Mac-istan

Heat Waves and Crime Waves--I'm back in DC!

2006-07-20T20:02:00.000+05:00

It took two eight-hour flights, and a long enough lay-over in Heathrow to buy a few Euro-trash tank tops, but I made it fine. The Islamabad-London flight kind of sucked. It was crowded and smelly, too long and too many cultures who did not appreciate eachother locked in together. I, for one, did not appreciate the dirty feet of the guy behind me on my armrest, or the guy next to me draping his turban and brushing his beard on me. The abolutions make the bathrooms like a dirty lagoon, and the western flight attendants got mad at a Pakistani lady for whacking her kids. But then the Pakistani men got pissed at the fight attendant for yelling at the lady, and then refused to stay seated during out drawn-out taxi to the gate. I'm all for more color in life, but by the time we deplaned, I felt OD'ed on humanity. I even shoved a rude Frenchwoman working with doctors without borders, but she shoved me first. She yelled at me in French and I answered her back in French and called her a shithead. That sort of cheered me up.

The London-DC fight was a piece of cake, I spent my remaining euros and pounds on a few bottles of wine, then slept the entire time. It was nighttime in Paksitan so I slept well. But, around midinght DC time, it was still mid-morning in Pak so I wasn't tired at all. I stayed in bed extremely bored until 0330. I told myself I had to keep trying to sleep at least until 0500. I lasted until 0445, then had breakfast and did a few loads of laundry. 0600 I was out the door for a nice run!! Ooh it felt great. Luckily it was only a few miles. I had to get into my office to get my house keys and gym pass. I thought it would be early enough to be in the office alone and do some stuff online, but I heard someone else come into the office so I bolted (lest they raise the question of why I'm back but not coming into the office for the next two days.) Got to the gym just in time for a bodypump class--one of my faves! I'm sure I will regret it tomorrow when I am sore, but I took everything that Grace Jones from Trinidad trainer dished out today with a smile.

Now I'm at a coffee shop with Cori, about to go to a salon to look presentable again.
I think this is the end of Mac-istan, thanks for visiting!! I"m glad I had you all with me, I appreciate all of your support and time spent reading my blather. Talk to you all soon.
Bye!!

Things I'll miss and the question of the hour

2006-07-18T12:55:00.000+05:00

Hey hey, its my last day in Peshawar and I'm sad!!
This is Waqar and I. He's the HR manager and my office mate. In the morning I come in and we get tea and toast at our desks, and he sends people out for peaches and apricots for me (even though you are not supposed to eat fruit with tea, or even until after lunch.) He's the best. Getting married to his cousin, as many Pakistani's do. His english is great, as are his personality and sense of humor.

I will also miss the sweets shops, like this one. I love to go in and get a sampling of the local deserts and pastries. I have to say that after an admittedly non-representative sampling of sweet shops, Pakistan does not rank high on my list of places with delicious desserts. Baghdad beats it by a mile, mainly because they had some nice Turkish-influenced sweets. Amanda and I used to drop into those shops in B-dad all the time, banking on the unfailing hospitality in order to get free tastings of whatever we ooh'ed and aah'ed at. Some places even let us go in back and see the sweets on the conveyor belts. Far from hygienic, I know, but maybe some people enjoyed finding long blond hairs in their candies....

I'll also miss the bicycles everywhere and the entertaining juxtapostions they support--fat men on small bikes, old men on new bikes, little kids on large bikes, and small groups trying to get places on broken bikes. Oh, and have I mentioned the trucks? Incredible detailed artwork and painting on them. You can kind of see it on that lovely red truck. The busses are fun too--always colorful with flags and garlands flying from them, and horns that blare obnoxious melodies.

Fruit stands and nut stalls I've mentioned are up there on my list. Plant nurseries are also fun to drop in on, as sort of a micro-cosm of a culture. You can see what the local plants and fruit trees are, what plants/trees they import and from where, what's considered exotic, etc. Plus, no matter how unsafe the country is, there's something soothing and reassuring that you can usually find a beautiful green respite place with people who care about potted plants and flowers.

What else? Just checking out people hanging out and doing their own thing--like these kids by the road side a few hours outside of Peshawar.

Its kind of a bummer that, because of security, I can't just hang out places like in markets or puruse shops and stalls. There is always so much going on. But, lots of sectarian violence in Pakistan these days, don't know if you've read about it. Going into Malakand with a truckload of armed policemen sent to "protect" me, a guy asked me, "Are you Sunni or Shia?" I think he meant which one to I side with, just to know. So, I said, "Neither, I'm Christian." He said, "Ok, but are you Sunni Christian or Shia Christian?" Brilliant. He wins. I was stumped.
I gotta go eat lunch and meet with some staff before I head out for Islamabad. I don't want to go!!!
But, I do look forward to seeing everyone again. 7 weeks is a long time to go without seeing any of you guys.
Besos, talk to you soon.

History Lesson

2006-07-17T15:03:00.000+05:00

Hi Hi!
Sorry for my tardiness in posting--way to let me hear about it, people, I love it.
So, here are some photos from the area of Taxila, the most important archeological site in Pakistan. (Please see link at right for all kinds of info on Taxila--Mac-istan IT does not miss a beat!)

So, first one is the ruins of Bhir Mound, a large city that was part of the Persian empire, and dates all the the way back to the 6th and 7th centuries BCE (before the common era); Alexander the Great hung out here in the 4th century. The Taxila museum is really beautiful, and had relics from Bhir Mound, including intricate keys for locks, surgical instruments, lovely jewelry, scales, coins, etc. Just amazing how unimaginably long ago that was, and they used the same things we still use every day.

Some time around 300 BCE, Buddhist monks settled in the city, and set up a monastery called Dharmarajika monastery around 270 BCE. Dharmarajika means 'the tomb of the real lord', because the large stupa I'm in front of used to conatain relics of Buddha. (A stupa is a funeral mound, usually associated with the death and nirvana of Buddha.)

The third photo is at Sirkap (the other major city after Bhir Mound), established around 200BCE. You are looking at the Double-Headed Eagle Stupa. That's right, I said Double-Headed Eagle Stupa. Sirkap is HUGE, and laid out like a grid, with wide streets, shops, sun temples, etc.

I think the most tourists here are from Japan, who come to see the Buddhas and the monasteries. The other two photos are from a monastery that is a hike up from the regular grounds. It was established more recently, year 80 CE. At left is a votive stupa with great detail of little atlantes and other figures, and me zenning with a headless buddha.
Ok, good attention, you may go to recess.
See you guys soon. I'll be back in the states Wednesday night.
I'll post more before then--I have to get out all vestiges of blather before the blog is over!

Diff'rent Strokes for Pakistani Folks?

2006-07-14T22:39:00.000+05:00

Lower Mittekoat and Islamabad.

