My Life in Azerbaijan - Final is Over

December 5, 2009
I cannot believe our final language examination is over. I think I did ok and the teacher even gave me a “role play” test. I leant that only those who showed the ability to carry a conversation would be given a “role play” test. I think I did ok too on the “role play” test.

Looking back two months ago, neither one of us could really speak a full sentence in Azerbaijani. Today, all of us in various degrees; are managed to get around with enough Azerbaijani vocabulary. We have proven to ourselves that we can survive in this foreign land. However, our next bigger test would be even tougher. When each of us is dispatched to our worksite, how are we going to survive without our teachers, without our Peace Corps friends? Some of us will be alone living in a small village with no one speaks a word of English. I worry about Andrew, the young man I become very fond of. He did not do well in the class, nor did he do well in his examination. But he is always cheerful; I hope he will stay alive by using his charm.

My Life in Azerbaijan - Goodbye to our Teacher

December 4, 2009
Today is our last language lesson, and our teacher cut the lesson short. She bought us cookies, drinks, and many snacks. We all love her and she has been a wonderful host representing Azerbaijan. Peace Corps did a good job hiring the most competence instructor for us. After today, she will return to her home or maybe leave for Turkey hoping to find a better job there. We all promise to pay her a visit if she decides to stay in Turkey. I told her, if she ever comes to New York City, she is definitely welcome to stay with me. I will return the same hospitability to her as she has given me here.

Only five more days left, then I will say goodbye to Vivian and other Peace Corps Volunteers. They will be leaving for their permanent sites and some of us may never see each other again. Two months together, we have built our friendship and Vivian and I are inseparable everyday. I really do not know what to do without her. I know I will be lost (literally) without her. Vivian was joking with me and told me that I could give her a call anytime, and she would give me an instruction how to find my way home… and then she cried AGAIN!

I went home, hide myself under my blanket and cried…

My Life in Azerbaijan - Serving the less Privileged

November 28, 2009
Vivian and I were invited to my host sister’s relative dinner last night. The family went out of their way to cook us a fabulous dinner. Compare to my host family, this family is quite poor. They live in a very small apartment, but I felt comfortable instantly by their friendliness, hospitability and generosity. They prepared lots of foods for us, and they even made us the American Pizza to please us. The mother was very kind to me, and her older daughter was running around all night to serve me and Vivian. It was a warm and touching gathering. I just wish that I had something to give them as a return for their cordiality.

The mother works part-time as a cook for restaurant and wedding party. Her younger daughter is a dress maker and her older daughter is single and currently unemployed. They are struggling to support each other. They probably can not afford to buy meats for dinner but they were willing to spend it on us. I am truly touched by their hospitability.

I like people who are down to earth, especially those who are poor but work very hard to strive for what they want. They maybe poor physically, but they are rich in spirit. I admire them. That night, it made it clear to me that I was much more suited to serve the less privileged, and not to work for the wealthy.

My Life in Azerbaijan - Help around the House

November 29, 2009

I wish I had read the Peace Corps Surviving tips early so I would not have to get myself in this situation. I have been volunteering to do dishes for the family after supper. Lately, I notice that ana keeps asking me to do other household things. The request sometimes is an “order” which makes me feel very uncomfortable. This past Sunday, she even asked my other American friends to do things for her. What got us all upset was: her three daughters were all standing there and supervising us. They did not even offer to help.

By accident, I read the Peace Corps surviving tips that night, and here is what Peace Corps points out: “Don’t clean your plate or your host will just give you another helping” Well, I guess it is too late now. I am going to stay with this family four more months and I will try to help out as much as I can, but if it gets to a point that I become a maid, then I will get very angry and have to kill somebody. That will be “J” 

My Life in Azerbaijan - Visit Baku

November 28, 2009
Baku, the “forbidden city” for all Peace Corps Trainees, today, finally we received a permission to visit this biggest city in Azerbaijan, of course with the supervision of our teacher. We walked around the downtown area and visited many culture centers and government buildings. We also visited the Peace Corps Office.

I am not too impressed about Baku; however, I do like the ancient Europe buildings where most of the government buildings are located. Some of the luxury apartments facing the Caspian Sea are very nice. I can understand why so many Europeans are willing to invest their capitals here in Baku. If you have money, Baku is a nice place to live. Maybe because I grew up and live in a big city all my life, Baku does not appeal to me as a charming place. I maybe a little bias, Hong Kong; by far is the prettiest city I know. Nevertheless, I am pleased to see how proud the Azerbaijani is when they talk about their country’s history and culture. My future work place is only about 30 minutes from Baku; certainly I will be spending a lot of time exploring this ancient city.

My Life in Azerbaijan - Who is "J"

November 27, 2009
Few people read my blog and e-mailed me, asking me the identification of “J”. Most of my friend in CMCNY never heard of “J”, some even suspected it is one of the members in CMCNY. I made a mistake once dating a guy in CMCNY, after that I learnt my lesson. I will never ever do it again. There are just too many gossips in CMCNY.

