Normalcy---or something close to it.

I have finally reached a point in this adventure at which I mostly know what to expect. This is quite exciting. That is not to say that I am not still constantly surprised by things, like why Kyrgyz people say the grass is blue (even though it's obviously green), but I have started to have somewhat of a stable schedule. Right now Alex and I teach Beginner and Intermediate/Advanced English clubs 2 days a week at my school and at his. We also teach an adult class on Thursdays and Fridays. Additionally, I've also been tutoring a few advanced students individually. So far it has been good.

At this point most of the kids in our village yell “Hello” or “Good Morning Teacher” whenever they see me which is quite silly. Most people in the village are aware of our presence and know why we are in Bakai-Ata which is a bit of a relief. People don't seem so surprised to see a white guy and an Indian girl walking down the street. We have also started to go guesting. In Kyrgyzstan guesting is when you are invited to someone's house for copious amounts of Chai, dinner, and general merry making. It has been interesting to meet so many new people and it has been really good Kyrgyz language practice. I think my language has improved quite a bit since we have arrived.

At home we have begun to spend more time with our family as they seem slightly less busy (the first round of farm work is complete). Over the weekend we spend half a day working in the fields with our sister and cousins. It was tremendously hard work. I now truely understand why farm machinery was invented. That said, the drive home was gorgeous. Wide fields bordered with wild flowers and mountains reaching for the sky in all directions. We also worked on cleaning up the area in front of our new little home. Yesterday we made a cake entitled “Day and Night” or “Half Moon” and made a salad with American dressing (in Kyrgyzstan their dressing is either a lot of salt or mayonnaise---yuck!). Tomorrow, my school's staff are going to go on an excursion for a day which I am very excited about. After that we will visit our friend Thomas's village on his Birthday. Then upon our return, we will begin painting our new house. Exciting huh?

Well, that's the news for now. I am attempting to attach a picture of our backyard, a picture from a party we went to, and a picture of our future home.

Athena