Quba!

Monday was a holiday, Military Day, and Saturday was a day off too (I don't come in on Saturdays, so whatever!) so it was a nive long weekend in Baku. Oksana from work invited me to go to Quba with her and some people she had met at a human rights training a year before. So off we went!

Quba is 3-4 hours away from Baku. It is a small city to the North of Baku, getting towards the border with Russia. Fidel Castro jokes are not appreciated. We didn't really go to the city itself, we went out in the mountains to spend the day "relaxing."

First, I went to Sumgait, where Oksana lives. It is about half an hour from Baku. Sumgait was built to be an industrial city- LOTS of factories, making chemicals. Most of them are closed now. The city is just blocks and blocks of apartments, and a big beach on the Caspian.

When we were there, it was HOT. Brain frying hot. We walked on the beach (you can drive cars there! and most people here don't swim!) and there is a rusty boat sitting out on a pier (one of the few things the guide book mentions about Sumgait!) and hung out with her friend who works in a pirated dvd/cd shop. Oksana actually lives outside of town in "Voenniy Gorodok" which means literally "military town". It's 6 apartment buildings next to a small airbase surrounded by empty fields and the mountains. Like, the midddle of nowhere! But, everyone there knows each other, and they stop by each other's apartments to talk. It may be isolated, but it's a community! Her mom stuffed me with yummy food including blinchiki with tvorog, which i LOVE! Oksana's mom is Tatar and Bashkir, and her father is Azeri and Iranian, and so i told her that she is like an american- all mixed up!

Saturday we got up bright and early and met the van full of her friends on the road to Quba. We drove up to Quba listening to russian pop all the way. We stopped at a shrine- a domed building by the road near a rock outcropping called 5 fingers- and left some money for a good trip. Superstisious!

When we got to Quba, we stopped at the bazaar to get food- meat, fruit, drinks. It took FOREVER- because, as it turns out, THEY WERE KILLING THE LAMB! Here, the fresher the better, so the guys went and picked out the lamb and there you go! I mean, here in the USA we divorce ourselves from the idea that our meat was once a cute little animal and buy it all wrapped in plastic. But I felt bad!

IRONICALLY, we didn't even eat the lamb we slaughtered. We went to an outdoor picnic space out in the mountains where they cook your meat and serve you and everything for a fee. They mixed up out meat with someone else's, the days big disappointment.

Anyway, we sat, we ate, we played in the river, we climbed a mountain! The driver said, hey there's a waterfall around here. So we all went to the waterfall. I thought it would be a 20 minute stroll down the river. No, it was a 3 kilometer hike up the mountain! One of those climbs that you remember forever becasue of how freakin hard it was. Pictures of the waterfall etc. can be found at

my flickr account

I would put some up here, but I can't get it to work lately.

OK, the trip was almost a week ago. I'm lagging! Hopefully I will have internet access at the conference next week, in which case I should have time to post tons.

Martyr's Alley

Saturday, I met Greg (Finally! A fellow IU-er also here in Baku) and then headed on up to Martyr's Alley. I was there before, but in the middle of the night, and no pictures. So I headed back in the brutal sun, camera ready!

Up on the highest point in Baku there is a collection of memorials, putting them in a place of honor to show how important they are. To get there, you can take a funiculot train- the hill is STEEP! At the top, there is a mosque, a memorial to Turkish/Azeri friendship, Martyr's Alley, an eternal flame for unknown soldiers, plus some of the most spectacular views of the city. And apparently the grave of former president Heydat Aliyev, but I couldn't find that.

For pictures, go here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/denisemish

There are 2 kinds of Martyr's: those who died in the Nagorno Karabakh war, and those killed by Russian soldiers on January 20, 1990. Those who died in the war are buried in a graveyard next to the alley, slightly higher up then the path. The path is bright and the sun is strong, but the graveyard is dark under trees, and each grave is marked by a black tombstone with a portrait carved in white. On the alley, there are similar gravestones on a wall to commemorate those who died in 1990. Russian troops fired on unarmed civilian protesters amid the chaos of the crumbling Soviet Union. The level of force used by the Russians was completely out of proportion to the actual threat caused by the protestors. Among the dead are children. It is honestly one of the best memorials I've seen.

