Breaking Down Gender Barriers. Well, Sort Of...

This blog of mine must be getting pretty serious, as I am now providing up-to-the-minute post on events that just happened. Yah, this probably won't last very long!

Anyway, as a PCV, you try to predict everything that is going to happen as a result of your actions. How will the community react? Will this project be sustainable? What challenges will I face? What risks does such an initiative entail? What are the negative and positive consequences? I even ask myself these questions before doing the most simple of tasks, like going for a run in shorts, or buying a beer at the store 'cuz I just feel like it! But in such a foreign country, while introducing such foreign concepts, you simply can't predict everything. Truthfully, you can't predict most things!

Today's happenings came out of nowhere!

It's a problem all over the world, discussed ad nauseum by teachers and parents alike. Video games!

"They're a waste of time." "They're melting our minds." Personally, a game of NHL 2010 was a perfect way for my roommates and I to decide who would take out the trash that week, but that's just us. 

Here, the problem is just a prevalent as it is anywhere else. Boys spend hours on end, sitting in internet clubs sucking in cigarette smoke and playing Grand Theft Auto or Counterstrike until they can't see straight. The internet is relatively cheap (40 cents for an hour), but they spend every last penny they have killing Nazis and selling crack in these virtual worlds that have taken over reality. In general, I thought this obsession, this sickness, seemed only to plague the adolescent males of the world (and yes, I know this is quite a generalization). Did females bypass this craze? Does their femininity make them immune to the desire to maim and destroy? I thought this was the case.

As I mentioned in one of my previous blogs (Why I Love Maine), the internet club in town agreed to close for one-two hours per week for girls only, so that they too could utilize this resource without risking their reputation by being harassed by boys at a place the is usually understood to be a strictly boys only hang out spot. I had envisioned that the girls would all enter the club and immediately start blogging, thoughts flowing from their minds to the keyboards, writing pages upon pages about the topic we chose the day before (what they love most about their country/region). The only risk I had envisioned was that they may tend to glance at their Facebook profiles and Google images of celebrities a little too often. No problem I thought, we have time. Let girls be girls, let them have some fun. Well, of the 10 girls that showed up, only one of them wrote a blog today! 

I offered to close all of the games that had been in progress when the boys were kicked out, so that they could begin blogging. All, save for one, declined. They didn't want to write, they refused to write.  They wanted to play the games that the boys had been playing. They wanted to shoot RPGs at enemy tanks and run over civilians with Hummers.

So, that's it, there I was at "blogging club", helping Samira and our one boy Muslim write their blogs while 9 other girls broke down gender barriers like I had never seen before, killing zombies and becoming the crime kingpins of a virtual Baku. Little Xacay and Diana might not be so scary if you pass them on the street, but give them virtual AK47's and an unlimited ammo cheat and watch out!

Summer Camp: The Aftermath

The Balakan Arts Summer Camp has been my biggest project to date, but I can't find the time to sit down and write about it. I'm busy, yes. I've had my normal club schedule of 13 per week, I went camping for a couple days up in the mountains of Zaqatala, I am planning a baseball clinic with my students at the orphanage on Friday, I am finding guest speakers for the national boys summer camp (ABLE: Azerbaijan Boys Leadership Experience; a one week sleep away camp) happening next week, and my 6-month report is due! However, I must admit that I mostly cannot write about the camp because I really have no idea where to start. 38 kids, 16 volunteers, 3 Azeri counterparts, 6 days, and a whole lot of tie-dye and friendship bracelets later, I'm tired and don't know what to say.
It was an overwhelming success, greater than anything I could have ever imagined. My buddy Matt said it perfectly. It was "organized chaos", and we loved every minute of it. The kids were perfect, coming everyday on time and excited. The counselors were even better, inspiring and energetic. Every event, every game, every art form was met with more enthusiasm than the one before it, and I have my wonderful PCV colleagues to thank for that. They came from all over Azerbaijan to help, and each brought with them their own personal flare. Since their departure, my kids sulk around when asking why Gio, Lori, Marie, Brad, Erika, Clarissssssssa, Cryyyyyyystal, Matt, Mike, Dan, and Jodi had to leave, as if they're kind of over me.
I took on an administrative role, spending the week organizing events, including the Olympics and after camp adult activities like a kiddie pool belly flop competition), purchasing materials, and making sure everything was in order. I have to give special thanks to Stephanie, the mastermind behind the camp, and our 3 Azeri counterparts: Pervane, Ulduz, and Farid. They showed up everyday and stuck with the kids through it all. The Minister of Education even came, and was impressed. Well, actually, she first threatened to shut down the camp because she didn't know about it beforehand. But, after visiting and seeing us at work, she sang our praises all over Balakan, begging us to run the camp again next year. She even came to the showcase on Saturday night where the students performed and displayed everything they had done throughout the week (writing, visual, dance, drama, music, photography).
Anyway, to conclude, I thought in the spirit of sustainability and cultural sharing, if you'd like to see pictures of the camp and read firsthand reactions, check out the following two blogs, owned and written by two of my best students. Last weeks social media club assignment was to write about summer camp. These girls did a fantastic job and I think you'll find their stories very entertaining.
Samira
Leyla
If you have any questions about the camp or want to know, just make a comment and I'll respond ASAP.

