Tuesday, July 14, 2009

i said a boom chica boom

Green Camp #1 is going good. The kids, despite having no hot water or indoor plumbing, are having a great time! We took them on a 2 hour hike today through the forest, came upon a beautiful mountain stream and had a huge water fight. They couldn't believe I was willing to get my shoes wet, but after a few moments we were all pretty soaked. It's not America, where camps often resemble something like a dream land, but we do sing "Boom Chica Boom" every morning and every night and have matching t-shirts to show off when it's all said and done.

Friday, July 10, 2009

stranger in a strange place

Taken in a small village, Luskert, where I spent a few days training a group of very bright young Armenian kids who will be going to live in America for a year, just how America will be. I came across this little girl one evening who had apparently never seen anyone as strange looking as me. I was that stranger in a strange place.

apricots and gas

Pumping gas in Armenia is a cultural affair. I've watched the process at least fifty times but still don't know why it takes 20-30 minutes to fuel up a tiny worn out Russian hoopty. But it does. And no one is allowed to sit in the car or bus while filling up, instead everyone mumbles and kicks the dirt outside while complaining about the weather either being too cold or too hot. Occasionally there will be car like this one, that is incredibly picture worthy. One with a notable color and strapped down with a ton of weight going for the long haul. Our bus left about thirty minutes after this car did and we passed it on the road within the first five minutes. The old man was trucking apricots all the way down to Iran. I hope he made it.

Thursday, July 2, 2009

toot!

The Armenian word for "mulberry" is toot. I like saying it and hearing it. It makes me grin inside. And the fruit is everywhere - dripping from the trees. Yesterday while I was tutoring little Angelina's dad, we went outside in the street for a toot break. We scoured the tree branches I could reach for as many toot as we could eat.