Let's Go to Hawaii

    My host mom said to me on the first day: "One day, we will go to Hawaii together." I thought this meant that one day we would go to the U.S. state of Hawaii, which made sense to me because Kyrgyzstan is the most landlocked country in the world so dreaming of the beach seemed fitting. However, I was wrong. A few weeks later, after I had returned home for the day, she told me to get in the car because we were going to Hawaii. Although I had no idea what was going on (typical nowadays), I got in the car, equally nervous and excited to see what was next.

Hawaii 

    After driving for thirty minutes, during which we drove along the Kazakhstan border, we arrived at Hawaii. It turns out Hawaii is a tiny resort area in one of the cities near where I am living. Upon initial glance, it was a lake with a restaurant and hotel next to it. As we walked further in, I found out why it was called Hawaii: there's a giant "I love Hawaii" sign. Along the lake area, there were also statues and fountains including one of a mermaid, tiger, dragon, and dolphin. Several other highlights included old-timey cars and a replica of a Kyrgyz helicopter from World War II.  I also noticed that in the lake there were several floating tables where you could eat dinner. We also witnessed a wedding proposal which was fun to see (my host mom later told me that this was a popular spot for young couples to go on dates to). 

The "I Heart Hawaii" sign

    Once we walked around the entire lake, we then turned down a path and it turns out they also have a zoo. It was quite different from an American zoo, to say the least... Some of the most memorable exhibits included 2 foxes, ostriches, peacocks, a raccoon, and my favorite exhibit: guinea pigs. At one point, I was asked if I had ever seen a raccoon before, and although it was a simple question, it reminded me of just how different life can be around the world. What is commonplace in one place is nonexistent in another and worthy of a zoo exhibit, it reminds you to never take anything you see/do for granted or assume everyone has the same. 

Foxes at the zoo

    After the trip to the zoo, we left Hawaii and headed into the nearby city (there is a distinction between if a town is called a village "ayel" or city "shaar"). We stopped at one of the cafes nearby to have dinner. We ended up eating hamburgers. Although it has the same name as American hamburgers, it was not exactly the same. The meat instead of a patty was shish kebab meat, and it also had coleslaw, french fries and cucumbers on it. Although it is not exactly what I was expecting, it still tasted really good (moral of the story: I've yet to have a bad meal here in close to 2 months). 

The old-timey cars 

    On the way home, the rest of my host family fell asleep, except for my host dad who was driving. He ended up telling me the name of every village that we passed through on the way home, and teaching me the Kyrgyz name for every single plant we passed, along with how to grow them and when they are ready to harvest (the area I'm in right now has plenty of corn that will be ready in the fall). One of my family's favorite games to play is "point at things and ask me to say what they are in Kyrgyz", and it actually has really helped me grow my vocabulary! Also, as someone who has a thumb that's tinted green and wants to get more into growing plants, I've really enjoyed learning about farming and all of the different plants here. My host family grows cucumbers, tomatoes, and raspberries right now, and I'm hoping to learn enough to hopefully one day be able to grow my own. 

    That's the end of my Hawaii trip, although, I hopefully plan to go there again in the near future. The city we were in seemed like it had many things to do and places to explore, so going to Hawaii was just the beginning. Stay tuned for my next adventure: the Peace Corps tradition known as Culture Day. 

    

A Trip to Issyk-Ata and Drinking Egg Water

    Since moving to my village over a month ago, I kept hearing about this resort nearby called "Issyk-Ata," and my host family kept telling me they would take me eventually. Well, that day finally came.

    I came home from class one day and my host family told me to put on a swimsuit and get in the car. I don't actually have a swimsuit so what I ended up in was a pair of random boy's shorts and a tank top (the epitome of fashion in my opinion). We (my host mom, dad, sister, brother, and cousin) got in the car, drove about 20 minutes up into the mountains, and arrived at Issyk-Ata. 