Why I Love Maine

So, I am proud to say that our social media club is running at full throttle! At first, we were using a back room at the internet club, splitting 2 computers between 10 girls because the they do not feel comfortable being in the same room with all of the boys using the internet. Last week, it was way too cramped, way too hot, and the girls had had enough of all the stares from boys (culturally, it is really not a place girls want to be seen). Luckily, the man who owns the internet cub, Zamir, is a good friend and a great guy. He has now reserved two hours per week for girls only! This gesture is completely unprecedented here. Once I told the girls the news, they were back on board, and brought a few new friends with them!

This week, we are writing about what makes Azerbaijan and Balakan special. The students will write about what they believe is unique about their country and/or their region. In honor of this assignment, I wrote my own little list of the 5 things I think make Maine so special and what I most often think about while over here. 

1.     I love being so close to nature. From where I live, I can be in the mountains hiking, on the beach with my dog, and water skiing on the lake, all in the same day. I am a very active person and love being outdoors. In Maine, the possibilities are endless. Did I mention the skiing in the winter?!

Sunset on Long Pond

Running with my dog Gretzky at Higgins Beach

My brother waterskiing

Long Pond

2.     I’ve got to give a shout out to fresh Maine seafood! There’s nothing like eating a lobster, salmon, or Bang Island mussels, and knowing exactly where it came from! Plus, it costs about half the price! I’m getting hungry just thinking about it!

A lobster boat working on Casco Bay

3.     Swimming in the ocean or rivers (ideally off a rope swing) is certainly up there among the top reasons why I love Maine. The apprehension leading up to the jump, knowing how cold the water below is, the momentary shock as you enter the water, the girlish scream you involuntarily let out, the sharp sting that goes shooting up your legs and spine, the hyperventilating, the gasping, and then, finally, the adrenaline, the desire to jump again, and again, and again, and again. By this point it doesn’t really matter, you’re numb anyway!

The rope swing near our house on the Presumpscot River

My brother and I at the pier we jump off on Macworth Island

Jumping into the ocean at Five Islands

Ya...it's cold

4.     I never realized how much I’d miss the fog. Looking out onto Casco Bay, suddenly a bright, beautiful day can turn into a dark and dreary one that makes you feel like the sun will never shine again. And just like that, in the blink of an eye, the sun is back, shining brighter than ever!

The fog coming in at Portland Head Light

5.     Lastly, Maine’s proximity to other places is truly unmatched. Enjoy the peace and quiet of Maine for as long as you like. Personally, I can only take that for so long. Not a problem! In 2 hours, I’m in downtown Boston, in 5, I’m in New York City to the south and Montreal to the north! What more could I possibly need?!

Back to Work and Accidentally Spreading Anarchy

So today was the first day back to normal clubs following an extraordinary week of camp – more on that after I decompress and reflect a little bit more. Anyway, we started the week with our 7^th and 8^th form club. We tried to construct our own countries, talking about what makes Azerbaijan unique, and then discussing what we would like in our own country – everything from the country’s name and flag to its source of income and national dishes. It was a wonderful lesson (Steph’s idea) and the kids had some fantastic deas, but it was not without its jokes and peculiarities, namely, the country of Kemalistan Zombie Country!

