Halfway Right, Halfway Wrong

Salut,

In high school, I often solicited music recommendations from friends, before I figured out I had alternative music taste which often ran a few years behind current pop trends. But when picking a title for this post, I thought of a song recommended by a high school friend called Halfway Right, Halfway Wrong, sung by the Preservation Hall Jazz Band. Preservation Hall is a famous jazz hall in New Orleans, which I got the chance to visit last year before coming to Kyrgyzstan. This blog post is full of music, as is the theme of being right and wrong. 

The first few weeks of school had been mostly uneventful. Just lots of changing and moving around. Home was popping with birthdays though. The last two weeks have been anything but uneventful. The last week of September, we flew into Bishkek for MST- Mid-Service Training. MST serves as a halfway point in our service (or a little more than half). To be honest, I wasn’t sure what it was supposed to be about. My host family asked me, and so did the school and Baktygul, but I didn’t have a lot to tell them. "We’re going to Bishkek for a week!" I exclaimed. Who cares for what reason?

Vanessa had gone early to Bishkek for medical reasons, leaving me to ride in the same taxi as Tahmin, Ben, and Emily, in their cluster. (Peace Corps often puts volunteers into “clusters”, volunteers near each other who live in the same raion/district, Vanessa is the sole other volunteer in mine). They’re fun just prone to chatting/arguing my ear off. I have never flown from Jalal Abad to Bishkek; in the past, we have had to fly from Osh on numerous occasions, often, as Almaz tells me because Jalal-Abad is a finicky and inconsistent departing place. Anyway, it was all super chill, and we arrived in Bishkek in 30 minutes. 

In true Peace Corps fashion, we have hopped between different hotels ever since In-Service Training (which was last November). If not for any other reason, our cohort will be most remembered for our hotel burning down, thus forcing every new hotel visit to come with a mandatory fire safety orientation from staff. And the continued mistrust by Peace Corps staff of the Jannat Hotel, our former hotel of choice. This time, we stayed at the Hyatt Regency Hotel, which was fantastic because it sits in the center of the city, near good food. The Hyatt was full of diplomats and business people, as simultaneously with our conference, the UNDP was also there. Unfortunately because of this, we got relegated to all the small conference rooms (which became a bigger problem later on). 

The first night, I tagged along with some of the other girlies to eat KFC and go shopping, in addition to this place called Everest, a Nepali restaurant. I had some delicious Himalayan noodle soup and some street corn. We ate with Maaike, a K30 volunteer who that week had been departing. I mentioned in my last blog post a few volunteers from the newest cohort have left, and we caught her in Bishkek. She seemed to be in good spirits and fair health. After dinner, we all went to a low-key bar. I drank a pina colada and a pornstar martini, though the contrast between the tastes upset my stomach, and I threw up my food. Not a fantastic start to the week, but it does get better!

The first day of the conference was uneventful, though we had two visiting Peace Corps staff from Headquarters, both in charge of safety and security for the region and nationally. It devolved into a session about transportation policy more than anything else. We practiced CPR on fake dummies and got new vaccinations. We talked about the past year. My least favorite thing of the day was in the morning five minutes before our first break when Nurlan, our training manager, told all of us our mandatory Kyrgyz language exams were all already scheduled (usually at previous training we signed up for our own slots). With that news, he said, “Okay, so the first exams are scheduled and will be in five minutes,” and of course, I had the great misfortune of being in the first round with no prep time. I mostly was just very jilted and not mentally prepared. I got advanced-low though! Peace Corps has an interesting rating system, but its language teaching system is world-renowned (alongside Mormons). My last language exam was at IST back in November, and I got Intermediate-Mid (the scale has Novice, Intermediate, and Advanced, with each having subtiers low, mid, and high). Last November, I was Intermediate-Mid, so I skipped a sub tier (Intermediate-High) and flung into Advanced-Low. I’m not sure if I believe the ranking I was given but whatever. I feel like my language abilities have suffered and I’m a terrible listener, but I can talk your ear off.