The view from the pool we were at (the picture DOES NOT do it justice)

    Issyk-Ata is a geothermal spring/hot spring that is thought to have healing powers. In 1891, a sanatorium was built for medical treatment, and it was even used as a healing center during World War 2. Today, it still features a medical treatment center along with several restaurants. There's also a waterfall that you can hike to, but that takes an entire day so I haven't been yet but I'm hoping to go soon. If you're looking to read more information about the Issyk-Ata here's a link with some good information https://central-asia.guide/kyrgyzstan/destinations-kg/bishkek/issyk-ata

    There were several pools in the area that were filled with hot spring water. My family stopped at the largest pool (about the size of a lap pool). In addition to the hot spring pool (which had two pipes continuously pumping in hot water), there was also a smaller, cold pool. Apparently, going into the cold pool and then immediately into the hot pool is good for your health. I only went in the cold pool once for a few seconds, but there were a couple of people who stayed in for 5 minutes at a time. We stayed and swam for about 40 minutes during which my host brother and cousin challenged me to several races (I won obviously s/o the Heatherwood Hurricanes). I also simultaneously impressed everyone with my diving skills while also being laughed at for what I was wearing -- totally understandable though if you saw what I was wearing. 

The pool we were at

    After swimming, we got back in the car and drove a couple minutes up the road to where the hotel and restaurants are. We walked around for 20 minutes and up many flights of stairs to reach a Buddha carved into the side of a rock. This Buddha was made between the 2nd-7th century and is supposed to symbolize the healing properties of the water.  

   

Buddha & I

    From there, we walked up even more stairs to a place where you could drink water from the hot springs.  This water is supposed to be good for your overall health, and more specifically your stomach. They call the water "jamutka soo" or what translates to "egg water." After trying it, I can definitely tell why they call it that...it tastes exactly like egg. My host mom also packed this sweet bread that I cannot remember the name of but surprisingly went really well with the egg water.

    The egg water was at the top of the mountain, so after that, we headed back down the hundreds of stairs back to the car. Along the way, we walked host sister over to her work (she's a waitress at one of the restaurants). We stopped to get ice cream and then headed home, bringing my Issyk-Ata journey to an end.

A goat statue at one of the many staircases

    For me, this day had more of an impact on me than I ever could have imagined 1 hour of swimming and walking up many stairs could do. It was my first time seeing somewhere in Kyrgyzstan other than the places we've been for training. It was also something that I had been anticipating since moving in with my host family, as they have mentioned Issyk-Ata and the pool every day since I've been here (close to 6 weeks). Most importantly, it was the first thing I did with only my host family, and it was something they took great pride in showing me. By bringing me to a place that means so much to their family, I felt like I had officially become 100% part of the family. I think they felt that too, because afterward, they told me that I would always have a place in their home even after I leave.

    In conclusion, this trip to Issyk-Ata, although short in duration, brought forth many things. From a swim in the hot spring, a Kyrgyz history lesson to strengthening my relationship with my entire host family, Issyk-Ata is 100% something I would visit again.

Side note: this post is dedicated to my cousin, Caitlyn, who said she enjoys reading my posts even though she doesn't like reading. love you training wheels.

    

Month 1: "You're Gonna Go Far"

    It has officially been 1 month of living in Kyrgyzstan!! I have been brainstorming what to do to mark this occasion, and I decided that I think it would interesting if I did a recap each month of service. For me, it's a time to share random stories, more pictures, epiphanies I've had, etc..., that I haven't had a chance to mention in other posts. However, I'm also open to suggestions on what to include/acknowledge each month, so feel free to let me know. If all goes according to plan, this is the first installment of 27:

• My current situation: 
• I am living with a host family that includes a host mom (Apa), dad (Ata), a 15 year old brother (Enni) and a 14 year old sister (Cindi)
• I am in a village with 4 other volunteers, our language teacher (LCF) and technical teacher (TCF - she teaches us about teaching)
• Everyday we gather at our LCF's house for language classes or technical trainings
• Once a week, we have what is called "Hub Day" where all 26 volunteers meet up at one place for trainings --- it's also a good time for us to catch up and share stories from the past week

My group's "first day of school" picture

• Learning a new language is difficult...
• I mean I already knew this beforehand, but I think I underestimated just how difficult it would be. 
• I will say being immersed in it 24/7 has helped me a ton and I have an excellent teacher (LCF) who keeps reassuring us that everything will be okay
• My Apa is also a Kyrgyz teacher at the school in the village next to ours, so she helps me every single day 

• I've learned how to make several Kyrgyz dishes: Manta (dumplings), Samsa (bun stuffed with meat, onion, potatoes, etc.), Plov/Ash (the Kyrgyz version of fried rice), and Borsak (fried dough similar to a beignet)

Making Plov with Bakyt Baikeh (our language teacher)

Rolling dough for Borsak 

The final product (Plov and Borsak)

