Settling In...

So I’ve been in Ucar for a little over two weeks now and I’m settling into a bit of a routine. I’ve been going to my organization each weekday and have become involved in the English classes they offer. This is an area where I could start to contribute right away while my Azeri is still improving and I’m learning more about what the organization does and how it operates. I just observed at the beginning but have been teaching some classes since my second week. There is an English teacher who teaches English grammar three times a week and then the other two days I am teaching conversational English. I’m trying to coordinate what we speak about in my class to what they are learning or have already learned, which can be kind of tricky since there’s not really a “curriculum” like there would be in a traditional school. So I have lots of ideas of things to do – the least of which is cheering the room up with some visual aids – but right now it’s just a matter of participating and involving the students. The students are anywhere from 10 – 25 years old and it’s been great getting to know them and the area through them.

We have an AMAZING store in Ucar which I’m sure I won’t fully appreciate until I move out on my own and cook for myself all the time – items that you can’t get in many parts of Azerbaijan. We also have many train tracks – the ones from home in Michigan have followed me and multiplied! I have to cross them to get to and from work each day, but at least I’m not stuck in a car waiting for the train to pass – I use the pedestrian overpass if a train is moving or just walk over the tracks. And I had mail waiting for me two days after I moved (Thanks Mom)! It’s the little things that give a lift to your day – an unexpected letter or package, a great meal, an email from a friend, the absence of mud, etc.

And while Christmas is not a celebrated holiday here, New Year’s definitely is. There are New Year’s trees and Saxta Baba/Santa Claus (Grandfather Frost) and holiday music. Saxta Baba is even on the Coke bottles! And there’s a “Merry Christmas” decoration/ornament on the New Year’s tree outside the Cultural Center at the end of my road (I haven’t seen any New Year’s trees in anyone’s home, just in outdoor/city areas). I worked on Christmas like any other weekday, but we’ll have some Christmas celebrations with other volunteers over the weekend.

Earlier this week I worked with Jeff, who is an AZ5 TEFL volunteer in Ucar, to meet a teacher at his school who might be interested in tutoring me in Azerbaijani. She wasn’t able to do it, but she introduced me to another teacher whose daughter is an English teacher that would be interested in helping me. The Peace Corps reimburses us up to a certain amount for continuing our language learning, so I’ll start that up right after the holidays. I feel like I’ve improved on some of my vocabulary since moving but I think I’ve forgotten some of the grammatical stuff. I can usually get my point/question across, but it’s definitely not how an Azeri would say it.