That night, a bunch of the dudes and I all went to a Chinese restaurant. Santi had suggested it; it was close to the Confucius Institute and a sort of hole-in-the-wall place. Santi and I found someone there who spoke Chinese, a big plus. The guys all ordered food, but I think we all ate it wrong. When eating Chinese usually, particularly the dishes they had ordered, it’s best to order rice and vegetables and mix it all up and share it. Family-style. No one did that, so everyone had a large plate of meat with some spicy vegetables that almost no one finished, and Santi and I seemed to be the only ones who liked the place. You have to eat it the right way, right? 

The Hyatt had top marks from me, though I heard from other Peace Corps volunteers and staff that they were less enthused. The breakfast had scrambled eggs, fresh fruit, and chocolate croissants (and takeaway juices and yogurts), so what was not to like? Apparently bedbugs and cockroaches, though not that I saw any. The food I thought was top-notch. I didn’t eat most dinners there, but they had stellar pasta and salad, which is all I can ask for. And buffets! Most hotels we have stayed at serve single-meal lunches and dinners. Options, I love them.

On the third day, I held my PSN event. PSN is a peer-support network, a group within the Peace Corps that primarily deals with discussions about mental health, and support for volunteers, among other things. They’re our self-care unit basically. Last training, Tess held a watercolor workshop, and this time, I volunteered to teach a dance class. I had wanted to teach line dancing and encouraged everyone to come out in plaid and boots for country-style line dancing. I had one in mind but was dumb and didn’t consider skill level considerably, so chose one that was substantially difficult for first-time learners. We ordered pizza, but we ended up in a very small room (again, the aforementioned business and diplomats taking over the place). I taught everyone the boot scoot bougie, which was a success, and attempted to teach Chill Factor but barely made it anywhere. I blame myself for that, but I hope they all had fun. 

I guess it’s this late into my post that I should mention briefly what the training was actually about. It was listed as “Student Friendly Schools,” and I heard differing views on whether the conference was of any use or not. At this conference, our school directors came in addition to our counterparts. I always feel more compulsory professionalism to my director than I do to my counterpart or even to Peace Corps staff. Of course, being cordial and professional is always a must, but to directors, it has this greater air of formality and distance. Anyway, my director came. The training was about creating more inclusive and less disciplined focus school environments. This comes from many conversations and comments from volunteers (including me) about discipline in Kyrgyzstan and chronic school problems. The training itself was a bit disjointed and introduced a lot of topics but felt very light on concrete solutions. It makes sense though, it’s very difficult to address chronic truancy and a lot of children’s behavior is also affected by parents, something we as teachers have little to no control over. The most immediate thing we did once we got back from Bishkek was take students’ phones at the start of class which has helped (that’s expected in the US, at least the school I went to). 

The conference included lots of discussions about children’s rights, introducing boundaries, personal space, and making spaces in the school safer for children, amongst other things. Bullying, monetary extortion, and fighting are chronic problems in schools (fighting is a big one at mine amongst boys). As I said, we didn’t discuss solutions as much as I would have liked, but that was the training.

On the third night, Vanessa, Ben, Kim, and I all went to the Philharmonic Hall to watch a performance of Beethoven. Kim is the response Peace Corps volunteer working on eco-tourism in Bishkek. She’s the only volunteer working directly in Bishkek (a few work outside of it), and whenever any of us pass through the city, she’s always there to hang out or offer a good food recommendation. The performance was 1.5 hours or so and featured a cellist, a pianist, and a violinist. It was an amalgamation of Beethoven’s symphonies. Listening to live symphonies is incredibly relaxing (I sometimes watched the wind ensemble or orchestra at UT). 

I had never been big into classical music, but the second I learned my crush in high school liked it, I fell off the deep end into Rachmaninoff. I still like classical music, regardless. After, we met Sharaf at a new Mexican bar that opened across the street from the Hyatt. Using the word “Mexican” to describe the food was generous, maybe “Mexican inspired”, but I craved a taco. I got multiple tiny tacos full of chunks of chicken, missing tomatoes, cheese, onion, and sauce. It tasted fine, just not Mexican. I went with the girls to Groove, this underground bar, also next to the Hyatt, which gave out free shots if you sang a karaoke song. Most of the people sang in Russian, but we got some good English songs in (I sang Applause by Lady Gaga), and I got a fantastic blue-flavored beer. It rained hard, but we sang until like 2 am? 