I know “J” more than seventeen years. “J” is a special friend who has given me lots of pain, but lots of joy and sweet memories as well. During these past seventeen years, we did not see each other as often as I wanted, but we have a special bond. We know each other well and we feel absolutely comfortable with each other. I can say anything to “J” and “J” can do the same to me. I know I will be there for “J” and “J” will be there for me. I am very fond of “J” and that is all I am going to say about “J”. :)

My Life in Azerbaijan - Thanksgiving in Azerbaijan

November 26, 2009
Well, today is Thanksgiving Day but we still have language class in the morning. However, we decide to cut the class short and have a nice Thanksgiving lunch in Carol’s place. Vivian is in charge of cooking the two chickens we brought from the Bazaar yesterday. On top of that, she will also make some biscuits and vegetables. Carol’s host mother prepares the Azerbaijan national meal – Dolma for us. As for desert, we request Mahira, our teacher to make us her sweet cookies which we all love to death.

Holiday is particular hard for some of our PCTs. Vivian was crying when I met her this morning at the school. She saw some turkeys on the road, which remained her of her family back in Taxes. But as soon as she starts cooking at Carol’s kitchen, she is happy again.

The lunch turns out to be wonderful. Although the chicken meat is a bit tough, the vegetables are absolutely delicious. I miss my vegetables and I keep eating and eating. I think I gain back all the weight I lost a month ago. The Dolma is very tasty too. It is the cabbage rapped with meat inside. I am not crazy about the Azerbaijani foods, but there are a few dishes that I like. Dolma is one of them.

Two more weeks, we will all go on our separate way. Maybe this is our last meal together. I will definitely miss Mahira, our teacher. She is really a nice lady. We give her our group picture which I took in the class as a gift to her. I also give her the Statue of Liberty Lady magnet so she can remember this little “Ci” student from New York. I am going to do well in the final examination so she can be proud of me.

My Life in Azerbaijan - My friends back home

November 24, 2009
Many of my friends in US read my blog and they gave me back lots of feedback and supports. I really appreciate you all being there for me. Every time when I received your e-mails or read your comments from my blog, I know I am not alone here. As I said in my blog, my life is getting more and more routine and structure. That means life here is passing very fast each day. On December 10, I will officially swear in as a Peace Corps Volunteer. The US ambassador in Azerbaijan will come to our ceremony and gives us our Peace Corps Volunteer pin. I am looking forward to that day to come. It will be my other accomplishment.

Friends, to continue supporting me, I hope all of you will visit Peace Corps website and make your donation. Your money will be used to help projects we are doing here in Azerbaijan or projects that are needed in other part of the world where Peace Corps is served. Can I depend on you all?

My life in Azerbaijan - Another Famous Sitemate

November 24, 2009
I just found out yesterday that the lady who sits next to me in the class everyday is another famous lady in the US. Carol was a classmate of Mrs. Hillary Clinton. They both went to the same law school and Carol was only a year behind Mrs. Clinton. Carol told me that she supported Mrs. Clinton during her campaign and she would have been working in the White House if she was elected. Wow, I am impressed.

Before I came to Azerbaijan, I knew that I would be meeting a lot of interesting people and I am right. Most of my elderly Peace Corps friends have achieved many things in their lives. Vivian, a famous cook mentioned in the New York Times twice, Julie, a rich lady once ran a robotic company; Judy owned an art gallery, Anwar, a hotel owner, and now Carol, classmate of Mrs. Clinton. There are ten of us over 40 years old and one thing we all have in common is: we want to give something back to the world, either with our experience, knowledge or wisdom.

Back home, we all have a relatively comfortable life, some even have a very luxury life, but we are willing to give it up for two years. Some of our families and friends are still struggling to accept our decisions to join the Peace Corps. Even the people whom we are helping in Azerbaijan do not understand why we can work for no salary.

I think the concept of volunteering is a high level of human esteem or motivation. We do the volunteer work become it makes us feel good; make us feel we have accomplished another goal in our lives, or maybe more. I guess each of us will figure it out by the end of my two years service here in Azerbaijan.

My Life in Azerbaijan - Our common problems

November 18, 2009

Right now I am in bed, wearing many layers of clothing in order to keep warm. My host family has a heater on the 2nd floor apartment. I usually keep my door closed to have some privacy, so my room is not warm enough. However, I am not complaining. Compare to Vivian, I am so much luckier than she is. Few weeks ago, her host family left Vivian alone in the house without any heat and gas. For four days, she did not take a shower, no hot water and she only had apples and cold breads for dinner. Vivian has lost lots of weight!

Vivian is happy that she lost some weight but I am just afraid that if she continues to lose more weight, she will eventually get very weak and then sick. “Two more weeks, Chi, I am getting out of here, so I am not going to complain, only two more weeks!” Vivian has a positive altitude, but who knows what her next host family situation will be when she gets to her permanent site.