Going to Taxila tomorrow, the most significant archeological site in Pakistan. Its in the Punjab, which I just like the sound of. (Does any one remember Punjabi from Annie? They really do dress like that.) Anyway, the oldes parts of Taxila go back to 6th and 5th centuries BCE. And there some later areas of the site that were Buddhist sanctuaries. I'll put photos up tomorrow. What a weekend treat you guys are in for!
Latron.

Balakot

2006-07-13T09:46:00.000+05:00

Here's Balakot, the epicenter of the October 8, 2005 earthquake here. Most of the stuctures you see are put up since the earthquake, there was absolutely nothing left except the frame of two-story cement building on the far right side. f Now there are new shops, etc, but so much destruction left. There's a couple of places where the smell is overpowering, and the local engineers told me that's where there are lots of bodies
burried, just by circumstance, or by a mass grave. : (

Lots going on though, with rebuilding, etc., and people are doing their best to keep going.

I gotta run to Islamabad. Talk to you soon.

Best Day Yet

2006-07-12T16:04:00.000+05:00

I went up with a water/sanitation team to some remote areas to see the water schemes we've put in places, and areas we will do future projects. We went to some pretty remote areas, where only our NGO is working. Almost every switchback required a 6-point turn, so going just 6 km would take about 40 minutes. The picture at left is our truck. We had to leave it and hike part of the way to one of the villages. The way its facing is the way we drove out--you can see how little and rocky the road is--its like a footpath (right click on it and open it a new window to see it better.) I am so amazed at what these trucks can climb over and go down--literally boulder fields. The drivers are incredible too. And, Mom, they definitely never drink--its strictly forbidden here (trust me, I've tried.) Plus, I was briefed on all the ways to jump out of a rolling vehicle, so, no worries.

We went into different villages and saw if the water was working, checked the tanks and standpipes and pipes and talked with the communities. That was so fun. The people were really hospitable, patient, and gracious. The women were usually really shy, but always wanted to touch hands and never failed to return my smile and Salaam. I didn't really take photos of them, it felt intrusive. The landscape was amazing--huge mountains lush with trees and, but just ripped apart by landslides. (Will post more pictures later.)

Ooh, speaking of landslides, check out this road which we take to our projects in Kaghan Valley. (Mom, don't read any more, or please forgive me if you do.) So, further along this road we had special duties--one person had to look up for falling rocks, and the other person look down the side for moving land. I know it was dangerous, but I was totally grinning with my wrapped-up head out the window looking down at the river way below.

I wanted to put up some photos of Balakot--the epicenter of the earthquake, but it won't let me upload photos. I will do it later tonight, maybe. The internet is really weak here, and the electricity patchy--not even fans at night. Luckily it is cooler here, but it is still damn hot. And tons of mosquitoes. So, sleep is not happening so much. But, I only have one more week and tons of stuff to do, so will just push through.

Some things I wanted to say in comments, but can't since I can't get to blogspot.com: did anyone catch that that was a sheep in the photo with the men in the previous post? and thsoe were its.... ugh, disgusting. HELLO TAUSCHEKS! Mike D, thank you for the holla, I've been wondering about you. Alan, you made me laugh out loud. W, of course I watched the game. That penalty call in the box was BS. But I wanted Italy anyway, so I am happy. I feel a void in my life now that both the World Cup and Wimbeldon are over. And, finally, Mom, yes I am pale. But I plan to rock my costume this weekend in ISB so will hopefully catch some rays (and some men who can appreciate 1920s swimsuit fashion.)

Talk to you all soon

Oh my landslide

2006-07-10T21:48:00.000+05:00

Hi. I'm in the town of Mansehra, near the epicenter of the October 8, 2005 earthquake in the NWFP. We have health, water and sanitation, and mental health projects here. Today I went to along with a mental health/psychosocial team to see their activities and help distribute sewing machines to widows with no sources of income. Basically, just hung out all day in this tiny mountain town--in the clinic and with the community. It was really beautiful. But also sad. The people have lost so much and their daily life is constant struggle. I can't say much more without ranting about suffering and priviledge and tearing up, so I won't.

There are still crazy landslides throughout the mountains and all over the roads, which were hairy enough without all the rubble to climb over--all single lane with no shoulder. I sit behind the driver so I can't see what's going on. Even when he violently swerves, slams the brakes, or blares the horn, I just keep looking out the side window. If we are not getting in an accident, I don't really want to know how close we came, it would just make me tense. We went soo high though, way up into the clouds. Really beautiful.You can see in picture with the man standing how high we were. There is a raging river down there, too far to see.

The top photo of the guys with the goat is one of my favorites. Actually, the guy in the center was my favorite. I took a bunch of him, and they were all really good. He dug it. I was originally taking photos of his goat's football-size scrotom sack (I thought since they they are probably comparable to sheep balls, I could make a funny post out of that) but then he showed great enthusiam for posing for pictures with his goat.
The kids were part of a group of six brothers and sisters who came in to the clinic. And the bottom one is Dr. Sabah and I. I have so many more photos--of rock landslides, more people, the mountains and river, tent cities, the six kids, the goat....
But, there's not enough room on the blog, or juice in this dial-up connection to put them all up. I'll just make sure to put some up each day. Tomorrow I'm going out with the medical teams to some more remote areas and a displaced persons camp. Wednesday is back out to the field with the wat/san teams, then down to Islamabad.
Hope you are all well. Ciao.

NWFP Swimsuit Edition

2006-07-08T17:22:00.000+05:00

Yo yo y'all. Hope every one is well. I'm going to continue on the theme of humiliating myself (and thanks for the help, Amanda) and show you my super hot Peshawar swimming "costume."
You can call me crazy for thinking I wouldn't need a swimming suit in Pakistan and Afghanistan, but my tan is fading under this damn chadhri so I made the masochistic decision to spend the day outdoors. But that is not physiologically sustainable without a pool close at hand, and a pool necessitates a swimsuit of some sort (at least for me.)

You sharp readers might remember that I was enjoying the UN guesthouse pool in Jalalabad, but that was a borrowed suit. And, really, that lady should have just given me the suit, bc she will never fit in it again, ah, bygones. Anyway, we (Waqar, Vincent the Frenchman and I) went to the market area to find me a suit. Even the nice stores didn't sell suits. I considered buying this man on the plastic bucket cart instead, but Waqar talked me out of it.
So, we went in a few different stores, nothing. Finally one store did sell womens swimming "costumes." I really wish I had taken photos of the suits. They were all these shorts style (like mine above), but medium was the largest size they had. Most of them had SLEEVES, as well as the shorts, and necklines right up to the clavicles. Thankfully, I found this one, which was featured in the latest Sports Illustrated swimsuit edition.