After the conference was over, I stayed in Bishkek on work leave to do some stuff for my grant. I spent the morning asleep and then finished and sent in my absentee ballot. I sealed it and gave it to the Peace Corps office, who in turn gave it to the embassy for me. I was pretty flabbergasted at the amount of volunteers I talked to who aren’t voting this election cycle. Go vote! In addition, I went to visit Handicraft, a small office in the city that imports SMART boards from the US and the UK. Speaking of our grant, Baktygul and I are writing our grant project to fund a new SMART board, new projectors, new books, etc. The staff at Handicraft gave me a fun tutorial on how to use the new smartboard and answered all my questions; the smartboard is cheaper than I originally thought. 

I had a long long night, but when else can one have a long night? Out here in the villages, we live like nuns. I met a bunch of the volunteers at Riad, a Moroccan bar/cafe inside/adjacent to Koisha, a popular hostel near Osh Bazaar. We ate pita and beef, it was delicious! That weekend, there had been celebrations of Oktoberfest in Bishkek, and Aisuluu, the Peace Corps social media staff manager reserved a table for volunteers. Bishkek had been warm but on Thursday, a cold front came in and was cold for the rest of the weekend. 

A bunch of us went to Oktoberfest, being held at the Hyatt, but we came late, seeing the last 30 minutes of the event. They had a raffle going, where Yazmeen won something, and after, we played darts. Some of the guys retired to bed, and outside Groove, a bunch of us met these tourists from France and one from Kuwait. We went to Ailan, this bar, also underground, in the middle of a park. It was sort of dead, and we weren’t there long before the Kuwait guy convinced Sharaf and me to go to a different bar. This one was in an abandoned warehouse, also underground, near the Russian Orthodox Cathedral that played loud Russian techno music. I took a taxi home, and by that point, it was 4 am. 

    On my last day in Bishkek, I went to Dordoi Bazaar. Dordoi was heavily featured in last year’s summer blog posts because I went a few times with friends. Dordoi is the largest bazaar in Central Asia (allegedly) and one of the key marketplaces in Asia, according to Wikipedia. Dordoi is a city of a bazaar, located north and out of Bishkek city. It’s at minimum half a day trip from Bishkek and this time I went alone. I get lost always, as it is absolutely ginormous. Further, according to Wikipedia, it is over 1 km in size, and over 70,000 people are employed directly or indirectly by Dordoi Bazaar. It is much more organized than other bazaars. I’ve never been to China or India, but I imagine it’s the closest I can imagine being in a super-packed bazaar or city feeling like. Food vendors pass through the stalls selling fresh corn on the cob, and piroshki (baked dough with potato inside, similar to samsa but sweeter), amongst others. I went specifically to buy souvenirs and wedding gifts. When I go home, I have so many parties to buy presents for, my college friends, my own family, and then the groom’s family. I got several gifts for the ladies, as Dordoi has an extensive and cheaper collection than any bazaar I could find in Jalal-Abad or anywhere else. I cruised through, munching on hot and salted corn on the cob (only 50 com or 0.60$). I worked on work at my hostel in Bishkek. I’ve been working on my grant application and submitted it recently. Other volunteers have been working on their own grants, and many have had theirs fully funded or are executing theirs. I’ve been behind for lots of reasons: my director and Baktygul were absent for a lot of the summer, May was an inappropriate month to work on it, and then lots of other things got in the way). We finalized the budget, had a school meeting, and then I submitted it finally. 