•  Using an outhouse isn't as bad as I thought it would be
• During our breaks, a common discussion is everyones different outhouse techniques...
• Also when I say outhouse, it's typically a shack with a hole in the ground

• We celebrated our first holiday in-country: Eid al-Adha
• This is the second of the two main holidays in Islam and occurred during our 3rd week here
• The day started at 9 am and included us visiting every volunteer's host family in my village. From there, my own host family hosted other visitors up until 10 p.m.
• Each house contained an entire table of food and the day consisted of eating from sun up to sun down

The other volunteers in my village and I with my host family 

• I milked a cow!!! (sadly I don't have any pictures)
• After much concern and panic, I was able to listen to Speak Now (Taylor's Version) --- I know many people were worried about this
• For anyone that's interested, I think my favorite vault track is either "Foolish One" or "Castles Crumbling"

That's all I have to recap Month 1! I can't believe that it's already been one month. It has simultaneously been the longest days of my life but also the fastest. The people here are so welcoming and have been eager to show us everything Kyrgyzstan is about. I feel like I've already learned so much, yet still haven't scratched the surface of what Kyrgyzstan has to offer. Stay tuned for more!    

p.s. I made a last minute decision to name all of these month recaps with a song that I feel like best encompasses the month. For this month, it's "You're Gonna Go Far" by Noah Kahan 

Orientation Week: "I feel like I'm at a camp."

    Welcome to Orientation Week! Also known as our first full week in Kyrgyzstan and what was often quoted as "feeling like a camp." It was a week full of getting to know the Peace Corps, Kyrgyzstan, and our fellow cohort members. 

    After a hectic 2 days of staging and 28 hours of travel, we finally made it to Kyrgyzstan. After landing at the airport, going through customs, and getting our bags (thankfully no one's luggage was lost), we walked out of baggage claim to be greeted by Peace Corps staff and many confused travelers wondering what the big deal was. 

Our First Group Photo With PC Staff

      Focusing Really Hard to Not Drop My Luggage

    From there, we boarded a bus for a 2.5 hour drive to where we would be staying for the next week. Orientation was held at a guesthouse (similar to a hotel) in the Issyk-Kul oblast that was framed by mountains all around. Here are a couple of pictures just to give an idea: 

The river next to where we stayed

 

        One of many horses and mountains we've seen         

Our view every meal

    Each day of orientation consisted of different sessions about Peace Corps policies, Kyrgyzstan culture, language lessons, and just general information about what the next few months would look like. Each night, there was also an organized activity ranging from different Kyrgyz games to Zoom Q&As with current and former volunteers to language practice. My favorite games included Besh-Tash, which is similar to the USA version of Jacks, and Choku which is played with the knee bones of sheep (I'll make a more in-depth post about games later). We were also able to walk around the village and visit the shops in town to buy anything we needed (for me, it was laundry detergent so I could wash my clothes in the sink). 

    Our cohort also played frisbee every night (one person managed to get the frisbee stuck on the roof TWICE), and by the end of the week, we recruited some of the kids in the area to join us. We learned that frisbee isn't common in Kyrgyzstan, so we had fun teaching them how to play. Each night also ended around a campfire that was made by one person in the cohort who particularly enjoys setting fires (iykyk). The last night there we managed to find all the ingredients to make s'mores so we spent hours doing that and enjoying our last night all together. It turns out I have an expert s'more-making technique...

One of our many group walks to the river nearby

Playing Besh-Tash -- the Kyrgyz version of Jacks 

My aforementioned expert s'more making skills

Frisbee lessons  

    The week came to an end with the host family matching ceremony. This is where we were split into small groups of 4-5 volunteers with whom we will spend every day of the next 10 weeks with. Each group lives in a different village. In each village, each volunteer lives with their own host family. I have a couple of photos from the matching ceremony where we met our host family for the first time, but I am waiting to see if I am allowed to post them so stay tuned! 

    Overall, this week served as a time to become acclimated to Kyrgyzstan while still being surrounded by familiar faces. Sort of a bridge between our old life in America and our new life in Kyrgyzstan. The best way to describe the week was like a summer camp. Full of activities, new friends, and learning. This was our first taste of the next 27 months, and I know for me, it only made me more excited for what is to come.  