At the end of the alley you come out on a wide plaza, high above the city, with a huge tower containing an eternal flame. The city is beatiful from here. And you can climb even higher for better views.

Yeah, it was great.

Friday!!!!!!!!

The week is winding down here and we have a long weekend (no Saturday, Sunday, or Monday work (Not that I come in on Saturday. I'm an American!)) for an unknown holiday (the most info I can get is that it has something to do with the military, it's not on any official calendars that I can find).

This weekend I am going out of town to Quba (in the north of AZ, no cigar making dictators or enemy combatants). Very excited. There will be pictures.

AND, the big news is that I'm going to a NATO conference the week after next! The director of my NGO sent my resume and and they accepted me. It's called "Summer session of NATO International School in Azerbaijan “Perspectives of Euro-Atlantic integration in the region of three seas” "

It will be really interesting to be at an international conference, and the topic is interesting too!

So everything is on the up and up here. Lots of interviews, and i think i'm starting to understand some thingas about the political situation here. Great!

Pounding the Pavement

Sorry no posts, I've been busy!

Yes, I've been "pounding the pavement," running around to interviews, so much so that I broke a shoe (my nice new shoes!) and my foot hurts. I bought 2 pairs of shoes with me, and now one is garbage and the other is getting ratty. Baku eats shoes! The sidewalks (where there are sidewalks) are an obstacle course, yesterday I said to Oksana that where we were walking it looked like a bomb had hit. But that in 10 years I bet that very street will be clean and redone and very pricy. Where I work, the steeets are very narrow, and it is common practive to park half on the sidewalk, half in the street. There are even poles that people put up with a chain between them that "saves" the space for them. You are supposed to park like that! So you usually weave through usable sidewalk (where no one is parked) and walking in the street, popping between parked cars when oncoming traffic needs to get through.

WOW, impromptu discussion of walking in Baku!

Honestly, it's all part of the experience of living in Baku, all the hustle and bustle, it's actually enjoyable. And Baku is really a feast for the eyes- I've been in the same neighborhood 2 days in a row for interviews, and it's on a big hill, and I looked up and saw a great view going down to the bay, with domes of mosques and baroque facades, Baku style! Or you'll be on a busy street, pretty developed, and look down a side street and see another world of narrow streets, old ladies selling fruit, the above mentioned bombed out streets... Really great, and makes me realize how much more there is to see!

This week I've done 4 interviews already and I think I'll do two tomorrow. Today, thankfully nothing, as my feet hurt :) I really learn something new from everyone I talk to. I'm also going to meet with a journalist this week, and since I don't know much yet about the media here, and it's history, I'm excited to start getting into this area. And then, political party representatives! Wow.

And one Azeri class already, and I go again today! I'm learning pronunciation, and I can say a few things now (How are you? This is a book.) But I didn't do my homework- I'm going to try to do it today!!!

Shirvan

Whew.. just too many pictures this weekend! So I'm uploading a batch to my flickr account here, the Shirvanshah folder.

Went to Shirvanshah's palace in the old town on Saturday- a 15th century complex with a mosque, tombs, official and living areas, and a bath complex, very beautiful. My favorite place:


It's hard to capture in the picture, but it is a room, octagonal, with six sides open archways looking out onto the courtyard. Shirvan, the Shah, would hold official meetings here. I can just imagine... sitting on the ground, on carpets, grouped around in the space.. I don't know what it is, but I really like this space. The openness of it, I really don't know how to explain.

It was SO HOT on Saturday that I could feel my shoes melting and boy did I get a tan.

End of Monday already here, I'm running out of brain power, but I'll just say I'm making a big push on the interviews, have some interesting meetings planned this week, + I am starting Azeri lessons tomorrow! It should be great! A whole fresh new language, without all the baggage like I have with ze Rahshan.

Ok, seriously tired.

