If you’re thinking, “Wow, Chrissi really is slacking with this whole blog deal”, you are correct. I never promised frequent posts, though. Let’s see, what has happened since my last post? the answer is: a lot. Phase one of training ended, I took my LPI (language proficiency interview), met my permanent host family, met my counterpart, packed up all my stuff to move, and had my swearing in ceremony. Like I said, a lot. It’s all been pretty good. No real hiccups or issues. My new family is very sweet. My Apa and Ata are very nice and super welcoming. They have 7 children, but only 4 still at home. I have a 16 year old sister, a 14 year old brother, a 12 year sister, and a 3 year old sister. My 16 year old sister, Aizada, speaks English. the rest of the family does not, but that’s okay. How else am I going to practice my Kyrgyz?
So far, my counterpart, also named Aizada, has been showing my around Talas City. I have a decent grasp of where things are located. I know where to buy things, and how to get home from just about anywhere. It’s slow going at this point. I want to just fast forward a little bit to the point when I will be working on projects, but all the steps in between are important, I guess.
I think I am really going to like it here. My organization has a clear mission and vision from what I can tell. They also have a very dedicated group of local volunteers, which is awesome. I just have to keep reminding myself that it took about 5 weeks for Kengesh to feel like home, and the same will probably be true for Talas City. At least this time I have a little bit of language.
That’s really all for now. Oh, I will have a new address that you can send things to soon. I just have to get it written in print, because Kyrgyz cursive is tricky.
Until my next post,
all my love.
Oh, and a big happy birthday to one of my favorites: Blake! Miss ya, B.