My expat companion in Peshawar is Vincent. He looks like a Guantanamo Bay interrogator in this photo, but he is so goofy and fun. He's French but lives on the island of La Reunion, which is also added to my travel list. I don't know if I'm going to be able to work again, with all these places to go.... Anyway, Vincent is great, we have a good time together. He's had some good laughs over my potential and current swimming attire.

We're going up to the earthquake-affected area tomorrow and I'll stay until Thursday. We have a bunch of water/sanitation and health projects there that I need to see. Thursday I'll head down to Islamabad and meet up with our Country Director to have some meetings with US and UN donors. Should be a blast. But, the good thing is a friend of a friend of a friend is there, and we're going to spend the weekend together. He knows Islamabad fairly well, so it should be fun. After a weekend off in ISB, I'll come back down to Peshawar for a few days to see some of the sites here that I couldn't because of security reasons.

I am supposed to fly out on this coming Wednesday, but am going to postpone about a week (Cori, I will make it up to you, I promise.) Time goes so fast here! Oh, here is a typical bus here in Peshawar. The buses are not half as elaborate as the trucks though, they are truly majestic.

What else to tell you? The guesthouse here is lovely. I was berating myself for not bringing my yoga mat, but realized an Islamic prayer mat works fairly well. I get borderline heat stroke daily, but that just provides a good reason to eat lots of chips and fries (for the salt.) The power has been erratic at night. I fight a minor panic attack as the AC clunks off and the temperature quickly climbs. The generator can power only the ceiling fan, so before I go crazy I usually go stand in the shower and then lie under the fan. That way at least I have intervals of cool until the water on me dries and is replaced again by sweat. But, you'll have that, I guess. The earthquake area is in the beautiful mountains, which will be nice and cool. Can't wait. Hope you're enjoying your weekends.

Tonight's Dinner

2006-07-07T00:51:00.000+05:00

This is at the Pearl Continental Hotel. The nicest in Peshawar. Tons of meats on shishes. For some reason they were happy to let me behind the grill. A sword fight with the kebab man followed this picture. He was no match for my light sabers of mutton and fat.

Refugee Camps

2006-07-06T18:58:00.000+05:00

Hey all,
When I'm not back-blogging I am visiting Afghan refugee camps in the North West Frontier Province. (Four provinces of Pakistan--NWFP, Punjab, Baluchistan and Sindh.)

Yesterday I went to Khachi Ghari which is has been open since 1979. Its right in the center of the city, strangely enough, and its like a city unto itself. Its got 54K people in it, and it used to have 71K. The government of Pak is trying to close it (it was supposed to close April 2006, but no one has left.) And, if you look back to the Jalalabad pictures of the returnee camp of Sheik Mesry which has been chosen for them (the one that made me want to cry) you can understand why people aren't leaving the lives they've established here. So, again, the photos are out of the car, so as not to cause a scene, but are thus kind of blurry, sorry. There were so many children running around, and all so cute. But I sort of hate taking pictures when people are looking, since I know how it makes me feel, but I got one of these guys doing something with this wooden cart.

The group shot is in the clinic we run--a health education session. This clinic is where I literally had to take a seat. It was so hot in there. Its just a big warehouse with no ventilation. I had rivers of sweat running from all places, my head swaddled and hot, and not a real breakfast--just tea. So, my ears started ringing, and my stomach felt strange and my head felt floaty. I sat. I recovered. But now its a joke between me and the doctors--Kacha Ghari got me. I was saying I've spend August in Iraq in 130F weather and no AC, and played frisbee for hours in horrible hot humid weather, and never had any heat tolerance problems. But that Khachi Ghari, man, it got me.
We went to two other sites that day. A maternal and child health center in an urban camp, and an emergency obstetric care clinic. See? Work.

Today we drove 2.5 hours outside of Peshawar to some far flung refugee camps. They were all mud houses like this. Saw two basic health units, and one new maternal and child health and feeding center. At each clinic I'd tour of every room of it, and speak with all the providers and staff, look at all their registration materials, data collection systems, treatment protocols, etc., etc. Then, just when I would want to jump in the airconditioned car before I need to take another seat, we have a mini-party. They bust out the pepsi or mountain dew, and either mangoes, bananas, apricots, and crackers. They are so insanely hospitable and kind. It was great.

2006-07-06T00:24:00.000+05:00

I missed Amanda’s birthday on July 3rd. Amanda, my present to you is publicly telling your favorite story. Everyone, one time Amanda and I were in a security meeting in for IMC-Baghdad personnel. I was probably being loquacious, as most meetings bring out a sort of petulance and rebellion in me. I was sitting on a couch with Amanda on one side of me, and a quiet Eritrean engineer on my other. I had my right foot stuck straight up in the air because I had sprained it that day playing soccer with some soldiers in the Green Zone. I think Amanda made me laugh about something and then, with my legs in the air, I ripped a huge fart! I didn’t know what to do or say, so I didn’t say anything but Amanda and I just laughed like crazy. To this day I don’t know if Gideon heard it, because he didn’t say a word or react at all. Not the funniest story, but its one of Amanda’s favorites, along with the one where I was so mad she was going to evacuate without me I cried.

Bribes and other improprieties

2006-07-05T23:56:00.000+05:00

Just flying one hour from Kabul to Islamabad entailed so much lunacy! Somewhat shocking and frustrating, but still refreshing in that it is so different from an airport trip in the States.

The first stop to getting into the airport is a checkpoint outside the run by the Afghan police. So I go in with my ticket and passport ready, all set for some form of legit encounter. That was dumb. A small woman in a dress version of the dark green police uniform looked at me for a bit, then got up and came over. Didn’t take my outstretched ticket so I offer my passport, but she wasn’t interested in that either. I gathered the big table in the room was for searching bags, so I made ‘pick it up?’motions at my backpack. I half picked it up and gestured to the table (she was a little lady, so I thought I’d help.) But, no, she makes the bok sheesh gesture at me. That’s Dari for bribe. But, this is all hindsight, bc at the time, I had no idea what she was doing. A lot of her gesturing, me smiling stupidly and gesturing back, and her getting increasing irritated ensued. Finally, I burst out, ooh, you want bok sheesh!! Not to call her out (but I wouldn’t have given it to her anyway), but I was so happy to finally understand. Well, that ended that encounter quickly. She literally shoved me out of the tent, and my driver who was diligently waiting outside hurriedly grabbed my bags. In the car he told me, “Kiri (which is how lots of people in the mid-east pronounced my name too. Plus its a cheese here that I like.) yell bok sheesh no good.” And he also said ‘Afghan police no good.’ I said, “ I know. She wanted bok sheesh” to which he vehemently yelled and shook his finger, “Noooooooooo bok sheesh!” Babrak, for one, will not be perpetuating the corruption problem among Afghan authorities.

