Week 3: Embassy PARTAY & Hike!!!
~Special post~: Time to relax at the US embassy~ ;)
Because I had limited WiFi in Dushanbe, I decided to journal everyday and upload blog posts / highlights after I returned. Warning: it might be a mix of at-the-time journaling with current comments I add. And don't count on the tenses being consistent; I was tired every day in Tajikistan!
I’ll be breaking these up into weekly posts, with key events or days that made my Tajikistan experience special. I hope you enjoy reminiscing with me on my six-week journey. I miss it already. :)
ITINERARY
7/5 - Guest Speaker from IOM!*
7/6 - First Test & National Library**
7/7, 7/8 - US EMBASSY PARTAY & HIKE!***
7/9 - Group Meeting
7/10 - Dictionary nerd much?*
7/11 - Speed-Dating at Bactria Center**
* partial day described; ** whole day; *** whole day in separate post
POSTS
Around 10, after Firuza got up, we walked to the Mehrgon Bazaar! It was so big - some of it was inside like a shopping mall. The first floor was mostly selling food, the others had restaurants, clothing shops, candy/snacks. She also bought a few movies there.
I finally found fabric for my sister! I learned the vocab at 1 am - ман бо фурушанда савдо кардам!! I realized my two fabrics were more pricey bc they have little rhinestones. They were 100 - I asked 80 - and they gave me 90. Also, it was REALLY hot, hotter than usual - definitely over 100 degrees Fahrenheit at some point in the day. So we got 2 drinks - for 1 somoni total!!
After getting home, everyone went inside because of the heat. I started studying Chapter 2 and washed my clothes. At 2 pm, we ate lunch! I ate 1 sambusa and also these fries (бо бисиёр равған!!!!!!). Also, do you know how painful it is to reject ice cream 3 times in a row?? They just kept nudging it towards me.
Around 3 pm, I said I was taking a nap and slept for exactly (I had a timer) 13 minutes. I exercised for a bit. Then, my classmates and I headed off to the embassy party, via our private Marshrutka #19!
After security at the embassy, which was pretty lax (they just took our tickets, which were 100c each but covered by NSLIY, checked passports, etc.), we entered the party area! I bought and chugged a bottle of Sprite, and Mikaela, Tiffany, Elaine and I went to get food! American food!!! This included realllyyyyyy nice pesto pasta salad, chicken!!!!!, coleslaw, and a baked apple tart.
After hearing acting ambassador Kevin talk, standing for the national anthem, and finishing our food, we dropped by the official eating area, where we ran into Todd and the security guy. Soon, we changed to our swimsuits, but we took a million pictures before actually getting in the pool.
We were in the pool until 10 pm, and it was the most relaxed I’ve felt in a reallyyyyyy long time. Junior year, and the past few weeks adjusting to Tajikistan, had been taking its toll on me. It was so nice to just chat and fool around with my new friends. Highlights included:
chicken fights, racing, who could hold breath longest. Also, pool Wifi!!!!!
the football game of buff white dudes
Playing catch with a ball! But I suffered because I’m short. I was the hoop at some point.
I don’t know how, but I got convinced to join the football throwing game - which I didn’t really want, since 1) what’s football? 2) don’t want to get hit in head 3) or get tackled
I met this 20-year old kid, and I guess his parents move around because they work at embassies. He asked if I studied Russian (no :( ) and I think he said he’s been to NJ - for what odd reason, I don’t know. He apparently found it amusing that my Tajik name is Anisa. Hm.
At the end of the party, I chatted with Katie, a CLS student, about her experiences and also different languages in CLS. I bought яхмос before leaving (nothing can beat the little stands on the roads of Dushanbe though!) I got home around 10:30, then studied and slept at 1:30 am. Also, our driver is my neighbor, Ғолиб (“victory”). He literally parks Private Marshrutka #19 in my alleyway.
The next day, I woke up at 6:50 to go on the Romit Valley hike! I forgot my sneakers though. The hike was pretty much a leisurely walk with nice views! And the weather was lovely, since it was morning - very breezy, especially since we were by the river.
We reached a little rest area with little gazebos to sit, so we split into two groups. Breakfast was great - Carly picked up breakfast foods from Rudaki Plaza. There was juice and cereal, and I also brought my healthy chips, which everyone loved. I also gave away two of my tiny Kind granola bars! We pretty much sat around and relaxed. Mehroj quizzed me a little, we looked at my Tajiki book. There were A LOT of bugs though. *shudders* гамбуска - хеле зиёд!!!!
We headed back around 10:30. A policeman stopped us along the way because we weren’t allowed to take pictures of a building where the president was right now. Gholib dropped us off at Rudaki Plaza, and I headed back with Mikaela, got a 1 somoni ice cream on the way.
My lunch was osh, with a cream puff! I also watched some of the TV show my family was watching the other day. It was Russian dub, but with one lady doing all the voices, which gets funnier the more you watch.
Around 5:30, I went on a brief jog that turned into a walk because a) it’s 100+ degrees b) it’s not cooler since I’m not going at night c) I have to wear long pants, not the exercise shorts I brought d) at least one person whooped at me. Disclaimer if any girl wants to exercise for the NSLI-Y Tajikistan but isn’t gung-ho enough to go to the gym — I just downloaded the Workouts for Women app, which works offline!
So, I got back at 6 and stopped at the little shop right next to my alleyway to buy a small bottle of water for 2c. I was extremely disappointed - let’s say now I know not to accidentally buy seltzer water next time. DON’T get the red cap bottles.
Thanks for reading! Week 4 will be when time starts to fly by for my time in Tajikistan, so stay tuned!
