Happy Holidays!

Just wanted to wish you all a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!! Santa comes to my house in 2 hours--- yes, mom I am opening the rest of the stocking stuffers and gifts then!!

I leave for LONDON tomorrow-- can't wait to meet up with Traci, SHOP, and get my hair done (I know-- I know)-- but I am so anxious to travel a bit more. LONDON, WALES, IRELAND.... ahhhhh.... so exhillarating! I will have lots of stories and pictures to share with you all upon my return to Baku. Love you all!

Father Christmas....

So... Santa came to visit the school before the staff party--- the kids were sooooo excited! Emily was Santa's (Tim) elf... it was quite funny! Each student received a gift and an opportunity to sit on Santa's lap. It was the highlight of the kids' day.

staff party...

Our staff had a Secret Santa exchange going on... but it was a bit more intense then the ones I have been a part of before. Everyone... bus drivers, security guards, custodians, maintenance, teachers, paras, office staff, and administration took part in the games. Notes were being passed back and forth with clues and guesses-- because if you didn't guess who your Secret Santa was you had to perform in front of the staff at the party... very intense! :) Oh... and if you didn't give enough clues then you also had to perform! The staff room was abuzz with people this week-- it was really nice to see everyone so excited and into the game.

It was a lot of fun-- because some people (Hayyam-- to name one) got a little carried away with the search for his Secret Santa. He was convinced that it was me for a while-- and of course Emily and I didn't say that I wasn't (we wanted to see him perform)-- but he figured it out on Thursday.... he said he was Sherlock Holmes (but we call it digging through the trash!). Hayyam actually went to our classrooms in search of the piece of "Christmas Tree" paper that would match his clue! Insane!

Of course, Hayyam wasn't the only one in search of "SANTA"-- the whole staff was a little on edge about having to perform. Mr. Root, AC (Mr. Barker), and John were complaining about a conspiracy -- yes... they all had to perform! Mr. Root pulled out his french horn-- which hadn't been out in 20 years! Hayyam was his non-clue giving Santa-- so he had to do 20 push-ups with one of the kids on his back.... an entertaining performance! AC's was pretty good too-- he mimicked the 2 year old class winter program performance, with the help of his Secret Santa (she didn't give enough clues...). However, Jenn beat everyone! She said she was going to give the 2 year class performance but AC took her idea-- so she got down and attempted to do one-armed push-ups! It was quite comical and a lot of fun.

I was Azizkhyan's Secret Santa-- and his clues were detailed, but still difficult because it could have been any of the new English teachers. The last clue I gave was that I would be wearing a flashing Santa hat at the party-- of course Emily and I both had our flashing Santa hats on and sat right next to each other! It was so funny-- he was a little confused when he stepped up to the Christmas tree to guess. Aziz guessed correctly though-- and he gave me a gift too. It was so sweet. He gave me a figurine of Maiden's Tower (an attraction here in Baku). Very unexpected and appreciated!

I was in charge of the dessert and drink part of the party-- so i prepared a slide-show for the staff.... having captured many images of them from September til now... it was a hit. I have a ton a new photos to add to the next slide-show too.

winter program...

Just wanted to share some of the photos of the winter program. The whole school was involved in some way shape or form-- even the 2 year old class. They had a fabulous "Catch a Star" performance!



The last part of the video is in my classroom... the students are practicing the "helping verbs" song-- with the help of my awesome cousin (Eric) they had some music accompaniment. They are determined to get the words right and sing it for him!

not at the beach...

okay, it is -2 °C (at comfort level-- whatever that means) right now. freezing! cold! frigid! not looking forward to walking to school tomorrow-- because the winds are supposed to pick up and it is supposed to snow again tonight... on into the morning! yuck! i thought i lived by a sea.... a beach.... near the dessert! what is this?

thank goodness mom and dad sent my snowpants and boots because i have been wearing them to school in the mornings... i look like the kid on the Christmas Story who can't put his arms down and waddles... it is that cold. now... if only mom and dad could find the fleece insert that is supposed to be INSIDE my jacket! :)

actually, it is the wind that is the killer-- it is freezing and breath-taking (literally). if the wind wasn't blowing i probably wouldn't be giving this weather update because i don't mind winter weather (snow that is), but the wind is another story.

as chad so graciously pointed out to me yesterday.... i shouldn't have expected better weather... i didn't really move any degrees up or down latitude or longitude wise... just east of the prime meridian now! ridiculous! this side of the world should be warmer! :)

jamie....