It is really not easy to be a Peace Corps Volunteer here in Azerbaijan. So far, everyone has suffered in various degrees. Sometimes, we have no electricity, some PCVs do not have enough food to eat, many of us do not have hot water for shower, and the heating system is not reliable or just not available at all. We are constantly feeling cold both indoor and outdoor. On top of that, we still have to worry about doing our laundries, catching up with our language lessons, preparing our CED homework, and last but not least, how to survive with our meager allowances from the Peace Corps.

Vivian and I try to save money, so neither one of us is willing to spend money. Simple things like, soda, cookies and snacks which cost more than 1 manat (US$0.82) seem like such a luxury items for us that we refuse to buy them. Some of the cheap cookies which I would never consider eating them in the States are now look so yummy. When I received the allowance, I would buy ten cookies and ate one a day until the next allowance came. Its sounds so horrible, I hope my family in HongKong will never read this journal, or my sister will come to Azerbaijan and take me home immediately.

I am not upset about the situation. I was expecting the worse. The life I am living now in Azerbaijan will only make me appreciate things more. I am experiencing how other people live. What I am seeing now may not be so pretty but it is the reality outside of the United States. When I return home, I will have a new altitude, new prospective, and definitely I will be a new person. Finally, I am proud to write my name as:

Chi S. Chan, CPA,
RPCV *
Azerbaijan 2009-2011

* RPCV: Returned Peace Corps Volunteer

My Life in Azerbaijan - Site Announceent

November 10, 2009

Finally, my real Peace Corps life for the next 2 years has been determined. I will be working for the RabitaBank of Azerbaijan. According to Peace Corps, it is the head office in Baku that requests my service, but since no Peace Corps Volunteer is allowed to work in Baku, so I will be placed in the Sumgayit branch. Sumgayit is the town I am living now, and it is the third biggest city in Azerbaijan. It only takes about 20-minute bus ride to get to Baku. Baku is very modern. It is the “Dubai” of Azerbaijan.

The population in Sumgayit is about 290,000. With the American standard, Sumgayit without any doubt is an unattractive city. Most buildings are old and ugly. The villages around the city are even worst. The only fine-looking buildings in the downtown area are the Palace of Culture and Trade Centre by the Caspian Sea. The highest apartment building is only 12 stories.

When I found out my placement, I was very disappointed. Some of my site mates also felt very bad for me. No one wanted to stay in Sumgayit. After the training, we are all looking forwards to leaving this place for good. I wanted to live in the mountain region so I can do some hiking, but now I will be staying here for two years. But I am an optimist person; I would like to look at the arrangement as the glass “half full”. There are many advantages for me to stay here working for the bank.

First, I do not have to move again! Most of the PCVs are still struggling to live with their host family here. When December comes, they have to do it all over again. They might find their situation is worst than what they are having now. I like and I am beginning to feel comfortable living with my host family. They are very kind to me. The family has accepted me as one of their own.

Second, working for the Bank will only add more credential to my resume. According to my job description, I will be working closely with the branch director, helping him to train staffs, improve their professional skill, do presentations on relevant topics at the head office and branch office, promote a better understanding of how US banking system operates. Most importantly, I will be reporting directly to the head office in Baku about the branch’s daily operation. All these responsibilities will only improve my professional skill, hopefully when I return to the US, I can find a job in the bank or even work for the US Treasury Department.

I still remember why I join the Peace Corps. I come here to help the people of Azerbaijan. If my skill has any value to them, I should be grateful that I can assist them. Flexibility, patience and a sense of humor are what I need to deal with any unexpected situation. I have faith in God, and so far he has been guiding me each step of the way. When times that I had reservation about my being here, God helped me to get through those moments, and of course, “J”, a life time friend being there to share my pain.

I am planning to visit Julie in Samaxi, do some hiking with her in the Spring. I will visit Vivian in Genja, she will show me all the cute babies in the orphanage. Two years will fly by so fast before I even have a chance to catch my breath…… I know it..

My Life in Azerbaijan - Test Results

November 2, 2009

Well, our language test result is in. I received “Low - medium” and Vivian got “Low - low”. I am a little disappointed. I was hoping to get a “Low - high”. I have no problem remember words, just find it difficult to put together a grammatically correct sentence. Azerbaijani does not have proposition, instead it has suffixes, which is my main problem. Each personal pronoun receives a different suffix based on a vow harmony, location, direct object or tenses. Not only it sounds complicated, it is actually complicated. I need time to understand the grammar and the sentence structure better. Once I learn that, I will be able to put the sentence together logically, but my problem is time. All the Peace Corps Trainees agree, we just simply do not have enough time everyday.

From Monday to Saturday, we have class from 9:00am until 5:30pm. On top of that, we have projects, presentations, site visits and other home work to do. We only have Sunday off and most of us use that day to send e-mails home. Peace Corps put a lot of pressure on us to learn the local language. We are here only one month, it is a very short time period for anyone to learn and master the language. For the elderly trainees, language is their main hurdle. Some of them refuse to learn the language. Personally I think their attitude is wrong, nevertheless, I understand their frustration.

I like my language teacher. She is a very nice Azerbaijan lady and she tried very hard to help me and Vivian. She even spent extra time to tutor Vivian and me. I am going to try harder this time. I am not a quitter. I know I can learn, I just need to try a little harder. I want to and I have to God please helps me!

