All of my forms are turned in.

All of my medical tests are done and back with fine results - no TB, no HIV, no parasites.

Most of my goodbyes are said.

I expect this is my last blog as AzerbaiJane.

At 12:01 a.m. I will no longer be a Peace Corps Volunteer.

At this time tomorrow, I will be well on my way home to America.

Incredible.

This experience has been absolutely amazing.

Worth every minute of the 27 months.

I can't believe it is already over.

I am so proud of my time here and what I have done.

And I am so excited to be coming home.

See you soon!

Sag ol, Azerbaijan!

It is amazing how fast two years go by. It feels like I have been here forever and at the same time, I can't believe it is already time for me to leave. My friends and family and most of my loyal readers know how excited I am to be coming home in about a week and a half. But at the same time, leaving is HARD. I guess that means I did it right, though.

Tomorrow, I leave Lankaran. I have spent the past week or so guesting, saying goodbye and spending time with the people who have come to mean so much to me. I haven't prepared supper for myself in over a week! I've gotten my fill of lavangi, plov, kompot, and chay. I've spent my days walking in the park with students and friends and having tea at the library. I made the tour of shops and the post office to tell them I'm leaving and I'll miss them. I went to school to visit with my director, the teachers and cleaning crew.

Many times over, I have promised to...

- return to visit with my husband and children (that's assuming I'll have a husband and children).

- write letters, emails, text messages, and talk on Skype.

- say hello to my mother, father, Barack Obama, and America.

- show them around Washington D.C. if/when they come to America.

I have turned down offers to...

- marry an Azeri boy so I can stay in Azerbaijan.

- take jars of pickled vegetables and jam to my mother.

- throw out all of my clothes and take him/her in my suitcase instead.

Everywhere I've gone there have been hugs and kisses and tears and many, many pictures. It's been lovely and sad. Knowing that I will probably never see many of these people again makes departing that much harder. I have loved my time here and the people who filled it. I am so lucky to have had all of these amazing people in my life. I will keep it touch, and I hope visit one day. But, for now, I'm saying sag ol and sag ol (goodbye and thank you) to my Azerbaijani family.

Possibly one of the coolest things about living in a developing country is getting to watch it, well, develop. Over the past 2 years, so many things in Azerbaijan have changed and improved. I'm not talking about the gazillions of high rise building sprouting up in Baku, although construction in this country is a fascinating process. I'm talking about smaller scale changes that will probably have a bigger impact. Here are a few of my favorite examples...

Cars and Travel...

When I first arrived, the majority of the cars you saw were Russian made Ladas and a hand full of BMWs. Incidentally, the Ladas are almost always white. Don't know why. Anyway. There are still plenty of Ladas on the roads, but now you see almost as many foreign cars. I stopped in my tracks the day I saw a Ford Focus driving around Lankaran. My students tell me that there are apparently a few Hummers here although I've never seen 'em. There are car dealerships of every manufacturer imaginable all over the country. There's even a Chevrolet dealership in the region just north of me.

The roads have improved too - or are in the process of being improved. The first few times I made trip between Lankaran and Baku it felt like we were off-roading. It was uncomfortable and often too bumpy to even sleep through the trip. Now, the road is redone and repaved, making the trip much more enjoyable. I'm one of those people who often gets car-sick, but on our new road, I've even been able to read on the bus. A lot more the roads in town are paved than they were before. And, just a few weeks ago, they painted a line down the middle of the main road in town to help control traffic.

Luxuries...

Washing machines and air conditioners seem like a fantasy to most PCVs. And for most families here, that is still the case. You struggle through summer, sweating profusely, with at best a fan in the apartment and everything from jeans to shirts to socks to carpets gets hand-washed. But as I've been looking around recently, I've seen a lot of the apartments in my neighborhood install air conditioners (I'm trying to make friend with all of them!) And washing machines are becoming more and more prevalent. In the past year alone both my counterpart and old host family have gotten washing machines in their homes. I'm a little sad I moved out before that improvement happened!

Last but not least comes perhaps my favorite example - Milk...

2 years ago, the majority of the milk you could buy came straight from the cow. In bigger cities you could sometimes find long shelf life Russian milk, but that was usually only in one or two stores (at least here in Lankaran). About a year ago, the Pal Sud (Pal Milk) factory opened right here in Lankaran. Very quickly we saw Pal Sud coming into almost all of the stores in town. Slowly it spread to Baku and then the other regions. Now, Pal Sud can be found in every region of Azerbaijan. But there's more. As Pal Sud has gotten bigger, so has their product line. The first thing on the shelves was 3.4% milk. A few months later, 2.4% started showing up. Then came qatiq (yogurt) and some other azer-dairy products. The crowning moment was when I walked in a store and discovered 1.4% milk!!!! Oh, how far we've come!

Now I know a lot still needs to change and improve here, but to watch a country go from Ladas to SUVs, from hand washing to washing machines, and from straight-up cow milk to choices in fat percentage in your milk is pretty rad. Seeing these examples and other things - like heaters being installed in the schools and little girls outside playing and rarely losing electricity - makes me hopeful and makes me think. If this much can improve in 2 years, what will Azerbaijan be like in 10?

My friend Heidi asked how I've been filling my days now that camp is over and most of my work here is done. To be honest, I have more free time than I really know what to do with. My entertainment options are limited, so my activities can get pretty weird. Here's today's project...That's right. It's a model of the Titanic. Complete with Iceberg. I have no idea what I'll do with it now, but it sure was a good way to pass a few hours!

Yay Kamp the Sequel was an incredible success. We had over 130 students attend and participate over the course of three weeks. I truly believe the experience has changed their lives - both in small and big ways. Yay Kamp would not have been possible without the help from so many people at home. So, for all of you who donated to the Peace Corps Partnership Program, or gave stuff to be sent, or just sent good wishes, thank you so much!

One of my favorite kids from camp is a little fifth form boy named Mahammad. Mahammad was a late addition to camp - ha hadn't turned in an application during the school year, but during the first week of camp, his grandmother came to me and asked if he could come. She explained to me that everyday when he saw us all going off to camp, he just cried and cried because he couldn't go. Bleeding heart that I am, I of course said yes, he could absolutely join camp.

Mahammad is one of those kids who is kind of a pain in the butt a lot times, but you still just love the little punk. For those of you Herndon readers from my childhood, he is a lot like Tom McCammon as a kid. Imagine Tom as you read this story, and you've got a pretty good image of Mahammad. For the rest of you, just imagine THAT kid from elementary school. You know the one I'm talking about. Over the course of camp, I had developed a pretty good rapport with Mahammad and had gotten pretty good at managing his punkiness.

On one of the last days of camp Jaclyn, his group leader for the week, came to me and pulled me out of my class. She told me that Mahammad had asked to go home because he had a headache, but half an hour later, she saw him wandering around the school. Concerned, we went outside to look for him. When he saw us approaching, he started to walk away. I called out to him and told him I just wanted to talk to him. I asked him to come over to me. He paced a little and asked me, just me, to come to him instead. I looked at Jaclyn and walked over.

I told him I was worried and asked if he was ok. (Please note - this entire conversation was in Azeri.) He sadi yes he was fine, but he had to leave for the day. I asked what was wrong. He paced a little more, thought hard, and then asked me to promise mot to tell anyone. Deeply concerned now I said ok.

He told me he loved a girl in his group. (Another note - the polite way to say you love someone in azeri is "men bir qiz isteyirem." Which directly translates as "I want a girl." It's one of the weirdest things about this language that still cracks me up.) I asked what girl. More pacing. Some deep sighs. He placed his hand on his head and made me swear I wouldn't tell. I had to give this vow about 4 times before he finally told me her name. I won't reveal it - I did give my word - but she is a sweet little girl and VERY cute. His heart chose well.

As the conversation continued, he explained to me that he loved this girl and it was just too hard for him to stay in the class that day. At this point, my glee was getting a bit difficult to conceal in this - for him - very serious conversation. Swallowing a giggle, I told him that I understood. It was ok.

We talked a little more, then I extracted a promise from him to return to camp the next day, yet again swearing that his secret was safe with me, and sent him and his aching heart on their way home.

One of the best ideas I think we had for camp was having the kids all plant flowers during Environmental Week. After all, the environment is about more than picking up trash and reusing stuff. Whitney's (one of my favorite PCVs who lives about an hour north of me) mom provided the seeds for us. Thanks Mrs.Bey! We decided part of the project would include making planters out of old soda bottles. The only other thing we had to do was get the dirt. Easy, right?

About a week before started camp Jaclyn and I headed to the bazar to procure the dirt. Her host sister, Hadija, came with us in case we needed help explaining what we wanted. We walked into the bazar and up to the row where all of the plants and flowers are sold. We got to the first xanim and asked about dirt. Here's how the conversation went...

"Dirt? Why do you want to buy dirt?"

"We have a project with students where we will plant flowers."

"I have flowers. Beautiful flowers. You can buy my flowers."

"No, thank you. We need dirt."

"Dirt? Why do you want to buy dirt?"

Sigh.....

At this point the news that the Americans wanted to buy dirt, why would they want to buy dirt?, rippled down the bazar. Heads turned. Not whispered conversations about the strange Americans trying to buy dirt ensued. Hadija, pretty much mortified to be seen with us, disappeared to buy fruit.

We explained several more time why we needed dirt - not plants - until the xanim finally understood that we were adamant about the dirt.

"How much do you need?"

"A lot. Enough for about 150 small pots."

"150? No. I don't have dirt. Do you want some of my beautiful flowers?"

Accepting defeat, Jaclyn and I moved on. Since our attempt to buy dirt was the news of the bazar, we knew better than to try any of the other stalls. Frustrated, we moved on to our other errands and brainstormed about other ways to get the dirt.

As we headed to the school supply store, we passed a guy on the road who was also selling flowers and plants. After a pause and a short conversation about whether or not to try again (all the while, Hadija looked ready to bolt the minute it got embarrassing again), we bit the bullet and went up to him.

"Hello. How are you? We need dirt. Will you sell us dirt?"

"Dirt? Why do you want dirt? I have beautiful flowers. I can sell you flowers."

"No we need dirt. A lot of dirt for a project with students."

"You need dirt. I can get you dirt. How much dirt?"

"Enough for 150 small pots."

"Wow. That's a lot of dirt. How much will you pay?"

"Ummmmm. How much is it?"

Pause while he makes up an answer for our ridiculous request.

"18 manat."

"18 manat?"

Pause while we pretend to decide we have any idea whether or not this is a good price and factoring in that this is the only person willing to sell it to us.

"Sure. 18 manat is good. When can we get the dirt?"

"I have to go to the forest to get it. When do you want it?"

"Saturday?"

"Sure. Saturday. It will be here."

"Excellent. Thank you! See you Saturday."

Walking, feeling both elated that we got our dirt and skeptical that the dirt would actually be there on Saturday (which it was), we took a deep breath and checked one more thing off of our list.

After the success of the first two weeks of camp, I was super excited for the beginning of week three - Arts & Crafts Week. I knew it was going to be a good week for my students, and I was really looking forward to helping them be creative, but quite honestly, I was also just plain excited to play with popsicle stick and glue and make friendship bracelets and tie-dye t-shirts.

Like the other two weeks, camp wouldn't have been possible without help from PCVs. Kathleen Keating, Bonnie Wilson, Jesse Fincannon, Kelsey Hull, Alexis Cohen, Kim Joyce, Charlie Djordjevic, Rachel Carter, Laura Durden, Jen Catrambone, and Amanda Brune made Arts and Crafts week a huge success. Jaclyn and I truly couldn't have done it without them.

Our first day was popsicle stick day. We started with God's Eyes in the morning. After doing a small lesson comparing God's Eyes to the Azeri Evil Eye and the similarities is the idea that they are protection, we busted out the yarn popsicle sticks and went to town. And the kids loved it! We ended up with some pretty elaborate God's Eyes with all kinds of feathers and beads and things adorning them. In the afternoon, we made popsicle stick picture frames. This one had been a big hit last year, so we thought it was worth repeating. There were all kinds of different frames made - a few funny looking, but most were just cool! My favorite was done by Agshin, one of the boys in my group this week. Check out the picture, you'll see why!

Day two was tie-dye day. I have to admit, I was a little nervous about how this would go! We warned the kids to wear clothes that they could get messy, we handled everything with care, and as much as possible it was the PCVs' hands that got dyed bright colors. And it was awesome!!! Each group had their own colors, so that all of the kids had the same thing, but they were also "team" specific. The students loved it! We ended up with some really cool looking shirts and a lot of questions from the community around watching us, seeing the brightly colored hands, and finally the pretty colored t-shirts. We had everybody wear their t-shirts for the last day of camp, and it looked awesome!

Day three was drawing and friendship bracelets. A request I had gotten from last year was to have a day of drawing. Seemed like a good idea, especially if we could use it as a way to help the students think outside of the box. Drawing here is pretty much copying exactly what the teacher tells you. That was something we wanted to challenge, so we came up with drawing activities where they HAD to draw their own thing. In Each classroom, we set up a still life for the kids to draw. The trick was that they were each drawing it from a different angle, so they all ended up with a different picture of the same thing. I don't know how successful our message was, but I do think they understood that all of their drawings looked good, even if the weren't exactly the same. After drawing, we did friendship bracelets. One of the neatest things for me about that was that several of the kids who came to camp last year remember how to do it and helped teach the other students. Pretty rad. Oh, and check the pictures to see what two friends from America came to help for the day :-)

On the last day of arts and crafts week, we made homemade playdough. It took a little convincing to get the students to dig in to the mushy blue stuff that they saw made from flour and oil and water, but once they did, they really liked it. They made hedgehogs, snowmen, flowers, spiders, a mini tea set, and my favorite, a reinactment of Sports Week's water balloon fight!

