We Take a Little Vacation

This posting is one of several on our trip to Georgia (the one without the Atlanta Braves). It was our first trip outside of Azerbaijan, and of course, were were nervous about the travel and border crossings, but anxious for the adventure and a little time away from our home here.

There are scenic pictures of Tbilisi and Mtskheta from high above. The rather tall woman is a monument name "Mother of Georgia" and she resides high above Tbilisi at the old fortress. There is also a picture of a mosque and a synagogue that are relatively close to each other. The Georgian people are proud of their history of tolerance for many cultures even though 80 per cent of the population is Orthodox.

The Peace Corps give Volunteers 2 days Annual Leave for every month of service. No Annual Leave is given for Pre-Service Training, so we have accumulated 14 days. We used 7 of those for our trip. Any time a Volunteer is away from site more than 1 weekend a month it is to be used as Annual Leave. However, the Azerbaijan Peace Corps is quite liberal with its in-country travel, and many volunteers travel somewhere within country almost every week without using their Annual Leave.

Georgia is the country most available to us in Azerbaijan. We can travel there by bus, taxi, or train. Of the four border countries, Iran and Armenia are off limits to us, and it is very difficult to get visas to Russia.

We began on a Monday morning with a 4 hour bus ride to Yevlax - easy so far, then a 30 minute ride on a bus from yevlax to Barda. The only problem was a 1.5 hour wait in Yevlax for the minibus to fill up before it would leave. We were passengers 3 and 4 of 20. We all wanted to celebrate when number 20 got on board and we could leave. It was only about 90 degrees and sunny, but we did not completely melt. We finally got to our friends, Bill and Dorothy Colcord's around 2:30.

After lunch and a nap, we walked a bit and had dinner with Bill, Dorothy, and John Schwartzbauer. John has been a Volunteer in Azerbaijan for 4 years. John is widowed and has 4 daughters in the United States. He wanted to stay longer in Azerbaijan, but the Peace Corps is not allowing him to renew. The Peace Corps is acting in the best interest of John.

On Tuesday we helped Dorothy with a project she has with potential FLEX (exchange students to the United States) participants. Last year over 2,000 students applied to pend one school year in the United States for the 10th or 11th grade. Of those 41 were selected to go.

Tuesday night we had a lovely dinner with an Azerbaijan couple. Tofiga, the wife, is the counterpart to one of the brightest and best of American Peace Corps Volunteers, Jeremy Hebert. Then bright and early on Wednesday morning, Dorothy's counterpart had arranged a car to take us to the Red Bridge (Qirimzi Koerpu) where we walked across (about a kilometer) to Georgia. We showed our passports 6 times -- 3 to Azerbaijan soldiers and police, and 3 to Georgian soldiers and police. No problems , everyone was very cordial and never any attempt to take a bribe.

One great moment was when an Azerbaijan soldier was looking over one of our passports very carefully, when Linda noticed, he was just looking at the background pictures of famous sights in the United States. She went over and talked with the soldier, explaining each one. The Statue of Liberty was the only sight with which he was familiar.

We were on our way to Tbilisi, and our rooms at the Nika Guesthouse in a taxi with a negotiated price of $25 for the 40 kilometer ride. The Nika Guesthouse was recommended by the Georgian Peace Corps. Linda and I had a room on the second floor, no air conditioning, but a fan that worked, pretty clean, hot water from the second day on, access to a refrigerator, and all for $15 per person per night! It was standard PC travel if you can't stay with other Volunteers.

The city of Tbilisi is like any capital city. The population is about 1.1 million, and many products and foods not available in the smaller cities, towns, and villages are available there. It has a bustling nightlife, cinema, theatre, parks, and traffic. We will share more pictures and comments on Georgia in future posts.

We walked Tbilisi that Wednesday evening looking for an Italian restaurant. Never found it, but ate at a "Mexican Food" restaurant named Santa Fe. We ordered Mexican and got a Georgian version, very mild, no sauces, a couple of chips, but we were really hungry, so it was okay.

The people of Georgia are very friendly and were quite helpful as we walked with maps in hand. When we took the underground train (Metro) on Thursday two young girls helped us navigate our way to our stop. The younger Georgians are very likely to speak English, and the middle aged adults up, not so much. It was a good, but tiring experience walking that evening.

The difficulty for us was the Georgian language has a unique alphabet. We had no clue as to the names on street signs, Metro signs, or any sign that had only Georgian. The unusual response was that when we could not be understood in English, we tried to speak Azerbaijani, and when we could not understand the Georgian, we would answer in Azerbaijani.

