Azerbaijan!!

Hey everyone! Just wanted to write a quick note from the internet cafe letting you all know I am safe. I can't disclose the location of my site for safety reasons, but I am able to tell you I am in the East at the moment. We've been busy with training for the last 10 days, and I am finally at my host family site, and doing well enough to tell my family "I like fruit." They think I'm funny, which helps. I have a host mom and dad, and two sisters about 13 and 14 years old. I also have a host aunt that is 22 and is able to communicate in a little english to help me say important information. I have some letters to send out, but the post office here doesn't have envelopes or stamps currently and it will take a week for them to get supplies. I got your package marie! Thanks for making me the first one to get one, it makes you special when you get them. I love mail days. Everyone please write me letters! I also have a cell phone, but I can't call the US with it because it is so expsensive. I'm 12 hours ahead of washington state, so if anyone wants to pay the 3 bucks a min to call me (or buy a calling card) my phone number is 011-994-50-753-8426. I will answer if you call regardless of time. I can also receive texts from all networks besides verizon. I will write you all soon when I am in town again! I am safe, and well, and living it up!

Saying Goodbye...

This week brought more surprises than I had anticipated. On top of the stress of preparing for a move out of the country, packing, shopping and saying goodbye to my entire family and friends for two years, my grandmother passed away on Tuesday. It was very unexpected, and the entire family is undoubtedly in shock. I hadn't planned on seeing everyone again so soon, let alone seeing them for something like this. Tonight is grandma's funeral. We will be holding a candle light vigil for her. I have to consider myself so fortunate to have spent so much time this last year with my entire family. I believe that God works in mysterious ways... and although I will miss my grandmother very much, I know in my heart that she would want me to keep going. Grandma was tough, but she was strong. I admired her for her ability to fight with everything she had, even until the very end.
Needless to say, this has been a very difficult week, in many different ways. Tomorrow is my last day in Washington... I still have so much to do. The good news is, my luggage is just 2 lbs under the weight limit... so as long as I can fight the urge to put more stuff into my suitcase, I know I will have enough things to get me through to winter.
To my family, I wish you all the best of luck in the coming months. Stay strong, and remember to say "I love you." We don't say it enough. To my mom and dad, I love you more than anything or anyone in the world. Thank you for being my rock and for giving me everything... certainly much more than I deserve. To my friends, although I won't be here, I won't truly be gone. Remember, I will miss you all as much as you miss me and surely more... To everyone, please write. I don't care what you write me, I just love to hear from everyone. So with that, I will see you all in two years! I will try to write again as soon as I can to let you know I'm getting settled in.

Thank You

To all my family, and close family friends who came to say goodbye yesterday, I just wanted to say thank you. It means so much to me that I could say goodbye to everyone before I left, as hard as that is. You have all done so much to help me get this far, and I couldn't have done it without you. I have lots of pictures to take with me, but remember I can always use a few more! Don't forget to send me as many as you can over the next two years... weddings, birthdays, thanksgiving, christmas and any other holiday or family event that I should have been there... please send me pictures! I had such a nice time eating all your tasty foods, and getting to laugh (and cry) with you all one more time. I know you are all worried about me, but I know I will be fine. I know that things will be both exciting and meaningful. I may miss a lot here... but you will all miss a lot there. I love you all, and thank you again for EVERYTHING!

13 days and counting...

Yesterday was my goodbye party that several of my friends coordinated to throw for me. Props to Steph, Heather, Stephen, Erica and Andy. I appreciated the warm send off very much. I'm glad so many people could make it, and a little sad that I didn't get to say goodbye to everyone. As it stands, this week will be my last week of work and I will have a full week to boot. I feel like I have too much to do and not enough time!
I got a chance to meet another volunteer from Washington today. I had a good afternoon (considering the fact that I was still very tired from the party). We hung out for a little while at the SuperMall, and ate dinner together. It makes me feel a little better that I at least know someone else who is going from Washington.
I also bought a few small items that I still needed. I picked up a spill stop for my nalgen bottle, and a luggage scale to weigh my bag. I don't want to go over in weight limit, as the fees are too high, and that is just more stuff I will have to lug around all over the Azeri country-side. I've been reading a lot about the packing lists and suggestions of current volunteers. So far I'm a little worried about my actual suitcase, as it isn't flexible or discrete. My luggage is plastic and fire engine red, and I have no clue where I will put it once I get settled in country. At this point, I still have almost no clothing appropriate for hand-washing, line drying, and conservative... but somehow still breathable in the unbearable heat. Mom and I will spend my last week getting me all geared to go.