At the end of the day, we had a ceremony to celebrate the end of Yay Kamp. We invited my school director and the students' parents to come participate. Following Azeri custom, we thanked my director for letting us have camp. We also presented him with his very own tie-dye t-shirt. It was a big hit! He gave a speech reminding the students how great this opportunity was for them and telling them to remember it and carry the things they learned throughout the rest of their lives. His speech was about the time I started crying. That was the moment that I really appreciated that this was my goodbye to so many of these kids. Luckily, Jaclyn was sitting next to me and helped me get over my tears without too many people noticing! I misted up a few more times, but it wasn't obvious.

They sang the clean-up song (which I'll be happy if I never hear again!),After Qadir muellim's speech, each of the groups presented something they had learned during camp. performed Boom-Chicka-Boom, team cheers, and talked about their favorite parts of camp. We presented each student with a certificate and group picture. Since it was my last moment with so many of these kids, I took a moment to say good bye and to tell them how much they mean to me. Then we ended the ceremony with cheers and clapping and sent the kids on their way. There were hugs and signatures a few more tears and tons of pictures all around before it was finally done.

Yay Kamp was absolutely amazing. I still can't quite believe how lucky I am to have had such an incredible project as part of my Peace Corps experience. Working with the students and the students leaders and having fun with them and watching them grow was just wonderful. I truly believe that I have had an impact on their lives. I know absolutely that they have had an impact on mine. These three weeks and these students will stay with me forever. To quote Aysel and Arash, third place winners from Azerbaijan on Eurovision, they will be "always in my heart and always on my mind."

After a couple of days of relaxing and recovery from Week One, it was quickly time to get our game faces on and start Week Two - Sports and Games. We planned a combination of indoor and outdoor games for the kids to play this week. The one absolute rule - no football(soccer)! That's one of the only sports they play here, and it is something the boys always dominate.

My school director arranged for us to go to the sport school for our outdoor days. That was incredible. Instead of being crammed on a tiny grassy area filled with nettles in my school yard, we had a big field to play on and do activities on. It was great! The one down side was that there was very little shade. We all ended up with some pretty intense tan lines from the day!

Our first day was Wiffle Ball and Kick Ball. We explained the rules in the classroom, then headed over to the field to start playing. I had expectations of it being a big bust. I thought the girls would just sit and complain and let the boys dominate everything. Not so. Everyone got really into it. And there was some serious team spirit! All of the kids played hard and had a great day!

The second day was inside for games. In my mind, this was a really important day. There is so little here for kids - especially girls - to do, a lot of their free time is spent just sitting at home watching TV. Knowing that these kids will spend a big chunk of their lives sitting at home, I wanted to teach them games and activities they could do there. So we taught them Yahtzee and cards games like Uno and Go Fish and Spoons. The kids loved it! A couple of my student took home Yahtzee score cards to play at home. Success!

Day three was Tag and more indoor games. We played English Word Tag (like TV tag, but with English words instead of TV shows) and Snake Tag and Freeze Tag and more. We played Simon Says and Red Light Green Light. Inside, we played classics like Heads Up Seven Up and new games like Wink Murder and a really cool counting/hand slapping game. One group even did an egg parachute drop. The team to build a parachute that keeps their egg from breaking when dropped out of the window wins. That was a big hit - for the kids participating AND the kids watching!

One of my favorite things of the week was teaching the students Boom-Chicka-Boom. a lot of the teachers at school came out front to watch us do the chant with the kids and make general fools of ourselves. I still have the song stuck in my head, though!

The last day of the week was Relay Day - a lot like elementary school field days. We were at the sport school again, so we got to really spread out and go to town! We started with the Three-Legged Race and moved on to the Wheelbarrow Race. I love how enthused the students were! I expected them to freak out at the idea of putting their hands on the ground for the wheelbarrow race, and a few did, but most dived in with a vengence! On girl even complained about the fact that she couldn't be the "wheelbarrow" because she was wearing a skirt. After the Wheelbarrow Race, we did the Bean bag hop - you have to hop on one foot down the line, around your teacher and back to the starting point while balancing a bean bag on you head. It was grand! We took a little bit of time to rest, then had the kids run a blindfolded obstacle course - guided by one of their teammates telling them where to go. We rounded out the relays with a water balloon toss. Which then turned into a giant water balloon fight. I think for a lot of the kids - and PCVs - that was the highlight of Sports and Games week!

All in all, Week two was awesome! Of course it couldn't have been done without the help of PCVs Ryan Schaffer, Katie Preston, Emma Jackson, Mathias Jackson, Amy Eilts, Alison Reggio, Johanna Klees, Jake Larson, Loki Tobin, and Joe Valles. Their enthusiasm and energy and intensely hard work was incredible and made this week absolutely amazing!

Hard to believe, but there is only one week of Yay Kamp left. I'm really looking forward to Arts and Crafts Week, but I'm already a little sad that camp is coming to an end so soon. It has been just wonderful for the kids, student leaders, and me!

After months of planning and preparation, the big event was finally here! On July 6, 2009, Yay Kamp the Sequel began. With the help of 15 student leaders and PCVs Kat Zigmont, Whitney Bey, Sara Nevius, Rachel Wurdeman, Amy Todd, Linde Gies, Josh Neese-Todd, the project Jaclyn and I have spent so much time preparing for was off to a great start.

I can't say enough about how great our student leaders are. The student leaders are secondary school or university students who have excellent English. They have all kinds of backgrounds - a few who just returned from a year-long exchange program in America, a few who are preparing to go to America, and a few who are just really talented and really eager to be involved. They help us with translation and classroom management and keeping the kids enthused. Their enthusiasm and excitement is incredible - and completely contagious!

At 10 a.m. about 108 students arrived for the first week of camp - Environmental Awareness Week. They were all quickly sorted into groups, and then it was off to the classrooms to begin the day. One of the first things each group did was choose a team name. We ended up with the Tigers, the Flying Eagles, the Big Strong Dragon, Black King Lion, and Fiery Red Dragon.

The plan for Environmental Week was for the kids to have fun, of course, but also to get them thinking about taking care of the environment. Azerbaijan isn't exactly the best when it comes to environmental awareness, so this was a pretty important message to get across to the kids. We did all kinds of activities and games to get the students thinking about the environment.

The first day we had a nature scavenger hunt. We gave the kids a list of things that belong in nature and things that don't belong in nature that they had to find. The team that found them first won. Pretty exciting that the group I was working with for the week - Fiery Red Dragon - won!

The second day was our planting day. We made plant holder out of one-liter soda bottles. We decorated them with stickers and pictures from magazines and glitter glue and all kinds of other fun crafty stuff. We let them dry during recess, and then planted flower seeds. Side note - trying to buy dirt in the bazar gets a lot of laughs from the azeris you ask and the others who are watching you! But the student loved it! Everyday they watered their plants and looked to see if they were sprouting yet. By Thursday, a few of them had little sprouts!

Day 3 was the trash pick up. Not any Azerbaijana's favorite activity by a long shot, but by making it a competition we get all of the students to work really hard at it. We had plastic gloves, provided by the Peace Corps Azerbaijan Environmental Committee so that is wasn't as gross as it could be. A leader from each group kept count of the number of bags their students collected. Some kids got really in to it. We had 45 minutes to pick up as much as we could. In that time, we picked up 436 bags of trash. Pretty impressive, huh? The winners of that activity were the Flying Eagles. They were ecstatic!

Our last day of the week was the day we made Trash Monsters. This was by far my favorite activity. Each group had a bag of trash that they had accumulated in the classroom through out the week. They had to use the stuff in that bag to make a creature - or Trash Monster. At first the kids were kinda of grossed out. But, then, they started to get into it. And their creativity went wild! Plastic gloves became hair, bottles became arms and legs, old nail polish bottles became a nose. The monsters were AWESOME! Each group named their monster, and after recess, the PCVs and Student Leaders voted on the best name and the best monster. The Black King Lion monster won as best monster. The best name came from Big Strong Dragon. It was "Our Miss Michael Jackson Snake". How could you not vote for a name like that?

All in all week one was great! The students had fun, and I think learned something. They're all really excited about coming back next week. Sharing this with Jaclyn has meant that I've been less stressed this week that I was last year and I've had a lot of fun. I can't thank the PCVs who helped enough. They were amazing and without them, Yay Kamp just wouldn't be possible.

Tune in next week to read about week two - Sports and Games!

As of June 27th, I will have been in the AZ for two whole years. My oh my, how time flies. I thought I'd mark the occasion by listing a few of the things I've learned in the past two years.

- Qatiq (plain yogurt) makes almost anything taste better.

- Squat toilets are bearable.

- There is a point that you physically can't add another layer of clothing.

- Summer is a LOT hotter with no air conditioning.

- A lot of food is seasonal - like vegetables, fruit, and ice cream.

- Hand washing jeans is a horrible experience.

- Showering two or three times a week is just fine to feel clean.

- On showering, having a real shower - not a bucket bath - is quite the luxury.

- Inshallah (if God wills) is my new favorite word.

- 10 hours by bus doesn't seem unbearable.

- It may actually be possible to miss food more than people.

- Wearing the same outfit for a week just makes sense.

- Tea with raspberry jam is one of the best cures for a cold ever.

- The more sequins, sparkles, and bling you have your shirt, the prettier you are.

- Spiky high heels are not only attractive, but act as ice picks for walking on snow and ice.

- I hate roosters.

- When school's not in session, I can read a book a day.

- When school is in session, the average is 3 books a week.

- Titanic is possible the greatest movie known to man (or at least Azerbaijanis).

- Beef tastes different when it's primary source of food is the trash heap.

- Telling someone they've gotten fat is not an insult. Calling them fat behind their back is.

- Having a pet cat makes me strange.

- You should only pluck your eyebrows after you get married to protect your honor.

- Crystal Light is the nectar of the gods.

- Being a yaxsi giz (good girl) is one of the best compliments you can get.

- It is never too hot for tea.

And...

- There really is no place like home.

About two weeks ago, I was out walking and ran into my landlady - Hegiget. We exchanged pleasantries, and then she told me that the xanim bought the apartment and I would have to move in the middle of July or August. The week before, I had a conversation with Hegiget and her husband about exactly what date I would be leaving in September, so the news that I might be moving sooner than that was a bit of a surprise to say the least.

Now my azeri isn't great, so I was hoping that I misunderstood and she said the xanim was going to sell the apartment is July or August. So, I went to my counterpart and asked if she could call Hegiget to find out what was going on. She did and told me that I had to move by July 1st. Well, crap. We tried every form of negotiation possible - begging, pleading, offering more money - all with no success. Again, crap.

My counterpart is amazing and immediately started helping me look for a new place. We went to the mekler (basically a real estate agent) in my neighborhood. He had an apartment available on June 15th. We went to look at it to make sure it was ok. I've gotta be honest, needing a home ASAP to live in for all of 2 and a half months meant that there wasn't much that was going to make this apartment NOT be ok in my mind. Luckily, it is actually pretty nice.

Hegiget returned half of June's rent so I could take this place on the 15th. When I went to get the money from her, she and her husband apologized profusely and asked me not to be angry with them. My old apartment actually belonged to her brother. He decided to sell it, leaving them no choice. Sucks, but it does make me feel a bit better about Hegiget and Ziyad, who I have come to care a great deal about in the past 2 years.

So, with a lot of help from my sitemates, on June 16th, I moved into my new place. In a lot ways, I've moved up in the world - I have a lot more furniture, and the queen size bed is very nice. In other ways, I've moved a bit lower - my mini toilet isn't much fun, and 'm very sad to return to bucket baths. But, I have a home for the next 2 months, which is the most important thing! And, it got resolved very quickly and easily, which is incredible! Less than a week after I found out I had to move, I was settling in to my new home.

And so, here are some pictures of my lovely new abode. Home Sweet Home for the next 2 1/2 months. Inshallah :-)

This is my super-fancy living room. Check out that couch and armchairs! It's like I've died and gone to furniture heaven!!!

This is in my kitchen - a room that leaves a lot to be desired. That is my friend Whitney lighting the stove - with a pair of pliers because there are no knobs on my stove. The refrigerator is fun too - you have to lift the door up and hold it up with it is open, otherwise it falls off. Ahhh, the things that have become normal here!

Here's my bedroom - and the lovely queen size bed. And, I actually have a mirror, which I didn't have in the old place. Seriously, I won the furniture lottery in this apartment!

The mini-toilet. Not quite a squatter, not quite a western toilet. It's awkward. That big red bucket is my flushing mechanism.

And, last but not least, my new shower/bath. Sigh. Well, I guess it will make me appreciate American showers all that much more when I return home!

Thank you!

As of Friday morning, English Language Summer Camp (or Camp Jane the Sequel for short) is officially fully funded! For all of you who donated or passed to information along to someone who would be interested in donating, thank you so much. I appreciate the support more than I can ever truly express in words.

The big event start July 6, 2009. We're expecting between 150 and 180 kids to participate in the three week long program. There are already plans for water balloons fights and relay races and wiffle ball and popsicle stick bird houses and friendship bracelets and tye-dyed t-shirts and much much more. Becuase of your support, all of this can happen. As camp progresses, I will post information and stories and keep you all informed on how its going. Again, thank you!

An abundance of free time leads to a multitude of ways to to fill it. Last night, instead of my usual reading a book or playing solitare, I composed some Haikus (this might be a new low - or high, depending on how you view it for my ways to cure boredom.) Anyway. I thought I'd share the gems about my life here that I came up with. Enjoy!

Morning

In my apartment,

The rooster's crow wakes me up.

That, I will NOT miss.

Sales

In the yard, "qatiq,

ayran, xiyar, pomidor,"

Xanims yell to sell.

Translators notes on this one - qatiq is basically plain yogurt, ayran is this super-gross (in my opinion) dairy product that they make, xiyar is cucumber, pomidor is tomato, and xanim is the word used for woman/lady - usually when PCVs use it it refers to old ladies.