Two of my absolute favorite boys, Kemal and Rasul, decided to create the country of “Kamalistan Zombie Country”. They went on to explain: this is an underwater country of zombies with no natural resources, and no allies. It costs 100 million AZN to get a visa to visit and the president is chosen based on who is the last man standing after a battle royale! When we posed the questions of how their country will make money and how the rule of law will be implemented, they curtly replied with an air of superiority that they are all zombies, so money doesn’t matter, and neither does the rule of law. We’re talking complete anarchy people! It seemed innocent enough, typical boys and their gruesome fantasies! The girls in the class (who vastly outnumber the boys) would certainly dismiss this violent fantasy and embarrass the boys into taking the lesson a little more seriously. Think again! The idea started catching on! Why have rules and sources of income and a national anthem when you can just have complete anarchy – no rules, just fun (or in this case just flesh-eating monsters). By the end of the class, the kids (our second youngest class) were pretty much over the intricacies of designing their own countries. They had abandoned their own new nations and embraced zombie anarchy! I guess we're all moving to Kemalistan Zombie Country! Thanks Kemal and Rasul!

I'd also just like to publicly thank Darien Book Aid Plan out of Darien, Connecticut, who just sent me 25 lbs. worth of books to give to the Children's Library here in Balakan. This is a wonderful program and I, along with the students of Balakan, are forever grateful for their contribution.
Here is their website: http://www.darienbookaid.org/ 
Next month we will be doing the World Map Project in the Children's Library, where we paint a giant map of the world on the wall in the main room of the library!

The gang celebrating July 4th up in the mountains

The book donation from Darien Book Aid (plus the librarians and two of my students)

The floors of the library are in pretty rough shape!

My Very Own Top 10: Tbilisi and Istanbul

So, I have not blogged in a while because I was away. I took a little time for myself, some much needed R&R, and went to Tbilisi and then Istanbul for 6 days. It was so cool to visit two countries I had never seen before. I got to eat dinner in Tbilisi and breakfast in Istanbul. I spent the night in the Caucasus mountains, the morning in Asia, and the afternoon in Europe. How great is that?!

I don’t want to brag or anything, but I have to be honest, it was one of the best trips I have ever been on. It was relaxing and refreshing, but at the same time such an exciting, new adventure.

I am back in Balakan now, and fully underway and overwhelmed with work, yet again! Our summer arts camp begins on Sunday, so supplies need to be bought, lesson plans need to be finalized, and volunteers (about 10-15) will start arriving on Saturday.

At the same time,  we have started our Social Media club. The club has two objectives. The first is to give students interested in FLEX (a program that sends the highly motivated and accomplished students from Azerbaijan to America for a year to study in an America high school) an alternative way to prepare, by writing compositions in English every week. The second is to teach self-expression and the power of social media outlets. I have not been around much lately, so Bailey has been running it. She’s clearly doing a fantastic job! A couple of the kids already had their own blogs, and some others have since started their own. This week, the theme is ‘Top 10’. So, to keep you all informed about what I am doing at site, but also reminisce on my trip a little bit, I will make a top 10 list of the best things to do and see in Tbilisi and Istanbul. Enjoy!

1.    Sulfur Baths, Tbilisi, Georgia: They are one of those experiences where you don’t really have any idea what to expect until you do it. My friend and I got a private room for 35 GEL (the medium sized room) for an hour. Inside were very comfortable leather couches and chairs, a changing area, and bathroom. As you walked into the other room, there was the bath on the left, two showers straight back, and a marble bed for massages on the right (an hour scrub and massage only costs 10 GEL). The rooms are adorned with tastefully colored tiles that create a very relaxed ambience. The bath itself was perfectly hot, yet only had a slight smell of sulfur. The bath is about 8 feet by 8 feet, and approximately 5 feet deep, with benches on two sides. Even without shampoo or soap, I felt so clean and refreshed afterwards. Plus, the women who run this particular bathhouse are wonderful. They are Azeri and incredibly welcoming, but don’t take any s@#$! One man kept leaving his room while wearing only a speedo and was staring at my friend, so she shoved him back into his room and put a mop through the door handle to lock him in his room from the outside.

