My Life in Azerbaijan - Ramadan & Fasting

August 30, 2010
Ramadan is the Islamic month of fasting. Although not every Muslim in Azerbaijan fasts, one of my co-workers Muhammad has been fasting everyday. Since I read the “Arabian Sands” five years ago, I have been enthralled by this religion, impressed by the Muslim people’s indubitable faith of Allah. Today, I decided to join my co-worker Muhammad and experienced this special event, refraining from eating and drinking from dawn until sunset. Let me tell you, not eating is bearable, but not drinking for 14 hours, my body was not reacting so well. By 3:00pm, I was so weak that I wanted to quit. I have to give Muhammad a lot of credits. He has been doing it everyday since August 11 and will continue until September 12, 2010!

Muhammad is a devoted Muslim. He read the entire Koran (Quran) when he was a little boy. He can quote every verse in the entire 114 chapters of the Koran. After showing him my desire to learn his religion, he sent me a copy of Koran (English version) and has been very helpful to guide me through some of the chapters. Most of my friends in New York always associate Muslim with terrorists. They stereotype this group and make sarcastic statements about them. After September 11, many injustice treatments were placed upon them. Recent event in New York City denying their right to build a mosque two blocks from the twin towers is just another example.

Four years ago I traveled to the desert of Sudan with five Muslim camel men. I witness their loyalty to Allah. Five times a day, they stopped whatever they were doing and prayed. With no water to wash, they used sands to clean themselves and knelt before Allah with the utmost affection. For them God is reality, and the conviction of his presence gives them the courage to endure. Fasting in Ramadan is a test of their self-restraint. Muslim, no doubt is a very proud race with strong spirit, believes an eye for an eye, and seems to have little regard for human life. This is the solemn side of their character. Nevertheless, they love poetry, are able to give natural expression to their feeling by a poetic form; this peaceful side of their people is frequently overlooked. As I get to know about their religion, my admiration to their people grows ever more. For that reason, I am willing to fast just for one day to show my respect.

I hope in the future, I will continue to observe this “self-restraint” exercise, not only for the medical and physical benefits but for the spiritual benefit as well.

My Life in Azerbaijan - Another Cold Winter

August 29, 2010
After the heavy rain storm from last week, the weather remains relatively cool. Yesterday when I took my evening walk, I also noted that the sun began to set earlier, indicating autumn is underway, before long it will be winter. The path I walk on will soon be deserted.

I have made many friends along this path; teahouse owners, shop keepers, street vendors, little kids on the playground and a group of distinguish elderly retired Azerbaijan gentlemen. I will miss seeing them in the winter as all the teahouses will be closed, shop keepers and street vendors will no longer selling summer fruits and vegetables, kids and the elderly men will stay inside their homes to avoid the bitterly cold. I, however, will continue to walk on this route with solitude.

Unlike last year, I am well prepared for the upcoming winter. My landlord has provided me with a brand new heater, plus two big boxes from my sister full of dried noodle soups, mixed sweet drinks and other nutritious foods have just arrived. I do not have to go to bed hungry and cold again.

hər şey yaxşı olacaq! (everything will be fine!)

I am in a much better condition than most AZ7s. Some of them live in a very remoted village and can only take a shower once a week, or even once a month. I have a very high regard for their tolerance, flexibility and patience, the best qualities of a Peace Corps Volunteer. The AZ8 is coming and I hope they can endure their first harsh winter as we all AZ7 did, with grace and dignity.

My Life in Azerbaijan - Rain of Love

August 22, 2010
Last night, my town had a big rain storm. Thunder rolled and jumbled, lightings threatened to split the sky into pieces, then the torrential rain followed. I welcome the rain. It breaks the unbearable heat, which has been tormenting most PCVs since the beginning of June. My rashes hopefully will finally heal as the heat and humidity decrease.

I fancy the rain. It always brings back sweet memory of my childhood; my grandmother, my sister, the small island we lived, sound of the bamboo leaves and smell of the jasmine flowers. Here is the poem I wrote long long time ago:

I often dreamed about my childhood time when,
the summer rain came late at night unexpected
Together with the lightning, thunder and wind,
Mixing with the sizzling sound of the bamboo leaves,
Awaking me, comforting me, and revealing me the secret of the “night”…

The storm brought in drops of rain,
Hitting the ceiling, splashing my window
Torturing the delicate white jasmine, and eventually
Snuck into my bed….

Curling up my body under a thin cover,

Unwilling to wake up from an already forgotten dream
Suddenly, a warm layer of blanket
Covering my shoulder,
Warming up my body and soul….

Fumbling in the dark, her aging figure
Fading away from my dream….
Outside my window
The bamboo leaves still complaining about
The insensitive wind, howling and howling….

My grandmother is in heaven now and my sister is thousand and thousand miles away. There is neither bamboo nor jasmine flower around, only I sitting alone and reading the poem of the past. I ponder; will I ever be loved so deeply, so unconditionally again?

My Life in Azerbaijan - Twin Sister

August 19, 2010
Among all the flowers, the Chinese night blooming cactus is my favorite. Its elegant stunning white flower, its fragrant, and its unique blooming behavior (only bloom at night for a few hours) all contribute to win the title as the best flower in Chi’s world.