Marshrutka

Swerve to miss a sheep.

Speed to pass the slow, slow trucks.

Stop - for no reason.

And my personal favorite...

Bucket Bath

Scoop, splash, scrub with soap.

One bucket is all you need

To get Azer-clean.

Toys (the Azeri word for wedding) are a BIG deal here. Everyone loves a toy. Peace Corps Volunteers get invited to about a gazillion toys during their time here. One of my friends went to 18 toys last summer alone. There is prestige in having the American at your wedding - and showing them off. And toys are fun - there's good food, dancing, tons of toasts and speeches, and photos. As much fun as they are, I have to say, after about 3, they get kinda old.

When my parents came to visit in March, I went through all of my stuff to see what I could send home with them. Sweaters, my winter coat, knick knacks my students have given me, souvenirs I have accumulated all went in the suitcase. And then I got to my toy shoes. They're American - Nine West, I think. Black pumps with a pointy toe and high heel - Azeris LOVE them! I sat down and thought about whether or not I would be going to another toy in my remaining time here. I had decided that I would only go to a wedding if I knew the bride or groom or their parents personally. I mentally went through my list of people. Both of my counterparts are married and the children are little. One host sister is too young, the other is working in Baku and has no desire to get married yet - and my host mom is ok with that. Most of my landlady's family is already married off. It a bold choice and quite a risk to take, but I decided that I was safe sending the toy shoes home.

Fast forward to May, when I found out that my gamble had failed. See, when I went through my list of people, I had forgotten about the young, unmarried English teachers at my school. Women I know really well and like a lot. People that fit my criteria of whether or not I would go, and people who's wedding I would actually want to go to. So, when I got the invitation to Vusala's wedding, I knew I had to go.

Luckily, one of my sitemates wears close to the same shoe size as me, so I was able to borrow some appropriately fancy shoes. I got myself all dolled up - shiny shirt, heels, and far more makeup than I usually wear - and went with my counterparts to Vusala's toy.

And it was a lot of fun. The food was great. We danced - but not so much that there is a whole section of the American dancing on the wedding video. And, of course, we had the obligatory photo with the bride and groom. You'll notice no one is smiling in the picture (which, I think makes me look stupid. I'd far rather my big grin in the picture, but sometimes you have to do it Azer-style!) No one smiles in pictures. And certainly not in toy pictures. All in all, I'm really glad I went.

I'm pretty confident that this was indeed my last toy. There's a chance Elnora (the woman in the blue shirt in the picutre) will get married before I leave. And if she does, I'll borrow shoes and go to her wedding and dance and eat good food and not smile in the picture.

But, inshallah (if god wills), Vusala's toy was my last toy in Azerbaijan.

The most successful I have felt as a Peace Corps Volunteer was last summer. Many of you will probably remember the gloriousness (and stress!) of Camp Jane. That month was A LOT of hard work, but it was also the first time I felt like I had really offered something valuable as a volunteer. I certainly couldn't have done it without all of the support from home and other PCVs. I believe, looking back on my service in 10 years, Summer Camp will always be the thing I am the most proud of.

Last year, Camp Jane was a HUGE success. Over 3 weeks, a total of about 80 kids participated and PCVs from all over Azerbaijan came to help. We played Capture the Flag, we jump-roped, we taught them Miss Mary Mack. We made popsicle stick picture frames, friendship bracelets, and sock puppets. We showed them how to make paper footballs, we played kickball, we had relay races and water balloon fights. I saw kids go from shy to outgoing, reserved to enthusiastic, barely able to speak English to chatting with PCVs during our break time. We watched these kids have fun - and we had fun with them. And even more importantly, we gave them something that will last a lifetime.

Over the course of this school year, I have gotten to see some of the lasting effect Camp had on my students. I see my students have a much more positive attitude and willingness to participate in the classroom. I see some of my little girls outside playing - often games they learned in camp. One of my students' new favorite hobby is jump-roping. Another student teaches her own English Club - the day I visited they were doing Miss Mary Mack. And almost everyday, students ask me if we will have camp again this summer.

The answer to that question is YES! This year I have teamed up with another PCV, Jaclyn Gilstrap, who lives and teaches in one of the villages of Lankaran. Since I'm working with Jaclyn I can't call it Camp Jane anymore, but I'm ok with that! Students from both of our schools will participate in the 3-week long camp. This year, we're doing an Environmental Week, Sports and Games Week, and Arts and Crafts Week. Between the 2 schools, we expect over 100 students. Yay Kamp is going to be bigger, better, and definitely impact more kids.

We need your help. I have a lot of supplies left over from last year, but there are things we still need. We need to be able to pay to bus the students from Liman (Jaclyn's village) to and from my school. We hope to be able to be able to provide water for the kids and we looking at being able to take them to a football (soccer) game. We have so many plans and ideas for Yay Kamp the Sequel - and a lot of them can't happen without financial support.

Yay Kamp has been accept as a Peace Corps Partnership Program project. PCPP is a way for people at home to contribute to PCV projects. It is tax deductible, and no amount is too small - and certainly, no amount is too big :-) Please, check out the link below. Feel free to share it with anyone who you think might be interested in supporting this amazing project. And if you decide to donate, you'll have the undying gratitude of me, Jaclyn, and about 100 Azeri children.

https://www.peacecorps.gov/index.cfm?shell=resources.donors.contribute.projDetail&projdesc=314-053

These are my second formers. They're all 7 or 8 years old, and are super cute. I only teach them one hour a week (which is probably good. I think I'd lose my patience with them really quickly if I saw them more often than that!) Anyway, they are my last lesson of the day on Wednesdays. It doesn't matter how bad my day was leading up to the moment I walk into their classroom, as soon as I'm there, the day is good. They are excited, really eager to learn and show off how much they know, a little wild, easily distracted, always smiling (except for those rare few times someone dissolves into tears for something that seems ridiculously little to me) and just silly enough to crack me up every week. In short, they're awesome. And I love 'em.

It was eagerly anticipated. It was much planned for. Hours of phoned calls, emails, and texts went into the preparations. After a year and 9 months of waiting, the big event was finally here... my Mom and Dad arrived in Azerbaijan!

After looking forward to my parents coming to visit for so long, it was kind of hard to believe that they were really here. Waiting at the airport, I was restless with excitement and nerves. I couldn't stop pacing and every time the doors hope, I caught my breath, thinking "will it be them this time?" Usually, it was some oil worker ex-pat - not them. Each time, I peered through the door, hoping for a glimpse of them. Nothing. But, finally, the doors slid open and it was Mom and Dad Flegal! Yay!!!!!

We spent our first couple of days in Baku, doing the sights and giving them a little bit of time to settle in and get over the jet lag. We did a bunch of the tourist things I've never gotten to do. On of the things about coming to Baku for work so often is that I don't do the interesting sight seeing that is here. Much like having spent my life living in the DC area and never having been to the Washington Monument. We went to the Maiden's Tower, the carpet shop - where we got a complete education on carpets, later in the trip we saw the Sihirvan Shah's Palace. It was great!

After Baku, we headed down to Lankaran. We had about a week planned there so that my folks could see a few of my conversation clubs, meet my friends and counterparts, celebrate Novruz (my absolute favorite holiday in Azerbaijan!), and see a little bit of what my life is really like here. I have to say, this may have been my favorite part of their visit. I loved getting to show off my town - both the good and the bad. I loved getting to show off my parents. I love that my mom treated me to things I wouldn't but for myself - like bananas.

We saw the sights of Lankaran - the lighthouse, the park, the Stalin Prison, the river. We went to the bazar. My parents' response after the bazar was, "well, that was truly bizarre." We relaxed at my apartment and just hung out the way we would have at their house in Herndon (you know, if their house was a bare-bones apartment in a developing country. But the ambiance was the same, and that's what's important.)

We spent the two major holidays of Novruz with each of my counterparts. We celebrated Chershemba Bayram (Tuesday Holiday) with Ruhangiz and her family. Chershemba is probably my favorite - that's the day you jump over fire and do all the cool games like egg fights. One of the coolest things was getting my mom to jump over fire (my Dad was saftely nestled on Ruhangiz's balcony taking pictures). We spent Novruz (March 20 - the first day of spring) with my other counterpart, Afag, and her family. At both homes, my parents got to experience Azeri national meals and typical Azeri hospitality. For the first time since I've been here, people weren't forcing a ton of food on me. Instead, I got to sit back and watch my parents struggle through mountains of food being piled on their plates. Everywhere we went - my counterparts', my landlady's, my school - people were so excited to see them. My parents couldn't escape a meeting without drinking tea, eating a ton of food, and some kind of gift.

After Lankaran, we headed up north. First a stop in Lahij - one of the neatest villiages in the AZ. It is way up in the mountians, and the road up is, at times, terrifying, but it is well worth it. After Lahij, we headed to Sheki. One of the great things bout our trip to Sheki is that I hadn't been there yet. It was really cool to get to discover a part of Azerbaijan with them, rather than just showing them the stuff I had already been to.

Everyone is right - Sheki is beautiful. One of the prettiest places I've been to in Azerbaijan. We did the major sights - The Xan Saray (Khan's Palace) and the Caravansaray. Please note who's hanging out with my parents in the picture at the Xan Saray. That's right - Shannon and Dr. Heidi got to travel with us ! We stayed at the Caravansaray (an old hotel that was part of the Silk Road back in the day). My mother was not a big fan of the steps at the Caravansaray! We shopped - also a very fun experience for me. On my PC budget, all I can usually do it window shopping. Walking around with my Mom and Dad, who could actually buy all of the really cool things we saw, was great! We had dinner with a bunch of PCVs and my Mom and Dad got to meet abunch ofthe Americans who make up such an important part of my Azer-world.

Sadly, all good things have to come to an end, so all too soon, it was time to return to Baku and send them back to America. We spent one final day in Baku, finishing up some shopping, doing a bit more sightseeing, getting them all packed up, and relaxing. It was a nice way to end the visit.

One of the best things about my parents' visit was getting to see Azerbaijan through their eyes. It gave me a fresh perspective on so many things. Things that I have come to accept as just being the way they are - like the conditions at my school - I saw without my rose-colored glasses again. Things that I have come to hate - like the constant attention anytime I walk around town - I saw with a little more kindness. In a way, they gave me a new appreciation for the place I am living in. I think that's pretty awesome.

Having my Mom and Dad here for a couple of weeks was incredible. It was definitely hard to see them go, but having the knowledge that I'll see them again in a few short months made it much easier. And, cheesy as this sounds, the memories will last a lifetime.

As many (probably most) of you know, today is Earth Day.

Azerbaijan is one of the most polluted countries in the world. It sits on the shores of the Caspian Sea - the most polluted body of water on the planet. Of all the countries in the world, it is one that could really use the message Earth Day promotes - environmental awareness, not polluting the land and sea, taking care of the world.

Armed with that knowledge, I decided to make Earth Day the subject of my weekly conversation club with university students. Now, these students are amazing. They are the people that I believe will start many of the changes this country needs. When we did a club about gender roles, the boys were the ones to say it wasn't fair that girls can't do the same things they can - like study abroad, go to football (soccer) games, or even go to restaurants. When we talked about the US election in November, they all had incredible ideas and thoughts about both candidates, about democracy, about what they want the world to be. In almost all of our club meetings, they usually start with the idea I had planned on spending an hour getting them to. It's awesome. Like I said, they are a great group of students.

I kinda thought my Earth Day lesson would end up being redundant for them. I figured they would already know all about it and have the answers and ideas I wanted to share with them. But it was still an important enough topic that I wanted to address it. Imagine my surprise when none of them knew what Earth Day was. Wow. Instead of my typical problem with them - that they know more than I expect them to - they knew far less that I had expected. OK. I could still work with it. I am great at improvising.

I started again from a new angle. I asked them for reasons that we might celebrate Earth Day. The first guess? "Because that is the day the Earth was made?"

Oh dear.

Ask a lot of PCVs, and they'll probably groan if you mention the word "sustainability". Sustainability is a concept that is pretty high on the list of Peace Corps ideals. The premise is that everything we do should be sustainable - the people we work with should be able to do it without us after we're gone. Makes sense that that should be one of our primary goals as PCVs. I do actually believe that it is very important to what I am doing here. The concept is great. But, I have to be honest, the reality of sustainability is HARD. But like any good volunteer, I don't let the challenges keep me down. I keep plugging away. What's that old saying? If at first you don't succeed, try, try (try, try, try, try, try, try, try ,try) again.

About a year ago, I had a pretty intense conversation with my counterpart about the solar system (there's a section in the seventh form textbook about the planets.) As we were beginning the unit, my counterpart told the students that there were 11 planets. Now, science was never my strong point, but I was pretty sure that number was wrong. So, I asked her what the 11 planets were. Her answer, "Earth, Mars, Saturn, Mercury, Jupiter, Venus, Uranus, Neptune, Pluto, the Sun and the Moon." The Sun and the Moon??????? OK, I'll repeat, science was never my strong point, but I'm pretty much positive that the Sun and the Moon are NOT planets. We have a really good relationship, so instead of letting it go and letting her save face in front of the students, I challenged her. I wasn't going to touch the whole "Pluto's not really a planet" thing with a ten foot pole, but I had to address the Sun and the Moon. We went back and forth about it for the majority of the lesson. By the end of the lesson, I still wasn't completely sure I had convinced her. But I fought the good fight.

Fast forward to the same unit this year. For about a week ahead of time, I was dreading the day we got to the solar system. D-Day arrived. As we began the lesson, I braced myself to hear about the 11 planets in our solar system. I had even made the decision that I was going to let it go this year - it would be hard and go against ever fiber of my being, but it just wasn't worth it. Is that reverse sustainability - they're changing me? Anyway.

She asked the question, "how many planets are there?" The kids said 9. I took a deep breath and waited for her to correct them. And then she said, "That's correct. There are 9 planets. Are the Sun and the Moon planets?" Pause. "No. The Sun and the Moon are NOT planets."