Jamie... it was great to hear from you... love the upside down picture! :) It really is a great family photo though.

... snow

Apparently, when it snows in Baku we get hot chocolate as a treat in school! So, we had hot chocolate at break/recess today! It was great... and exciting... I love the snow. It is so beautiful-- and it makes the cold seem a lot warmer (I know I am nuts)!

BIS in lights...

Tomorrow is the big Winter Production-- most of the students in the school are performing in some way shape or form. The entire school has been hustling and bustling to get ready for tomorrow. My Intensive English students have been lucky enough to be included in the high school students' play. The secondary students are responsible for every aspect of the play-- and fortunately Miss Silva has a hilarious bunch of boys (all boys) that will be cracking up their audience with their own original rendition of 'Fellarella'-- a quirky spin off of Cinderella. The IE students will introduce each scene and act as narrators... should be a great play.

Here are some rehearsal pictures...

Resolutions...

It is that time of year-- already!! Time to think about your resolutions for the new year! We, the students at BIS and I, have been discussing some possibilities for resolutions, which has been a little difficult because defining and explaining what a resolution is ... is NOT easy. The students are very smart, but have limited English. They may know what a resolution is in their language, but in English... not so much. This makes our discussions quite entertaining and difficult. :)

It was quite a week-- trying to explain to them that it is a promise (oh, we had to talk about this too) that you make to yourself, your family and friends, or to the world/school, in which you try your hardest to keep all year long. We talked about the fact that it could be something that you want to change or do differently from the previous year. We also talked about the fact that a resolution is a goal that is ongoing, and is something you could possibly work on everyday or every week, but most definitely all year long.

Today, as we sang 'THE HELPING VERB' song (thanks to ERIC CLANCY-- musician extraordinaire) the students worked on writing some resolutions. Tengiz had one that I had to share with all of you-- he was so funny about the whole thing. He stood his ground and argued that it could be a resolution, which I thought was wonderful. However, in the end he ended up changing the original "I change my hair, 'new style'." to "I will not hurry through my lessons." I didn't help him with the new resolution, he had it on his paper-- he just preferred the hair style one-- he is such a character! :)

the sheep....

Gurban Bayrami festivities have begun, and the streets are lined with sheperds and their sheep. It is like a different city... I have no idea where all of these animals came from! As I walked to school-- to proceed with our own contribution to Gurban Bayrami celebrations-- I couldn't stop looking around at all of the sheep on the sides of the streets. The back portion of the meat market was packed. I felt like I was walking through an outside barn, where people were haggling over sheep prices and others were witnessing the sacrifice. It was a whole different place... almost unrecognizable.... it was like a fair/carnival without the rides and the cotton candy!



The things that we saw today were quite amazing, and at the same time not the most pleasant things to witness. I am going to share the entire experience the best that I can.. but if you are like my mom and have a weak stomach, you may not want to watch the video or look to closely at the photos. AND please... don't judge any person or thing that is being talked about... this is the way of life here... and it is socially, culturally, and morally accepted.

a little more information about Gurban Bayrami


So, we all met at the school at 9 a.m. -- and didn't have to go far to find our sheep. The men we bought the sheep from were across the main street with the herd (or whatever it is called) and their needed supplies. As we waited outside of the school for Hayyam to make his way to us, I took some random photos of the scene. Cars were stopping and buying sheep... some alive and some dead. We were shocked to see the live sheep being put into the trunks of cars, but such is the way it works here.

I have to say I was a little eager to take part in Gurban Bayrami celebrations-- because I was finally able to help in some way, no matter how small my part was... it was a part. So, we made our way over to the 'our' sheperd and prepared ourselves for what we thought would be the hardest part of the day. Many sheep had been sold and were being butchered, so we we able to witness more than our share of the process. The Ulrich's sheep was first... we were still digesting the fact that we were on the side of the street, watching sheep getting skinned, cut, tied, and carried away... so we were a little 'giddy' and in the 'I can't believe this is happening' stage. A group of mouth-gaping onlookers didn't make us stand out at all! Thank goodness for Hayyam. He was really concerned with making sure that we understood the reason for Gurban Bayrami and the traditions that go along with the holiday. He was also our comic relief... we can always count on him to lighten the mood.



Our sheep was next in line. It took a little while for the sheperd to find her/him (SAM), but the red cloth tied around its neck told us that it was ours. I had asked Hayyam to have the butcher say the prayer that is said out loud so that we could hear it before the fatal cut was made. They say this phrase/prayer/sentence to Allah seven times in order to make the whole sacrifice 'official'.



