June 3, 2012

I had chosen a really hard pillow the night before and woke up with a slight crick on my neck. There were matches in the kitchen and lighting up the gas balloon was no trouble whatsoever. The teakettle seemed to have accumulated layers upon layers of dust at the bottom of it and I had to scrape it hard to find the original metal before pouring the water I had bought in the store and making instant coffee. I read for a while so Eraj had a chance to sleep late. His brother-in-law had offered to pick us up in the morning and take us into town for whatever we might be in need of. When he got up, we walked to another store, the one nearby was closed, and bought salami, flat bread and juice. I had to at least reheat the salami before eating it as there was no oil in the flat, but I had noticed a non-stick skillet just perfect for that task.

I had emailed Nancy and David, the Fulbrighter posted here, about our visit and Nancy had invited us to an open house hosted by a Brit doing developmental work with women in the city. After I exchanged some money, we were dropped off in front of a department store close to Nancy’s flat where I searched in vain for a hand-held fan to relieve the heat. I had mentioned a Barbie doll to Eraj and he didn’t know what it looked like and while walking through the children’s department I searched in vain for one, but to no effect. I guess that a traditional Muslim country such as this would not to expose their little girls to a busty, anorexic doll wearing clothes that leave little to the imagination.

Nancy came to get us and we walked to her flat located in a building she likes to call her “crack house” due to the fact that only three apartments are currently occupied and the others exhibit broken windows and missing doors. She didn’t know why the building was in such a state of disrepair, but felt sure that once they moved out it might be closed for good. The apartment was very nice by Tajik standards with hardwood floors, full-size fridge, large bathroom and AC unit. We took refuge in the living room and I had another beer to quench my thirst. David peppered Eraj with questions about the PedInst and I egged him on to tell David about the corrupt practices taking place there. I didn’t realize then that Eraj felt very uncomfortable talking about this with anyone but me.

Back we went into the furnace that the streets had turned on by noon. I tried to find shade to walk under whenever possible, but waiting to cross a four lane road was an ordeal. The open house consisted of the usual eat and chat affair with everyone bringing something to share, but to Eraj it was something completely new and he enjoyed talking to the foreigners, many of whom complimented him on his command of the English language. He kept telling me how grateful he was for the experiences I was making available to him while I told him not to forget that I was there because he had agreed to travel with me in the first place and that for once, I was totally dependent on him. I had a couple of salads, scone, a slice of upside-down pineapple cake and a generous mug of coffee. It felt too hot to try and eat anything heavy, so the cherries Nancy had brought, after soaking them in iodine, tasted great.

Ryan had recommended that I visit Karakul Lake while in the area and I ran into Samir, who had been part of the group visiting Iskandarkul, and she told me the lake was nearby and could be visited that same afternoon. After spending a reasonable two hours at the open house, there wasn’t even any music, we left and found our way to the nearby market I had seen in many of Corrie’s photos. It would have been an enjoyable visit at another time, but there were the same gnats I had confronted the night before and not a single tree in sight. Eraj went into the mosque next door to pray and I took refuge under the shade provided by the overhang. Going inside the market offered no relief whatsoever, it was even worse given the crowds swirling all around us. I found not one, but two hand-held fans I liked and quickly left the place after obtaining information on where to find the mini-van going to the lake.

It was a pleasant forty minute ride to get there and we were befriended by two young guys wanting to practice their English and who by coincidence lived in Chkalous too. The lake was not as spectacular as Ryan had insisted comparing it to Iskandarkul. Sure, it featured more of a beach atmosphere and several places selling drinks and food along with little huts where people who take refuge from the sun. I felt as if I were melting and regretted not having brought a bathing suit into Tajikistan for although 99% of the visitors at the lake were male, at least one family had two women dressed in swimsuits. When I asked one of the young guys where the women were, he responded they were at home taking care of the house. We sat at one open air restaurant just to have a cold drink, which the young guys tried to dissuade me from doing as I’d get sick, and I was appalled to see that the six men sharing a table next to us were wearing their underwear for swimming trunks. I pointed to Eraj that their skimpy briefs were not intended for swimming but he didn’t bat an eye and said women were not supposed to be around so it didn’t make any difference to them.

I dipped my toes into the water and it felt so cool and refreshing that I wanted to peel off all my clothes and swim naked. After a minute, I realized that the same gnats found in the city had found their way here too and were making my life miserable. We tried to ditch the two young guys, one of which was swimming at the moment, but he quickly came out of the water and made his way back with us. He had given his telephone number to Eraj and asked me what I was going to do for the evening to which I replied: “sleep”. He wanted to take me out for a walk around town even though the place looks like a ghost town to begin with and there are no lights at night. I told him I’d think about it knowing fully well it wasn’t going to happen.

We stopped for dinner before Chkalous and then we couldn’t find public transportation back. I paid for a taxi to take directly to the flat as I was simply exhausted by then. After my evening bath, I crashed into my cushions leaving Eraj to play with the laptop.