So, female hut #2 was also a good time, but for different reasons. A woman was sitting in this tiny tiny hut with her son, just chilling. She’s not interested in my passport or ticket either but she pointed at my carry-on bag so I set that down and let her go through it. Then she gets up, takes my arms and pulls them out to my side and pats them down. Before I know it, she is completely feeling me up—we are talking Tune-In Tokyo-style! (I want to know who gets that joke.) That’s over soon enough and as I’m gathering my bag she is nudging her son to look at me, and gesturing to my eyes and hair. She seems genuinely annoyed that he’s not interested in me (mind you, he’s not a day over 3 years old.) That was strange, but it sort of explained some disturbing behavior I encountered the other day.

I was at a mango stand--I hadn’t had any in a few days and the orange stains on the corners of my mouth were beginning to fade. There were some young boys there who were cute and excited to say Hi and Hello to me and I was friendly back. But this boy, who was maybe 10 or so went from “hello” to looking me up and down and licking his lips! Ugh, it was disturbing.

While I’m on the subject, I sat outside a bit at the airport, inside the UN compound so I didn’t even need to wear my headscarf. But this worker comes up and asks me where I’m going, blah blah. Then, also, looks me up and down unabashedly. Asks me if I’m married. I yes, indignantly. That doesn’t stop his ogling though. The next question is (as if being married doesn’t matter so much) he asks if I have children. So I feign a proud mom face and say, yes, two. And, by the way I was looking today, I could have easily passed for having twins on the way, so I don’t’ know what the hell all the hassle is about. I think men here just think western women are all sluts and harlots. The take the hair showing and bare arms to mean we are up for fulfilling their fantasies and the smut they see on satellite TV porn.

So, that was the end of the craziness, but just the beginning of four hours of waiting to board. Usually I don’t care if my plane is delayed, or get upset about anything else outside of my control—in the grand scheme of things its not important one bit. But I think my grand scheme was shrinking with every hour of BLARING Indian music and then Indian soap operas and music videos with more warbling and some wailing as well. I guess TV for most Afghans is still novel enough that the experience is enhanced by playing it very loudly. Plus, the snack bar had closed and my Snickers had stopped satisfying.
Ok, that’s the end of the whining. After boarding, we waiting another hour for a dust storm.

This calls for a Jihad

2006-07-05T21:59:00.000+05:00

My people, I have some terrible news: Mac-istan is banned in Paksitan!!! By reason of "anti-Islamic content" blogspot is banned in Pakistan. Can you believe it? Well, its not actually that bad since it just means that I can't see Mac-istan. But that's a big bummer because all I want to do is read your comments and holla back. Of course, Mac-istan IT came to the rescue, again (did you all see the new Pakistan map IT put up?) In order for me to your comments on the blog, they will first get emailed to me, then I publish them (as long as you are not defying the fatwa about Nadal-bashing.)

I'm in Peshawar, and its great. Been at Afghan refugee camps most of the day. Lost 18.5 gallons of water in sweat so am about to chow on some mangoes and nuts. I left Kabul just before the bombs of yesterday and today. Its aaaaallll good.So, good morning to you all, and get ready, because I have some backlogged backblogs do. Hope you had great july 4th weekends!

All quiet in Kabul

2006-06-30T17:41:00.000+05:00

Nothing new except for a spike in intestinal IgE. I'm ok with it--it means I've been eating adventurously. I think it came from some homemade samosa things deep-fried to a flaky perfection with mashed potatoes, veggies and spices inside, but maybe from the ice or water in a tangy but unidentifiable pink drink. Both things my expat companions shied away from; both things went in (and came out of) my gullet fast. Ha! Sorry. Its really nothing out of control , no worries.

I think it did take its toll on me a bit though, because last night I slept from 1800 to 0600 straight. By this morning my poor foam matress was indented so much by my body, it felt like I was climbing out of a canoe!

Going to watch the Germany-Argentina game at the Germany Embassy compound. Should be fun and crowded, and they have a nice restaurant there, projection screen outside, and the best beers. I realize it may not be the best place to be if Germany gets beaten. Is beer as tasty if its shared with crabby Germans?
(Photo at left of George and I. Might be seen better if open in new window.)

Hope you all are having fun!
I'll be here in Kabul until I fly to Pak on Monday.

UN Heaven

2006-06-28T23:55:00.000+05:00

Ok, ok, that was admittedly lazy blogging to just put up 4 photos in the previous post. I've changed it now.

Tonight was a party for one of our best midwife trainers, who is leaving after a year and half of work up here in Jalalabad. She's next to me; on the left is another IMC HQ person; the lady in the white works with jailed Afghan women and women's prison guards.

Nangahar province borders Pakistan, and its very religious. ALL women are in burkhas, no matter what; beating and jailing your wife is normal and accepted; i met a doctor today who said she must have 18 children because that's what her husband insists. One a year for 18 years. (She is in her 4th year of marriage and is at 40 weeks with her 4th child.) We joked about family planning, but it hurts my heart.

Maybe i'm getting softer in my old age, but i was also almost in tears while touring Sheik Mesry returnee camp for Afghans who were previously living in Pakistan. It is one of the harshest places I have ever seen, and its where the government designated for thousands of returnees. Its about 25 minutes outside of Jalalabad on the wildest drive that I have been on in a long long time. Our Afghan driver was manhandling that Land Cruiser up and down rocky passes and through not quite dried-up river beds. It was so fun I couldn't stop shrieking and laughing. But the township itself is so sad, and it boggles the mind what people are forced to live with (and without.) It is the epitome of desolate and harsh. We run an outreach clinic there 2x/week (photo.)

I wasn't so generous with the photos at the public ceremony beforehand. With men, I just don’t like it, I feel like a zoo animal. They kept sneaking up to me with their cameras so I wrapped myself up like a ninja too, and put on my big sunglasses. I suppose I should be more gracious, or even magnanimous, but I just get creeped out.

We went back to the Kunar province office for lunch. I eat like a man now, I swear. I am so famished by lunch time! Had a whole plate of lamb, an amount of bread that could feed a family, oily but delicious greens, spicy potatoes, melon, pepsi, and a watery yogurt drink I didn’t even like. Oh, and my muscles are seriously atrophied--I feel them twitch as they die. But, I don’t seem to be gaining any weight. I like this life so far… But, I'm sure building back my running endurance in the oppressive summer heat of DC will be as painful as pigging out here is pleasing. Can't wait.

Here's a photo I call Come Mister Taleban, Tally Me Banana....(daylight come and me wanna go home.)

I'll be back in Kabul soon and then to similarly hot Pakistan next week. I don't want this trip to ever end! Its put a fierce travel bug back in me, so consider yourselves warned....

Bye!

How are these photos connected ? (winner gets a burkha)

2006-06-28T23:12:00.000+05:00

(The competition is off, since I gave all the answers in the subsequent post and am now pasting them here. But, if you want a burkha let me know and i'll pick on up for you.)

