Vacation

We have decided to take a break from our very slow moving into a new apartment and go on VACATION!!! In case you didn’t get the hint from the uppercase letters and three exclamation marks after the word vacation, we’re excited. Vacation comes at a great time for us for of a number of reasons. We are able to use it as a marker to say goodbye to our old neighbors and start fresh when we return to begin building relationships with new friends. But probably the biggest reason is because we are exhausted.

For the last six or 7 weeks we’ve been living alone here while the other family has been in a bigger city having a baby. Of course, we’ve been fine, but it left a little more work and no crutch to lean on when we needed to get something done (like buy every household item you can think of) or when we simply had a question. It has been great for our language, but our brains have finally had enough.

Our brains are exhausted. Our energy is spent. Our patience (with culture, each other…) is just about gone. We’ll be away for about two weeks and hope to return relaxed and energized. I think a few days of wearing shorts, t-shirts, and flip-flops alone will be more than enough.

To Do Lists

Few people in the world gain more satisfaction than my wife in crossing something off her to do list, maybe no one. Even though I’m not a planner I realize things have to get done. Since my wife says I have the world’s worst memory I’ve conceded to making weekly to do lists. But in contrast to the joy of crossing something off is the utter frustration of not being able to cross anything off.

Before coming overseas we were told that if you get one thing accomplished in a day, consider it a success. They say that because outside of the fast paced, microwaved western world, life is lived at a much slower pace. And the city we’re living in is definitely no exception.

For example: when they say they will drop your water heater off between 9 and 12, they really mean “You’ll be lucky to get it today, but if by some unforeseen reason you do it’ll probably be around 8:30 tonight. Oh, and of course, if you’re not there when we bring it you’ll need to come back by the store and set up another time for us to bring it to you. Have a nice day. Thank you for giving us your money.”

Unfortunately, being the full-blooded American that I am, I still haven’t gotten used to the slowness of this culture. Some of my most frustrating days have been because of my failure to be patient.

Now if I can just get my internet to run a little faster I could post this on the blog before the electricity goes out … again.

Grillin' Out

A volunteer and I cook up some kebabs for the rest of the team on a
recent trip. We cooked them a little long to get the bird flu out.

Brownies on a rainy day

It rained today. I never thought I’d miss rainy days. Basements getting wet. Walking across campus getting soaked. Running to shelter only to find that the bottoms of my pants are soaked up to my knees. Hydroplaning into the car in front of you. Dealing with restless students (for some reason they were always more rowdy on rainy days). And worst of all, having to deal with frizzy, I mean curly, hair.

But in our city we don’t have rainy days very often and I do miss them. The freshness that it brought to our exhaust-saturated, dusty city was like the freshness you feel from taking a shower after rolling around in manure (not that I’ve ever done that). So, since we couldn’t (actually, chose not to) walk around and get anything accomplished in the rain, we went home and made brownies.

Here’s the brownie recipe that I used with a few modifications if you need them in your part of the world. They’re the best brownies we’ve ever eaten (please take into account where we live – McDonald’s actually sounds good now) and they’re super easy to make.

ONE-BOWL CASHEW-CARAMEL BROWNIES
(Modified version: ONE-BOWL BROWNIES)

6 ounces semisweet baking chocolate, chopped (170 grams bittersweet chocolate, or whatever kind they have where you are)
¼ cup butter (unsalted if you have it)
2/3 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup flour
pinch salt
½ cup unsalted cashews, coarsely chopped (they’re great without the cashews)
6 ounces milk chocolate-caramel baking chips (plain milk chocolate does the trick)

1. Heat the oven to 350°. Line a 9-inch-square baking pan (round works too) with nonstick foil (or spray stick foil with oil/cooking spray), leaving extra foil on 2 side edges.
2. Place chopped chocolate and butter in a medium-size microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on high for 1 minute. Stir and microwave for an additional 30 seconds. Stir until smooth.
3. Whisk sugar, eggs, and vanilla into chocolate mixture. Stir in flour and salt until incorporated. Fold in nuts and chips.
4. Spoon batter into prepared pan. Bake at 350° for 22 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center of brownie comes out with a few moist crumbs clinging. Remove from oven and cool briefly on a wire rack.
5. Use the overhanging foil to lift brownie from pan. Cut into 16 squares.