My Life in Azerbaijan - My Exercise

October 31, 2009

The town I am living in is very flat. There are no mountains, not even a little hill for me to climb. I am lacking exercise. Once I feel better, I want to do some daily route exercise. The weather is getting cold and walking along the Caspian Sea is out of the question. If I go running around the neighborhood, the qonso (neighbors) will definitely think that I am crazy. I will get a lot of attention or maybe the police will come and take me to the mental hospital.

I need my exercise which is the only way to keep me healthy. Everyday, I spend 10 hours at school learning the language and culture lessons. When I return home, it is already 6:00pm. After dinner, my study hours last until 11:00pm. I am not active at all. Recently I figure out a way to keep myself fit. I use the stairs! My host family’s house has two levels. There is a little stairway leading up to the second floor. For the past few weeks, I have been using it as my exercise tool. I climb the stair every morning about 20-30 times until my heart starts beating fast.

At the beginning, my host mother and sisters all stared at me and they said something about my silly action. I could not use too many Azerbaijani words to explain what I was doing, so I just let them stared. After a week or so, they all got used to my daily routine. When the neighbor (they have lots of neighbors) comes to the house in the morning, my host family would say a few words to depend me. I just smiled to their neighbors and climbed my stair.

I am going to increase my climbing exercise from 30 times to maybe 50 times. That should keep me fit and healthy.

My Life in Azerbaijan - Mid Term Examination

October 30, 2009

Time does go by so fast here. I have been here in Azerbaijan more than a month now. Tomorrow is our mid term language examination. I am very nervous about the test tomorrow. Each PCT is required to have fifteen minutes Azerbaijani conversation with our teachers. We will be graded based on our ability to interact with them, and depends on how well the conversation is carried out, we then will receive a grade as high, intermediate, or low.

Vivian and I are the “weakest link” in the class. The other young PCVs are doing much better than two of us. Compare to Vivian, however, I am doing a little better than she is. Vivian always has a sense of humor. She told me that tomorrow she would just sit in front of the LCF, freeze, cry, and then plead for mercy. I know she did not mean it, so I told her, whatever she was planning to do, just try not to wet her pants and keep up with her grace. We both had a good laugh. Both of us study very hard and our teacher realizes that too. Our language teacher told us not too worries; just relax and try to have a casual conversation.

I was a straight A student in collage, but I did study very hard to get those good grades. Maybe I am getting older now. Trying to be the head of the class is no longer that important to me. I just want to learn some basis Azerbaijani so I can get by with my daily life here. I will relax, smile, then cry and beg for mercy tomorrow. J Vivian and I will receive the low for sure, just do not how low it will get, but who cares, we come here to help people with our heart, not our month.

My Life in Azerbaijan - Cold but I am warm

October 27, 2009

Yesterday, the weather took a 360 degree change. The day before, the temperature was at the 80s and suddenly, the wind picked up at night. Next morning, it rained and the temperature dropped to about 50 degree. Here in the small town of Jorat, heating system does not exist. The only way to keep warm is to wear layers and layers of clothing. Our town is next to the Caspian Sea, the wind brings in moisture from the Sea and it makes the temperature feel much colder than it actually is. I do not have an extra oz of fat in my body to keep myself warm so I have to dress like an Eskimo, drink lots of Isti Cay (hot tea) before leaving for school.

It usually takes me less than 10 minutes to walk to school, but that morning, the wind was really blowing hard. Even my host mother’s chickens refused to come out from their little hut to be fed. The birds were not singing that morning either. The wind was making everything miserable. On my way to school, I was nearly being blown off from the side walk. But when I reached the school, everything changed. I felt warm and happy right away.

By the entrance of my school, usually there are five NeNe(s) (grandmothers) sitting by the door to greet the school children. When I first arrived at the school in October, they all stared at me with a stone face. By nature, I am a very cheerful person, so I gave them a big Salam (greetings) and of course, no one understood my Azerbaijani. So I approached the oldest one, (in Azerbaijan, the oldest person usually receives the most respect) I held her hands and said Salam again to her. This time, she understood and gave me a big, big smile. After that morning, they all remember me and give me a cheerful greetings everyday.

That morning, as soon as they saw me walking in the wind, they all came out to the window and greeted me with some Azeri words which I could not understand. When I reached them, I was surrounded by them and they touched my hands, my shoulders and pull me inside. Since that day, I know I have five new NeNes who love me in Azerbaijan.

My Life in Azerbaijan - My famous PC Site Mate

October 25, 2009

Everyone is concerned about my health. This morning, my host sister takes me and my site mate Vivian to the Bazaar. I can buy whatever I want. She insists to buy me some bananas. I love banana and I do miss it, but it is very expense here in Azerbaijan. Banana has to be imported to this country. Average Azerbaijani cannot afford to buy banana. I feel bad that my host family has to spend extra money to get me the banana.