After seeing this we watched the rest of the process.... the hanging, the skinning, the innards being taken out, the cleaning of the inside, the heart, lungs, and liver being hung, the final cut to drain, and the chopping into the pieces needed for the lucky recipients. At times throughout this process Hayyam was randomly seen with a knife... and Emily was conned into holding the leg. The kill was really the hardest part-- SAM was meat after the skin was gone.

The pieces were placed into bags, so that we could carry them to Rauf's car. We then laid them out in the back of the car-- for the journey to the orphanage. The ride was approximately 25 kilometers-- not far from school.

Safura, Hayyam, Rauf, Emily and I made the trek to Saray (Sah-r-i), which means palace in Azeri. Saray is the town that the orphanage for disabled children is located. The ride wasn't long, but we did get to see some new parts of Baku. We passed by the lake used for drinking water (I wasn't quick enough to get the picture), and we passed through Hayyam's part of town. When we pulled in I was a bit shocked. I wasn't expecting a wall, a security house, and a lawn area. For some reason I was picturing the orphanage that "ANNIE" lived in. The feeling was a bit different though.

When we got out of the car Hayyam, Rauf, and Safura did the talking with the director (I presume-- he seemed to be in charge). He said that they already had a lot of meat donated and that they didn't need all of ours. I was trying hard to listen to the conversation, but when you only understand a few basic things is it difficult to stay focused. Not to mention, the sounds of kids yelling and crying were echoing into the courtyard area, and I couldn't help but take those sounds in as well. It was like we were in a movie... and for lack of a better comparison-- an insane asylum). I got a really sad feeling standing there, as I forced myself to take all of it in and remember it.

Hayyam and Rauf gave them two big pieces and we all went into the kitchens to inspect them (and make sure that meat was indeed being prepared). No one objected to us wanting to inspect the kitchen area-- but in some ways I wish they would have. The smell of cooking sheep is not pleasant-- of course, this is a personal opinion-- I held my breathe for most of the kitchen visit. Hayyam checked all of the massive pots that were on the stoves-- they had the meat in two huge roasting pots that were about 2 feet wide and 2 feet deep (maybe bigger). Along with the meat, similar pots had potatoes and some sort of soup almost ready to be served. We scanned the kitchen and as we were walking out Hayyam asked if we could see the children.

They took us back through the kitchen area and out a locked door. The area we entered was freezing. Emily and I both looked at one another and commented on the cold. Most of the doors in the long hallways were shut-- to preserve the heat that they did have. The first room we entered was for older boys (13-15). No one really knew what to say. It was a little more difficult for Emily and I because we don't know the language-- so communicating is already hard. Hayyam led the way in saying "salam" and "nejasan". Some of the boys answered and the others just stared. It was a little uncomfortable, and I think it had more to do with the fact that there was too much to take in. Digesting the scenes that were unfolding in front of us was a lot more difficult than watching the sheep being butchered (at least for me).

We didn't stay in the boys room long-- it was long enough for me to notice they didn't have anything to entertain them, besides a TV. A lot of the kids had scratches or marks on their faces or arms, and I presume it is from the other kids they are around (not that they are doing it on purpose-- because I don't believe that any of them could have been malicious). I will never forget the boy who was sleeping on the heating pipe (yes, it is literally a pipe) on the floor. He had a jacket on and was oblivious to the action that was surrounding him. It took all my might to smile at this point-- I surely didn't want to show a look of pity, the children don't need that... they need help, love, and support.

The girls' room was a little cozier. There were four 10-15 year old girls watching TV and eating. One of the girls asked Safura what we brought them.... it was so cute. After Safura told her, the little girl thanked us (chokh sag ol). I was starting to relax a little in this room and tried to communicate with the girls.. but smiling doesn't get you too far... speaking a very limited amount of Azeri is frustrating! All of the girls in this room were in wheelchairs... I couldn't help but wonder how much time they spend in that room....

One little girl came to say hello and wanted to show us her room. She had visited BIS before and wanted to give Mr. Root (our director) some pictures. She was very sweet and creative. Her drawings were pretty good. I think (if I understood Hayyam right) that she was older than the rest of the children, but she had the mind of a child. Her room was small but cozy. It seemed like she had been at this orphanage for a while.