Although I have seemed it bloom many many times, I never got tired watching it every summer. Around eight o’clock in the evening, little by little, the flower begins to open up, at the same time it starts to release its light fragrant, but by midnight, its flower starts to wither leaving its intoxicated aroma lingering into the night. I miss seeing my Chinese night blooming cactus bloom. Nevertheless, much to my surprise, I found its twice sister in Azerbaijan, only a few blocks away from my apartment.

One morning on my way to work, I passed by a courtyard where the summer flowers were in full bloom. Among them, a big white trumpet flower caught my attention. I took a few photos and determined to go back in the afternoon for another look. However, when I returned to the courtyard few hours later, the white flower already withered.

Not sure of its name, so I call it the “Morning Glory”. This flower do not have any fragrant but has the same unique blooming behavior as my Chinese night blooming cactus, blossom only a few hours in the morning. I figure it must be the long lost sister of my favorite flower, a twin which get separated many moons ago! I am glad to find it in Azerbaijan. Perhaps I will bring back some seeds and plant it right next to its sister.

My Life in Azerbaijan - Hospitability

August 17, 2010

Although the trip to Turkey was not as enjoyable as I would like due to the hot weather, I was delighted to meet the people in Turkey and impressed by their friendliness and hospitability. On two occasions, we were treated by the locals with kindness. They offered us assistance and invited us to join them with Çay (Tea).

After the 12 hours long bus ride, we arrived in Trabzon with no solid plan. We walked aimlessly the entire afternoon in the hot sun and were about to head to the bus terminal for another overnight bus ride. Three of us were carrying our backpack, looking very tired and searching for the bus station. Realizing we were lost, we stopped by a restaurant and asked for direction.

An elderly lady was sweeping the floor when we approached her with the question. First she looked at us with wild open eyes. Without sleep and shower for 24 hours and with the sweat drenched to our shirt, our appearance must have been so miserable that she took a pity on us. Instead of answering our question, she invited us to go inside the shop, led us to the table right next to an air conditioner and offered us tea.

“How much is the tea?” One of my companions asked. (I really wish she did not ask that question)

She did not give us the answer and walked back to the kitchen. Seconds later, the owner of the restaurant approached us:

“You will have tea and it is on me!” He said it in a firm tone of voice.

The elderly lady appeared again with tea and cookies; she smiled and urged us to rest. Soon, the owner came back with lots of maps. Since we could speak some Azerbaijani which is similar to the language of Turkey, we were able to communicate well with the owner. After we well rested, I offered to pay for the tea and the owner just absolutely refused to accept. When we were ready to go, the owner accompanied us to the street and pointed out the direction to our bus station. We thanked him whole heartily and said our farewell.

When I looked back to the restaurant, both the shop owner and the elderly lady were still standing there watching us. Recalling the e-mail message from the US embassy warning us the potential danger of traveling in Turkey, I could not help but dismissing it immediately.

My Life in Azerbaijan - Travel to Turkey

August 16, 2010
I have seen and met many young people travel months around the world with only their backpack, shoestring budget but manage to visit lots of countries. I envied them and wanted to do the same for quite sometime and I did it! However, I will never do it again.

In the company of two younger Peace Corps Volunteers, I traveled to Turkey with a 30 lbs backpack for 14 days. To save money, we traveled long distance with overnight buses, slept on a bench in an airport, and stayed 4 nights in cheap hostel. Most of the time, we had only 2 meals a day. We avoided expensive restaurant, ordered meal with no beverage, took advantage on hostel that offered free breakfast and dinner. The two weeks we were in Turkey, the heat wave dominated the entire country so we sweated like a pig walking in the hot sun everyday. By the end of the trip, I ended up losing 5 lbs. After living like a vagabond for 14 days, I was relieved, happy and glad to finally sleep on my clean bed again. As for how much money I spent, without counting the expensive caviar I bought for my friends, I only spent 650 manats, of which 75% is related to bus tickets and taxi fare.

What I dislike the most about this kind of traveling is the long hour bus ride. Our longest bus ride was from Istanbul to Batumi. We were on a bus 20 straight hours! From Tbilisi to Trabzon was 12 hours ride, after walking aimlessly in Trabzon to kill time for six hours, we got on a bus again and traveled another 13 hours to Goreme. Staying in Goreme only 2 days, we headed to Olympos with another 11 hours bus ride and ended up staying there only one night. If we traveled by plane, we would have done more sightseeing, visited more places and be able to stay in one place longer so as to learn more about the native cultures and enjoy the local cuisines. On the other hand, I am glad I did it. I do not believe many people with my age can travel like this! I have to give myself a lot of credits.

Peace Corps experience taught me to be flexible, to have patience and never forgot a sense of humor. I exercised all of those things while I was in Turkey. I did not lose my temper once, nor did I grumble about the primitive lodging, bitch about the hunger, the heat and the unpleasant body odor. I am even glad to have the opportunity to sleep in a windowless room with 16 other boys and girls who were all wearing nothing but their underwear at night due to the unbearable heat. I have proved to myself once again that I am a true survivor! Nevertheless, I am looking forward to my next trip which I will travel by plane, stay in a nice hotel; dine with exotic foods, drink good wine, enjoy a bubble bath and have sweet memories afterward.