...So Long Sumgayit...

Sorry for the delay folks. We're in Ganja - doing fine, but the transition has been rough. Send us some good vibes to keep us going. Thanks for the e-mails!! Keep 'em coming. We love you all and miss home like crazy. We'll post when we can but our access to the Internet is a little sketchy right now. D can check e-mails at work, and he saves all of mine to a word document that I read at home, but I won't have consistent access to reply for a while. We'll do our best to keep up with the weekly postings. Here are some of our favorite Sumgayit shots and a few from Swearing In as well.



The Book Store - My Favorite Site in the Bazaar

Kell and Miss Lilli at Swear In - If Lilli's Mom Is Reading This - Hello!! Your Daughter is a Gem!

Dustin, Trey, and Jake at Feyton After Swear In - Showing Some Azeri Brotherly Love

Kelly and the Saray Girls at Feyton After Swear In



We Are Thankful...

...for the clothes on our backs, the food in our stomachs, the roof over our head, the air in our lungs...
...for being given opportunities each day to recognize both our strengths and our weaknesses and for the chance to learn from both
...for being raised in a place where we were free to make our own choices...even bad ones...
...for bus stops and umbrellas...
...for fond and vivid memories of broccoli and cheese casserole...
...for you...

Our First Azeri Thanksgiving...

As promised...here are a few pictures that the computer refused to load last week - I think we're on better terms today...

My AZETA Counterparts

KJ and D and the Caspian Sea

My favorite soon-to-be butchered cow...

My favorite soon-to-be butchered sheep...red ribbons and all...

We're All Going To Ganja...



Less Than One Month of Training To Go...

We're counting down the days to the end of PST. Things are busy and we're exhausted, but all is well. Here are a few pictures from my McDonald's trip in Baku...The computer is refusing to load any other pictures...I think it is trying to make me feel guilty and disgusted for demolishing a "royal cheeseburger" in less than one minute...Oh well - it was the best minute of the last two months!! (Not really...but close...)

I'll add more in the next fews days - keep an eye on us...

McDonald's Day in Baku...I Think I Cried A Little...

Going to Ganja...

This week we learned where we'll be spending the next two years...Ganja.
Ganja is the second largest city in Azerbaijan - population approximately 300,000 - and is located in the center of the country. We are really excited about our next step. There will be more to come as we learn about our organizations and host family.

Check out these links for more information...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ganja,_Azerbaijan
http://www.travel-images.com/az-ganja.html

Here are a few photos from the week...

Our language lesson from an 8 and 4 year old...humbling

Dustin And Our Azeri Teachers - Khayal, Gaymar, and Fuad

D, KJ, and Jane - Celebrating Site Announcement

Celebrating Site Announcement With the CED Guys - Trey, Jonathan, Jim, and Colin

Another Week Down...

Another week of PST down...five more to go. Here's what's new this week...
- Practicum went very well, but I'm very glad it is over. The lesson planning is pretty hectic because you have to create all your own resources. I've become quite the stick figure artist. I taught 5th, 6th and 9th forms. My kids were awesome. I've included a few pictures of one 5th form class...just pretend they're all smiling. The serious face in pictures is an Azeri tradition - even wedding photos! I managed to convince a few of them to show some teeth - mainly because we learned the word that day! :)
- D shaved his beard today!! :( Our host dad told him he looked like an unsavory religious zealot...in so many words...so that was the last straw. We're back to baby-face Dustin...for now anyway.
- D gave a presentation this week that was a great success. We were both running on empty by the end of the week and have used most of the day to recoup. We are SO excited to go to sleep every night...so sad!! Hahaha...
- D's program (CED) finds out their region placements on Tuesday!! That means in just a few short days we'll know where we'll spend the next few short years...exciting and terrifying! Keep your fingers crossed. We'll let you all know ASAP.

We love you all and miss you like crazy. Please keep the e-mails coming...the "little things" at home are the "big things" to us...



Our "ata and gardash" - father and brother - cooking at the garden house.

Ata and Dustin making a toast at our Ana's birthday party...

Kamala, Me, and Saedat - The Sisters

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, BIG GUY...

...to one of the greatest men to walk the face of the Earth...stronger than Chuck Norris...more clever than MacGyver...more wylie than the Coyote...my DAD!! Wish we could've been there for your birthday, big guy! Our entire Azeri family is singing "Happy Birthday, Mr. Dave," every chance they get. Hope you can hear it...