Our first wedding

Sarah and I experienced our first wedding this past week. Usually weddings are three days long and held outside. This wedding was indoors, but definitely had the same energy. My friend’s son was getting married, so when we got there my friend had us seated at a table with his relatives that came in from out of town. They took us right in and made sure we had a great time. They also made sure we danced.

Unfortunately, we were only able to go to the last night of the wedding. It was more of a reception than a ceremony. There was music and a time to give gifts to the bride and groom. The gifts of money and small pieces of gold were pinned to the clothes of the bride and groom. Also, the bride refrained from smiling very much. In this culture, since the bride is leaving her family it is a bitter-sweet day for her and she shows it by not smiling.

Great Friends

Recently, some close friends of ours decided to spend their vacation visiting us. We had such a great time with Josh and Emily. We didn’t realize how good of a time until after they left. We were able to be our old ridiculous-selves, play games, laugh at each other (in English!), and show them our new life. We went to the big city and saw amazing architecture, beautiful rugs and carpets, and ate fantastic food. In our city, we took them to a village, a beautiful island, and the ancient castle over-looking our city. The highlight was probably being hassled by the police because Josh wanted to take pictures of hundreds of guys praying outside a mosque. Thanks a lot Josh. You don't have to live here.

We’re so grateful to them and those at Emily’s mom’s fellowship who sent us peanut butter, Starbursts, enchilada, taco, and spaghetti mix, and more peanut butter. You know, the essentials.

Josh and Emily were the first to take advantage of our free room and board. They seemed to enjoy their experience and say they’re coming back. Who’s next?

Below are a few photos from their time here.

The 3000 year old castle just down the street from our new apartment.

On top of the castle at sunset.

In every village, no matter what the house
looks like, you'll see a satellite.

In an old palace we found the "royal throne."
In his short time here, Josh, didn't quite master the
technique of how to use the squatty potty.

What's that smell?

We’ve had no water for 30 hours. It stinks, literally. They said it would be back on tonight by 8. It’s now 9:51. Three months ago they said the museum would reopen a week later. It’s still closed and set to open in 2007. Uh-oh!

Road Trippin'

On our latest road trip we saw plenty of natural beauty and a lot of old stuff. Below are some pictures from that excursion. The first adventure was attempting to climb an extinct volcano in a van loaded down with people and bags. When we finally made it in we found two volcanic lakes. One is ice cold and the other very warm.

Are we there yet?

About 2000 years ago, on the highest peak around, a king decided to build an impressive tomb for himself. On two sides of the peak he had six massive statues built to represent different gods and, of course, himself. Earthquakes and snow have knocked the heads off the bodies, but you still get the idea. Beneath the large mound of loose rock behind the statues lies the king and whatever they buried with him. It's too dangerous for anyone to explore beneath the rocks. The most amazing part of seeing this was just getting there. We have a new found respect for our company van, and the off-roading was definitely worth it.

No, that's not Steve's profile.

What you can't see in this picture are the millions
of bugs flying around Sarah making her squeal.

You would think the king could have chosen a spot a little easier to get to.
All jokes aside, the view was amazing.

What's up, Dog?

One of the things our country is famous for is the Kangal sheep dog. Apparently they're pretty ferocious when guarding sheep, but this guy was just a big puppy. At 3 months they're bigger than most full grown dogs.

We're not sure why he's looking at Stephen.
We do know Sarah's 5'4". That's a big dog.

"Will somebody please give me a home?"

May The Force Be With Us

One reason the language we’re learning difficult is, because the verb at the end of the sentence comes is. In English the verb towards the beginning is. Generally what’s going on you know, and later the details fills in it does. Inventors of other languages the beauty of this system grasp did not. So, when our new language we speak, this like we sound. Not only a new language we’re learning, but our brains backwards to think we’re training.

Funny Quote

I laughed out loud just a minute ago when I heard my wife say,

"Oh my gosh, I totally forgot my semicolon rules!"

Few of you will appreciate that quote as much as I do.

Extra Extra Read All About It!

Because of exhaustion we’ve been bad about posting. Please forgive us, but it will probably happen again. Here are the headlines from the past few weeks:

Language Study Leaves Students Exhausted

Group Comes From States to Help

Together the Group Travels to Nearby Cities

Catching up on Language Study Almost Kills Students

Sarah Left Weak After 4 Day Battle with Bad Salad

Steve Receives Husband of the Year Award for Caring for Sick Wife

Language Study Leaves Students in Language Coma

Spring is Here; No Sweater Needed - Finally!