Day of National Salvation

Yesterday was a holiday, the Day of National Salvation, commemmorating the day Heydar Aliyev, the former Preseident of Azerbiajan, came to power. After he died, his son was elected president, and is now in office. Strange that the day a preseident came to power should be termed "national salvation," huh? Well, welcome to Azerbaijan! There is a huge cult of personality around Heydar, with his picture up on billboards all over town, and with tons of streets, buildings, etc named after him. You can see him in the corner of the picture above, which is a picture I took of the TV- there is a little graffic of him on every channel, because today is a holiday!

Here you can see a big concert stage being set up at my metro station- it was LOUD! You can also see McDonald's in this pic, thought the juxtoposition if the Azeri symbols with the golden arches was interesting.


Yesterday, I finally had the pleasure of meetinf Fariz, who I've been in contact with since January! We had lunch, had a good political discussion where I tried to counterbalance some Republican stuff he's heard, and found out that all Azeris do know each other.

Then, I went to a training at the Gender Research Center at West University on Women and IT in Azerbaijan. It was aimed at NGO staff. I thought I could meet people, even though I didn't think the topic was super relevant.

Well, as usual in life, the opposite was true! I learned a lot from the presentation, and I didn't meet anyone from an NGO. I met a really bright student and some women who work for an oil company. I stuck around for the second session, but after 20 minutes of Azeri, I gave up hope that it was just an "intro" or something and left. I have to learn some Azeri!

In other news, I have a lot of mosquito bites and a rash on my stomach that is either a super scratched mosquito bite or a skin infection like I had in Moscow! Fingers crossed that it's a bite!

And, I've got an argument going on at my other blog- in the comments! Check it out!

3 Firsts!

Me again! Same day! Another post!

Because I have three firsts to report:

#1: First foray into modern journalism: I'm posting on a REAL blog:

http://azerbaijan.neweurasia.net/

It has original posts by contributors in Azerbaijan, and thoughout the Caucasus and Central Asia, and also collects blog posts on the region from other sites. My first post is up, I hope it's good!!

#2: I ate lunch outside in the park alone! I've wanted to eat outside to get some fresh air etc., but it does not seem to be the done thing here. Well, I did it!

#3: I met a foreigner! I popped in to the English language bookstore after #2 and actually spoke to another foreigner! An American woman. Except for dinner with Dave and his daughter, that has been the extent of my face-to-face interactions with non-Azeris in the past three weeks!

Obviously, the new blog is the most important news here. I'm excited!

Narrow old streets in old town:

The port + oil rigs seen from the old town:

Today I'm just gonna make a list of stuff i've done/seen/thought to try to catch up here.

• yesterday saw a concert- an american who plays Azeri traditional music, called mugham.
• done three interviews so far this week, one with 2 women from ABA-CEELI (American Bar Association NGO here), so it was my first meeting with an international NGO (but I spoke with local staff). Interesting- new perspectives.
• i'd like to go out to the regions for a week and do interviews there
• i'd like to go to georgia but i need someone to go with and i need to figure out my visa
• someone called me yesterday and asked me what my phone number is- why?
• someone knocked on my door last night, and in local style, i refused to open it and talked through the door. i don't now what they wanted, but they went away
• last night the moon was huge and orange- when i saw it, it literally scared me for a sec, it was shockingly big!
• it has been so windy here, supposedly this is normal. cools everything off thank god
• my place in the office has been moved and i don't know how i feel about it yet.
• i'm kinda stressed out right now by life, but i'm moody, so that will probably change soon. a few days ago I was a bundle of optimism!
• i got a mobile phone! I am hooked up now!
• this town is crawling with foreigners!
• i have a map and a guide book now, i found them in an office supply store while strolling around. I am really happy to have the guide book, now i can go to museums and do some sightseeing other than simply wandering around. and it has lots info on where to find stuff which is good.
• you know that i haven't drank ANY coffee in like 2 weeks! Me!!! the coffee monster! here they have instant, which doesn't do it for me. i drink tea! But i passed a place yesterday called "cafe latte" and i wonder if they have REAL latte, in which case i will have one. it also looked more "western," meaning i could sit there by myself and take a load off (did i already write about the fact that most cafes are filled with ONLY MEN, as in 100%, and so i can't imagine just sitting down and relaxing at them- it's one difference about life here that is difficult for me)
• i'm going to be blogging for a news blog! more to come on that.