This is as creative as it gets with limited resources! :) WE LOVE YOU!!!

This week we went on PCV site visits. That means that we were all sent around the country to the current sites of serving Peace Corps Volunteers to see what "real life" is like here once training is done. Thanks to those volunteers for showing us the ropes and being so understanding of our questions. We really appreciate all you do and all you endure. Thanks!

This week, I start teaching...ahhhhh....and Dustin will continue his CED training. I'm a little nervous, so send some good thoughts our way if we cross your mind this week. We love you!!

The Peace Corps Staff took us on a cultural day-trip when we returned. Check out some of our pictures below.



In English "Gobustan" -- Google it to find out some historical information on the site - pretty cool!

The View at Gobustan



Our Friend, Jane...We Share An Affinity For Our Dad's Flannel Shirts...



The Mud Volcanoes

Bubblin' Mud...

Flowin' Mud...



Our Tired Feet At the Mud Volcanoes

Azerbaijan Looks A Lot Like West Texas...Some of it Anyway



Ozzy Said It Best...

...we're going through changes. To all of you keeping up with this little adventure of ours, thank you for the well wishes, the e-mails, the encouragement. We haven't had much time to catch up with all of you, but we think of you always. Thoughts of you are what give us energy when we're spent, a laugh when we're down, and resolve when we waiver. We are slowly but surely learning to adjust to this new home...this "new normal." Here are a few specifics for those of you that have asked...
- Dustin got his first Azerbaijani haircut last week and thinned out his beard. According to our host dad, "only painters wear beards." Not sure if that's good or bad...
- I'm taking public transportation everyday...and not barfing -- small victories, folks...that's what I live for these days. For those of you that are unaware of my little issue with all things rolling, flying, or floating -- ask Cissy...
- The weather is interesting. When we got here, it was really warm -- a lot like home, actually. Within days, things had started to change. According to our host sister, "weather transformation immediate..." sounded like a weather update on the Starship Enterprise - I was impressed. Anyway, now it is chilly in the morning and the wind kicks up something fierce in the afternoons. From what we hear, the winter can be pretty harsh.
- We have access to the Internet on a pretty regular basis because Dustin and I live in a bigger town. The only problem is that our daily schedules are so packed, that we don't have much time to visit the Internet cafes. We have language classes for about 4 hours a day followed or preceded by technical sessions (teaching for me, business for Dustin) for another 4-5 hours. Once you factor in time on buses, etc - we've got about an hour to attempt to socialize with our family in Azeri before we are done for the day.

Keep the questions coming. We'll answer when we can.
We love to hear from all of you! We'll continue to post every chance we get.

Dustin and Our Host "Ata" Father - They're Buddies -- They Even Dress Alike :)

...At the Food Bazaar...



...The View From "The Wheel"...Don't Worry, Cissy, It's Not Quite As Dangerous As It Looks...



...Heydar Park, Near Our Apartment...



...Jokes About "Crossing the Road" Can No Longer Be Limited To Chickens...

...Sheep and Satellite Dishes...

...It Is Common To See The "Before" And "After" of Your Meal Simultaneously...

...How We're Rollin' These Days...

Surfacing...Momentarily

We're here...we're safe...we're a bit overwhelmed...but we're together. We're getting to know our host family and trying, desperately, to learn the language. It is going to be a struggle, but struggle makes you stronger...I hope. We love you all, and we'll continue to post when we can. Here are a few pictures from our first week in our new "home"...

"The Old Man and the Sea" -- :)

Beautiful Beaukiss...

I can't begin to number the reasons I love this place...more than anything else, it's the beautiful people that call it home. Thank you all for loving us so and for being so hard to leave...the harder it is to go, the sweeter it will be to return.
I love you all  more than coconut cream shave ice...more than Luby's fried fish...more than Claussen pickles...more than Harry Potter...more than Ben Hur...more than The Judds Sing Christmas...more than Everlasting Gobstoppers...
For those of you reading this that aren't catching my obscure references...it means I love 'em a lot.
KJ

Here are a few shots of our time in Beaukiss...



The Reason For Big Dave's Morning Tradition



All My Favorite Boys Getting to Work on the Mini-Donkey Barn :)



The Newest Addition...Who Still Needs A Name



"Fry Night" - A Good Idea Gone Terribly, Terribly Wrong

The Coolest 10 (Almost 11 ) Year Olds On The Face of the Planet!