    

Staging aka the "omg this is really happening" moment

Although I've already been in country for close to 3 weeks, I thought it would be best to start from when I officially became a Peace Corps Trainee or PCT (I'm not technically a volunteer until the swearing in ceremony at the end of August). Before we start, I should say I don't have any pictures during this time because it was my first time meeting all of these people and I didn't want them to think I was weird taking pictures...3 weeks later and they think I'm weird for totally different reasons.

Before every cohort or group of PCTs heads off to their country of service, they meet in a city in the USA for 2 days. These two days are what we call "Staging" or as I call it the "omg this is really happening" moment. This is when you officially become apart of the Peace Corps and at least for me, it was the first time that it actually felt real. These two days are filled with trainings about the Peace Corps as a whole and activities to get to know your cohort. 

The city that staging is in varies for each group, mine was in Philadelphia. I landed in Philly on a Friday afternoon and actually met two of my fellow PCTs in the baggage claim. It turns out they're also from Houston-adjacent areas so we were all on the same flight. Once we got to the hotel, we had a couple of hours before Staging actually began. I met up with 12ish other volunteers and we all went out for a late lunch. This was a good time to get to know everyone, but also at this point I was already in a weird mental state that I couldn't tell you one thing I talked about.

Staging finally began that Friday evening where we officially went from PC Invitees to PC Trainees. We only had one session that night and it was more of a welcome/break the tension session than actual training. We got to meet the rest of the cohort (there's 26 of us in total) and learn the schedule for the next two days. 

After this one session, we were free for the night to do whatever we wanted. I ended up going to dinner with six or seven other trainees and we celebrated our last night in America by going to CVS to buy last minute things. Random but I spent all of Staging going to CVS 4 times looking for a final Dr. Pepper and not a single one had it...

The next day (Saturday) we had trainings all day which included mostly stuff on PC policies and expectations. The highlight of this day was lunch. Several other PCTs and I went to this revolving sushi place where they had a robot that delivered drinks and we won a prize for eating 15 plates (it was a set of grizzly bear stickers). The best part was at the end of our meal we all got these free plastic cups that have a bear holding sushi on it. I'm not really sure why we got them, but mine is a polar bear and I use it everyday in Kyrgyzstan to catch the water that drips from my broken water filter (long story...). 

Once the day of trainings ended, we had about 30 minutes before we boarded the bus to drive the 2.5 hours from Philly to NYC. These 30 minutes included a final CVS run where they still didn't have Dr. Pepper and we also took our first cohort photo (I would star where I am but I don't know how to, so you'll just have to look):

After a speedy 2.5 hour bus ride (which included a patriotic view of the Statue of Liberty (how fitting?) and the NYC skyline at sunset), we made it to JFK. Once there, we all checked in and went through the panic of seeing if our bags were overweight. Mine technically weighed too much, but the person checking me in let me go for free because we had the same Zodiac sign (go Taurus!). And then after going through security with TSA Agents who were (in my opinion) unnecessarily aggressive, we had a few hours left before our flight. I spent this time eating my final meal in America (chicken fried rice...who's surprised) and finally found my Dr. Pepper (pictured later.

Finally, it was time to board our first flight to Istanbul. To quote the words of one of the greats, Harry Styles, it was time to "leave America." After this quick 12 hour flight, we had a layover in Istanbul where I was able to try Turkish coffee and we attempted to do a reading about the future with the grounds (I thought it just looked like dirt). After that, we boarded our second and final flight to Bishkek (the capital of Kyrgyzstan) with no issues and eventually landed in Kyrgyzstan at 6 AM local time after roughly 30 hours of travel. 

With this, it finally brings to an end or at least what I think is considered the end of Staging. This was a whirlwind of a 3 days (or at least I think it was 3 days) that was filled with a wide range of emotions. In all honesty, the feelings I had during these few days were a lot different than what I was expecting. I think a lot of it had to do with the fact that I had dreamed about joining the Peace Corps for close to 4 years, and now that the moment was finally there, reality sunk in about what I was going to do.

Anyways to end this on a positive note (or at least what I think is somewhat funny), here's a picture of me at midnight at JFK with my farewell Dr. Pepper (notice the eye bags because I slept for approximately 4 hours the night before)

That's all I have for Staging, this actually ended up being a lot longer than I expected, but if you have any questions (because honestly I have no idea if anything I wrote makes sense) or things you want to know more about, message me on instagram (@emilyinkgz). You should also go ahead and follow it if you don't already because I post more frequently on there.

Anyways, stay tuned for the next post all about our first week in Kyrgyzstan (aka Orientation Week).

- Emily