On Thursday, our first item of business was a visit to the Peace Corps offices in Tbilisi. The Georgian PC evacuated and closed service for all of its Trainees and Volunteers in August of 2008 when the Russian army responded to the Ossetia region. The PC staff remained intact and returned to Georgia. The Georgian PC is now working with 25 Trainees who will renew Peace Corps service to Georgia. They will serve only in Eastern Georgia for now due to the continued political situation.

We were given a tour of their offices by the Safety and Security Director. She explained how the evacuation took place and shared about the future plans for the Georgian Peace Corps. Most of the staff was with the Trainees at a Pre-Service Training event that included inoculations. Whenever any PCV travels within a PC country, the staff is responsible for their safety, and every Volunteer is to check in.

As it worked out, it was very fortunate that checking in was high on our agenda. On Friday afternoon while concluding our sight seeing, Dorothy fell and it was painful for her to stand on her left leg. We managed to get her back to the Nika, and Bill called the Peace Corps Medical Duty Officer. The doctor arranged transportation and an x-ray. The x-ray indicated a broken tibia, and it was later set and a cast applied.

Saturday Dorothy rested under the careful attention of Bill while we took a tour. On Sunday the Georgian Peace Corps arranged transportation for Bill and Dorothy to the border where they crossed and were met by Azerbaijan Peace Corps transportation that returned them to their home.

We will tell about the interesting sights and events in the postings to come. We hope this bit of information has whetted your appetite for more knowledge about Georgia and of course the Peace Corps.

Where the Heck Is Quba?

We will not be posting next week because we will be taking a week's Annual Leave to visit Georgia (the one without Atlanta).

We completed our celebration of the Fourth of July in Quba. Frank asked, "Where the Heck Is Quba?" Quba is a city of just over 15,000 north of Baku and just a little west. We traveled along the Caspian and then turned west into the mountains. Quba is known for its apples, cooler temperatures, scenic beauty, and Jewish community of Qirmizi Qasaba. On Friday, July 3, we left on the first bus out of Shirvan for Baku. The bus begins loading at 6:00 a.m. and when it is full, it leaves. On that day it left at 6:45. We arrived at our bus station in Baku at 8:00 and caught a city bus for the New Bus Station in the northern part of Baku. We met our friends, Bill and Dorothy Colcord, at 9:15 and went straight for the 9:30 bus to Quba. It promptly left at 10:05, and we were on our way.

When we arrived in Quba, Dorothy's counterpart had arranged for a taxi driver to meet us and take us to our resort like hotel just 5 KM from Quba. We checked in, enjoyed lunch, then back to Quba where we met fellow PCV Chris Polen. Chris gave us a walking tour of Quba.

We returned to our hotel after a wonderful supper in Quba. In the street were a group of men who were staying at the hotel, and they were also muscians and had begun to play. Bill and Denney danced in the street with a cook (male) at the hotel, and made many new friends.

The next morning our taxi came and we left for Xinaluq (www.xinaluq.com). The scenery was beautiful and we took many phots while on our way. While stopping outside a village to take photos, the driver noticed steam coming from under the hood, and there was a water hose leak.

After 30 minutes, a little tape, and a vodka bottle full of clean water brought to us by a small lad who had a roadside business of selling local plants, we were on our way back to Quba. We never made it to Xinaluq. The driver went to repair his car, and we headed for the Qirimzi Qasaba (Red Village).

According to Chris, this is the largest Jewish "ghetto" in all of the former Soviet Union. Basically part of Quba City but separated by the Quidalchay River. Money from the diaspora had made this one of the most developed looking small towns in Azerbaijan.

The picture from above the Red Village shows the river which divides Quba and the village, to the top is Quba, to the bottom is the Red Village.

Here we saw our first synagogue in Azerbaijan, and the Star of David adorning several homes. One building which caught my attention was a Wedding Palace. It was the standard Wedding Palace with "Sadliq Saray" printed in large letters on one side. Then on another side was the name in Russian with the Star of David above.

We walked through the village and made our way to an archeological site across the river in Quba. The site was uncovered two years ago and is a mass grave from 1918. The Azerbaijan people said it was the Armenians who performed genocide and cruelly murdered men, women, and children. It ws humbling to see, but also is discouraging with the beliefs of the Azerbaijan people in regards to Armenians.

Our second day was spent sight seeing in the communities of Nabran, Xachmaz, and Qusar. Nabran is a resort area on the Caspian, just a few kilometers from Russia. The beach was a gray mixture of sand and rock. From the pictures you can see everyone (and everything) enjoys the beach. We put our feet into the Caspian and asked the rates of the posh resort there, $400 a night -- needless to say, they'll not see us there again. The driver said it was too cold for a lot of people to be on the beach - it was only about 90!