2.     The Wine Stores in Georgia: These are not just any wine stores. I’ve been to Napa, and as great as it was, I couldn’t help but feel a little pretentious afterwards. In Georgia, another country famous for its wine, they’re just out to have a good time! The wine stores look like any back home, except in the center of the store is a table covered with 30-40 open bottles, free to try. So you think, “okay, free tasting…pretty standard.” WRONG! Drink as much as you want. Ask for a full glass. Ask for seven. Stay late (they’re open ‘til 2am), and even admit that you have no intention of buying anything. The guys who run the stores just love wine and love meeting people. Not to mention Georgian wine is S-T-R-O-N-G. You’ll only need to try a few kinds before you’re really feeling it, trust me.

View of the city

3.     Climb up to Narikala Fortress: We spent a couple of hours up there just looking out over the entire city as the sun set. The crumbling ruins of a once-great fortress have very few rules; feel free to climb around! It is situated on a hill overlooking the Mt’k’vari river. Many couples can be spotted strolling around the nearby botanical gardens and the fortress, enjoying the solitude and beauty. Just watch your step, it can get steep!

The Fortress from below

4.     Visit the sites around Sultanahmet in Istanbul, Turkey: These are not to be missed! From the unique combination of Byzantium architecture as an Eastern Orthodox Christian cathedral to its Islamic features as a mosque under the Ottoman Turks later on, the Aya Sophia has no equal. It is so big that the Statue of Liberty could do jumping jacks inside of it...with room to spare. The Blue Mosque, in all its beauty, is one of the most welcoming and peaceful places I have ever visited. Topkapi Palace is the perfect combination of tranquil beauty and fascinating history, while the Basilica Cistern, approximately the size of two football fields and once the home to the entire water supply for Istanbul, is one of the creepiest places you could ever visit.

Inside the Blue Mosque

Notice the contrast with the Christian Mosaic just above the Islamic writings

Inside the Aya Sophia...ye, it's big!

5.     Walk at night on Iştikal Caddesi (Independence Avenue), the main drag in the hip neighborhood of Taksim. It doesn’t matter the day, the streets are always packed and the bars and restaurants are always overflowing. Don’t make any plans or reservations, just enjoy the atmosphere and go where the night takes you…that might be to a bar called Montreal (where they had a Carey Price jersey hanging up), or to a free concert by once-famous Turkish pop star Mirkelam.

Megan and I and Montreal Bar in Istanbul

Hail to the King

6.    Çemberlitaş Hamamı (Turkish Baths): For an out of this world, Greek god-like experience, this place is a must. Matt and I stumbled upon it, unaware of its rich history, but this is the premiere bath house in Istanbul! Spend the extra cash to get a 15-minute scrub/massage, and then spend the rest of the time lying on the giant, original marble tables unwinding after a long day of sight-seeing.  I promise you will leave this place a new person!

The crew after the baths

7.     Spice Bazaar: There is NO place in the world more interesting than here. The smells and tastes that consume you as you step into the market are unlike anything you could possibly fathom. From Iranian saffron to Turkish delight and pure silk scarves, you’ll undoubtedly spend a significant amount of time and money here! It’s worth it!

Mind blowing!

Cavity-central

8.     Fish Sandwiches and Mussels on the Bosphorous: Whatever you do, don’t miss out on this! At Eminonu, the sandwiches are simple: a fish grilled and slapped on a bun with some onions and lemon juice…simple and delicious; simply delicious! Just don’t forget about the bones! Oh ya, and they are cooked on a boat. The mussels can be found throughout the city. Vendors walk around carrying a tray full of them. You pay between 50 cents and 1 TL for each depending on the size. Spot the guy a 5-er and you’ll be noshing on seasoned, rice filled mussels ‘til your heart’s content. Don’t forget the lemon juice!

Fish Sandwich...heaven

9.     Sit On a Rooftop Terrace or Street Café and Smoke Turkish Water Pipe Over A Couple Pints of Efes: Don’t forget to take some time to sit back and relax, it is vacation after all. The number of street cafes and rooftop terraces are endless, and you usually can’t go wrong. The roofs offer the view, the street cafes offer comfy outdoor sofas. Either way, order some watermelon/mint water pipe and a couple Efes beers and unwind for a few hours!