After we get home, Vivian wants to cook me lunch. As we start talking about our past, Vivian begins to open up and reveals more secret about herself. Back in the US, Vivian was a famous cook. Her name was mentioned twice in the New York Times. She used to have her own Catering business in Dallas Texas. Her famous clients include Prince of Saudi Arabia, Lara Bush, Macy store, Henry Kissinger and Nancy Reagan. She was named as one of the best Caterers in the US by the New York Times. When she catered the party for Nancy Reagan, she had the secret service in her kitchen for two weeks!

I am very impressed about her story. I am more impressed that she decided to come here in Azerbaijan and wanted to help the people here. Vivian and I get along very well. We spend more and more time together studying, chatting, and cooking. Life in this poor village of Azerbaijan begins to seem getting better everyday. This afternoon, she makes me a very simple vegetables dish. It is so delicious and healthy. Few weeks ago, she also made an apple pie for Kim, her host family and me. It was absolutely delicious! I ask her to start giving me cooking lessons, perhaps when I return to the US, I can cook for “J” and if he likes my cooking, maybe I can keep him for good.

Life has its way to amaze me, my life here in Azerbaijan was harsh and difficult at one point, but now I begin to see the silver lining. I like it here.

My life in Azerbaijan - The beauty of Azerbaijan

October 24, 2009

Today is a Culture Day, Peace Corps takes us to visit Azerbaijan ancient site called Qobustan. The place is located south of Baku along the Caspian Sea. Qobustan is full of Petrography and cave painting. According to the historical museum, this place is more than 5,000 years old. Once upon a time, this place was very green and full of human activities.

I have not done any hiking since I arrived here in Azerbaijan. As soon as we arrive at Qubostan, I feel alive. The mountain air, the hiking trail and the historical ancient ruins remind me the place I love: the Utah Desert. There are many human images, animal figures and various hunting weapons carved high up on the rock walls. In the afternoon, we move to another place which also reminds me another place in the US: the Yellow Stone National Park. There are lots of mud volcanoes.

Another interesting fact about Azerbaijan is: this country is rich with oil. Some places, the oil is so pure that it does not even require any refining process. As soon as we enter to this “Park” (in Azerbaijan, the government has not yet set up any national park to protect its nature beauty), there is a hole on the ground which is covered with black shinning oil. The oil actually oozes out from underground to the surface. One of our PCV dips her figure to the hole and let us smell the oil. If this place exists in the US, it would have been destroyed.

There are many beautiful places that exist in Azerbaijan. Some of those places are still less known by the outside world. Because of that, they remain their natural beauty and have not yet been destroyed by human intervention. I am grateful that I am one of those handful people who can see those beauties before they are gone. On the other hand, if more people know about those places and come to Azerbaijan, it will bring in significant tourist income to the country and perhaps the life of Azerbaijani will be improved. I think the future of Azerbaijan lies on its people and only they have the right to decide what is best for their country.

My Life in Azerbaijan - Doctor's order

October 23, 2009
Since I came back from Ujar, some people from my group noticed that I am getting too thin. My clothing all seems too big. My pants no longer fit; my shirts are falling off my shoulders. I look at myself in the mirror and see my face becoming thinner. Even my host mother notices it after I returned from the Ujar. My site mate Carol is concerned so she tells our LCF. (LCF is responsible for our well being during the training) Therefore, today, my PST pays a family visit to my host mother. She wants to find out why I continue to lose weight.

I have not been feeling well and gotten sick a few days since I arrived in Azerbaijan. My stomach does not agree with the water and foods here. In addition, the food here is just lack of variety. I am missing lots of vegetables and fiber on my diet. My host family is not feeding me enough good and nutritious foods, plus I am not crazy about the Azerbaijan cooking. It is too oily. Everyday, I go to school only with 2 small potatoes, a cucumber and an apple. Dinner, I eat very little if I do not like the food.

I am kind of embarrassed about the whole situation. My culture taught me to be humble when living with others. I should not demand for extra treatment while I am staying in other people’s home. If I do not like their foods, then I should just be hungry. I think that is how I have been dealing with my situation for the past few weeks. As a result, I lost more and more weight.

My host sister and I work out a plan. Monday, we will go shopping together and I will buy all the foods that I want. I can either do my own cooking or continue eat with the host family. I hope this plan will work, or I will end up less than 90 lbs by the end of the training.

My Life in Azerbaijan - Quitting the PC

October 16, 2009 – Quiting the Peace Corps

Well, it is official. Two people from our group decided to quit. Both claimed it was because of their health problem. It is only the 2nd week of the training, some people already think about leaving. Some PSTs predicate, by the end of the training, there will be at least four more people exiting.

For whatever reason these individuals decide to quit, I understand their decision. Not many people can be happy to live the kind of life here in Azerbaijan, especially those who are so used to the material world and the comfortable lifestyle back home. Here in Azerbaijan, most of the towns and villages are poor. Every where you see, there are broken buildings, unpaved roads, dirty alleys, dusty roads and ugly buses, not to mention smelly toilets and dreadful neighborhoods. There are no street lights; water has to be boiled for drinking, electricity is not reliable and taking a hot shower may require lot of effort. Most of the stores only carry minimum supplies. The luxury things do not exist here in this small town of Jorat or any town in Azerbaijan except in the Capital - Baku. Try not to get sick too because there is not even one hospital or clinic around here in town.