I was not uncomfortable with the kids at all, but I was uneasy with the fact that I couldn't speak to them (and be understood). I wanted so badly to be able to sit and talk with one of them-- or ask them their name. How do you make them understand that they aren't exhibits at a museum or zoo that you are coming to 'check out', when you don't speak their language?? Shaking hands, smiling, and saying salam and nejasan only accomplishes so much. However, at this point I decided that I needed to figure out what I should focus on.... the kids, the surroundings, the workers, what?? I decided the kids....

We went up some stairs to another portion of this wing of the building. We entered a room filled with young boys that were running here and there. Some were crying, some were rocking, some were talking, some were staring at us, and some were running toward us. It was a little overwhelming at first-- being bombarded by little ones-- but they were so happy to see us. One little one was a wild man-- he was everywhere! Hayyam controlled him by throwing him in the air a few times, which ended up opening a whole can of worms because he wanted all of us to do it. He was not light either! I am losing my muscle because I was struggling with the whole lifting and 'throwing' thing. All of the children were handicapped in some way, but they tried hard to met and greet us.




The last room we visited was by far my favorite. I would have stayed longer if we could have. It must have been for the toddlers to maybe 6 years old, and for the children that were bed-ridden. The kids were so sweet and intrigued by our presence. One little one captured my attention right away. He held out his hand and just wanted to hold my fingers. You could tell that he was a little confused with the fact that I wasn't speaking Azeri to him, but he just held onto my hand. There were a lot of children in this room and I truly only saw 3 because of this little guy. It was hard to leave him (and the others)... as we were leaving the room and exiting that corridor... I found myself thinking about and focusing on the conditions in which these children are living. I believe that the workers are doing what they can, in the ways that they know how, but there are so many children.... so many disabled children..... so, so many.



When we left the Saray Orphanage I think the I could correctly label the mood as somber. All of the sights, sounds, and children flashed before my eyes... over and over again. My heart ached, but at the same time I wouldn't have changed the fact that I was able to experience this, see this, feel all of it... I know now that I need to do more for them-- and now have an idea of where to begin.

We still had meat to give away, so we were going in search of someone that could use it. Rauf drove a different route back toward Baku, a route that led us past the Salt Lake. It is literally a lake of salt. AND it is PINK! I have never seen anything like it before. There were men digging in the lake (with shovels) and loading either a horse drawn wagons or old water trucks. We followed Hayyam down to the water's edge and to really see if it was truly PINK.... it was! Some of the men were filling salt bags and we walked over to chat-- or I should say Hayyam chatted. It was decided that one of the men would take a piece of SAM -- I am glad that he took the meat.



Before we left this cold, salty place, Hayyam wanted us to see one of the water trucks up close. They are OLD Russian built trucks that are used in the water. I asked if I could drive the truck-- Hayyam of course says, "YEAH!" So, I got in, he cranked it, and I drove it. I don't think that Hayyam thought I could drive the standard (manual)... fooled him!




As I reflect on the day's events... even with all of the unpleasant sights and feelings that may have been felt at some point... I am happy (khoshbakht). I feel like today was a day that I truly got to feel and be a part of this culture and its celebrations. It was a day of experiences, and a day that I won't soon forget.

bought a SHEEP!

it is Qurban Bayramı this weekend... it is a time to remember and celebrate Abraham's devotion to God, and his willingness to sacrifice his son as an act of obidence to God... Ishmael (the son) was spared by God and replaced with an animal (sheep). so, sheep are sacrificed and given to the poor (7 pieces/7 families in some cases) by families that have the means to buy sheep.

some of my co-workers and I went in on a sheep. Hayyam took us to a nearby "farm" by city standards (extremely close place-- right outside the school basicallly). we all entered this little shelter that doubles as a home and 'barn' for the sheep, so that we could purchase a few sheep. Hayyam did the bargaining as we surveyed the scene. it was evident that this place has been busy butchering-- very tidy ... with the piles of sheep skins and buckets if inards... and of course with people loading the trunks of their cars with whole sheep... all extremely interesting-- and i thank God that we have been walking past the meat market on a daily basis, because the sights we saw were "normal" and not disturbing at all. we put a down-payment on a few sheep (picked our sheep) and will return for them on Monday.

we are going to be able to witness the butchering and then our plan is to get into Rauf's car and head to an orphanage to deliver the meat. Hayyam and Safura said that we will stay in order to be sure that the meat is prepared and given to the children in the orphange. i am extremely happy that we are doing this-- and can't wait to share all of the details.



the last picture is a picture of Hayyam being smart... and giving me a 'gift' because we learned a new Azeri phrase today--- "Hani manim hadiyem" (which translates to... where is my gift?) :)