10. Eat a Turkish Breakfast on the Bosphorous: Head up to the neighborhood of Bebek near the Fatih Bridge. Find any café along the water and order the “Kahvaltı”. This spread will include fresh juice, tea, breads, cheeses, lamb sausage, pastries filled with magical goodness, eggs, honey and cream, fresh tomatoes, peppers, tomatoes, and so much more. We chose Kale Café, as suggested by Anthony Bourdain on his show, “No Reservations”.  The place did not disappoint! We sat on the second floor and ate for a couple of hours while overlooking the water. You’ll be full, so walk it off by strolling back downtown along the boulevard. Watch out for dangling fish hooks, as many people will be along the water fishing for Red Mullet. And don’t be afraid to cool off with a quick jump into the Bosphorous! Plenty of teenage boys and overweight men do it. It was actually quite refreshing!

Before

After

View from Breakfast

Gone Fishin'

Matt and I Cooling Off

So there you have it, my top 10 list of things to do in Tbilisi and Istanbul on a quick trip.

Things Just Can't Get Any Better!

If Monday was the best day ever, Wednesday was certainly my proudest day in country!

About two months ago, modeled after the club of a more experienced volunteer, my students, Stephanie, and I started a volunteer club. Lately, most our clubs have been particularly game-oriented. The kids are restless, as they are in any country with the arrival of summer. We’ve been playing games and creating projects for them. Our games and projects are focused on leadership and team-building. A couple of months ago, when the weather was still too cold to be outside, I posed a number of different questions to the kids. I wanted to start a volunteer club, but I wanted the kids to come up with the idea. I was not expecting much at first, but as has come to be expected of my remarkable students, they surprised me once again. I started asking them about Balakan, about their community – what did they like about it, what were they most proud of. These conversations took place over the course of a couple of weeks. After that, I asked them what they would like to see improved in their communities – what were the biggest problems facing Balakan and how did they think they could help. At first, they did not believe that they could contribute to improving Balakan in any significant way, being so young. So, we took it back a few steps, asking them what their strengths were, what their greatest skills were. After quite a bit of encouragement, they finally began to recognize that they each had unique skills. We talked about sharing those skills, about teaching them to others. They started getting excited! We got back to the idea of helping our own community, Balakan. Suddenly, ideas started flowing. Some wanted to teach children Russian, or English, or baseball, UNO, or the piano, others wanted to assist the elderly, and a couple of boys even said they wanted to create a water system that brought fresh water to the most remote villages in the area (a little lofty for a couple of 8^th formers, I think).

From here, well, you can see how it progressed. I had ideas, keeping in mind the facts that we have no money and that some of our kids do not come on a consistent basis. I knew what I wanted to do, but I had to be patient and let the ideas come from them. They wanted to read to elderly people and help carry their groceries home – wonderful ideas, but there is no nursing home or anything like that here, so helping the elderly was something they could do on their own in their own neighborhoods. We talked about building things: bird houses, fresh water systems, playgrounds, all things that would require money and further planning. Moving on, we returned to the idea of  teaching. Most of the kids I work with are fairly well-off. They are smart, motivated, engaged, and their parents are committed to giving them the best education possible. This is one of the reasons they are allowed to spend so much time with the Americans! However, there are a lot of kids who are not so well off. They don’t go to school very often, if at all, because they must help their parents work, or they go to a school in a small village and are at a tremendous disadvantage when it comes to testing. Surprisingly, my kids were very perceptive to such inequalities, completely aware of how fortunate they are. I knew we were getting somewhere when we began discussing this. All of the sudden, from the back of the room, a young girl spoke up, “Maybe we can help the Internat School.” The exact comment I was hoping for! 25 light bulbs simultaneously went off in the room. The Internat School is an orphanage/boarding school on the outskirts of town for underprivileged children and IDPs (Internally Displaced Persons) from the Nagorno Karabakh conflict with Armenia in the south. I had been wanting to work here for quite some time, but also did not want to over-extend myself and abandon my students in the city who had a true passion for learning. I wanted to find a way to combine working with them and helping out at Internat; this was the perfect opportunity. Every student was immediately on the same page and the excitement in the room was palpable. A clothing drive was a way to get everyone involved without a budget. The children would have to show some initiative by going out and asking for used clothes, toys, books, and shoes from family members, friends, and neighbors. Additionally, the people donating these used items would learn about this volunteer project without us having to explicitly advertise it. It seemed like a near perfect idea, I again just wanted it to come from the kids. It didn’t take long, I asked them how they wanted to introduce themselves to the teachers and students at the school, and how they expected to gain their trust. The used clothing drive idea followed soon after!