Some days, life can be very lonely here. When you miss your family, friends and the loved one back home; it is quite difficult to carry on. In order to continue serving the Peace Corps, it requires not just a few simple adjustments as Peace Corps suggested, but a lot more. Whatever the dedication and commitment you have few months ago before leaving for Azerbaijan, consider to multiple 10, 20 or even 100 times more. If you are not happy now during the training, you are going to be even unhappier when the real Peace Corps life begins. For those PCTs who already thinking about leaving Peace Corps, I urge them to end their misery now. Peace Corps definitely is not for everyone.

My Life in Azerbaijan - Lost in Azerbaijan

Today is Sunday, my site mate Vivian and I decide to take an hour walk along the Caspian Sea. We plan to meet at her host family at 10:00am. I am still not familiar with the neighborhood, so I leave my host family earlier so to give myself enough time to look for her house. The night before, I got the instruction from other PCV how to get to Vivian’s house, so I thought I remember.

My neighborhood has many small alleys and most of the roads are in a very bad condition. There are no street names, the address of all the houses are very confusing. The only way to find the way around is either to draw a very detailed map or to memorize all the landmarks. I am very bad in direction. I even got lost in Queens back home. The first week with my host family, I already got lost three times walking from the school to my host family. I know it is going to be an adventure to find Vivian house.

I turn left from my host family home and walk toward the Caspian Sea as instructed. Five minutes later, I find myself standing in front of a ruin building. The surrounding is totally unfamiliar to me. I try to find my way back to my host family, but all the alleys look the same. I cannot remember which alley belongs to my host family. Now I am completely LOST. I only know a few words of Azerbaijani and I do not even know my host family’s address. If I call my host sister to get me, I cannot even tell her where I am. Finally, I call Kim, the PCV who gave me the instruction last night.

Chi “ Kim, I am lost”
Kim: “Where are you?”
Chi “Don’t know, I am scared”
Kim: “Can you tell me some of the landmarks?”
Chi:”I stand in front of a ruin building and next to it, is a long old building look like a dormitory”
Kim: “What else?”
Chi: “Don’t really know?”
Kim: “Try to walk back to a paved road and I will come get you”
Chi: “I tried, I cannot find the paved road either?”
Kim: “ok, I will try to find you”

Five minutes later, Kim shows up at the end of the alley. I feel so STUPID! Well this is going to be part of my life in Azerbaijan :)

My Life with Peace Corps - Hunting for Internet

We have not had an internet connection since Monday, which is four days ago. Everyone is eager to e-mail home. During the week, our classes occupy most of our time. We have language training since 9:00am and the class does not end until 5:00pm or 6:00pm. After dinner, we still have to study to keep up with our lessons. By the end of the week, we are all very tired. We miss our families and friends back home.

During the week some PCVs found out the nearest internet café and they went out at night to check out the location. I am a single girl, the Azeri culture does not allow single woman wondering around at night alone. My street has no street light, after dark it is very dark and I have not been allowed by my host family to venture out at night. This is another disadvantage living with a host family. Our freedom is restricted. Saturday afternoon after school, my cluster (CED group) decided to take a marsrutka (minibus) and go to town for a little fun. As soon as we found out the internet location, we all buried ourselves in the café.

It cost 0.20 – 0.40 AZN (US$0.25-$0.50) for 30 minutes. It seems cheap but if you only have 17 AZN per week as allowance, it does not seem cheap after all. I am an accountant and I know how to budget my allowance to live through the week. I will keep my spending into minimum in other areas, but internet access is important to me, no matter how expensive it is.

Finally, I sent out all my e-mails. Life seems lonely and hard right now in Azerbaijan but knowing that I have my strong supports from friends and family back home, I feel much better.

My Life with Peace Corps - Azerbaijan

I am glad; serving Peace Corps finally becomes a reality. My purpose of life becomes more apparent on the date I accepted Peace Corps' invitation. For the next two years, I will have a new life and a new adventure. I am happy, really happy. I have the life I am longing for, I have my family to support my decision, I have friends to cheer me off and finally, "J", the love of my life, I have him to give me the comfort that I need the most…....I am really excited about what lies ahead.

Time to say goodbye to all my friends!

October 5, 2009 – Moving in to the Bahramov Family

Today I move in to my host family. The family consists of three lovely daughters and a grandmother. My first impression of the Bahramov’s family is: very friendly. They keep staring at me and they talk endlessly about me. They welcome me to their home and bring all their friends and relatives to see me. They also introduce me to their many neighbors. The little boys and girls range from six years old to twelve years old from the nearby neighborhood all come to see this little “Chin” from the America.

