Volunteers and Azeri families alike live off of this fruit!This is one of many identical stands along the road here in Gazakh selling watermelons. This one happens to be right near my house, I took this photo from my balcony.
I am never without a watermelon in my fridge this time of year. You would think maybe I would get sick of eating watermelon for breakfast, lunch and dinner but its just not the case. In fact I dream of eating it :). As I think Azeri's do too. Saturday when I went over to my friend Shafag's house I saw she had bought 10 watermelons! She just keeps them in the yard so there is a constant supply!

"Yo, the name is Batty; The logic is erratic..."

So after an award worthy summer camp and a fun relaxing break in Baku and Lankaran with Mason, I took the 11 hour bus ride in 100+ degree weather back to Qazax. The only thing that kept me going through my dehydrated and sweaty mess of a bus ride was the dream of walking in my door, taking a quick rise and jumping into bed for a nap, ahhhh just the thought of it now relaxes me. Unfortunately this wish was just not my destiny. As I walked into my house that afternoon a wave of disgustingly warm air blew through my hair and so after putting my bags down I set out to open some windows. On the way to my bedroom window I opened the shower room door and noticed the soap had been knocked into the sink, but didn't think much of it. So like I was saying, I walked to my bedroom window and yanked in open. To my dismay I had smashed some sort of creator between the top of the window frame and the window when I had shut it leaving for my trip! What was it?? A frog? Wait! Its moving!!!! Those gross little features were mistakable no longer...There is a bat in my house. After taking this picture, with flash, the ugly, scary yet sweet all at the same time, little thing was scared to death and began flying around my bedroom in a panic! So I screamed and ran into the kitchen in a panic. I opened all the other windows and when my heart stopped racing went back to my room to help him find his blind way outside. But alas, Batty was nowhere to be found. I searched high and low, but instead of finding him I found little bits of poop all over my bed and the window sill,
and my soap, which seemed to have been lunch...maybe dinner. Piecing it all together I started realizing that Batty has been living in my house the entire time I was gone! Oh gosh, first a rat lives in my toilet and now this! Batty had to go.
But it wasn't until night fall that I found Batty clinging to the walls of my room, as terrified of me as I inevitably was of him. One homemade contraption after the next I couldn't seem to get him captured much less flung out the window I had ripped the screen out of. So it was time for drastic action-that called for my hat, I didn't want Batty to get stuck in my hair! So there I was, grey shorts, white tank top, green winter cap, sweaty and probably stinking to high heaven as I still hadn't gotten to take that shower, ducking low to the ground as Batty swooped and glided, flying an insane number of circles around my room. The only sound he made were his claws against the cement wall as he considered landing but then changeed his mind. Finally, sometime after midnight and hours since this whole debacle started he landed on the ceiling. Moving at about an inch-a-minute pace I crept up onto a chair with my big jar and slowly place it over him. He didn't even freak out, just sat in there until I brought him to the balcony and set him free into the night.

"Potato in a jacket; Toys in the attic; I rock and I ramble; My brain is scrambled!; Rap like an animal; But I'm a mammal..."

Baku in July

Just enjoying a little down time in Baku after my summer camp. Taking lots of walks and lots of pictures so I thought I would share some. HAPPY FOURTH OF JULY!

Happy Birthday Mom!

Happy birthday to the most amazing woman I have ever met!I love you mom!