Culture Shock Returns and Overstays Its Welcome

New Apartment Deadline Nears; Couple Feeling the Pressure

Here Kitty, Kitty!

The city we live in is famous for a white cat with different colored eyes. We saw one the other day at a friend's house. Because my throat closes within 5 minutes of seeing a cat, Sarah had to decide who she was taking home - the cat or me. A tough decision, I know. Thankfully, after much persuasion, I won out.

Fancy Old Buildings

Scattered around our city are crazy-old church buildings that reveal traces of a once vibrant community of faith (not that a fancy building equals vibrant by any means). One of these buildings is located in a place where three small mountains come together. The view is breathtaking with the lake just around one of the mountains. To get there you have to take a dirt/mud road that winds around the edge of the lake and through a village.

Last Sunday I went with my barber and two of his relatives, who grew up in the village, to see the building and spend time with their families. I didn’t take any pictures of the village this trip, but hopefully there will be a next time.

These pics definitely don't do this place justice. The church building is set off in the distance about a mile or so away.

Above is my barber (with the stick ) and his relative. The local shepherd is standing behind them.

Island Picnic

In just a short 30-minute drive from our house you can get to a very shady-looking boat that will take you to one of the islands in the massive lake near our city. Besides being a beautiful place for picnicking and relaxing, the island is also home to an 1100-year-old building where a church met. There are ancient reliefs of Biblical stories on all the walls. Saturday we went with friends to the island. Unfortunately, they were doing some renovating to the building so we couldn’t get in or even very close. Hopefully later we can post better pictures with detailed photos of the reliefs on the walls. If you come and visit we'll take you there!

This sign is a perfect example of why we think a business teaching English will be "succes lull" here. The supposed English translation is the second paragraph. Click on the picture to see it better.

Things That Go Bump in the Night

We just got back from a short trip to the Capital for meetings. During our first night back I guess I forgot where I was. I got up in the middle of the night to use the bathroom and apparently I was still asleep…for a moment…because about 5 steps into it SMACK!!! a wall jumped right out in front of me. I staggered backwards a few steps (ala Rocky against the Russian) and somehow managed to stay on my feet, but when I felt my forehead I found a golf ball growing out from it. I seriously thought I had a concussion. The next morning Sarah told me she was startled by a loud noise in the night, but she told herself it was only the neighbors. Once she saw my head it all made sense.

Two days later I still have a headache. The golf ball is a bit smaller but still remains. I know many of you are wondering how my nose didn’t hit first since it sticks so far out from my face. Well, I’m wondering the same thing.

Two by Two

We finally had a Saturday off from language class so we decided to see a few of the bazillion beautiful sights to see within three hours of our city. We planned a route that would take us by a waterfall, an old palace, and the supposed landing spot of Noah and his big boat. Of course, on this day we didn’t expect to climb Mt. Ararat – just see it. Like any good expedition you have to scout out the land before attempting to find the prize of your pursuit. Actually, its just a really, really, really big mountain and unless they build a ski lift we won’t be seeing the top.

Ugly waterfall that is supposed to be pretty in the summer.

It was on the way so why not stop?

Old palace built over 300 years ago.

We brought our lunch for a picnic and found a nice view
for about 5 minutes until Sarah got too cold - Girls!
And yes we know, Stephen is bald - save the jokes.

The most beautiful girl in the world
standing with Mt. Ararat in the distance.

Go ahead and say it, "Awwwwwww!"

Happy New Year

March 21 is the first day of Spring, Stephen’s dad’s birthday, and New Years. That’s right, here in our part of the world for countless years people have celebrated the New Year with the coming of spring. In our city, thousands of people join together in a huge field near the lake. Men, and especially women, dress in traditional attire and dance to traditional music. Many get there early in the day to build fires and then men jump across them as a symbol of leaving the bad things behind from the previous year and preparing for the good things that will come with the New Year. Unfortunately, we didn’t get there early enough to get pictures of the fire jumping, but below you will find a few pictures of the day. As you can see it was a little muddy.

The second and third pictures were taken by Jonathan Henderson
who is an excellent photographer. You can see his work by clicking

on the link to the left of this page under "Our Favorite Blogs."

First Haircut

Mom, remember when I was little and cut my own hair? That’s kind of what I looked like today after my first haircut here. I came home and Stephen cut it again. Now I have short hair.