At this point, I still need to obtain the following items:

A leatherman tool
Thermal unders (light-weight/silk)
Winter socks
Durable shoes for walking long distances, (of the non-sneaker type)
Flash Drive (this is required)
Sunglasses
A battery charger (preferably solar powered)
Electric converter
Clothing space saver bags (with the one way valve to seal out air and compact your luggage)
Lightweight/compact sleeping bag
Mini maglight
Quick drying towels (they prevent mold)
Digital watch with timer on it
Portable/Mini DVD player
Skirts, shoes, cardigans, and other misc clothing items for work
Swimsuit and underwear

I'm probably going to have to ship myself a lot of items. As much as I appreciate all the gifts people keep giving me, I won't be able to take everything with me. I can only have 80 lbs of luggage. So, I found out that USPS.com will send you Flat Rate boxes for free (I ordered 10 this week) and it only costs $37 to send the box to anywhere in the world. It can weigh up to 20 lbs, and the boxes are pretty good size. I think I will send myself one ahead of time in order to keep from having to pack everything with me. And yes, I will have to pay to receive my mail/packages. That is standard for all Azeri post offices. It will cost me a few bucks to receive the packages, but will save me from having to go buy certain items... it's a fair trade.
The hardest part is that I will have to lug everything from my training site, to my village site by myself. Which means everything sent to me in training will be more weight I will have to carry across country. So, as I will appreciate the care packages, please refrain from sending too much stuff during the first three months. We just found out that the M-Bag is no longer in effect either. (It was designed to send books and educational materials around the world for about 10 bucks, and without it I'm looking at 37 just to get the new Harry Potter). I'm sure it will all work out, but I won't really know much until I get there. I will post here once I know more about the mailing situation.

In the mean time... I'm going to attempt a "dry run" at packing probably tomorrow. I want to make sure I'm not going over! I need to revise my packing list, yet again...

Azerbaijan in the News

Azerbaijan is finally being mentioned in the news... unfortunately the news may or may not be what most people would want to hear before heading over there for two years.

According to ABC news, Russian President Vladimir Putin made the proposal Thursday to President Bush to use Azerbaijan as an alternative site for U.S. plans to deploy missile-defense elements in Eastern European countries. Originally proposed by the US to be housed in the Czech Republic or Poland, the missile system would be used to defend the US in the event of an attack from Iran or North Korea. Russia is uncomfortable with the idea of a US missile defence system in Poland, as they contend that putting the system in Eastern Europe would mean it could be used against Russia's missiles, thereby undermining the balance of power in Europe. Putin proposed using an existing Russian radar station in North Eastern Azerbaijan as an alternative.

Azerbaijani Foreign Minister, Elmar Mammadyarov, said Friday that Azerbaijan is "ready to consider proposed joint U.S.-Russian use of a radar facility in the country as part of a missile defense system." Stating that the proposal "can only bring more stability into the region because it can lead to more predictable actions in the region."

"At this time, Azerbaijan's position, which is supported by the United States and Russia, is that it's necessary to start consultations in a two- or three-sided format. I can say that Azerbaijan is ready for such consultations," the foreign minister said at a briefing.

Despite the open dialogue regarding the housing of the system in Azerbaijan, NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer stated "It's a bit early to judge if an Azeri radar could be the answer to the threat... it's a bit close to the rogue states we are discussing."

(News courtesy of ABC News http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory?id=3257312)

So what does this mean for me? At the moment nothing. It does not change my status or desire to serve as a Peace Corps volunteer. At this time, the US, Russia, and Azerbaijan are in a discussion phase. We will just have to wait and see. I believe that now, more than ever, the Peace Corps presence in Azerbaijan will be needed. I can only hope to show a sincere desire to improve relations between America and Azerbaijan.