    On my last night in Bishkek, I had true and tried KFC and some ramen from the food court in Bishkek Park. I got drinks with Vanessa and Zach at another bar with Aisuluu. I retired early as I was exhausted (early being still 2 am), but they kept going after me. Being in Bishkek always feels like a fever dream, and I’m always there for work-related reasons (or medical). My last time was back in late June/early July, and I was taking too much medication and too ill to really enjoy it. Also, Ala-Too Square finally re-opened. When I went the last few times in the summer, it was closed and under construction. They installed new fountains in the square, and I have mixed feelings. It makes it look so busy, and Tess said it looks almost like the 9/11 memorial. I loved eating in Bishkek, a chance to eat new food! (Some Chinese, Mexican, Nepali, Moroccan, etc.). Coming back to my site was mostly smooth sailing. Our flight was delayed over an hour and a half. 

    The events of May still follow me. I apologize for the abrupt change and the non-transition. Oomat, one of my 9th-grade students, 8th grade at the time, has been in my thoughts since. In the summer and before school ended, I asked Baktygul and his head teacher where he was, and numerous times they said he was in Bishkek, but late in the summer, they said he had come home. I didn’t see him for the first month of school. This last week I got to see him again for the first time. He hadn’t changed much, still in wildly good spirits. He immediately stole my phone to take a photo and send it to his own Instagram account (also on my phone). Now, he sports a pronounced scar along his jaw. It has been a long time coming indeed. His presence didn’t change the class much, the students, particularly the boys, are still loud and don’t listen. He settled right back in. 

    This past week, my books from Darien Aid finally came! Several months ago, around May or so, I requested books from Darien Aid, a nonprofit that sends free books to teachers and students around the world. They’ve sent loads of books to Peace Corps Volunteers. They sent out a box for me in August, and it landed in my village post office last week. I was away in Bishkek, but I got the books with Baktygul. I got a good haul, 58 books! A few of them are WAY too advanced for my students; they gave me some books from F Scott Fitzgerald and Truman Capote, so I loaned them to Vanessa to read. Lots of them are middle school English level, and some of them are books I read in school. I also got Oh the Places You’ll Go by Dr. Seuss, but I suspect my students can’t understand poetry. Regardless, the books are great learning tools. 

On Friday, we had Teacher’s Day. I scarcely remember if I had Teacher’s Day in school growing up; I remember a teacher appreciation week of sorts, but I don’t think it was a holiday, nor do I remember when it was. Last Teacher’s Day was on a warm fall day, and our concert was held outside. They had teacher competitions, and last year I won a drink pitcher my family still uses. The teachers and I partied late past sunset, and Baktygul, or one of the teachers drove me home. I might have to go back and read my actual blog post. So, how does it compare? Like the first bell ceremony, one can’t help but compare the same holidays each year and wonder which was better. This year, our ceremony was held inside because it was so cold. 

    Oh, another note! Brief side tangent, but this year it seems the cold came early. Issyk Kul had its first snow while I was in Bishkek, in late September. My family told me it rained and it was cold while I was gone. Last year, I was told the snow and cold began late, in early and mid-December. This year, the cold will start early. 

Anyway, back to Teacher’s Day. The young female teachers performed a dance, and Baktygul forced me into a game of musical chairs, which I won, though I suspect, with some student interference/bias. I got to dance again with the students. Turrabek, one of the Kyrgyz language teachers at school, is my go-to dance partner. He’s one of the only teachers who can dance well, and he and I love to dance. I mostly just mirror him, but everyone goes wild. It’s just a normal dance for him and me at tois, but the kids went absolutely crazy, having never seen it before. No drink pitchers, but I did get a few chocolate bars which I gave to my siblings. 

Back at Culture Day last year, I fell in love with this Kyrgyz outfit, a vest and skirt worn by Responsible and Rich Rakhat. On my bucket list was to buy my own, and in Dordoi Bazaar, I bought one, in a more green color. I borrowed an underskirt from Baktygul (I have none 🙁) and wore it for Teacher’s Day. My host mom sewed the buttons on for me, but unfortunately, the skirt was still too big, but no big problem because of the safety pins. After the concert, all the teachers tried it on, falling in love with it and wanting to buy their own. I am a trendsetter, thanks Rakhat!! We went to our village cafe to party. Baktygul is still doing her online classes for her Masters. Speaking of that, she was mostly absent during MST because of her classes. I greatly admire her commitment to that. The day I start my Masters is the day I become an inside hermit and party avoider. 

