My Life in Azerbijan - Peace Corps Living Allowance

April 23, 2011

Peace Corps living allowance annual survey is out. In order to make the survey more meaningful, we are urged to itemize our daily expenditures. In fact, a quantitative and qualitative analysis would be more preferable. I was always a good student at school; so I followed instructions and dutifully completed the survey timely.

Young PCVs tend to complain how meager the monthly allowance is. Well, they are young, they are entitled to have fun, to visit other site mates, to travel outside of Azerbaijan, to have a few drinks, to take taxi, to eat at a local restaurant and of course, to be in Baku enjoying the city life occasionally when they are tired of the harsh village life where they serve. Besides, to do community project, sometimes, they need money to buy materials. So, I agree with them 100%, the monthly allowance from Peace Corps is insufficient.

I live in an expensive town, not far from Baku. In fact, I am the first volunteer placed in this town. Because it is so close to the capital, the rent is disturbing expensive. But I have a nice apartment, perhaps the best apartment ever rented by any PCVs’. Of course, it comes with a price, a high price. Even with the extra housing allowance from Peace Corps, 90% of my monthly allowance goes to rent. I could have rented a DISGUSTING (i.e. leaking pipes, smelly and broken toilet, dusty carpet, uninvited insects and animals running around etc.) place for around 250 manats, but I have made my choice. My home is my nest, it is important to me. I need it to comfort myself when I have a bad day, to run away from the dreadful teenage boys, to keep myself relatively warm in winter and most importantly, to cook myself a healthy dinner. I would not have been able to survive if I had to constantly argue and wait for my landlord to fix my apartment. I heard too many horror stories!

In exchange for a nice apartment, I have to give up many things. I can not afford to travel often, to visit my PC friends, to eat out, to have a drink or even to buy a kilo of banana or apple (average 2.5 manats a kilo) once a week. My daily diet includes many local cheap vegetables: carrot, potato, spinach, cabbage and onion. I probably ate more cabbage here in a month than a year in American. (Cabbage soup, cabbage salad, cabbage pickle, stir fried cabbage with garlic etc). Last month, I had a digestion problem because I ate too much cabbage. PC doctor had to drug me so I can continue to live on with cabbage.

Once in a blue moon, I felt sad. I had a good life in American. I was once spoiled by the “Wall Street” lifestyle and literately could buy anything I wanted, and eat anywhere I desired. Now, I could not even afford to buy myself a hamburger and a beer. Of course, I could have used my own money, but every time when I tempted to do so, I felt very mortified.

I remember the promise that I made to myself two years ago. I am determined to live like the locals, to live within the budget of Peace Corps allowance, and to live like a real Peace Corps Volunteer. I do not have to eat out, I can cook myself a nice cabbage dinner, I do not need a beer, and I can drink water. I do not have to see Vivian and Carol every month, we can e-mail to each other. I want to experience the kind of life that most Azerbaijan people experience. My co-worker in the bank only earns 250 manats a month, and he has two children, an aging mother and a wife to feed. If he can do it, so can I. I only have to live like this for another six months; my co-worker most likely will have to live poorly for the rest of his life!

So I hit the “Send” button and e-mail my respond with the utmost honest answer.

My Life in Azerbaijan - One Special April Day in Azerbaijan

April 14, 2011

It is a pale morning, the sky speaks of rain to come. I open my kitchen window, a frigid air flows in; it does have a rainy smell. While New York is having 17C degrees warm temperature, this part of the world is still cold and damp. Soon, rain comes streaming down. I watch the storm rage with thunder and lightning and feel no urge to leave my apartment for work. It is already mid April; winter still lingers and does not want to go away. I decide to stay home and work on my resume.

So far, I have already applied for seven Federal jobs. The application process is tedious and extremely time consuming. Each job application requires a unique tailor federal style resume. The content must include personal profile, professional and personal strengths, experiences, duties, and responsibilities, and accomplishments. On top of that, I still have to write pages and pages of essay about KSAOs (Knowledge, Skills, Abilities and Other Characteristics.) No wonder so many applicants got frustrated with the paper works and eventually gave up.

“You have to complete the paper-work to beat out your competition. Treat it just like another summit you want to reach, you can do it!”

words of wisdom from a friend, so, I started the process in January and spent three months to write and rewrite, edit and re-edit, finally came up with a satisfactory draft, 8-page long resume and 10-page KSAOs! Each time I apply for a position, I still have to rephrase my work experiences in such a way that they match up with the job descriptions, so by no mean my resume is finished. It will be an on-going battle until I receive a job offer.

After spending four hours on my resume, I get tired. Looking outside the window, I see clouds still hang somber, still drips rain, but it has lessened. I make myself a light lunch and determine to head out for my daily run/walk afterward, rain or no rain. When I am ready to go, rain ceases. By the time I reach the park, the sun is already shining through fluttering leaves, which all seem to sprout after the rain. Within half hour, the entire park goes through a complete transformation. I am enveloped by sunlight and warm air. Spring creeps in unknowingly and the morning rain signals the final departure of winter. My spirits is uplifted by the sudden changes and I feel elated and energetic, so I run and run until my leg muscle aches.

No doubt, I fancy Spring. Spring in New York is lovely. The magnolia tree growing by the street corner of my New York apartment must be in full bloom now, soon it will come the purple lilac, my old love. Here in Azerbaijan, Spring is just as attractive. I notice the miniature blue flower appearing everywhere in the neighborhood. It resembles the “Forget-Me-Not” blossom I once saw in Alaska. The plant draws to the sunlight. On a sunny day, the flowers unfold and audaciously radiate their shapes and color in front of every pedestrian, but no one pays any attention to the plant except me! Last week, I plucked a few and brought home to decorate my desk. They have been greeting me happily since.

On my way out of the park, I pass by a small dirt trail bisected by a dead tree trunk rotting back to new life, and a fresh daisy already blooming beside it. Ah, I love Spring, everything is so alive!

Then, it dawns on me that today is my birthday! No wonder I love Spring. One special April day indeed!

(I started my own little garden last year, the Chinese night-blooming plant is growing bigger. This plant is from Georgia, a place I visited last summer)