I've been catching up with some via email, but want to post more about my 2 weeks so far. Hard to believe nothing but action-packed days. As an older trainee I do have to admire all the effort that the PC staff here has put into the arrival of 63 potential volunteers. Indeed, it seems like herding cats. So many different personalities, experiences and expectations of all of us, I can't believe they've got all of us settled into housing with host families. And about all that any of us could initially say was: Salam, and how are you in Azerbaijani.
I have language lessons with 4 other women each morning at a nearby school - I walk about 1/2 mile to get there, walk home for lunch, then get on a bus to another school in Sumgayit for teacher training. Our cluster (5 of us) does have a language and culture facilitator with us most of the time. He is great.
I love my host family - especially the 50 year old mom who bakes bread a couple times a week. And then there are the hard boiled eggs from the chickens in the coop attached to the house. So fresh and so local. To really see what that means I'll attach a couple photos. I think Sumgayit can be compared to the Wild West. People came here from rural areas with rural livelihoods, so chickens, goats, sheep are regular sights on my way to school.
And my name: yes, my host mom calls me Peggy, but she also started calling me alagews - which means blue eyes. There is a song by that name that she likes to sing to me. We smile and nod and point a lot.
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