I have been playing some Minecraft ever since I started building with Carolyn. No updates on the Spanish House. I was gone in Bishkek so didn’t watch anything, but I did watch The Godfather finally, but unfortunately, my most flaming hot take is that I found it a bit boring. I’ve been following this film critic online for years, and she said that The Offer, a Paramount original, is the story behind making the film and is supremely educational about the production and business of making films. I love the film business and learning how movies are made, but I always resolved I had to watch The Godfather first. The 3-hour length was daunting, but I watched the first and the sequel. Somehow I’ve found the story of the making of it more entertaining than the actual film. I know I’m such a contrarian. I think the gangster crime genre just isn’t for me. Goodfellas was enough. 

Finally, to round out the week, Vanessa came to visit my house. Honestly, there was no reason for why it took so long. I did want her to meet the extended family members of my family, and some of them are still here (we’re 13 people strong!). I invited her before MST, but she left for Bishkek early. This week, I was afraid with deteriorating weather, I would probably need to cancel it. I say this because in the last year, whenever Peace Corps people visit my house, it has rained, and my house is best enjoyed when it’s sunny outside (because half of it is outside). It merely drizzled, and she came with her host sister. They brought cake, and we ate outside, introducing them to my large family. My host family immediately tried to set up my host brother, Daniel, with her host sister, despite the fact that her sister has a boyfriend. It was Sunday, so everyone in the family (except Meder, who left for work) was home, and she caught us when the construction workers were still briefly there. Yes, more construction workers. Construction will probably continue until I leave. We played Uno, Bananagrams, and another card game her sister taught me, though the name I’d forgotten. 

Fall is here. Now, I’m already turning over to planning Halloween festivities. My students are incredibly excited. Last year was fun albeit haphazardly put together, and I’m hoping this year for it to be more put together and planned with more fun activities. This second year, I’m hoping to embrace party planning. This time last year I was still very new to my village, so very hesitant and unsure about what I was doing and very reliant on Baktygul. I’m still reliant on her, but I feel immeasurably more comfortable with the teachers and students. Toi season is coming soon too! September, I mostly was uninvited to tois and avoided them anyway, buried deep in work applications and grant work. None of that is entirely over, but since my last post, I’m mostly free of it. I spoke to a volunteer who told me she is exhausted of tois, which I can understand. They’re very long, and I distinctly remember being at one and 3 hours in, wishing I could go home. After 3 hours, it wears out even some extroverts, particularly because my teachers never let me sit at tois, always pushing me onto the dance floor. The last two weeks have been so busy in a good way, going from dancing to Russian Techno music to eating Moroccan food to sitting in my room huddled under a blanket while building a rollercoaster on Minecraft. It’s crazy, but hey, that’s life! Some things are half on their way to being right, half on their way to being a messy dumpster fire (I taught Baktygul the slang “dumpster fire”/”shit storm”/”total trainwreck”). Listen to the song! And then I need some Halloween song recommendations, please!

À Bientôt,
Grace

Cool Movies: Will and Harper, Rabbit Hole, Deadpool and Wolverine, Me and Earl and the Dying Girl, Scott Pilgrim vs the World

Music (yes, it oscillates between loud screaming alternative and angsty sad alternative, and no I won’t explain it.)

1. The Top- Natalie Jane
2. AVA- Natalie Jane
3. Anxious- Mercer Henderson
4. With You- Michael Schulte 
5. The Door- Teddy Swims
6. Unwanted- camylio
7. The AUDACITY- Emlyn
8. PANIC ATTACK- Clinton Kane
9. Catch My Breath- Alex Warren
10. Sometimes It Rains in LA- The Vamps
11. Wish You the Best- Lewis Capaldi
12. World’s greatest ex-Emlyn