I'm staying in Jalalabad, at the UN guesthouse (photo.) It is like heaven on earth (and the place i will disappear into contented oblivion, if i ever need to.) Its got brilliant people from all over the world, an inside and poolside bar, all the delicious food and fruit you can eat, a gym, air conditioning, daily laundry service, green space and a garden, a dartboard in my room, and theatre TV for World Cup games. (i can't wait for the brazil-france game.) Diving in the pool after 10 hours in 120F weather is my new favorite feeling.

This is an aerial photo from the UNOperations/World Food Program plane to Jalalabad (same one i'll probably take to Peshawar, Pakistan.) Jalalabad is the largest city in the eastern region province of Nangahar.

The third photo is of Bernard, from Uganda, and his box of Ugandan vodka made from bananas. Inside the box are little plastic pouches of 60 ml--perfect for a cocktail, and highly transportable! Didn't I say these people were brilliant?

Fourth photo of the previous post is of the 76 midwives who graduated from the Institute of Health Sciences today, trained by us. The ceremony was held at the Council of Tribal Elders which was very nice. The women all showed up in burkhas, but took them off and assumed the ninja position. We later had a private reception for them and their female family members , and it was total chaos. Regardless of the fact that no one knew who I was, I ended up presenting each one with a wrapped gift, shaking their hand, and saying Congratulations (in English—how stupid is that?). The director of the program was engrossed in keeping freeloading men from scarfing our lunch, so I stood in. But no midwife came up in order, I'd get bumrushed by 5 different women, and their families at one time. I'd hopefully hand the gift to the midwife in the group--she was usually getting gaudy garlands thrown around her neck, and confetti dumped on her head, then the family would grab me and we'd pose for a flurry of photographs. For SEVENTY-SIX people. I couldn't stop laughing. But, every one was excited and happy, it was a beautiful, joyous affair.

I DO do work here, I just don't write about it.

2006-06-26T11:32:00.000+05:00

Went to Mass Sunday night at the Italian embassy-- people from everywhere! indian nuns, soldiers from all over, italians, tons of filipinos, french, africans, it was great. the priest spoke in italian, readings were in tagalog, french, and english. the filipinos ruled the choir--they manned the electric keyboard as well. some songs sounded like asian pop songs, which was also entertaining. i sat in the front row so got to see all the different ways people from all over the world take communion. all the soldiers piled their guns, helmets, and flak jackets up outside. it was hot as blazes in there, so thankfully, it wasn't a long Mass. the priest was wearing black standard-issue italian military boots, which also tripped me out.

Then we went to the international security assistance force (ISAF)--kind of akin the the Green Zone in B-dad, but much more international. Its the military HQ for all the forces here in Kabul. One soldier told me there are 32 countries represented, but the majority are the Brits.
Its so nice to go there, bc I can wear a tank top, go to the gym, get western food and snacks, play futbol and volleyball, and watch the World Cup games on a big screen in a huge bar, where beers are only ONE EURO! i went a little nuts.

And last night was so fricking hot, with no breeze, i couldn't sleep at all. I can only open one window since one side of the house has constant reekage of sewage. I have other funny things to tell you about the guesthouse but i'll do it later and post pictures along with.

Tonight we went to this great French restaurant in Kabul. It was so delicious and such an amazing atmosphere. Its outside with all kinds of fruit trees and foliage, and lights and candels, full bar, big projector screen. That game-deciding foul in the italy-aus game pissed me off, by the way. But, I've finally found my haven! (besides the ISAF.) Tons of young expats from all over the world, speaking all kinds of European languages (and chain-smoking), cocktails, really great food, and good music . There's even a pool, and they serve the best coffee in Kabul, supposedly.
Oh, in the photo is our security guy from S. Africa, a program manager from India, a roving operations lady from the LA office, and our finance guy from Kenya.

I'm going on a trip for a few days within Afghanistan, but I will probably have email access. I'll let you know how it went and share photos afterwards.
Talk to you later.

My Saturday

2006-06-25T00:02:00.000+05:00

Swaddled. At an ultrasound unveiling for the maternity hospital.

Fotos

2006-06-23T23:33:00.000+05:00

Here are some Kabul photos. I have tons, so let me know if you want to see more. Why the underline? I don't know. I can't change it.

Anyway, Itake most pictures from the car, since I would not feel ok whipping it out on thetreet. So I've learned to take photos really quick, like at a huge pothole, security checkpoint, or traffic jam. (which is why there's a strange glare, sorry.) We were stuck behind this Pakistani tanker for a bit, so I got to catch this cutie:

There is only one IT person in all of Mac-istan and she is traveling from Geneva to the Bahamas. Hopefully later the underline and the foto layout problemas will be rectified.)

I am eating more than mangoes, Mom

2006-06-23T20:38:00.000+05:00

Hi All,
I want to say thanks to my aunt patti for making me sound like a slacker. The McCarthy's are a tough bunch, they are. Well, today I also slacked since Friday is the weekend. We went to the house of one of the hospital directors, which was a big honor (she was hand-picked by Karzai.) Here's a picture of the lunch she cooked for us. And this wasn't even all of it. I couldn't fit it in the frame. It was outstanding. I ate so much but really I couldn't fit in ma belly more than a bit of everything. Her littlest son did this cute handwashing thing beforehand. He had so much personality I couldn't believe it--jesturing and entertaining us like a professional comedian.

We were all sitting on floor so thankfully, I could just lie back on the comfortable pillows to digest and enjoy the company. The Afghans told stories about the Taleban--some funny (now), and some just terrible. Its been interesting to see how some of our western-dressing local staff looked during the Taleban years--with the turbans and beards they were forced to wear. They would have scared me then, but now I drop by their office for a chat and a laugh. Tells you something (you already knew) about appearances.... Here's our lunch group. In case you can't spot me, I'm on the right.

After lunch we went to the Hotel Intercontinental. I used to treat myself to an evening there in Jordan sometimes, or just sit on their veranda and smoke the hookah with friends. It later got car-bombed. (I think I have a knack for frequenting places that later get bombed--like the UN HQ in Iraq and some hotels in Baghdad.) I bought the full-on long shirt, pajama pants, and matching long scarf. I'll try to send a picture for you to laugh at. And I got some other long shirts and a bag, all made by Afgan refugees living in Pakistan. There were so many gifts I wanted to buy for everyone, but I'd need a whole trunk to take it home. Which wouldn't be all that difficult, except that I have to fly on a small ICRC plane to Pakistan first. I'll get stuff for you guys in Paksistan instead.
Here's a photo of the lovely Kabul mountains. Next post will be all photos so you can get a better idea of what the city is like.
Besos, Ciao.