OK. i feel like i've cleared out a bunch of stuff in my head.

OK, first of all, yesterday I went to the wedding of Ahad (who I study with at SPEA)'s brother. Really, there is nothing like getting invited to a wedding when you are in another country- it's such a great experience. Ahad invited me to the before-wedding activities, which meant that I met him at his family's apartment, and then we all drove together to the bride's apartment, and then there were some traditions to do (like tying a red ribbon around the bride's waist) and then going to take pictures, and then off to the wedding hall. There were musicians with us for all this (a drum/accordian/clarinet trio) and the cars were all marked with ribbons and honked and made a lot of noise- fun!

They had the celebration in a wedding hall in a neighborhood with about 300 or 400 other wedding halls- weddings are a huge deal here! Then you sit, eat, drink, and dance. Yum yum yum. Let's just say that caviar was involved- luxury to me! And yes, I danced. I got progressively better throughout the night i think- must have been all the shampanskoe. Dancing here involves holding your arms out sideways and moving mostly your wrists- at first i felt like I was hula-ing, but that's because I was bad.

So, me with the bride and groom:


The official from ZAGS and the official registering of the marriage:


Ahad!


Ahad dancing!


The singer, who is apparently famous:


Confetti!!!

I'm behind in my posting, mostly because pictures take a very long time to load. I'll have another post with more pictures of Baku soon.

Just to make sure that this is clear:

Baku is great!

Ahad, an Azeri I study with at SPEA, seems to think that my love of Baku is not coming though in these posts. Well, Baku is lovely and I am so glad to be here! I complain in my blogs and try to point out all the funny stuff for my friends back home. But, let's look at the good things:

#1: It is a beautiful city. In the center, there are beautiful narrow streets with wonderful turn of the century architecture. More like Paris than Moscow! But Paris with beautiful palm trees. Really, some of the buildings here are very European- the Philhormonia, or the puppet theater- while others are very "Eastern" and exotic. And the Soviets didn't mess it up! Yesterday, for example, I went the other way from my metro station, Bek Sovet, and found a really nice park with fountains and lots of palm trees. In case you haven't noticed, I like the palm trees!

#2: The people. Everyone I meet here tells me to call them anytime and I can come over. The NGOs I have met tell me to stop by anytime. People are very hospitable and caring. For instance, the first time I went to my local grocery store was a nightmare- I was fumbling with money and getting on everyone's nerves. The bread lady especially was really mean to me. But since then, I've talked with almost everyone who works there. They all ask me where I'm from, what I'm doing, they smile when they see me. Even the bread lady! In Moscow, foreigners are an annoyance usually. Here, people say, "Welcome to Azerbaijan!"

So yes, I like it and I'm having a good time. I will now go back to my previous complaining.

Yesterday I did not write because I did not have the internet on my computer. Everyone else did, but I did not. No one would seriously help me with this problem. Oh, the frustrations of the international workplace.

For those of you also interested in development: ever wonder what our local colleagues think of us, we in-country NGO staff? Oh, it's a doozy. I'm transcribing the interviews I've already done, and here are a few gems:

"And because of this I think that when international organizations, there, far away, over the oceans, send people here, they have to find out about their psychological condition first. That’s what I think. And at the same time they must send objective people, because we have the impression that these people could be more fair."

So we're crazy!

Another interviewee said that in her opinion, most international staff come here because they don't have anything better to do in their own country, or can't get a job. Geez, how much time and money am I putting into my education, JUST SO THAT IF I'M LUCKY I'LL BE ABLE TO GET A JOB OVERSEAS AFTER!!! Maybe I do have to have my psychological condition checked!

I think that yesterday the very fact that I was in Baku made me tired. At work I felt drained. Dragged myself home and watched Russian TV and went to bed early- couldn't even read, just slept. I think it was the heat- we hit 100 yesterday. Also, I think it is also adjusting to life in the office- being here 8 hours a day, it is TOUGH. I also don't feel like I'm being efficient or getting as much done as I could. I swear no one else is working much here- one guy spends all day on a personals site chetting with ladies, and even played a soccor video game yesterday.

Right now we are having office fun and teasing time, and for the first time I am being included, so I should go.

Salaam!

