teacher training/toilets

The last three photos are from a teacher training I did March 28th. It was a one day training from 9-3:30 for secondary school teachers from small towns and villages in this Northern part of Tajikistan. It was a successful event. I went over grammar instruction, reading instruction and vocabulary instruction. At the end two local teachers talked about their experience in Hyderabad, India. The U.S. government sent them to an English language univ. in Hyderabad for 6 weeks this winter. So they talked about their experiences there. The two teachers who went to Hyderabad had a great experience and were super excited to get back to their classrooms and try out some of the new techniques they learned it really breathed some new life into these two women. I think everyone left the one day workshop feeling satisfied and pleased.

Then on Wed. we had April Fools Day. Surprsingly enough people here celebrate this day in much the same way that Americans do. Students were fooling me by saying that the back of my coat was dirty or that someone wanted to talk to me when they really didn't. Just stuff like that. I didn't play too many tricks on kids I'm not very good at that sort of thing.

We also had a highly successful painting party at the A.C. today on one of the outside walls so I'll put some pictures up of that activity ASAP. I also saw an old friend today who I worked with and initially met in Georgia so it was great to see her again. She still works for the government but now she is in Ankara.

Now most Fellows probably are appalled about their host institution's toilet situation. But I'm not so apalled as amused it is too easy to be critical and besides I lived through two years of Georgian toilets. So my toilet situation is interesting it is an outside building with the women going to one side of the bld. and the men to the other. It costs 10 diram a diram is like a cent. There are 100 diram in 1 somoni and 3.8 somoni in $1.00. You can do the math. For months I had to pay this amount because the guy, Giorgi, who collects the money thought I was a student but now he knows I'm a teacher so I can pee for free. Anyway this guy Giorgi is interesting sometime I'll have to put his picture up here. First of all Giorgi is a Georgian name and I don't know anyone else here with this name. Secondly, it almost like he lives in the toilet. He has an electric burner next to the semi-operational sink inside. He cooks and prepares tea and what not I guess. This winter when it was too cold he sat in this little entrance way near the sink and burner and tried to stay warm. Now he sits out in front of the toilets demanding his sums be paid up front. Third, recently he has started to plant a little garden next to the toilets he gets out there with is hoe and makes his little rows and has planted vegetables or something I don't know. I can see that he has planted little saplings. Fourth, he always speaks to me in German or English or something never Tajik. When I come to pee he always gives me a big thumbs up and says "kargula" "Ok?" I say, "ok." Ok enough about Giorgi when you see his picture you will know. Now about the facilities. The standard pocelin squat pits no flush option. T.P. is in the form of book pages which are available for you to take for the 10 diram. The pages are placed on top of an outside low (2ft.) retaining wall that runs along the entrance to the latrine. The pages are crudely torn out of some forgotten misbegotton and long ago boughten book. They are held down by small stones to keep them from blowing off the low wall. You take the page on the way in if you know you have more serious business to do. There are doors on the toilets which makes it nice because the pits are facing eachother 6 down one wall and 6 down the other wall. At least with the toilets having doors you have some privacy. There is a sink but it only rarely has water come out of it. There is also an old towel/rag of somesort that hangs on a nail near the sink. But usually the hands are "washed" by taking a 1 liter plastic bottle filled with water off that same low wall and squeezing water out of it and onto your hand(s). The bottle has its cap on it and good old Giorgi puts a small nail hole or something in the top of the cap so bascially the old 1 liter cola bottle becomes a squirt bottle. So I squirt a little water on my hands and dry them on my trousers and go. That's it no soap and it is probably best not to use the towel. I've never been to the women's side of things but I imagine it is is similar. It's better now because it is warmer it was really tough this winter squeezing cold water on to your cold hands thus making them wet and cold. But I've never gotten sick from this situation I go to this toilet and then eat some crazy hotdog in a bun concocktion sometimes. I don't even want to think about what the Russians put in their hotdogs I don't look I just eat. Same with the toilets I don't look I just go and then keep right on working. I've gotten used to it.