I was shocked. I was amazed. I was incredibly proud. I helped someone I was working with to see things differently and do something differently - without my prompting. I have achieved sustainability. I am a successful volunteer.

Winter is a slow time for activities in the AZ, so Shannon and Dr. Heidi have pretty much just been living the volunteer life for the past few months. Here are a few photos of their recent outings and activities.

Like any good PCV, Shannon and Dr. Heidi don't let a minor inconvenience like a lack of power stop them from getting in some quality reading time.

The southern PCVs got together to celebrate Valentines Day this year. Jon from Bilasuvar was really impressed by Shannon and Dr. Heidi. There was no stopping him when he found out they had different outfits to choose from - hours of entertainment!

Shannon and Dr. Heidi with a few of the Valentines from my conversation club students. I LOVE that Heidi's says "Be Me."

PCVs gathered in Zagatala to celebrate our New President and listen to his Inauguration speech. Shannon and Dr. Heidi were THRILLED to get their picture taken with President Obobblehead.

And, last but not least, Shannon and Dr. Heidi got all snuggled in for their first trip on the night train. By far the best way to travel in the AZ.

Almost all of my students have captured a piece of my heart in one way or another. One of my favorite kids is a 6th former named Murad. He's a sweet kid, eager to learn, and just full of life. His ears stick out a little and he has a slight stutter, both of which make him all that more endearing.

Last year, I became fairly certain that Murad had a crush on me. He was always eager to please Miss Jane. He would walk me home from school and bring me fruit and flowers from his garden. I have to be honest, I kinda love it. I mean, how cute is it to be the object of a schoolboy crush?

As this year began, it was pretty obvious that the crush was still there. He's turned into a 6th grade boy - showing off a little, doing the little things in class that are kind of misbehavior, but are guaranteed to make me and my counterpart laugh. He is my most dedicated conversation club attendee. No flowers this year, but he did bring me a bag of chips and some candy.

A few weeks ago, the father of one of the girls in Murad's class returned from a religious trip to Iraq. She brought everyone gifts from the trip. The gift she gave me was one of the stones that gets placed on the floor so that your head doesn't touch the ground when you pray and some really pretty cloths to put the stone on. Always trying to turn eveything into an English lesson, I asked questions. My counterpart and the kids answered them - mostly in English.

I have never talked about my own religious beliefs with Azerbaijanis. It's kinda frowned on, and more importantly, its not why I'm here. But the assumption is that because I am American, I am Christian. I'm ok with that, but I do often wonder how my Jewish PCV friends feel about it.

Anyway. As we were talking about the gift and the students were answering my questions about what it was used for, how to care for it, etc, Murad asked my counterpart - in Azeri - if I was Muslim. She told him - also in Azeri - no, Miss Jane is Christian. At point, Murad VERY dramatically pretends to sob and cry at the calamity of me being a - gasp - Christian.

And in that one moment, my luster diminished in his eyes. Oh sure, he still likes me. He still shows off for me, but not as much. Since then, he's even skipped a few conversations clubs. And the pure joy in his eyes when he gazes upon me has faded. And I am no longer the amazing and wonderful Miss Jane, glorious object of desire. I'm just kinda cool fun Miss Jane, who is heartbreakingly Christian.

Oh, sure, the earth still spins on its axis, the world will not come to an end. But for me, a little bit of the joy in life has gone, and it can never be recovered. Sigh.

A few weeks ago, I was walking home and got followed by a car full of boys. While it wasn't one of my favorite experiences here, it led to a day that ranks high on my top ten list of experiences in the AZ.

About a week after the car-full-of-stupid-boys event, I got a call from my landlady. One of the benefits of being a yaxsi qiz (good girl) living in the fishbowl is that when something even slightly bad happens, everyone knows and everyone wants to take care of you.

So, my landlady. On this particular Friday night about a week later, she called me to tell me that the next day they were coming over to install a fancy new metal door so that, and I quote (well, I translate and quote), "the bad boys can't get me and I won't be scared." I didn't know that I was scared, but whatever. I'll take a fancy new metal door.

Saturday morning, my landlady's husband showed up with the new door and a couple of guys to install it. Very quickly my old wooden door with the Coca Cola sticker was gone and the work began to install the fancy new metal door. While the guys were banging and hammering and chunks of cement were falling, my phone rang. My landlady, asking to speak to her husband. When he got off the phone, he told me to go over to their apartment right away to eat. Ohhhhh Kaaaay. Sure.

When I got there, Hegiget (my landlady) was in the kitchen with 3 other xanims, her daughter-in-law, and her 2 year old grandson. They were making ash (with a long "a"). Ash is milk porridge. It tasted a lot like rice pudding to me. While they were cooking, I sat down, had some tea and just got to chat with them. There was, of course, lots of them talking about me, but there was also a really great conversation. They explained that the ash was part of a religous holiday Azerbaijan was in the middle of. You cook a ton of the stuff and give it to your friends and neighbors. They tried to explain to me how to make it and showed me everything they were doing. And then we sat down and shared a bowl of this super yummy stuff.

After the ash break, I returned to my apartment with Ziyad, my landlady's husband, for the next phase of door installation - cementing the fancy new metal door in. Always the yaxsi qiz, I got them tea. Always the conscientious Azeris, they lectured me that it was too cold and made me put on more sweaters.

When the cementing was done, Ziyad and I cleaned up the debris and I was informed that I should be back at their house at 6 o'clock for supper. One if the conversations I had had with Hegiget and the xanims was how much I like Lankaran meals - especially Lavangi. Lavangi is stuffing made with walnuts, onoins, and this paste stuff. It is delicious. There are many different types of lavangi - chicken lavangi, fish lavangi, eggplant lavangi, you gewt the idea. Since that is what she was making for supper that night, they insisted that I not cook and come join them for the meal.

Dinner was bird lavangi. Bird is winter bird. Probably pheasant or quail or something. Sadly, I don't really like bird. Honestly, I think its gross. But I do love lavangi. I was able to eat a lot of lavangi and rice and smother the bird in qatiq (essentially plian yogurt) to nake it edible.

The dinner wasn't anything fancy or special - it was just a family meal. Usually azeris pull out all the stops for guests. But they didn't treat me like a guest. I was just a part of the family. And that was very cool.

After supper and tea, Hegiget walked me home. When I walked through my fancy new metal door and sat down and reflected on my day, I was just completely content. Being a part of their family for the day. Knowing that they think of me as a part of the family. Seeing how much they care about me and my safety and my happiness. Remembering the truly good things about Azerbaijan and why I love this place.

I want to offer an apology to my fans for my superlong absence from the blogging world. I'd like to say that it was because I was lazy and just didn't feel like writing, but the truth is that I had some technical difficulties. Technical difficulties that involved the power cord for my laptop, the smell of electrical smoke, sparks, and mini flames. None of which you really want anywhere near your computer. Luckily the only thing that suffered any actual damage was the cord...but because my laptop is an antique and because I live in Azerbaijan not America, getting a new cord required extra effort. A lot of extra effort. Mostly on other people's parts. I just had to wait for it to arrive. But that was still annoying.

Anyway. At long last, my new power cord is here and I am back online! Yipeeee!

Special thanks go out to my Mom, my sister Kate, and Bill Lanzenby for getting me back to my regularly scheduled blogging.

Stay tuned for more episodes of the Adventures of Azerbaijane.

Yolka is the Azeri word for evergreen tree. Being a muslim country, they obviously don't celebrate Christmas here, but, not wanting to be left out of all of the festive fun, they have adopted many of the Christmas traditions for their New Years celebration. Shafta Baba – also known as Santa Claus – comes to visit on New Years – and brings toys for children (according to some of my students. Others say he doesn't bring stuff.) New Year's lights and decorations go up in shops and offices. And, they have a yolka, decorated with lights and ornaments and a star on top.

I of course, do celebrate Christmas. It is one of my favorite holidays. Living on my own this year meant that I could go to town with Christmas decorations. I have lights in my window, little decorations sent by my family last year placed strategically around the house. And, more than anything, I wanted a Christmas tree. A result of poverty, boredom, and an overabundance of craft supplies in my home, I didn't go the typical buy-a-fake- tree-and-ornaments-at-the-bazar route, I decided to make my own. The picture you see is the final product.

The “tree” is made of cardboard from old care package boxes and tissue paper. It took me about a day to figure out and put together I made the star – out of that foamy stuff and glitter. The garland also came from camp supplies. The base is the box for my water distiller covered in white felt – also sent for Camp Jane.

The ornaments are from my conversation clubs last week. A few are the examples that I made for the kids, the rest are all from my students. When we did this activity, I had them each make 2 – one to take home and hang on their New Year's tree and one to give to me for my Christmas tree. They loved it! And it was on of the best clubs I've had this year. I have to say that may favorite ornament is the orange ball near the top – it says “Miss Jane beautiful teacher.” So true. A close second are the American and Azeri flags that 2 boys worked on together. I will be bringing a bunch of them home with me.

All in all, I think my yolka is pretty rad. The entire thing is completely free and completely cool.

In a few emails recently I have told people that my winter layering of clothing has begun. I'm not quite at all of my layers yet – it has been pretty mild so far, but I know the time is coming quite soon that I'll be back in all of my layers. Anyway, I thought it might be fun to show you exactly what my winter wardrobe entails...

The first layer – long underwear and socks. There comes a point that this layer doesn't get removed until the end of winter. Last year that point was the first or second week of January. I'm pretty sure I finally lost this layer in the first week of March. Maybe the last week of February.

The second layer – tights and a long sleeve t-shirt. Seems gratuitous, but it is indeed necessary.

The third layer – my teacher clothes. Those are my super fancy corduroy pants that I got at the bazar for 10 manat. I stop wearing skirts in about the middle of December. If, for some rare reason I do wear a skirt to school, I add another pair of tights – and if the skirt is long enough, some running pants underneath. But, for the most part, trousers are the way to go in winter. I actually got lectured last year for wearing a skirt when it was “too cold”. And yes, those are Christmas socks.

The outer layer – this stays on throughout the school day – sometimes I might take off the coat, but that's rare. I wear the fingerless gloves at school so I can still write on the blackboard. When I go outside, I have real gloves I put on. The hat and the scarf are pretty much a constant - around the house and even at bedtime. The boots are azeri – notice the super awesome fur lining!

Ev Paltar (house clothes) - at home the teacher clothes get traded for some comfy, warm, lounge wear. This lovely velor ensemble is courtesy of my sister Kara. The azeris absolutely LOVE it.

A constant for walking around on my chilly chilly floors are the slippers I got when I was on vacation in Poland this year. They are possibly one of the best purchases I've ever made. Warm, soft, incredible. I'm hoping I don't get to the point that I'm even sleeping in them, but it is a possibility!

And I have to tell you, even with all of these layers, in the deep dark days of winter, it is still – to quote a friend – f*%^ing cold! So, as you sit in your houses with central heating and gas log fire places, dreaming of White Christmases and hoping for snow days, maybe add a wish for a heat wave in this part of the world :-)

And, send hot chocolate.

Somehow, it is already Thanksgiving Day. I'm still not sure how I am already this far into my second year as a PCV, but I am. Just like an American Thanksgiving, my Turkey Day includes travel and meeting friends for a delicious meal. I am incredibly lucky that Peace Corps scheduled me to come to speak to the AZ6 PCTs on Friday, enabling me to come up on Thursday and celebrate the holiday with friends.

We had our “official” PC Thanksgiving on Saturday in Baku. Like last year, it was just wonderful. I ate too much food, talked, laughed, and spent the night surrounded by friends and people who have become like family here.

I wrote a blog very similar to this last year for Thanksgiving. It is easy to think of all of the things I am missing, being away from home for the holiday season. But, I'd rather not do that. Instead, I'd like to take the spirit of the holiday to heart and share the things make me happy. I'm not sure how the list has changed from last year, but here are the things that I am thankful for this year...

– The amazing Thanksgiving dinner that Peace Corps and the Embassy hosted for us.

– Books.

– Having internet access at home. I love getting to talk to my family and friends almost everyday.

– Facebook. I was opposed to it for a long time, but it is seriously amazing. I can't believe how many people I have found – or they have found me - that I thought I had completely lost touch with.

– Left over supplies from Camp Jane. You'd be amazed how many bored moments have been solved by a craft project using those supplies.

– My apartment. And that my landlady is cool.

– That I have a western-style toilet. Even if I do have to flush it with a bucket of water.

– That in my neighborhood, I have stopped being “THE American” and become “OUR American.”

– My super warm slippers from Poland.

– The cat I adopted about a month ago. She is so sweet and snuggly and I feel way less crazy talking to her instead of myself!

– That it is starting to get cold enough that most of the mosquitoes are dead.

– Books.

– Letters and care packages.

– Hot chocolate.

– Dramamine. Seriously, the roads here are awful!

– My counterparts. They are two amazing women who I am truly lucky to work with and to have in my life.

– My “monsters”. There are days that I absolutely hate school, but for the most part, I really do love my students. And I REALLY love that this year, I have taught them to say, “Yo, Miss Jane. What's up?”

– My conversation club with university students. It is so amazing to have these incredible conversations with them and to know that these are the people who will really make Azerbaijan a better place.

– My water distiller. No icky-tasty water filter water or expensive store bought water for me!

– Music.

– Random phone calls from my sisters and Heidi and people at home.

– My awesome ship-clock from my students.

– Books.

– That I'm not as grossed out by only showering 2 or 3 times a week as I was at this time last year.

– Long underwear.

– My hot water bottle. Who knew that those things could keep you SO warm?

– That I've learned to really cook here. Not having everything available in a box or a can has forced me to figure out how to actually cook. And, I'm getting pretty good at it!

– Qatiq. It is basically plain yogurt, but way better. I seriously love the stuff. I put it on as many things as I possibly can.