From there, I went to Internat and met with the director. She was ecstatic, and asked if we would be able to collect enough items for all 96 of her children. That was a lofty goal, but I told her we would try our best. The following week, we got to work. About 40 students showed up to our first official meeting. Stephanie and her artistic ways took about 30 of the students and had them design deposit boxes to be brought to all four of the schools in the city. I took another ten and came up with a name and description for the club, to be distributed by students to community members as they collected things. For me, it was slow-moving at first. The kids were quiet and expected me to do all of the writing. I sat back and told them that I would type it up for them afterwards, but that I would have no part in creating the name or description. I left the room often, pretending I was busy with other things in order to encourage them to try it on their own. The results were amazing! Not only did they come up with a name and a five sentence description of the club and its goals, they also came up with a slogan…and it rhymed! The ∂məkdaşlıq Təşkilatı (Cooperation Organization) is now a regular club, or should I say organization, on our summer work schedule and its slogan, “Birləşək, Kömək Edək!” (Together, We Can Help) is inspiring other kids to join everyday!

Within a week of creating and distributing the boxes and fliers, my office was filled with bags of used items. Kids showed up to clubs lugging huge bags of items they had collected in their neighborhoods. People were stopping me on the street promising to bring their used items to my office the next day. I was completely floored by the support we got from the community, as well as the students’ commitment to seeing this project through.

This past Wednesday was International Children’s Day, as well as the first day of summer, a fitting day to deliver our collection to the Internat School. We all met at 10am at my office. At 1030, we each grabbed 3 or 4 bags (15-20 kids came on the trip) and made our way to the bus stop to catch a “marsh” to Internat. My colleagues Turan and Sefer from the Ministry of Youth and Sport met us on the corner. They have given us huge support throughout this project. We put all the items in their car (it filled the car completely) and took a bus to the school. At the school, most of the students had already gone home for the summer. The students are given lodging during the school year only. The only students remaining were IDPs who now live at the school with their families full time. We met the teachers and the remaining students. Some kind words were said by the school director, and then my students handed off the items to kids from the school. We took some photos and made arrangements to return in July to spend some more time with the kids who live there year-round. Our students want to teach them baseball!

As a celebration of this tremendous achievement, we went to the park for the day to have a picnic afterwards. It was so nice having an afternoon of completely unstructured time with our students. Trey and I sang the Star Spangled Banner to them, at their request, and they sang us their national anthem in return. We threw around a Frisbee and football, ate ice cream, and even discussed religion with some of our more advanced English-speaking students. It was such a rewarding day, for all of us. The kids were so proud. This feeling of accomplishment stayed with them throughout the afternoon. I lost track of the number of high-fives given, the number of pictures taken, and the number of other volunteer project ideas that were told to me.

For now, I am going to relish this moment, this project, this day. For all the days that I feel aimless, lost, questioning why I am here, it is days like this that get me back on track, remind me of my purpose here, and make me excited for the days to come.

At my office getting ready to leave

Loading up the car

The exchange

The Cooperation Organization and Internat School

Celebrating afterwards at the park

O Hey!

So proud of them

Best. Day. Ever.

As I sit here at 10:20pm writing this, I am still reeling as a result of what can only be described at the BEST. DAY. EVER!

Nothing went exactly according to plan . I guess you cannot call it a perfect day per se, but then again, nothing went wrong either. In fact, every new event led to something even better. I guess while serving here in Azerbaijan, ‘perfection’ has become this entirely subjective word that pops its little head out when you least expect it. In that sense of the word then, I must admit, today was perfect!

So, the Balakan Dragons had their first official game today. Yes, they chose dragons as a team name. It was not my first choice. It was a toss-up. I particularly liked the Balakan Bandits, the Balakan Ballers, and my personal favorite, derived from my Montreal Expos hat which I wear to every practice only to have my little buddy Resul wear it, the Balakan Young Expos. Regardless, they chose to be the dragons. The Dragons were set to play Danichi today, a small village about an hour south where my good friend Jane is working. Trey and I usually bring our equipment down there every Thursday to play with her kids until they get their own gear. They are another great group and we were excited to play an actual game. So, we got permission slips signed, raised the money, packed our lunches, and hit the road at about noon today! It is a national holiday so the school was to be empty and we’d have the field to ourselves.