I have my own little room with simple furniture: a small desk, two chairs, and a bed. The family seems to be living well; they even have a washing machine. The father is a farmer and the mother is working in a private organization as an electricial engineer. The eldest daughter is studying in the University and wants to become a translator. She speaks English very well, which helps me a lot. The other sister is studying to be a doctor. The youngest sister also attends the university. The living condition is better than I have expected. I can even take a hot shower everyday! However, the minor discomfort such as lack of privacy, cleanness, and convenience are unavoidable. I do miss my apartment, my little cozy place in New York City.

I have to admit, living with a host family probably is the most difficult part of the whole Peace Corps experience, especially for an independent person like me. My host family is very eager to know me, but it is this eagerness that sometimes I feel like I cannot breathe. They watch me constantly, even when I am in my room studying. They come and go into my room as they please. Closing my bedroom door does not guarantee privacy. The only time I can be left alone is when I turn off my light and go to bed. This lack of privacy sometimes makes me depressed, but I constantly remind myself that I come to this country for a purpose; a noble purpose. I cannot and will not be discouraged by this little discomfort. If I can do this, I can go back home and do anything.

ctober 8, 2009 – The Language Training

I am glad that I have done all my language homework before coming to Azerbaijan. The language training turns out to be very intensive. Our instructor speaks very little English which can be good and bad. She is extremely patient with us. The oldest person in our group has the most difficult time to learn the language. She struggles and I sense her pain. My progress is good since I already studies most of the lessons in New York, but to speak fluently will take more effort. Everyday I come home; I just lock myself inside my room and study.

I miss New York, I miss my friends, I miss hiking and I miss “J”. We had a wonderful time in Philadelphia, which made it very difficult to say goodbye to him. For all these years, my heart always has a special place for him. I donot know what our future holds, but I am certain more than ever that we will spend the rest of our lifes together, whether as a friend or more.

Peace Corps - TimeLine

(Disclaimer: The contents of this website are mine personally and do not reflect any position of the U.S. Government or the Peace Corps.)

Mother Teresa once said, “What we are trying to do may be just a drop in the ocean, but the ocean would be less because of that missing drop” My desire to serve Peace Corps began in 2006 and it started to take form in 2007 and finally it became a reality by end of 2008. In September 2009, I will be on my way to carry out that dream.

Here in my blog, I’ve listed out, to the best of my recollection; a timeline summary of the whole event took place.

Here is the farewell dinner (9 courses French dinner) given by Wood, the gracious host on 8/15/2009.













March 7, 2006 – Discovered Peace Corps

During my research of the Sahara, I accidentally came across the book "Harmattan" - a journey across the Sahara, written by Geraldine Kennedy. The book was not very interesting but the background of the five women characters attracted my attention. They were the 1st group Peace Corps Volunteers sent to Liberia, Africa in 1963. This was the 1st time I learned about Peace Corp. As I did more digging about the organization, I was impressed by its missions. The thought of joining Peace Corps ignited, but because of my financial situation, working for Peace Corps was out of the question. For a while, I completely forgot about Peace Corps.

July 2006 – Moved to Wall Street

I took a new job offer in the Wall Street area. With more than $30k compensation increased, I suddenly saw the light of my early retirement. My plan was to work for five more years, payoff my mortgage, quit the high pressure job and travel for a while. I was only thinking about myself and did not consider working for Peace Corps yet.

September 2007 - Revisited Peace Corps

A year later, while I was crossing the desert in Sudan, everything changed. It was in the middle of the Bayuda desert of Sudan where I met an 8-year old Arabic girl who got me thinking about Peace Corps again.

This little girl can neither read nor write and both of her parents died when she was still an infant. As I started talking to her, I noticed that she kept staring at my note pad and watched intensively what I wrote. That moment, I felt like my heart was being torn. After I returned to New York, I could not get her out of my mind; I knew I had to do something. I wanted to help her but did not know how. Then, I thought about Peace Corps, but at that time, my financial situation precluded me from making any commitment. I had to come up with a plan, a good realistic achievable plan.

For the next nine months, I began to build my dream. I saved and saved, did not spend a penny on my bonus and just kept making lump sum payments towards my loan. By the end of March 2008, one final payment, then, I was free. NO MORE MORTGAGES!

April 14, 2008 – Visited Peace Corps New York Office

The day was my birthday, I visited Peace Corps New York office, had an hour conversation with the recruiter. I asked lots of question and left the office with a good feeling. I knew it was the right decision. First I had to let my sister know about my plan and to get her support, then get on line and file the application.

During the entire process, I only mentioned my plan to one or two closed friends in CMCNY, but none took me seriously and I was able to keep the secret for as long as I wanted.

May - August 2008 – the Long Application Process Began

I was told that the Peace Corps' application process could take anywhere from a few months to more than a year. The application form alone is 15 pages long, and demands a detail account of every relevant course taken in college, history of volunteer service, cross-culture experience, job experience and hobbies. Besides, you will need three letters of references from friends and co-workers, two essays explaining your reason to join the Peace Corps. Then, there are legal clearance, FBI background check, fingerprinted, medical questionnaires, etc. It took me a long time to put all the paperwork together and finally I submitted my application on line by the end of August 2008.