Not a super lot to report. Yesterday I tried unsuccessfully to buy an international telephone card (the attempts went like this: Me: Excuse me, do you have any international telephone cards? Them: No. Me: Do you know where I can find them? Them: No. Repeat 20 times.)

One thing I did do is cross the craziest street ever. I went to the Ramstore on Saturday, I thought I could get a lot of the stuff I needed there. I was told I could walk there, it's at my metro stop. Well I walked- forever! In the hot hot sun! It is not walkeable I have decided. I was really thinking that I should just turn around when I finally found it. However, it was on the other side of a HUGE roundabout. I had to cross 11 LANES of traffic with no stoplight! I stood on the side of the road for at least 5 minutes contemplating the situation and planning my strategy. Graceful? No. Successful? Yes. I made it!

Anyway, here are some pictures I took from the windows of my apartment.

Some apartments across from me:


Tin roofs:


It's hard to tell in the haze, but that's the Caspian behind the building.



A cafe and the street:



My courtyard:

What a feast!

Yesterday after work I went for a walk around town with Sabina, frequent visitor at IU. It was amazing- I work so close to the main streets and other places, but didn't know it- i just went back and forth to the metro, afriad of getting lost, and, well, having to go to work. She took me to see the Maiden's tower, the symbol of Baku, we also strolled down the main pedestrian street in town, and walked around Central Baku. It's really a beautiful city- small streets, beautiful buildings, parks, palm trees, the sea. Really nice.



Then, we went to a Azerbaijani restaurant and ATE. They like to feed you here. I have learned (already) to skip lunch if I'm not eating at home so I can eat properly ravenously when I am with Azeris and make them happy (and not explode). Oh my God, the food was good- nice appetizers, and then sturgeon from the Caspian, breaded, over some delicious potato thing, with this amazing cream sauce on top, sprinkled with pomegranate seeds. Words cannot describe how great it was. And then, another course (!!!), lamb with potatoes and peppers and tomoatoes, all cooked and served on a flattened wok, also delicious. With Georgian wine, which I haven't had in ages and missed very much. And then dessert even! They take young walnuts before they get hard and can them (or something). They are very sweet and spicey, almost like cinnamon and cloves etc. And also a jelly made from roses "picked at dawn before they open." In a word, fabulous.




Last night, i was sleeping, and i was woken up by knocking and the phone ringing. Needless to say, I was worried. I crept to the door, afriad to answer the phone because then whoever was at the door would know that I was there, but at the same time knowing that whoever was at the door was probably calling. Well, it ws my landlady,. AT 2:30 IN THE MORNING!!!!!!! She comes in, really sorry, and tells me that she is laeving tomorrow and needs to get her luggage that she left at my apartment. SHE SLEEPS AT MY PLACE AGAIN! I had to wake up and come in for an interview this morning, so I got up and went about my business and she was sleeping on the couch. While I was eating breakfast (oh yeah- MOLDY CAKE!!! Morning surprise!) she finally left with her stuff. No she is off in the regions, THANK GOD!




Today, another interview, this time with the head of an anti-trafficking NGO. SHe was very opinionated and very political! Just my style! Interestingly (to me), when I asked her how a stronger civil society could be buily here, she said we need more democracy, we need fair elections, we need an independant judiciary. In other responses to, she was calling for liberal systems and increased individualism. It is interesting for me to see these attitudes here. After the main part of the interview, she basically asked me if I was going to use this information AGAINST NGOS here. I was like, no way!!! I try to say very little during the interviews so as not to influence the answers, and the detachment may seem like judgement I guess. Or maybe I need to work on my questions. Well, then we had a great discussion of democratization- she told me the AZ perspective on the US's activities in AZ, and I told her what I thought about the US's policies. and then we talked about Karabakh.




Anyway, this weekend I'm going to do some shopping at Ramstore- a European department store (if I can find it) and walk around town a bit more.




Enjoy the pictures of Baku!