Backlog backblog #1: Dubai and Flight to Kabul

2006-06-22T10:30:00.000+05:00

I didn't get to my friends in Dubai that I wanted to. A few Lebanese guys who were our neighbors in Baghdad made millions there and now live in Dubai. These were the ones that built us IMC women (photo of Sarah, Amanda and me) a pool in their front yard so we would hang out over there more often. I know most of you already know that story, but I don't think I ever had any pictures to show you (thank you mandarino.) Its nice, eh? No photos of the amazing waterballet routine amanda and i perfected, but at least you can see in the background evidence of the international water polo grudge matches that went on between staff.

Anyway, got relegated to the small terminal at Dubai airport (although the Duty Free was just as impressive) where the little planes fly to Iran, Iraq, Pakistan, etc. It was actually nice to hear Arabic again. I really like it and it was fun to know what what gates they were talking about when they'd announce it in Arabic--since I was making little headway with Russian and Azeri. The flight to Kabul had all the usual suspects: the lifelong NGO workers with their somewhat local garb but expensive travel gear; the UN workers with their vest and backpacks; US contractors with buzzcuts harking back to their military days; turbaned men in robes; Korean business men in suits; and ones I couldn't classify if I tried.
Here's the plane:
It was really comfortable on the airplane and the european flight attendants were sweet, but the contrast from yesterday's flight made me chuckle. Instead of oily but yummy curried beef/chicken with red wine and vodka, we got 2 whitebread sandwiches with no crust and some white mush salad in the middle (i guess i'm NOT eating just anything these days) and juice. and some brown biscuits for dessert. And while it was nice to have to three seats to myself, I was kinda missing the Russian lady's big tush on my leg....

But, the flight was great. I think I just love traveling, or being in transit, I should say. Everything is fleeting and exciting, and you're somewhat unreachable and unstoppable, and responsible for nothing--for some reason that just makes me happy. One my favorite transits was being in a tiny, tin can of a plane flying over and between the soaring snowy Himalayas in Nepal. But being in a stinky filthy overnight bus in southern Bolivia was just as fun. The only time I hate being in transit is the x-country flight to SF. Then, four/five hours drives me mad since I can't ever wait to be on the ground and start the fun.

Flying into Kabul was cool too. Sprawling city of 4 million (? fact checker?) surrounded by mountains. Next post I'll put more about Kabul itself and show you where I'm living. Here's a photo from the plane.

Parwan

2006-06-21T20:06:00.001+05:00

Hi Kiddies,
Went to Parwan district today to see a great midwifery program that IMC runs, funded by the World Bank. I'm going to go out to dinner and to a bar so can't post much now. Believe me, it hurts me just as much as you. I'm bursting with things to tell you, and pictures to share. So far, I really love Afghanistan. Everything to me is a really great photo or moment frozen in time. I'll post a few here. Kabul has a really interesting pulse, and the more I see of the city, the more I like. Hopefully will do some shopping and sightseeing this weekend. Friday and Saturday are the weekend days here, so I plan on posting a bunch then.

Here are some photos from both on the way to Parwan, and in the main town, whose name I forgot. The one with the camels are nomads called Koochies (phonetically spelled.) The photo up top is an example of the mud that all the houses and walls are built out of all over the place, even in Kabul. The two kids by the bikes are just that. And the man with the bikes actually is sewing on a sewing machine, if you look closely you can tell. Bikes are all over Kabul, everyone and their grandfather (not grandmother--no women) are on bikes. Burkas are all over the place too. I would say about 40% of women I see on the street are in burkhas.
The one with the car is for you, Ruby. Its called, "Would'ya get in the boot?!" (Which is what Ruby and I would say to cute men while we were tearing around Wales.-boot means trunk in the UK and Aus.)

more excuses

2006-06-21T08:38:00.000+05:00

Hi All!
I'm sorry I've been MIA. Actually, I shouldn't say that in these circumstances. I've just been tired at night but have to deal with personnel issues, and drink beer with the finance guys. Kabul is cool though, and I feel safe--as long as I'm tightly swaddled around the head. here's one pic from my roommate (little crazy with the zoom in my opinion.) I have a green headscarf too, but people sort of freak out about my eyes when I wear it. Got my fruit yesterday, which is one of my favorite things to do in any country. Gorgeous mangoes!!!!! (I eat them day and night) And great cherries, peaches, watermelon, plums. I'm going to Parwan today to check out a midwifery training program. Will be back later today. What's tomorrow? I'll post soon, I promise. I have so much to tell you, I'm going to have to do a bunch of back-logged entries (starting w/ the flight over here) so you'll have lots to read.
Besos!

Kabul Communications

2006-06-19T07:37:00.000+05:00

ay yay, i was too tired to post last night. But, by the time you wake up, wonders of prose and photos will await you, I promise.

If any one needs to reach me by phone in the next 2 weeks, dial the following to reach me on my mobile: 011 93 799 460 712. Its on me most of the time. You can also reach me by CB radio at [breaker breaker breaker] India Mike Charlie 7.

Oh, gosh, and the world would be such a happier place if everyone downloaded Skype (www.skype.com.) Its easier than 1-2-3, and you can talk or instant message to anyone in the world for free, clear as a bell, even if you have a dial up connection. Just download it on your computer, pick a user name (mine is cmccarthy.imc), buy a headset, and call me when you're done.
This is the security gentleman who gave me all these goodies--my cell, CB, and sweeping travel restrictions (red and brown on the computerized map= no-go per the UN, darnit.)
Kabul is very green on the map, so no worries.
I'm off to a hospital. We have a projecet through DHHS to reduce maternal mortality at a certain maternity hospital.
Have great Mondays!

Kabul Kabul Kabul

2006-06-18T19:33:00.000+05:00

I'm here, its great. The guesthouse is really nice. I'll send photos soon. Just got back from the office, we're heading out to a Lebanese restaurant now, and to show me a bit of Kabul. I'll add to this later tonight.

Dubai

2006-06-18T03:16:00.000+05:00

Ooooh, I'm so excited. Its 0200 and I'm in my hotel in Dubai. I'm way too psyched to sleep, plus there is too much to enjoy in this hotel room of mine. I guess I lied about the no more fluffy bathrobe and slippers, 'cause guess what I'm wearing right now?!! I also have all kind of fruits and chocolates and its a beautiful room, all kind of fun things in the bathroom too. They looked at me like I was nuts for asking if the gym was open (its not, unfortunately.) The bed is gorgeous, and there's a big flat screen TV.

I flew on Azeribaijan Airlines, which was surprisingly nice. The food was good (I eat anything these days....) and the wine was flowing. Three glasses on a 1.5 hour flight isn't too bad, right? I had some tea to sober up. Man, the wotka was flowing too. I was wondering why the flight attendants were giving out so many small glasses of water, until I remembered I was still with Azeris.