September 16, 2008 – Initial Interview

Within a week, I received a call from Peace Corps New York Office for an initial interview. More questions were asked, especially the reason for joining the Peace Corps. I was ready for this question and practiced many times in front of the mirror. I took this interview very serious, and treated it as if any job interview. At the end, I did very well. The recruiter mentioned to me that “Pacific Island” would most likely be my serving region. I really wanted a remote area, a place where people desperately need the help, not a paradise as most Peace Corps Volunteers dream about serving. Pacific Island was not my preference, but I told the recruiter that I was willing to go anywhere Peace Corps sent me.

October 29, 2008 – Received Peace Corps Nomination!

Rebecca Wong from the Peace Corps office informed me the good news. The New York Office had finished reviewing my application and I was nominated to serve the Peace Corps. From this point on, all my files would be handled by the Peace Corps Washington DC Head Quarter. A week later, the DC office sent me a big envelope with piles of paper work on the medical examination. For the next five months, I was in and out of my doctors’ office so many times; I went through so many medical screenings, testings, diagnostics, and immunizations etc. By the end of February, all my doctors were sick of seeing me and I was a bit frustrated by the seemingly endless medical requests.

March 3 2009 – Clearance of Medial

Each year, Peace Corps received more than 150,000 inquiries, tens of thousands of those people interested in applying, and only fractions are eventually accepted. I had gone as far as this point; I need to be patient with the process. Remember the advice given by other Peace Corps Volunteers: persistent, patience and sense of human, so I waited for another few months. By March, my medical clearance arrived and my file was moved to the next stage: reviewed by the placement office in DC.

March 26, 2009 – More request fom HQ

I received an e-mail from the DC HQ, asking for updated information. I wrote back right away and waited for another two weeks, nothing but I was afraid to call them.

April 22, 2009 – I Missed the Phone Call from HQ

April, 22, received another e-mail from Peace Corps,

Hello Chi,
My name is Brennan Winter and I am the Volunteer Placement and Assessment Specialist responsible for your application. I am writing to follow up with a voicemail that I left you on April 2. I would like to speak with you regarding your application. Please give me a call as soon as possible. If I do not hear from by May 1 then I will withdraw your application. Thank you for your prompt response.

some one from DC left me a message on 4/2, apparently, I missed her call two weeks ago. I panicked and called DC right away and left them a very urgent message, telling them how sorry I was to miss their 1st phone call. .

April 23, 2009 – Official Invitation Arrived

Next day, I called Peace Corps to follow up, apologized again. Peace Corps staffs were very nice. They asked me more questions and finally asked me where I would like to serve. I told them, my only purpose to work for Peace Corps was to help others, I had no preference as where to serve and I was willing to go anywhere Peace Corps sent me. They liked the answer and informed me that they would get back to me in 2 days.

I sent them a thank you note that afternoon, and right away, I got the placement notification.

Hello Chi,
Thank you for the email. Your flexibility and dedication will serve you very well in Peace Corps. I’ve spoken with one of my colleagues and we have identified a new program for you. This is a Community Economic Development program leaving for the Caucuses in September. I think it’s a great match with your background. We should be sending out all of the country specific information in the next week or so. Please be sure to look over everything and give us a call.

I would be going to “Azerbaijan”, AZER WHAT? never heard of this place, so I looked it up in the internet, a little beautiful country in Central Asia right by the Caucasus mountain range. Now all the sudden, the reality set in, I was 50% excited, 50% in fear. Am I really ready for this?

April 30, 2009 – A New Beginning

I received a big blue envelope from Peace Corps today. I had to accept the invitation in 10 days. Lots of things went through my mind that morning: quit my job, inform my family my decision, take care of all my financial and insurance obligations, my apartment, my plants....the list goes on and on.

But I have a very good feeling, besides feeling happy, I feel proud, very proud of being selected (14,000 applicants, only 4,000 was chosed). I know Peace Corps only selects the best and the brighest. I am proud to represent the United States of America. It is this country that provided me with the opportunity 20+ years ago so I could pursuit and finally acheive many many of my dreams.

Today, I am dleighted to serve and represesnt this country. I will do my best, the very best for this land.

In Quest of "The Place No One Knew"

In May 2009, I organized my 1st backpacking trip to Utah / Arizona, six of us: HY Lee, Koti Chen, Sunny Chen, Jim Wang, Quang Tran and I hiked total 60 miles in the desert. We first explored the world famous "Buckskin Gulch", then backpacked 4 days inside the Paria River Canyon, finally, we ended our trip by hiking down to the Navajo Mountain. The three-part series of my Journal "The Plan No One Knew" are currently published in CMCNY.org:

Part 1- Paria River

Part 2- Rainbow Bridge, a real way

Part 3 - Buckskin Gulch

Mt. Rainer 2 - the closing chapter

I climbed Mt. Rainer the 2nd time in August 2008. After the failure on the 1st try in June 2007, I decided to sign up with RMI. The 5-days package turned out to be an excellent choice. I should have done it the 1st time. The danger, the hardship and the entire climbing ordeal was documented in my journal. See CMCNY.org or see the “link” section.