– Sunday night phone calls from my parents.

– Books.

– The AMAZING group of volunteers that I am serving with.

– The enthusiasm and energy for Azerbaijan, Peace Corps, and being a volunteer that AZ6 - the new group of volunteers - has brought with them.

– Playing Scrabble with two of my favorite students.

– Books.

– Shannon and Dr. Heidi coming to visit.

– Wednesdays. On Wednesdays, my school day ends with my itty-bitty 2nd formers. Those little guys are so frickin' cute, it doesn't matter how the rest of my day has been, after 45 minutes with them I always leave school with a smile.

– Mandarins.

– The ridiculous Christmas CD my sister Kate made for me last year that includes classics like “Jingle Bells, Batman smells, Robin laid an egg...”

– Did I mention my cat? She's currently helping me type this.

– The incredible support I have gotten from friends and family and people I barely know at home over the past year and a half.

And, of course...

– That I have a family that loves me and I love them.

I think I've got a pretty good list this year. I hope this holiday finds all of you happy and well and with a list of things to be thankful for that is just as long as mine – if not longer. Happy Thanksgiving!

In the past few months, I've been complaining a bit to my friends and family in America about being lonely. Don't get me wrong – I have GREAT friends here. But, most of them live hours away, and being the only American around can just get hard. And, as amazing as my friends here are, it is not the same as having the people who have known you for years and years nearby, you know?

I had accepted my solitary existence and was even getting o.k. with the amount of time I spend talking to myself. Imagine my delight when, one day, two of my dearest friends from college – Shannon and Dr. Heidi - showed up to spend the rest of my time in the AZ with me!

Frugal as ever, the girls showed up by post – the few dollars to mail themselves was much less expensive than the cost of a flight. They packed lightly – just one or two warm sweaters and a hat (everyone has heard me talk about cold, cold Azer winter). And, like good guests, they showed up with a gift – a yummy swiss cake roll. I ate it almost immediately!

We have started traveling around the country – I want to show them as much of the AZ as I can while they are here. Our first trip was to Baku for a conference. They got a big kick out of the bus – until they had to ride along the azer-roads for hours!

Last weekend, we went to Ismaylli to visit my friend Colleen. Shannon and Dr. Heidi were taking pictures all over the place – the Heydar Aliyev statue (a standard in any Azeri town), a cool statue of a horse and cart, and even with Colleen's new kitten.

O.k., o.k., I'm not really crazy. The truth is that my amazing, talented friend Shannon crocheted finger puppets of herself and Heidi to “keep me company”. I have to say, I think it is the coolest care package I have gotten to date.

Real Shannon is absolutely incredible. She is smart, creative, and one of the most caring people I know. She does some crazy cool work involving surgery on rats – it has something to do with biology. I don't pretend to really understand. In her free time, she volunteers at a cat shelter, and makes AMAZING things for friends and family. Last year, Shan sent me a couple of hats and scarves to help me get through the winter. She also makes cat toys and other cool stuff. She is an incredibly talented artist and an even better friend.

Real Heidi has her PhD in literature (hence the Dr. Heidi moniker for the mini-version). She teaches at a university – I am envious of her students. She is one of those people who makes being smart cool. She is also one of the best friends anyone could ever ask for. She is always there for her friends – I think she is one of those people who genuinely cares more about others than about herself. She is witty and fun and just plain great.

Anyway, Shannon and Dr. Heidi (the mini-versions) are going to have many adventures during their time in the AZ. Hopefully, we'll be able to post lots of pictures of the two of them as we explore the country!

Today marks 10 months until I finish my PC service and come home.  I definitely have a countdown - I CAN'T WAIT to be home - but I'm also using my countdown to remind me how little time I have left here and how much I still want to do.  And I truly believe I CAN and WILL do it.

One of my friends has a tradition (for lack of a better word) that I have adopted.  As each month ticks by, on the 11th, we drink a glass (or bottle) of wine to celebrate. And it really is a celebration of our accomplishments, what we have left to do, and that glorious moment when we get on the plane to go home.

And so, as I drink my celebratory wine...

To my friends and family in America - see you in 10 months! Inshallah.

To my friends and fellow volunteers here in the AZ - congratulations! We've accomplished a lot - and we have much yet to do. I am proud to be here, doing what we do, with each and every one of you. Mubarek 10 months!

A few weeks ago, my friend Whitney came to Lankaran to hang out. She lives in Jalilabad, about an hour north of me, so she visits fairly regularly. It is always nice for both of, we catch up, eat yummy food, tell our recent stories and adventures. Whitney doesn't have a blog, so only a select few people at home get to here her tales of life in the AZ. This last visit, she told me a couple of stories that I felt had to be shared with the masses. She very kindly gave me permission to post them on my blog.

The first story came as we were walking around town, talking about school. I was talking about my fancy new heating system - that I am both hopeful and skeptical about whether or not it will actually work. At Whitney's school they recently installed new windows. Very exciting! Unfortunately, the quality is not quite what we would expect. Very shortly into the school year, all but one of the handles for the windows had broken. Now, if a teacher wants to open the window in their classroom, they must go to the teachers' room, borrow the one working handle, go open their window and return the handle to the teachers's room. And they repeat the process when they want to close the window.

A little later that day, we were chatting about something and Whitney says, "Oh! Did I tell you about the chickens?" We are all fairly accustomed to livestock being part of our daily live by now. So, you know if a story starts with that kind of enthusiasm, it is bound to be pretty interesting. (I'm sure you remember my story about the duck in the hammam.)

A little back information. Whitney's landlady has a daughter who has been married for about six years. In all this time, she has not had any children. That is very unusual in this culture, and apparently the daughter's husband has been making noises that he might divorce her if she doesn't get pregnant soon. Obviously, this is a huge concern for the landlady. She has been worrying, praying, doing anything she can do so that her daughter would get pregnant.

The landlady raises chickens. This is here livelihood. These chickens are very important. Suddenly, the chickens started to die. A lot of chickens died. I think over 100. She called the chicken doctor. He discovered that there was a new plant in the yard that the chickens had been eating that was toxic to them. Obviously, the landlady was distraught. Losing all of those chickens was quite possibly catastrophic for her.

But, the next day, the landlady comes to Whitney giddy with joy. OK, OK, I don't know if she was giddy, but Whitney said she was REALLY happy. She had just gotten a phone call from her daughter telling her that the daughter is 2 months pregnant. What a relief! The landlady proceeded to tell Whitney that she believes that the chickens were a sacrifice to Allah to make her daughter pregnant. Let's not address the fact that the daughter was pregnant long before the chickens started dying. Who knows, she could be right.

I think the most interesting thing about these stories is Whitney's and my response. A year ago, they would have been completely ridiculous to us and a great example of how different this place is to where we come from. They are still noteworthy to us and fun to share, but, not nearly as unusual as they once were and now they actually seem fairly logical and almost as commonplace as complaining about the awful traffic at home. When Whitney told me these stories, I did laugh, but my response was, "well, of course. That makes sense." And it did.

Today is my Mom and Dad's 37th anniversary. It's also my friends Keith and Danielle's anniversary. And Mike and Shannon's is the week, too. Keith & Danielle, Mike & Shannon - Happy Anniversary! But this blog goes out to my parents.

I consider myself incredibly lucky to have the parents I have. I kinda think anyone who isn't a Flegal missed out. So, I am taking advantage of today and telling the world just a few of the reasons my parents are amazing.

They taught my sisters and I to shoot for our dreams. And to do all of the hard word required in acheiving them.

My Dad taught us how to ride a bike and drive a car. He tried to teach me math - which is possibly one of the biggest challenges he has ever taken on! He made sure my sisters and I knew we could do anything - and he taught us how to do a lot of it.

My Mom packed our school lunches every day until we graduated from high school. And she put little post-it notes in them telling us she loved us. I still get post-it notes like that in my care packages.

My parents provided a pretty darn good example of marriage. Perhaps too good. My sisters and I hold up what they have as what we want when we settle down. Wanting to find what my Mom and Dad have may be the reason the Flegal girls are still unwed. But we will never compromise this particular ideal - and we believe we will find it.

They taught us responsibility and integrity. They taught us to own up to our mistakes and learn from them.

They survived our mistakes and screw ups.

My Dad gets the giggles. My Mom dances to the sound of the dishwasher. They taught us to be silly and find joy in the very simple things.

They taught us always to do our best. Never to do things half way.

My Dad coined the phrase that my family now uses to end every phone call, email, letter, text message, any kind of conversation, or just when we are leaving the house. No Flegal conversation would be complete without "Love you and Hey."

They always make sure we know how valued and loved we are and to believe in ourselves.

They are taking care of my cat while I am in Azerbaijan. I'm beginning to think I will have to fight my Dad to get her back!

They showed us how important it is to do good in the world. To be good to others. To take care of the people we love.

Without them, I wouldn't have had the courage to go halfway across the world. Or the strength to survive the year I've been here.

My Mom and Dad are two of the greatest people in the world. And I think they are definitely the best parents a girl could ask for.

Mom and Dad, thank you for getting married a long time ago. I love you both very much and I am so proud to be your daughter. Love you and Hey!

Of Pensioners, Ramazan, and the Biggest Brain Fart Ever...

At the end of every month, our Peace Corps stipend is deposited into our Azeri bank accounts. Usually, this happens one or two days before the actual end of the month. Like any self respecting PCV, by the end of the month, I am basically tapped out. I look forward to “payday” with eagerness. This month in particular, I stretched myself even thinner than usual. By the final weekend of September, I was out of cash and getting low on fairly important things like toilet paper and food.

Another fun aspect of getting money in Azerbaijan is the phenomenon that happens when pensions are deposited into pensioners bank accounts. Also falling close to the end of the month, pension day creates madness at the ATM. Suddenly there are hordes – and I do mean hordes – crowding around the ATM. Since there's no such thing as lines here, 30, 40, 100 people all cram as close to the machine as possible, bustling to get to it next. It is pretty much an awful experience. As a general rule, I avoid the bank on pension day. If I walk up and there's a crowd, I'll typically turn around and come back another day.

So, back to money-less Jane at the end of September. Saturday morning, I decided to go check and see if, hopefully, we had gotten paid. So, I grabbed my umbrella – it was raining just a little, not much – and headed downtown. It's about a 20 minute walk. By the time I get to the bank, the drizzle had turned into a downpour. And then I see the crowd around the ATM. Greeeaaaat. I just walked through the pouring rain to discover pension day. I thought for a minute, judged the size of the crowd – only about 20 people – and decided that I didn't want to have walked through the pouring rain in vain, so I joined the crowd and waited.

After about 30 minutes of waiting, the bank security guard who knows me made all of the others let me cut in line. There are perks to being the American qiz (girl). I was flustered. I was annoyed with waiting, I didn't want to take too much time, and there is the added pressure of 20 azeri men peeking over your shoulder at everything you are doing. I stuck my card in the machine and entered my pin number. A few seconds of waiting – and then the message that I had entered the wrong pin. Dumbass! I had typed in the pin for my American bank account. Ok. No problem. Until I tried again... and blanked. For the life of me, my azerpin would not come to mind. Sheepishly grabbing my card, trying to ignore the comments from the azeris – “you need your code”, I walked away. Deep breath, I decided to go home and let the number come back to me in a leisurely fashion. I was sure it would come to me.

Sunday morning, I woke up with a 4 digit number that I knew by heart. Must be my pin. So, I went back to the ATM (no droves of pensioners this day!), and tried again. Only to realize just too late that the number I know so well isn't my pin, but is the last 4 digits of my old sitemate Ashley's home phone number. I don't know why I know that number so well, but it is definitely not my pin. At this point, I had tried the wrong number 3 times – which automatically blocks your account until you can call or go to the bank and get them to reopen it. So even if I suddenly came up with the right number, I couldn't do anything about it. Fine. The next day was Monday. I could get it resolved quickly.

On Monday, I called the bank and got some weird Azer message. So, I called Peace Corps. I explained my predicament to the lovely PC cashier, Afaq. She quickly explained the weird azer message – it is the end of Ramazan. Azerbaijan has a 3-day holiday. The bank is closed until Thursday. And, because of that, there is nothing that can be done until then. Well, crap.

At this point, I was annoyed, frustrated, kicking myself, limiting myself to 3 squares of TP, and eating plain rice for breakfast and dinner (I had decided to forgo lunch for a few days to make it stretch a few days longer). At least I could see how ridiculous my predicament was and laugh at myself! A bail out infusion of cash into my American bank account from my mom and dad meant that Tuesday evening I was able to buy toilet paper and some food. Thank God for Mom and Dad (for more reasons, of course, than getting me money, but that's a big one this week)!

Now, at this point, any sane person (and every person that has already heard this story) would ask if I had the number written down somewhere. Well, about a month ago, I was going through old papers and clearing out stuff I didn't need anymore. I came across my code. And, truly, I thought, “I don't need this anymore. I've been using this thing for over a year. There's no way I'll forget.” And I chucked it. Word to the wise – just don't ever do that. It will come back to bite you in the butt. Keep the paper. Keep it.

And, FINALLY, Thursday was here. I went to the bank right when it opened to try to get everything sorted out. In my broken, feeble Azeri, I explained to the man that I had forgotten my pin code and my account was blocked. He was able to unblock it, but if I couldn't remember the code, I still wouldn't be able to access my account. The bank could get money for me today, but I would have to get a new card and new pin number. After several phone calls and conversations and sitting around for about an hour and a half, I nervously approached the ATM again. I think I know the number.... I hope. I typed in the number. Big pause... and what comes up on the screen? Incorrect pin. Crap. Have I said that before? I'll say it again. Crap. Apparently the number is well and truly lost in the abyss of my brain.