I sat next to two large Russian women, one of which tried to gank my aisle seat and stick me in the middle between them! She was motioning to me to sit in the middle and making feel-bad-for-me-noises, and then started gesturing at her large breasts and my, well, you've seen the pictures, as if that were justification for making me sit in the middle! Niet. I was like, shit, if that's the way the world worked I'd get nothing in life--move it, cectpa.

They played the movie My Big Fat Greek Wedding. No one was watching or listening to it, though, since people were hanging out in groups getting drunk on free vodka. But I was cracking up! That movie is funny! The Russian lady and I became friends again after I accidentally smacked her leg at a funny part. And when the the lady in the movie puts on that horrible wedding gown and sees herself for the first time and goes, "I'm a snow beast" I busted out laughing but the Russian lady really liked the dress, "very beautiful!" umm, that's about all for the plane ride. Oh, except for when we landed at midnight the temperature read a cool 93F. Back in the Gulf....

The airport was totally thrilling, stupid as that sounds. All kinds of things going on, and super modern, but colorful and energizing. I can't even explain was so cool. I was watching part of the US match w/ Italy on a huge mounted TV while on the moving walkway. What a crazy physical game! I was walking backwards (staying in place) on the walkway so I could see more of the game, but there was a group of men in robes and women in black with only their eyes uncovered approaching, which, for some reason, made me not want to be too much of a jackass.

But, I made some good of my short time here--I went shopping. The stores are overwhelming. I could've stayed in there for hours. I got a great TINY little camera!! yeah!! Its a little late in the game, I know, and I've already missed taking a lot of great shots--especially yesterday of the Caspian Sea and the Old City--but at least I can post some good ones from Afg and Pak, ensha'allah.

I bought the smallest camera they had, its a Sony SXC-T9. I'm sure it does tons of things I will never use, but I basically got it for free. [I got USD 100/day in Baku (~1000 bucks) but it was so hard to pay for things there, with men being so chivalrous (love it.) So, I had room service and laundry bills, and a few rounds of drinks from my pub, and my silk head scarf but that was it. Paid in cash for the camera. Ba-boom.]

Anyway, Dubai seems nice from what I can tell. I made the reluctant driver give me a mini-tour of the city at 1 in the morning. But it all kind of looked the same--nice roads and road signs, tons of shopping, bilboards, hotels, palms, all kind of people and restaurants. If I weren't traveling on some one else's dime, I could definitely stay a few days. I have read a lot about the "hidden" sides of Dubai, where suffering, oppression, and modern day slavery exist and are condoned, so sort of dulls the shine for me.

Being here reminds me of some of the places I still want to go in the Middle East. Like Lebanon (mainly Beirut) and Syria. Damascus is supposed to be absolutely beautiful. And Georgia is now climbing my list, and, of course, Turkey. I've been reading this book called Ali and Nino which takes place in Azerbaijan, Iran, and Georgia before the first World War. Its fascinating; I wish I had read it before I left.

I should have some great photos from dinner Friday night at a caravan sarai--where people and their caravans would stay when they came into Baku. It was beautiful, or course, and had traditional music and dancers, gorgeous carpets and wonderful food. The vodka was in tall, narrow-stemmed glasses this time, and they didn't let you have an empty glass for long. Lovely long night again. So, I'll post those, and some of the old city, when my friends there send them to me.
I can't believe I'm finally going to Afghanistan! I'm so excited.
Ok, hope you're having nice weekends. Thanks for all your comments and for reading! Love you guys!

Real Deal

2006-06-16T16:57:00.000+05:00

Going to Afghanistan tomorrow! No more European vacation. Won't be any fluffy bathrobes and slippers. I'm really excited, though. I fly to Dubai Saturday evening, just for an overnight stay. Then fly on a UN flight into Kabul. I arrive in Kabul on Sunday afternoon.

I wish I had more time in Dubai, just to see all the sights (that famous hotel with sails, and the indoor ski hill, and the beaches, of course.) And I know a few people who live there--the Lebanese guys who built us (the IMC women in Baghdad) a pool in their front yard in Baghdad. They made so much money in Baghdad doing pre-fab housing and toilet/sanitation units for the army, they are multi-millionaires now. Not bad people to know in Dubai..... I guess another time.
So, tonight is my last night in Baku. Going to a traditional Azeri restaurant for a big meal with all the staff and consultants. There are a bunch of consultants here working on IMC projects-from Hopkins, CDC, Abt Associates, etc. They're working on injury surveillance systems, public health reform, communication on bird flu, and emergency medicine training. All things I'm interested in, so its been fun to talk shop a bit with the experts. Should be a fun night. Hopefully will end at our pub for beers and late night futbol. The owner has promised to give me one of the cool World Cup t-shirts that the waitstaff wear since I've spent so much time there. He's a doll.

Gotta run. Have quick Fridays and great weekends!

There’s more to Sheki than sheep balls

2006-06-15T00:48:00.000+05:00

Other stuff we saw that day was a palace from the 18th century, I think. It had trees outside from the 5th century. The inside was all hand-painted walls and ceilings and colored glass windows hand-laid with tiny carved wood pieces. I’ll put pictures up. It was stunning.

And then we went to an Albanian church, the beginnings of which were in 2-1 BC! (what's in the pic has been renovated.) There were old crypts dug up and you could see all the bones and bodies. So crazy old. There were even animal bones up at the altar from the old Christian/pagan sacrifices. We had to climb up some windy stone roads. Just put the massive Land Cruiser into 4-wheel and got up some roads a horse would’ve had trouble on. Very medieval feeling—like the back alleys of Kilkenny, Ireland.

I learned so much about the history of Azerbaijan, and the Caucasus in general. How a lot of Iran used to be Azerbaijan (all Persia, I assume), and after a war 1808 (?) between Iran and Russia, they sort of divided it. But there are more Azeris in Iran than Iranians. Plus there are so many Turks, Turk descendants, Kurds, and more in Iran. Most of the Iranian army used to be Azeris, and all the major shahs were actually Azeris too. The guide said not many people not from this region know that. Shia Muslim is what most Azeris are. Thor Heyerdahl (Con-tiki 2 anyone? Didn’t he try to prove the Phoenicians could have made it to America on a reed raft centuries before Columbus? Wasn’t the raft called the Con-tiki, which sank, and the Con-tiki 2, which also sank? We need a Mac-istan fact checker. Volunteers?) Oh, but Thor Heyerdahl has a theory that Norwegians are actually descendants of Azeris.

Oh, and we stayed at this amazing ancient hotel. Here’s a picture. It was like a castle too. Beautiful, all made of stone, all the walls and arches. But very nice inside. I slept on the couch though because the mattresses were like mush, but it was still nice.

Watched a lamb get butchered while the guys bought some breakfast. Then we drove the 4 hours home.