Xachmaz and Qusar were wonderfully clean communities with parks, statues, and friendly people. While driving we saw cultivated farmland and green areas very different from our arid part of Azerbaijan.

One of the better aspects of our trip was the taxi driver. His name is Balabey Qonaqov. Dorothy's counterpart had made all the arrangements for us and were were to pay him 25 AZN a day plus gasoline. The bus driver called Balabey as we approached Quba and he met us at the bus station. We were impressed and paid nothing for the first trip to the hotel because Dorothy's counterpart had already paid for it. The day the car broke down, we asked how much? He replied 30 AZN. We began to worry and think maybe we were being taken advantage of. The next morning we were not going to go with him until we discussed the price of everything. We agreed on a very fair price for an all day excursion. During the drive, in the afternoon, he stopped at his home and we had tea with his family. Balabey and his lovely wife have 2 sons, one teenage, and one 11. We spent an hour speaking in Azerbaijan with them and shared aout the Peace Corps. To make a long story short, we not only had a driver, we have a good friend. We took pictures and mailed them to his family because we will always remember the emotion he shared with us as we departed.

We have some unusual pictures for future blogs and will no doubt share more about Quba and the area.

Monday we returned to Shirvan and there is a saying here, "East is east and west is west, but home is always best." We enjoyed the cooler temperatures, great company, and good food.

Happy Fourth of July - We have a wonderful country!

Happy Fourth of July to everyone!
Working at the Central Library I get to meet many outstanding Azerbaijani people. One of the young men who has made an everlasting impression upon me is Rovshan. Rovshan is a graduate of the private Turkish school in Shirvan (further explanation below). After the Turkish preparatory school he graduated from Qafqaz University in Baku majoring in International Relations. Upon graduation he fulfilled his compulsory military service of 1 year (2 years without any education beyond secondary school, 18 months for technical education, and 1 year if a university graduate). Rovshan hopes to some day be a diplomat. He is a very sensitive individual who has a respect for all cultures, and a political awareness. He invited Linda and I to his home and the picture is of Rovshan’s mother (a geological engineer working for the government), Linda, myself, Rovshan, Rovshan’s cousin and sister. His father was working that evening in Baku and his father is also a geological engineer working for the government. Rovshan’s parents met at the university while preparing for their careers.
After Rovshan finished his military service he has applied for several jobs and is considering offers from Baku and Amsterdam. I am hoping that the Peace Corps will respond to his application for a position on the staff. It would be a great experience for him and help him in his goal of diplomatic service.
I met Rovshan when he came to the Central Library because he had heard about the Peace Corps Volunteer there. He felt that his English skills had slipped during his year in the military, and he wanted to improve. During one session of the Conversation Club he brought his sketches that he did while in the military. A particularly intriguing drawing is of two bullets standing side by side, one wrapped with barbed wire, the other with the shell open on the casing and a flower is growing out of the casing. He served the military, but knows that cooperation and understanding bring peace.

The Turkish School is for boys only. The teachers are from Turkey and are better paid, and the school has the best facilities around. For students who do not live in Shirvan, there are dormitories. There are computers and high speed internet access. The faculty speaks English fluently, and the last five years all the classes are taught in English. The tuition is about 2,000 AZN per year. Many parents sacrifice a great deal to send their sons there.
Another young man, Ulvie, comes to the Central Library. He is a current student at the Turkish School. Recently he went on a 10 day excursion to the southeastern portion of Azerbaijan with his school. The students were required to read 3 hours a day, take examinations and write about their reading. Athletic competition was also part of the program. Quite a contrast to the public education.

The other pictures are of the new fountains in front of the Heydar Aliyev monument. Heydar Aliyev is the George Washington of Azerbaijan. During Soviet years he rose to the number 2 spot in the Politburo. He retired and after the break up of the Soviet Union there was chaos in Azerbaijan, and the loss of the Norgono Karabagh region to the Armenians. The country turned to Heydar Aliyev and he restored order.
Every city and town has a Heydar Aliyev museum. The museum in Shirvan is being moved to a new building, and the present President, Ilham Aliyev, Heydar’s son, will come to Shirvan to dedicate the new museum. So, there are also new fountains, and everything is getting spruced up.

For the Fourth of July Linda and I will be traveling with Bill and Dorothy Colcord to Quba. We will share about Quba in a future blog.