I sheepishly went back into the bank, laughingly told the guy “Kod bilmirem” (I don't know the code). He tsked. He and the other employee in the office lectured me – again – to write the number down. He accessed my account and gave me some money (yay, I can pay rent and eat!!!), and reminded me to have Peace Corps order me a new card. I immediately called Afaq, who laughed and lamented with me and started the process to get me a new ATM card. I should have it in about two weeks.

You can bet that I'll be writing my new pin number down. Maybe getting it tattooed somewhere. Because I am sure not going through this experience again.

I just knew I would miss an important name when I wrote my thank you blog. And, indeed I did. Jenny Chou also contributed to Camp Jane.

Jenny is super awesome. She works with my sister Kara and is fun, kind, and just enough silly. Last spring, she sent me this crazy scarf thing that can be worn as a scarf, hood, shirt, dress, whatever other crazy things you can dream up. It's blue and I love it. Although, I have to say, I did kinda look like Cookie Monster when I tried to make it a dress.

Anyway, sorry I missed your name Jenny. Seriously, you are super awesome!

I know you thought you were done with blogs about Camp Jane (until next year, that is!), but there is one I still need to post. And this one is, perhaps, the most important.

As you may know from previous blogs, over 80 kids came to Camp Jane over the course of three weeks. And all of them were impacted in some way. Here are a few examples... at school, lots of kids are already asking about camp next summer. During a lesson on hobbies and free time one of my students, Cavid, said that jumping rope (which he learned how to do at Camp) is his favorite free-time activity. Sevinc, the formerly quiet, shy girl who delighted me by running when we played Kickball, is now one of the most active participants in class.

None of this would have happened without the support from people from home. The response from family, friend, and even people who have never met me was overwhelming. Before Camp started, I recieved over 20 big, heavy packages of supplies. Donated supplies included markers, crayons, chalk, jump ropes, fethers, googly eyes, pom poms, glue, stickers, books, wiffle balls and bats, frisbees, fabric, playing cards, board games, paper, pens, bandaids, tape, scissors, and so on. the is a fair amount left over - which is a great help for clubs during the school year and is a very nice start for next year's Camp supplies.

I want to take a moment to thank all of you -

The Council for the Arts of Herndon

Employess ofthe Herndon Department of Recreation

The PRD Group

Joanne McCammon

Sue Roberts

Richard McCluny

Jane Rother

Vicky Lewis

Heidi Hanrahan

Mary Taylor

Amber and Mike Tran

Rachel Green

Kathleen Edwards

The Berg Family

Barbara Gouldey

Ther Borg-Breen Family

Sherry Yates

Ken and Dorothy Grimm

Marilyn Bowers

The Gardiner Family

Gary and Jeanne Wolfe

Katy Bain

Several other unnamed people who donated supplies in a box my mom put at church

Judy Downer

Elyse Camozza

Penny Halpern

Jennifer Boysko

Barbara Glakas

Chris Griffen

Vicky Dorman

Diane Traub

Keith Pinkard

Rita Pierre-Davis

Susi Russel

Rachel Piro

The Shaw Family

Phyllis White

Anyone else who donated stuff that I forgot to mention

and, of course, my mom, dad, and sisters.

I truly can'y express the depth of my gratitude. Each and every one of you helped make a difference in the lives of these kids. Thank you.

Somehow it has gotten to be the middle of September and my second year as a TEFL volunteer is beginning. I seem to be saying this a lot, but I can't belive how fast the first year went! It seems like just last week I was walking nervously to school from my host family's home for my very first day of school in Azerbaijan. How can it be that September 15, 2008 has already rolled around?

In the days before school started, I debated whether or not I was going to go to my school's Day of Knowledge ceremony. There are no English lessons on Mondays, so I had no real need to be there. But, in the end I decided to go. Unlike last year, I got to hide in the background, talk to a few of my students and take pictures. No celebrity Jane sitting on stage, and I didn't have to congratulate anyone on behalf of anything! After the ceremony, I checked the timetable to see when I would have to be at school to actually teach, and went home. I'm glad I went - it is a nice way to start the school year. And the Day of Knowledge is such a part of Azeri culture to me, I think I would have regretted missing it.

Ay my school, English classes are only scheduled Tuesday through Friday. Somehow, the lessons I am teaching ended up just being Wednesday through Friday. I think I must be one of the only people on the planet to have a four day weekend every week! It won't last long - in a few weeks I'll be starting up clubs on Mondays and Tuesdays. But, they never really seem like work, so it'll still feel like a pretty easy schedule.

This year, I am teaching four sections of the seventh form and two sections of the sixth form. Plus, I'm probably going to be working with one little group of second formers - which will either be adorable and awesome OR way too much for me to handle! I love the idea of working with the itty bitty ones, but I'm not sure I'll have the patience for them! We'll see how it goes. Most of the likds I am teaching are my students from last year or kids who came to Camp Jane. It is really nice to be working with these kids again - they are enthused and eager and really wonderful.

I am starting the new school year determined, positive, and enthused. I only have one year left - I want to make the most of it. I know that there is a lot that will still be as frustrating as it was last year - there are just some things I'll never be able to change, no mattter how hard I try. BUT - I do see things I have already had an effect on, and hopefully that will continue this year. I am determined to make the classrooms I work in a better learning experience. And, hopefully, that will rub off on my counterparts (I do see glimmers of it already) and it will carry over both into the lessons that I don't teach with them this year and in the years to come when I'm not there anymore. Hopefully. I know I'm gonna try my hardest to make that happen.

Just to let everyone know, I have updated my camp postings and added a few pictures. Check them out!!

Every night, I go through pretty much the same routine. I eat dinner, wash the dishes (usually – sometimes I'm lazy and leave them until the next day), then settle into a chair and read a book, or write a letter, or – only recently – do some ridiculous craft project. Eventually, I go to bed. The chair I sit in is right next to the window and door that leads out to my balcony that overlooks the courtyard. Every night I can hear the sounds of life around me drifting up from the courtyard – kids playing, women talking, cows mooing, you know, the typical neighborhood sounds. Its nice. I like my evening ritual.

Tonight was no different. I finished dinner (haven't done the dishes yet – they're still in the sink), and settled into read. Like always, the sounds of the courtyard were drifting up. I don't normally pay much attention to the specifics of the sounds, I just enjoy it in the background. But tonight, I tuned in when I heard what was distinctively the tune to “Wonderball”. Informative interlude - Wonderball is a game that Bethany brought to Camp Jane. We taught it the first week. Everyone stands in a circle and passes a ball around and sings the Wonderball song. The song goes – The Wonderball goes round and round, to pass it quickly you are bound. If you're the one to hold it last, then for you the game has passed, and you are OUT! The person holding the ball on the word “out” is out. The game continues until there is only one person left. It took a moment for me to realize what I was hearing, but when I did, maaaaan, was it cool! I put down my book and went out onto the balcony to see if what I was hearing was real. And it was! There they were, playing Wonderball in my courtyard. Even better – only one of the kids playing had come to camp. All of the others were just neighborhood kids. AWESOME!

It didn't take long for the kids to look up and notice me watching. As soon as they did, they all came over and clustered around my balcony and called up to me – “Hello Miss Jane, how are you?” - very Romeo and Juliet – if Juliet was a teacher and Romeo was 10 adoring schoolchildren. Shafiga has the best English and was nominated to ask me to come out to the yard and play. At first I said that I couldn't. They said ok, and went back to playing. I watched for a few more minutes, then settled into the chair on my balcony to pretend to read out there. Peek over the balcony wall and watch some more was actually what I was going to do. I was just glowing with happiness and pride. About 3 minutes later there was a knock at my door. ALL of the kids had come up to my door to say hello and ask me to come out and play. Ohhhh, my heart just melted. Of course I said yes. I mean, how could you possibly say no to that???

So, I went outside and we played Wonderball and another camp game. While this was going on, ALL of the surrounding Azeri grownups were watching – leaning out their windows, standing on their balconies, a bunch of the women came down and stood around and watched and talked to me some. Honestly, I think the audience enjoyed it as much as the kids did. But, I don't think anyone enjoyed it nearly as much as I did!

As darkness fell, I told the kids I had to go home (dark is when the mosquitoes come out and I didn't have any bug spray on – I was having fun, but not enough to get eaten alive!). They said ok, and then asked me if I would come out to play again tomorrow night. My verbal answer was “Inshallah” (if God wills – basically meaning maybe, hopefully, if I can, if God wants it to happen. It's a totally acceptable answer for just about anything). My mental answer was – “Heck yeah! I am totally there! Tonight was AWESOME!!!!!”

I don't know if I can put into words how happy tonight made me. When I came inside, I was bouncing off the walls giddy. As a volunteer, you constantly look for the signs that you are being successful and are often beating your head against the wall because you can't see them. Every once in a while, you get a glimmer. And tonight, that came through for me in a big way – far more than just a glimmer. Tonight I had my I-AM-making-an-impact-here epiphany. It makes all of my hardest days and moments, all of my work and effort, all of my stress and sweat and tears TOTALLY worth it. It is, quite possibly, the coolest thing ever.

So, I have photos to go with all of the Camp blogs, but I won't be able to post them until I get to Baku at the end of the month. Check back around August 26 and you'll get to see how truly awesome Camp Jane was!

So, I go into Week 3 of Camp Jane feeling like the queen of the world. I am truly a successful Peace Corps Volunteer. I have this project that is being incredible. I have tons of enthused, happy kids showing up for my camp. Every week, I get more kids. I have volunteers coming from all over Azerbaijan to help me. My camp is awesome, I'm awesome, the world is good.

Then Tuesday came. As I walk into school to get set up to begin the day, my director stops me. Now, my director is great. Seriously. He is kind, supportive, interested. The second week of camp, he arranged for all of the kids and PCVs to go to a play at the drama theater for free. He is a truly one of the best directors a PCV could ask for. That being said, I'm kinda mad at him now. Because, when he stopped me on Tuesday morning, it was to tell me that Camp would be over this week. What?!?! I asked him all kinds of questions – Why? But it is supposed to go for another week. We talked about this in May, you said it was good, what changed? What?!?!

Well, they are installing an new heating in my school. The entire school is getting torn apart. Ok, ok, great. A heating system is lovely. Maybe I won't have to teach in my coat and hat and gloves next winter. It is completely reasonable not to have kids running all over a construction site. But couldn't this have been thought of and planned for back in May?

I think there is another reason too. Now, this is just my perception, but I do think it influenced the decision to end camp, rather than try to relocate it or work around it. Azerbaijan is preparing for a national election in October. Schools will be voting sites. The preparations are all starting now. As these preparations are going on, bigwigs stop by every so often to check things out. And it looks really bad to have a bunch of kids running around and playing at the school when they stop by. Seriously.

Anyway, all my protestations came to nothing. Camp would be over on Friday. And there was nothing I could do about it. How did I handle it, you ask? Well, I pretty much threw a several-day-long temper tantrum. When I got up to my classroom, I threw some stuff, then I cried. I pulled myself together to go start the day with the kids, but all day I had to take some timeouts to go hide the fact that I was crying. My friends got me through the day and picked up my slack when I couldn't handle it.

After Camp was over for the day, I went home and cried some more. I had a friend call me and talk me through it. Then I went to Tom's house and my friends helped me get drunk. Not necessarily the healthiest choice, but I NEEDED it. I wallowed. It was just not fair. I had worked SO hard. I spent months planning and preparing for a 4 week camp, not a 3 week camp. And the last week was going to be drama – the theme I was the most excited about getting to do. Why does that have to be taken away? NOT FAIR!!!!!

And then, slowly, with the help of my friends, I started to process. They jumped in and decided that we should do some of the drama stuff during our week so that I could do at least some of it. They told me that is wasn't fair, but look at my successes, not my failures. They helped me find ways to get out of my moping and see the good and be positive.

I found the little things that could be the silver lining – no more house guests (i love my fellow PCVs, but 3 weeks straight of people can get a bit old), I can sleep as late as I want, because I won't be having guests I can sleep naked again (it is REALLY hot here), I don't have to play Miss Mary Mack or jump rope, the list goes on and on.

I know how lucky I am – I had a really successful project and this, while it was big, was really the only roadblock I had met along the way. This is the first time I “failed” - and a lot of PCVs have an uphill battle everyday. I am truly lucky that this was as successful as it was.

And then I started thinking about the three weeks I did get to have of my camp. And the impact I had on these kids. Every week, I had more kids come to camp. The first week, some of them were shy, scared to speak English or try new things, and accustomed to being told what they are doing wrong rather than what they are doing right. And by the third week, they were enthused, outgoing, daring, and happy. I look through the pictures that I have of camp – and they just make me smile. The monsters had fun. And these three weeks will probably stay with them forever. I achieved my goal. And that is good.

Don't get me wrong, I still think it sucks that my final week was taken away (although I have LOVED getting to relax a week early). But, I can see it with some perspective now. I did something incredible this summer. I changed the lives of these kids in a really good way. Isn't that what is really important? So, yeah, I'm sad that it didn't go exactly as I had planned BUT I am so proud of what I did accomplish. And, hopefully, next year, I'll get to try again. Inshallah.

I have to begin talking about this week with the AMAZING PCVs who helped out. Bonnie, Donnie, Kathleen, Maria, Mariko, and Sarah have all earned their spot in heaven for everything they did this week. Adding glue and scissors to the week made it hard enough. Throw in trying to teach kids who have never been exposed to arts and crafts to the mix and you have a really intense work week. And the PCVs were all absolutely wonderful. Enthused, strong, patient, kind, and creative. I cannot thank them enough for everything they did last week.

American kids are trained from preschool age to do this stuff. I'm sure a lot of the parents out there still have popsicle stick picture frames and handmade pencil holders and all kinds of things made with feathers and beads and construction paper and felt tucked away somewhere from when we so proudly created it. We learned how to use scissors and the art of sharing from an early age. We learned to think outside of the box – and how to put our own stamp on everything we made.