From the US Embassy website:

Driving hazards such as open manholes, debris, sinkholes and potholes are common. Drivers do not pay attention to traffic regulations, signals, lanes, pedestrians or other drivers. Drivers often travel at extremely high speed, and accidents are frequent and often serious. Driving in Baku should be considered extremely hazardous. Outside the city, even where roads are present, conditions are similar. Roads are often in poor repair, unlit, and lack lane markings, traffic signs, and warnings. Many rural roads are largely unpaved.

Public transportation throughout the country is overcrowded and poorly maintained. The U.S. Embassy strongly discourages use of the Baku Metro. Train travel in the Caucasus region is not secure.

****
I did see an open manhole yesterday!

I think I was on TV!!!

So yesterday, I went to the round table on anti-corruption. It was really interesting, because there were people there form a lot of NGOs and also from the parliament. What I didn't expect was that there was a lot of media there, and I was probably on the news! As in, siting at a table with 40 other people and only my mom would notice me, but still! It was exciting. The meeting was to discuss a new law that is being drafted on the ethical conduct of public officials. Very SPEA! Basically, right now, it is very abstract and vague- it says that public officials can't work for a private company they worked with while in office after leaving the government, but it doesn't say for how long. It says they can't do certain things, but it doens't say what the punishment is. Etc. etc. Also, I felt very VIP just being there, it was great.

Then Ali picked me up and I was off to my first interview. I also had my first (hopefully last) near accident- really, I need to write about the driving here, it is crazy!!! Oksana, who is the head of the gender division here, went with me, because we were meeting with the head of an anti-trafficking and women's issues NGO. I think the interview went well- the office was very comfortble, they also have a shelter there and there were a lot of young woman around, and cats, and they gave me tea and cakes. So, I've now had my first on the ground report on civil society and NGOs here in Azerbaijan! And, it was in Russian, and it went really well. Of course, I had my questions pre-prepared, and she did most of the talking, but everything went off OK. Hoorah! Next interview: Saturday.

After that I went home- I was so tired! And I hadn't eaten since breakfast (+ the tea and cakes). After a long search, I found an English language channel on the satellite! Luxury! When I saw the satellite when I was looking at the apartment, it sealed the deal. But then I didn't have time to really look through the channels and it really seemed like everything was in Turkish. But no! It is called CNBC, and it has the NBC peacock, but it shows other stuff like the Simpsons too. So I'm happy! I don't even get these shows in Bloomington!

Anyway, I'm at the office now. Later Sabina is going to meet me- yay! And tonight there is a big celebration thing for International Childeren's Day that Ramil thinks I should go to.

Random facts:

The subway costs about 6 cents.
I spent probably $1.25 total yesterday.
Transcribing yesterday's interview will probably take me hours- this is going to be a HUGE problem!
Someone keeps calling me and hanging up (or the phone just does that).
Men here wear pointy shoes that stick up at the toes (I'll try to get some pictures).
It is HOT HOT HOT!!!!

Quick note!

Last night, the logistical manager here, Ali (he calls himslef the logistical manager, everyone else calls him the driver) (he picked me up form the airport) invited me over to his place for the birthday of his one year old daughter. It was nice- food, food, food. They eat meat and rice wrapped in grape leaves, like in Greece (but don't tell them it's a greek dish). His mother-in-law kept putting more food on my plate like I'm a child. I don't have pictures, but the entire evening was videotaped by his brother-in-law. I think Ali is trying to set me up with him, but I think he's a few years younger than me.

Aftereards, we went for a walk (the post-Soviet national pastime) because it was the last day of school (poslednii zvonok) and there were going to be foreworks. We walked on the shore of the Caspian, where there is a park, it was great! However, the fireworks were cancelled and there were cops everywhere and no one knew why. We then went to other parks that I don't have tome to explain but were amazing and will be included later.

SO, the result of all this is that I got home at 1 and slept until 9:30 (I don't have an alarm clock, it's on the to do list). I got lost on the subway this morning and didn't get in until after 12. I am going to an anti-corruption round table at 3, and am doing my first interview afterwards with the head of an organization that fights the trafficking of women in Azerbaijan. I bought a voice recorder yesterday, thank god, because I just completely forgot to get one in the US before I came. So I printed out all my authorizatio forms, figured out the recorder, and am now writing questions for the interview, because women's groups aren't really my focus so I'm even less prepared.

Hectic!