Finally I have a chance to get away from Sumqayit and visit another city, Ganja where Vivian and Carol live. Ganja is the 2nd biggest city in Azerbaijan, and it was the Capital of Azerbaijan before Baku. It is a pretty little town with clean avenues, impressive government buildings, nice Turkey restaurants; old Germany built apartment buildings and a huge park. The city actually has street light!
I am happy to see Vivian and Carol again. Vivian and I were inseparable during the training in Sumqayit. I have not seen her for four months after the training. She lost some weight and looks as pretty as before. Carol lost weight too and she is still one of the most interesting women I met in Peace Corps. We spent the entire afternoon chatting in a tea house (where woman is forbidden to enter, but we did not care) catching up with latest Peace Corps news, exchanging host family complains and sharing information about our apartment hunting. Similar to my feeling, both Vivian and Carol are eager to move out of their host family by April. Vivian’s host family situation is getting worse every day and she is even afraid to tell them that she is leaving. Seeing the fear in her face, I wonder, how many of us really enjoy the host family experience.
They both found their little place to live, nothing fancy and not cheap either. They have to share the apartment with another Peace Corps volunteer in order to afford the rent. Vivian shows me her new home. It is really not a “nice” place to live but the place has a yard where Vivian can plant her vegetable garden. She is excited about that.
After knowing other people’s problems, I feel better now. Tomorrow I will return to Sumqayit and say good bye to my host family. I am frightened, petrified, SCARD !!!
1 comment:
You all must have some interesting co-dependant dynamics in the relationships with the host families.
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