The same can't be said for Azeri children. Art for them is, quite often, copying the example set before them. Creativity is a luxury they are often not afforded. Sharing is a word that is foreign to them – even in their own language. All of those things made this week one of the most important to me – and one of the hardest.

We started the week with drawing and pom pom animals and friendship bracelets. I think the pom pom animals were the biggest hit that day. The bracelets were, perhaps, a little too complicated. A few of the kids really got into it though. I am now the proud owner of a necklace made by Sevinj – one of the quietest kids, but also one of the happiest. The drawing was great for the little kids, but the bigger kids definitely had the look of “man, this is lame.” It was a good start to the week – we learned fairly quickly what some of our challenges would be. At the end of the day, I had to remind myself that this is completely new to them. They have never done this kind of stuff at school – and probably anywhere else – before. Of course it is more difficult for them. And so, of course, we need more patience with the kids and the project.

The second day was crayon etchings and masks. I think the masks were my favorite craft. We showed them some examples, provided basic mask forms – precut out of card stock – and markers, paper, feathers, beads, etc. and let the kids go to town. And they did. Sharing glue and scissors was a new lesson – and one we constantly had to reteach and reinforce. But even with all of the whining over sharing supplies, they made some really cool masks – and were even willing to wear them for a picture. I'm hoping to have them bring them back for drama week. We'll see if that works!

My favorite moment was when we made the popsicle stick picture frames. We still had the arguing over glue and scissors (although the lesson on please and thank you did have at least a small effect), but for the first time, the majority of the kids started thinking of their own ideas without our prompting. Normally, we would show them our examples and they would try to make their craft like the example. We would keep telling them “you can do whatever you want” and “do you own thing.” This time, though, they just did it. One girl made a stand for her frame, another made hers in the shape of a house. And they all used all kinds of combinations of feathers and beads and markers and made some pretty unique – and super cool looking frames. That was the moment that I really felt that arts & crafts week was successful. The the kids were starting to think creatively was just amazing to me. I can't tell you how proud it made me.

One of my favorite little girls, Lala, had a big crush on Donny. She as often as not tried to give her completed crafts to “Mister Donny” as a gift and is putting a picture that we took of the two of them in her picture frame. It was SOOOOOO entertaining for me – and the rest of the PCVs - to watch. And, honestly, I think Donny kinda loved being the object of her idolatry.

On Thursday we made pencil holders out of old plastic bottles – continuing some of our recycling education from the week before. All of my Peace Corps Newsweeks came in very handy as we had the kids create collages with magazines and stickers all over the bottles. I am hopeful that they took them home and are now using them – it would kinda defeat the purpose if our “recycled” art went immediately to the trash pile. We also made hemp bracelets that day. Somehow the knot tying was a much bigger success this day. Maybe because they had already had some training with the friendship bracelets. One of the best bracelet makers was Ravan, a boy in the seventh form who is typically a little too cool for this stuff. He got REALLY into it!

Friday was sock puppets and paper flowers. We ended up with dragons and bees and lots of snakes and elephants and all kinds of random people among our puppets. I ended up with a fairly large collection of paper flowers from the boys who loved making them, but didn't really want to keep them.

Arts and crafts week was definitely hard work, but all in all, it was awesome! I have kind of come up with a mantra for myself as I am getting frustrated – if the monsters (my affectionate nickname for the kids) are having fun, it is TOTALLY worth it. And they are. They really are. What more can I ask for?

When I had the idea for my multi-themed camp, I knew that this was the week I was going to need the most help and expertise from others. I mean, really, what does a drama-nerd-turned-shoe-salesman know about getting kids to do a bunch of sports activities? But with the supplies and ideas from home and my fellow PCVs, I think we pulled it off quite effectively.

I can't talk about the week without mentioning the PCVs who came down to help. Carly, Carlo, Joe, Kelly, Tom (although he lives here), Will, and Ram (for a day) were all just wonderful. They dealt with the heat and the kids with more than patience. They were energetic, enthusiastic, and all around amazing. And when I was told that camp was going to have to end a week early (more about that in another blog), they totally stepped up to the plate in supporting me. They helped me see the positive side and decided that since I wasn't going to get to do “drama week” we should do some of the activities I had been planning during sports week. I am so honored that these volunteers gave up a week of their time to come help me give such an amazing experience to my kids.

Now, to be honest, one of the things I didn't really consider with this whole camp idea was azer summer. Oh, logically, I remembered how hot last summer had been, but in May it didn't really register what playing sports in 110 degree heat with humidity twice as bad would really mean. Silly, silly me. I have to say though – the kids (and PCVs) were champs! There was definitely complaining that it was too hot to do the outdoor activities, but in the end, almost all of them stopped whining and participated enthusiastically.

We broke the day into two parts – the first half (when it was a little cooler) was spent outside doing outdoor games like Ultimate Frisbee, kickball, soccer, tag, and relay races. Frisbee was a big hit and Tag went really well. I think the big winner of activities for the week was the day we did the relay races. We started with a three legged race, then did a water balloon toss, then a race to put together a puzzle. Most of the kids chose to run the three legged race twice, and the water balloons could have gone all day if we hadn't run out of balloons.

One of my favorite moments of the week was during kickball. First of all, it was REALLY challenging to explain the game to the kids and get them to play it properly. We finally gave up and Tom pitched the ball to the kids, they kicked it and ran the bases. A good beginning. If we had done kickball all week, I think that by the end we would have had a fairly successful game. Maybe. Anyway – the moment. One of my hijab girls, Sevinj, told us during the first week that she wasn't allowed to run. We told her that was, of course, fine and she spent most of that week walking around hanging out with a PCV, watching the games. She has been one of the quietest kids, but also one of the most interested in camp. Fast forward to kickball day, and Sevinj wasn't going to let anything get in her way. She was one of the first in line, kicked the ball as hard as she could and RAN! I think she made it to second base before she had to stop. It was incredible. I hope she wasn't taking any big risks with what her family would think if they found out. Rather, I think she used the “not allowed to” line because she was shy about participating – and by week 3 she had gotten over that. It is ridiculous how proud I was watching her run. But I was.

The second half we moved inside for indoor games. Among other things, we taught them paper football, we did some memory games, and a great game that Will suggested called Silent Ball. Gotta say – Silent Ball was my favorite. The group gets in a circle and tosses around a ball. If you make any sort of noise, you are out. I thought it would last all of 2 seconds before the kids lost it. Not so – it was one of our longest lasting games. Who knew those kids could be quiet for that long?!?! It was HEAVEN!

On Thursday and Friday, we added a few of the theater games I had been planning for the next week. We played Wink Murder and the Magic Cloth and did some Mirroring games and a game where they had to act like people in pictures they were given. I'm not sure which was a bigger success – Wink Murder or the Magic Cloth. In Wink Murder, everyone gets in a circle. One person is chosen to be the detective. The detective leaves the room, and a murderer is chosen. Once the detective comes back in the room, the killer bumps people off by winking (hence the name of the game!). The victims must die as dramatically as possible. People were shy at first, but after a few rounds, the death scenes got pretty impressive!

In the Magic Cloth, a large piece of fabric is passed around the circle. Each person must make the “magic cloth” into something new. After the examples we gave of a superhero cape, a skirt, and a diaper, the kids started. And it was AWESOME! We had dresses, hats, scarves, a bracelet, handcuffs, and – my all time favorite – a hula hoop. It was absolutely incredible to see the creativity these kids have.

All in all, Sports and Games Week (like the 2 weeks proceeding it) was a big success. It was hot and hard work and had A LOT of challenges – both personal and professional, but it was worth it. My overriding goal for Camp – for the kids to have fun – was definitely met. It sounds cheesy and stupid, I know, but seeing these kids smile and laugh and play is a pretty amazing reward. A really amazing reward.

Note to readers – I have to give the credit for calling it “Camp Jane” to my friend Heidi. She also, I'm pretty sure, came up with the witty name for this blog. She's really smart.

It all started with boredom. Daydreaming in a particularly long class, I had an idea for my summer. After a lot of planning, work, help from here and abroad, and countless moments of others (and myself!) questioning my sanity, my idea, my daydream actually turned into a reality.

Camp Jane started with “English Language Week” on July 7. The PCVs signed up to help for that week arrived Sunday evening for a big planning session. And then, D-Day arrived. I was, of course, nervous, excited, and everything in between. On the walk over to school, I flip-flopped between praying that at least a few of the kids showed up and hoping that none of them did so that I didn't have to do it! But, happily, they showed. A bunch of them. About 60. Awesome.

The week was designed to get the kids a little comfortable with English, enjoy learning, start to try new things, and just have fun. And, I think we succeeded. We broke the kids into 3 groups, with 2 PCVs for each group. Each day was broken into parts – an hour long “lesson”, recess for 45 minutes, another hour long “lesson”, then a large group activity that involved all of the kids.

The lesson times were great – we did things like play Simon Says and Hangman and teach them songs and rhymes like the ABC song and Miss Mary Mack. We drew pictures and read stories. We attempted some creative writing. We made learning fun.

Recess was a huge hit. Four Square was a big winner from day one. As the kids learned thing in classes, they continued them outside. Once they got the hang of Miss Mary Mack and Wonderball, they wouldn't stop. Poor Kelsey – the PCV from Ali Bayramli/Shirvan – got roped into doing hand clap games for 3 days straight at every recess. I think the best recess activity ended up being the jump rope. The kids LOVED it. It took awhile for some of them to get the rhythm. One little girl, Lala, couldn't even get one jump successfully. Then, she had a 10 minute jumping lesson with Bethany (the PCV from Tovuz), and by the last day was the second best jumper with 52 jumps. She was only beaten by Cavid, a little boy who was great from the start. I think he got to 74.

The large group activities were probably my favorite part of each day. Each one was different. The first day we had each kid make visors with their names on them. We used those as name tags for the rest of the week. The second day we did a school yard trash pick up. We all taught an environmental(ish) lesson that day, then had them put it to practice. Honestly, I kinda think the biggest reason the kids got so into it wasn't to make our school and Azerbaijan beautiful, but because they were promised a prize if their group collected the most trash. The third day was Capture the Flag. Once the got the hang of the somewhat complicated rules, they were way into it. They hid their flags so well that PCVs ended up playing traitor and leaking information about flag locations to the other teams so that the game would end on time. The fourth day, we taught them the Electric Slide. Some of the kids really loved it, some wanted nothing to do with it. But most of them tried. And I got some REALLY great pictures from it. The fifth day we did a Scavenger Hunt. Competition really motivates these kids. The group that hadn't won the Trash pickup or Capture the Flag made certain that they won this one!

The best thing about this week is that the kids had fun. All of my other goals for camp are, of course, important. But, that's the one that fills me with joy. I would come home everyday exhausted, of course, but also completely enthused and – frankly - proud of what we had done that day and how much the kids had enjoyed it.

I can't begin to thank the other PCVs enough. Bethany, Brent, Kat, Kelsey, Vy, and Whitney were amazing. In many ways, they had the hardest week – the first one, the kinda boring theme, the unknown, dealing with my stress – and they were rockstars. Their enthusiasm, excitement, and ideas were what got me to not only survive the first week, but to really enjoy it. And the kids loved them – they were very sad to see them go. Hopefully the following groups of volunteers will hold up in the kids eyes to the example these PCVs set.

So, Week One down. Three more to go. And, honestly, I can't wait to start the next week. That feels REALLY good to be able to say.

Stay tuned!

The last day of school was May 31st. Now, in all honestly, the kids stopped coming to school about a week before that, but the official last day was a big deal. Just like at home, the day was eagerly anticipated by students and teachers alike.

At every school there is a ceremony on May 31st called Son Zeng. I was told by my counterpart that ours would start at 10 a.m. I should have learned, after almost a year here, that the really means about noon. So, I hung out at school, talking to the teachers and students until the event began.

Like every Azer ceremony, it was filled with speeches – but, as my mom pointed out, I understood a lot more at this one than I did at the first day ceremony. And, even better, I didn't have to give a speech this time! No congratulating anyone on behalf of anything this time. Yay! Instead, I just got to observe. I think that might mean that I am finally viewed as more than the American guest. Maybe even a real teacher. Hmmm. Can always hope, anyway.

The ceremony was LONG, but cool. Each of the 11th form classes paraded out, all decked out in their finery. When they reached the center of the courtyard, they all released white pigeons into the air (does anyone know – are white pigeons doves? One of the English teachers told me that they are, but I'm skeptical.) That was super neat to see. They were all presented with their certificates (essentially diplomas) by the director. As each student came up to receive their certificate, family members would come up and present them with those huge bouquets of fake flowers.

Next came more speeches, then the now graduated 11th formers passed the symbolic key to the school to the 10th formers – the new top class. After that can my absolute favorite part. The 11th form boys paraded around with the little 1st form girls on their shoulders, while the itty-bitty girls rang hand bells. Officially – the last bell ringing. I cannot tell you how absolutely adorable that was. My heart completely melted. My pictures don't do the moment justice.

The ceremony ended – after more speeches – with all of the students dancing. They played loud Azeri music through the speakers (they also did this in between every break of the ceremony) and the students all danced. I love watching Azeri dancing – I am, however, not very good at it. Family members and some of the teachers joined in. No surprise, I guess, I was pulled down to join the dancing. I spent most of my time dancing with my host sister Shams (who just graduated – and will spend next year studying in America! I'm pretty proud of her), until somehow I got sucked into a dance-off with one of the boys. Well, not really a dance-off, more him doing crazy stuff with his feet and me trying to follow. I held my own for awhile, but mostly I looked ridiculous. Let me tell you, this was a BIG hit! Seriously, a huge circle surrounded us, watching. It is all on several videos of the day – both the official school video and a lot of home cameras. Yippee. There is part of me that loves the novelty and celebrity of being Miss Jane, and then there is that other part that would happily hide. Gotta say, the dancing part of my celebrity I kinda loved! It was fun.