The kids were pumped. They all showed up on time, most toting their packed lunches and wearing baseball caps! After about a half hour of doing attendance, picking positions, and choosing a team name, we were off. We arrived on time and the sun was shining! Unfortunately, the other team did not arrive and the school was very much not closed. It was filled with older, some not-so-polite students, who were very confused as to why a group of strangers had showed up at their school with this strange sports equipment. At first, I expected the worst. Most of our kids are small and young, and I thought they would immediately be intimidated by the heckling of the older locals. NO SIR!

Most of them immediately grabbed the equipment and started warming up, going through the warm up routine that we had discussed. The older boys and girls continued to mock and yell, and were slowly encroaching upon our space. That was until they realized that our kids knew what they were doing. Once our girls started smashing the crap out of the ball, and our boys began throwing lasers at one another and catching them with the greatest of ease, the heckling started to die down. The loud yelling and laughing turned into soft murmurs and whispering. The quickly shrinking field was suddenly all ours, and this whole time, our kids seemed completely oblivious, indifferent to the jokes, focused on the game, loving the sport! I couldn’t have been more proud.

The other team never showed. That’s how things work here. It’s hard to get things going, and even harder to keep them going. Kids are busy, parents are skeptical, and it takes a lot to set a solid, consistent foundation. Even alone in a very isolated village, Jane is doing a remarkable job. Some of her best students did show up. We decided to stay and play anyway. I think our kids were enjoying the attention. By this time, we had quite the audience. Jane’s kids joined ours and we had a scrimmage. Plays were met with Oohs and Awes from the crowd, as homeruns were hit, seemingly impossible catches were made, and the unnecessary slide into first was taken! We finished after about an hour and a half of scrimmaging, the final score: 16-15 Red team.

I can say with complete confidence that baseball is now going to take off in Danichi. The interest was already there, Jane has a talented little team! Now, however, after seeing us play, I know Jane is going to have more than a few requests to play over the coming weeks. I look forward to our next game!

And, to the credit of our team, despite fronting the money to come and play a real game, only to have an intrasquad scrimmage like we do every Wednesday and Sunday back in Balakan, they never complained. They never asked to go home. They just played, soaked up the attention, and had a good time.

So, after such a successful day, we had to celebrate somehow. The kids all wanted to stop at the Heydar Park in Zaqatala on the way home. Zaqatala is the larger region (Zaqatala also the name of the city) just south of Balakan. Every rayon and city has a Heydar Park. They are usually filled with museums, beautiful trees and fountains, music, and carnival rides. They are the place to go in the summer time! The one in Zaqatala is particularly beautiful. Our driver was hesitant, wanting to get home, but our kids were persuasive and he gave in, allotting the kids 30 minutes to walk around and take photos (he wound up being a pretty big softy and let us stay for about an hour). We all made a bee line for the ice cream/cotton candy/popcorn stand, followed by a ride on the spinning swings. At first, only Trey, Stephanie, me, and our friend from Zaqatala Mike went on, with all the kids acting as if they were too cool for school. After our ride, they all wanted to go, so we took pictures and cheered them on. We finished our stop with a team photo at the fountain.

The ride back was equally as entertaining, as we all goofed around and talked about what the rest of the week had in store. As we got home, Trey and Stephanie came over to unwind and reflect upon the day. First of all, we didn’t lose anyone! Victory #1. Second of all, we didn’t lose (ignoring the fact that there was not actually a game). Literal Victory #2! Everything in between, well, it’s just so hard to put into words. There was just this incredible sense of pure joy throughout the day, this whirlwind of exuberance and happiness, and it never subsided, not even for a moment. Despite the fact that nothing really went according to plan, there were no worries, no problems. Despite the fact that 3 Americans took a group of young Azerbaijanis to play a game of baseball in a small village, there were no differences, no misunderstandings. There was just unadulterated fun and excitement, from start to finish.

If you enjoyed this post and are interested in donating to the continuation of this league nation-wide, please click on the following link: Azerbaijan Youth Softball League Donations

Thank you in advance! 

The Team