Finally, the crowds began to disperse, and I headed home to take a nap. Son Zeng was one of the neatest things I've been to here. Way different from American graduation ceremonies or even Elementary school last days. In a lots of ways, much cooler. Although, there is something to be said ice cream socials and going to the pool. Ahh, well, you can't have everything. Birds, bells, and dancing is pretty awesome.

Well, the final week of my first year of school is upon me. Like almost every teacher and student on the planet, my dominating emotion is YAHOOOOO!!!!! The old kids' rhyme, “no more teachers, no more books, no more teachers dirty looks” has been running through my head for the past few weeks. Even when I was a kid who really like school, there was just something about getting to that last day and having the prospect of summer stretching before you. Ahhhhh.

Originally, I had a very lazy summer planned. I feel like I've earned it. I'm traveling in June – which will be awesome. Outside of that, I was just gonna hang out, continue some of my regular clubs, maybe go help some of the other volunteers with projects. Spend a lot of time in the direct line of my fan to survive the heat, maybe do a little sunbathing in Tom or Ashley's yard. Sounds like a great plan, right? Like every teacher a student, I worked hard during the school year. I deserve a break. And, I was definitely looking forward to my lazy summer. Until I had the idea.

One day a couple of weeks ago, I was sitting in one of my lessons, honestly, bored out of my skull. I started thinking about all of the ideas that I have had of projects and things to do. Originally, my thought path was for clubs and things next school year. And then I thought about the 3 months looming ahead of me. And I decided.

The idea is an English Summer Day Camp. It is 4 weeks long, 5 days a week, 4 hours a day. Here's the part that I love about my camp – each week is going to have a different theme. The first week is just English language. Get the kids comfortable(ish) is English, get them prepped for some of the stuff they'll do in the following weeks, get them to have fun with learning. The second week is Arts and Crafts. The third week is Sports and Games, and the fourth week is Drama and Theatre. (That's kinda the selfish one – I actually get to kinda use my lovely theatre degree that has been sitting idle for the past few years.)

It took a bit of work to turn the idea of the camp into something that is really going to happen. I am enlisting the help of my PCV friends – each week 5 to 9 different volunteers are coming down to help. I had to get permission from my school director (essentially the school principal – you don't do anything without getting his approval). I had to prepare information for him in English and Azeri. Luckily, my director is awesome and he is really into the idea. I had to explain it to the other English teachers so they can help me explain it to the kids. I had to hope that kids would actually be interested in coming.

The response has been awesome. My friends are really into coming to help. The kid response is even better – if a little overwhelming. I expected to get 30 – 50 kids who wanted to come. I had a moment of panic on Friday when I was counting the applications in so far and I already have over 75 students signed up. And the deadline is Tuesday. I still think I might be in over my head, but it is also so completely awesome that so many kids are into it and excited about it – it kind of inspires me.

So, here is the shameless plea part of this blog... I need supplies. I certainly don't have the funds on my Peace Corps living allowance to get much and, in a lot of cases, the stuff just isn't available here. I can't ask the kids to pay – kind of defeats some of the purpose. So, I'm asking you. Or, rather, I am offering you an amazing opportunity to support a really cool Peace Corps project, and help provide something for these kids and this community.

The Flegal family is heading up the donations part of this. If you are interested, please email my mom at suzflegal@verizon.net or sflegal@theprdgroup.com. She has a list of the things I really need – things like paint and chalk and yarn and jump ropes. There is a time constraint – to get stuff to Azerbaijan in time, she needs to mail it by mid to late June.

I want to thank the people who are already helping and those of you who will! It is really amazing for me to see and feel the support from everyone at home. This experience is going to mean so much for my kids, I love that you all are enthused about helping me and helping them.

I know, I know... I haven't posted anything in forever. I'm just bad at this internet thing here. Anyway, as an attempt to make it up to my fans, I thought I'd share some pictures I've taken recently of things that have made me smile. Enjoy!

The first is a sight that made me so happy I could cry... Almost everyone at home know how I feel about Coca Cola. Seeing the truck here...awesome!

These are fishing nets, strung out to dry. Being right on the Caspian Sea, Lankaran is a big fishing town. Men put the nets out at night, then bring them in in the morning, taking to fish to the bazar to sell (on several occasions I've seen fish so fresh they were still flopping), and letting the nets dry through the day.

This is a building right by my school where they sell bread (that's what corek means). I have always liked this building, so I finally took a picture of it.

This is me (obviously) at the local history museum. The pot I am holding is dated to 1392. And the museum had no problem with me picking it up. I have a feeling the folks at PRD would not be big fans of me handling ancient artifacts for the fun of it. Just because you can, doesn't mean you should, right?

This is one of the parks in Lankaran. I just like that they have a map of Azerbaijan made out of plants and flowers.

This is a fishing shack on the beach. I just liked it.

This is at the bazar - and a common practice all over Azerbaijan, referred to by many as the Loaded Lada. That's cabbages filling it up.

This is a painting on the wall in my school. I think it is rad.

This is one of my favorite things about Azerbaijan, that I didn't know until just recently. They have these fields of roses all over. And they are all in bloom right now. It is this amazing spot of beauty in a place where that is so often missing.

So, I moved into my apartment in March, thrilled that I had my own home. Now, when you rent in Azerbaijan, you don't pay a security deposit or sign any silly leases. You just pay the first month's rent and move in. At any point, you can move out, or the landlord can ask you to leave. But, I was confident (well, really, REALLY hopeful) that I wouldn't encounter anything like that. I was quite happy to believe that I had just settled in to my home for the next year and a half. Silly, silly Jane.

One morning, after I had been here for about a month, Ruhangiz – my counterpart who helped me find this apartment – called and asked if I would be at home that evening – she had something to tell me about my apartment. “But, don't worry,” she said. “It is not bad.” Cool. No problem.

So, she came over, we chatted for a few minutes. In true Azer style, I offered her some tea. Then, she told me her news. My landlady's son was coming from Russia for the months of June and July for his daughter to get married. Ok. Sounds neat. (Sidenote, the daughter getting married is 15 years old. She and her fiance have only met on the internet. And that is not too far off from the usual way of marriages here.) Then she drops the bombshell - that means that I will have to live somewhere else for those 2 months. WHAT?!?!?!?!? Not neat. Definitely not cool. Definitely a problem.

Needless to say, I kinda freaked out. I liked my apartment. I did NOT want to move. I absolutely did not want to go through the ordeal of trying to find a place again. How did they not know this a month ago – and why didn't they tell me? This is SO not fair. My counterpart tried to help, she even suggested a couple of solutions – live with one of my friends for those months or go to Baku for the time. Lovely – except that both would get me kicked out of the Peace Corps. When I told her that, she suggested I just don't tell them. Ok-aay. I'm kind of not a fan of lying to my employers – and the concept of getting caught was way scarier than, say, calling in sick when I wasn't really. So, after some thought, I decided not to take her advice and resigned myself to start looking for a new place to live. Ugh. Crap. Yuck. Unfair. And again, crap.

The next day, my counterpart agreed to go to see the real estate agent that found this apartment after school. Let the hunt begin. On the plus side, at least I had a month to find a new place. About the time I expected to hear from Ruhangiz, my phone rang. It was my landlady. Hmmm. Now, my azeri isn't great. And it is even worse on the phone. Normally she only calls me to see if I got water or to invite me to her house or to come over to mine. Those conversations I have learned the pattern of and fair pretty well in. This time, I only understood half of what she was saying - “Jane, getma (don't go).” “Qal (stay).” During the call, I had no idea what “qal” was – I looked it up in the dictionary after I got off the phone. I kinda thought she was telling me there was a problem with the water. Then I thought I was supposed to go to her house. I really just had no idea what was going on. I kept telling her I didn't understand. Finally, I think a bit exasperated, she told me that Ruhangiz was coming to my apartment.

I hung up, and almost immediately there was a knock on my door. My counterpart, out of breath from my 4 flights of soviet steps, was here. She told me that now I DON'T have to move out. I can stay until I leave in 2009. I was, of course, thrilled, but skeptical. How could things have changed over night? Not wanting to believe it, I asked what happened. The explanation – I am a yaxsi qiz (good girl) so the son found another place to stay while his family is here. All I can say is, thank god for being a yaxsi qiz.

I can honestly say, that 24 hours is probably the most stressed out I've been here. Panicked, angry, worried. Not a fun experience, but I survived, and now, it makes a pretty darn good story!

So, today, in my seventh form lesson, I was asked if I was a real American. Wow. What was intended as an innocent question started to make my head reel with the answers and possibilities to what that question could mean. Now, I know that what they were intending to ask was if I was Native American – they had just come from their geography lesson where they were learning about North America. But, the way it was asked, “are you a REAL American?” totally captivated my brain.

For my students, I gave a short(ish) answer. “I think you are asking if I am Native American. No. Native Americans – also called Indians (surprisingly, this distinction helped them understand the difference between “real” and “native” quite easily) are the ones you are learning about and they are the people that have always been in America. I am not a Native American, but, I am a REAL American. And my friends are real Americans. In America, most people immigrated and settled there. My ancestors (definition of the words ancestors inserted here) come from Ireland and Germany and who knows where else, but I am a real American. My friend's ancestors come from Korea, but she is still a real American. Americans come from all over the world.” When I got off of my “real American” soap box, I think they kinda got it – or maybe I just gave them a really long-winded answer when all I needed to say was, “nope, I'm not an Indian.”

But, then, throughout the rest of the day the question stayed with me. What is a real American? How do I define myself as an American? Because I am 100% real American. And how is my idea of that being affected by this experience – living in a completely different country and culture?

Some of it is definitely geography – I was born in Virginia, so I am American. My parents and grandparents were all born on U.S. soil, so I am American. But there is so much more to it than that.

I think it is a mindset. To be American is a way of thinking, an attitude, a frame of mind. Life, liberty, the pursuit of happiness - isn't that kinda what defines Americans? We believe in these things so strongly, that they have shaped our national definition.

I have every opportunity I want set before me. I am living in a country where girls can't go to restaurants and have to be careful about socializing with boys. And I come from a place where a woman might be the next president. I have gotten to choose every step, every path I have taken with my life. And when I return from here and choose the next path to take, I can literally do anything I want. Anything.

I am idealistic. “No” and “because” are never legitimate answers to my questions if I believe they shouldn't be. I get to rock the boat and try and change the world. And, even more importantly, I believe I can.

There are things I just don't understand because I am American – and I will never be able to truly appreciate them. I have never had to live through the pain and turmoil that is part of the very recent history of the people I currently live with. I don 't really understand what it is to struggle. My life has been so easy, comparatively, it is a joke. I am privileged, simply because of where I was born. And even now, I am living through the day to day struggles of a developing country with a time limit. I leave after 2 years. That is not the case for the people I am working and living with. This is their life.

I am free to have all kinds of thoughts about myself and my country. I can think and choose and say whatever I want. I can be the biggest patriot out there – or advertise how bad I think America is. I can be somewhere in the middle. I can question the choices of my bosses and my nation's leaders. And, if I don't like them, I can stand up and say something. Not everyone in the world has that privilege. And I view it as a god given right.

My definition of self – and what being American is has definitely been affected by being here. How could it not? I see how incredibly lucky I am. I see how naively egotistical I am. I think I am becoming a better American by being here. I know I'm becoming a better person.

But here's what keeps my mind reeling – if I were to ask any of my friends or family this question – what is a real American – their answer would be different. And still completely true and 100% American. Because the definition of each of us is also the definition of American. There is a foundation we share, but we all have our own experiences and beliefs and challenges that have shaped us and our view of our nationality. So, that brings me back to the beginning - what is a REAL American? And how can that ever be truly answered?

Well, the time has finally come. After 6 months (9, if you count Pre-Service Training) of living with a host family, I finally get to move out and live on my own! This is the day I have been waiting for since, well, June. I do really like my host family, but, for me, move out day was like Christmas and my birthday all rolled into one.

The weeks leading up to March 13 were filled with house hunting. I had basically all of Lankaran helping me – my sitemates, my counterparts, all of the other teachers at school, my students, and any random person I met and had more than a 2 minute conversation with. The people at school decided that I needed to live in an apartment – they say it is safer. I would have been fine with either a house or an apartment, so I was ok with focusing on apartments.

As Peace Corps volunteers, we don't get a huge sum to be able to pay in rent. So, just finding something in my “budget” was a challenge. Then, if you find something too far in advance of when you can move in, you will probably lose it to someone who can move in immediately. And, in one case, I had a guaranteed, very lovely apartment... until the lady's kids said she couldn't rent it. Ugh. But, finally, I found a place, within my price range, that Peace Corps approved. As soon as it was ok-ed, I started carting my stuff over.

My apartment is nice, but sparse. I live on the fourth floor of your standard soviet style apartment building. I have a bedroom, guesting room, kitchen, toilet, and hammam (the azer word for the bathing room). A bed, a table, and 4 chairs are basically my only furniture. My landlady provided me with 3 plates, 3 bowls, 3 cups, 3 forks, 3 spoons, and 3 knives. She gave me a pot to cook in and 2 teapots (you can see where the priority is here!). I have a balcony on either side of the apartment, which is awesome. And here's the most exciting thing – I have a western style toilet. No more squatting at home for me! YAY!!!!

I still live really close to my school – my walk to work is about 5 minutes. I definitely like that. Among my neighbors are my landlady one of my counterparts, and no less than 5 of my students. That is really nice for lots of reasons. I am still a bit of a novelty in the neighborhood, but slowly there is less of the chatter about “the American girl” and more of the passing “hi, how are you”s.

It is truly wonderful to have my own space. I don't have to report my comings and goings to anyone, I don't have to ask to take a shower or do my laundry. I get to cook my own food. And, for the first time since I have been in this country, I have a place where I can truly and completely relax. And that is wonderful.