I’ve been amazed at what I can sleep through now, being so profoundly jet-lagged. The road between Sheki and Baku has some off-roading areas in the mountains due to construction, which makes for an exciting ride. And I was had to hang on for dear life through some the switchbacks. But on the way to Sheki I slept like a baby, sitting up, through all of that. Very surprising for someone who was kept awake by the gurgling of the air conditioner last night while in a comfy bed.
I’ve got to try to post this now. I say try because I know she can be testy sometimes, Mama Blogspot.

Speaking of mama blogspot, i have had much better success in writing comments and loading photos if i use Mozilla Firefox as a browser instead of explorer. It only takes a second to download, and all the cool people use it. No, they've moved on to cooler things, but Mozilla is still better than Internet Explorer. Am I Ron?

You guys are gross

2006-06-15T00:26:00.000+05:00

Why do you want to hear more about the sheep balls? I’d like to just let them digest in my stomach in peace, pass through my intestines, and let my duped body absorb whatever components of them it wants to recirculate. Mom, what parts of the sheep testicle will stay with me?
Moving on…. I didn’t know what they were beforehand. After the third course of innocuous-looking and tasty meats on a shish, I stopped asking. And by innocuous-looking I mean it was clearly the hin leg of a sheep, or something else slightly recognizable in an anatomical sense. Nothing even as bloody as the steaks Cori made me before I left. :)

It was the fourth course that had the skewered balls. They weren’t even round (I’m not an idiot.) They looked like sliced chicken breast. That should have clued me in, though, since all the other courses I had to struggle with the chunks of fat before I tore the meat from the bones with my teeth.

Like I said in the comments, I just happened to be too full for courses 5 and 6, otherwise I would have eaten some animal’s kidney, and some other animal’s (or maybe the same animal’s) liver and stomach muscles. Darn. Had a lovely desert special to Sheki—monkey tongue. Just kidding. But there was a monkey on a leash tied to a tree. The trainer found reason to beat it during lunch, which was not fun to listen to. I put a picture here of it. Anyway, desert was some ground walnut pasty business. And tea made in a samovar. (You’re going to have to google that one, I don’t have the energy to explain it.)

The wodka was gooooood though. Darn darn good. It wasn’t even that chilled, but it was smooth. It was from the Ukraine, and clearly warranted lengthy toasts. (And I though Ron’s mom said a long Grace!) But the vodka toasts were even longer, and peppered with Ensha’allahs. All in all, the lunch was 3 hours. Three hours!

(To the tune of Poppin' My Collar by three 6 mafia)

2006-06-14T02:04:00.000+05:00

Ever since I can remember I been droppin' my knowledge....

Baghdad, 2003

Baku, 2006

(is this funny to anyone else? Its almost the same picture! Droppin' the knowledge like its hot!)

Happy Birthday, Da

2006-06-14T01:48:00.000+05:00

Every June 13th, my dad turns 29.

"I hurted myself!"

(Until I bring you all the lavish gifts I got you from Asia, this photo (and hopefully a chuckle) is all I can do for a present.)

Hope its been great!

SHEEP BALLS

2006-06-13T16:52:00.000+05:00

I happened to eat sheep testicles yesterday. I will tell you about it in a later post because there are lots of good stories I have to tell you from beautiful Sheki. (I just got back this after noon but will probably have to post later so I can get some work done. : )

Photos from Gange and Yevlakh

2006-06-13T15:38:00.000+05:00

4:30 pm AZ time

Here's some photos I couldn't post from my (hotel dial-up) on Sunday night:

This is the outside of the Gange ER that was done by IMC (right) and a renovated room. (To be compared with the unrenovated room picture further below.)

We did a workshop on the Emergency Medicine program last Saturday with presentations from two of IMC's staff who will be in charge of it, and then two people (out of a group of 10) that IMC sent to the states to learn about injury prevention. That's the thing I didn't want to talk about--creating a powerpoint presentation in Azeri with a CRAZY lady. OH my lord, I never knew I had so much patience. I'll post a picture of us below. But, after the presentations we went to the new ERs in both Gange and Yevlakh (these pictures are from Gange.)

OOh, some of you guys on the east coast are waking up, so I'm going to post this now, but will post lots more pictures today.
Besos!

Roughin' It

2006-06-11T23:54:00.000+05:00

Hi All,
You guys make me feel so good, you're reading this and making comments!! Sorry I've been offline for a while. We got back from Ganje on Saturday night and, (instead of posting) we went out to a pub to watch some futbol, then went to a small club, then went to a fun nightclub--til 0500, or so. This Euro-schedule is working out well with my jet-lag. I am so tired I can't form sentences during the day. But, about 5pm or so (0800 EST) I totally wake up and have tons of energy. So, having dinner around 10pm, then going out until 0500 (8pm EST) is perfect!

Today I spent the day at the Hyatt hotel. Nice pool/spa and work out facility and lounge to watch the French Open. Nursed a painful hangover by the pool until, or course, 5 pm then had a great work out, and watched Nadal beat Federer(YES!! I love that passionate hottie.) Then went to dinner at 10pm and watched more futbol, and now its 1220 and I'm back at my hotel.
There's a guesthouse on the 8th floor of this hotel with a lounge and they're playing the Angola-Portugal game. I'm really tempted to go up there and watch it with all the oil pipeline workers from the UK who are all over the city, but I probably shouldn't perpetuate my body-clock adjustment problems.

Tomorrow I'm going to Sheki which is another 5 hours away but its where our primary health care program will be based out of. It supposed to be absolutely beautiful, so I'll try to get some more photos. I'll be in town Tuesday then out to areas in southern Azerbaijan (not so pretty) for Wednesday and Thursday. I'm going to end this one now and post it, then publish some photos with explanations as separate posts.
Thank you for the map, Mac-istan IT wizard, genius, stud.

You know, all day I think of interesting things, I mean really brilliant, fascinating things I want to share with you. Then, when I sit down to write, I can't remember any of them. Its kind of impossible to have a notepad with me all the time to jot stuff down, but also frustrating to forget the things I want to tell you. Then again, this blog is really just to let you know I'm alive and very well, not necessarily to wax poetic about the world through my eyes. ok, glad we got that figured out. In the mean time, I'll work on remembering the good stuff to tell you, and if you have any questions about any places/people/culture, etc., please ask.
Besos,
Mac/CF

Geography is fundamental

2006-06-11T08:00:00.000+05:00

(Also from Mac-istan IT.)
Here's a map of Azerbaijan. Baku is that thing that's circled all the way to the east.

McCarthys--right click on the map, and select "Open Link in New Window." Then put the cursor arrow over the map and look for a little orange picture box with blue arrows. Click on that and it will let you zoom in so you can read the map.

So, you can see Baku on this, obviously. I've got to take some photos here of the city, because its so cool. There are really old beautiful building from before Soviet times. And there is the "old city" with most of its original city walls, with crazy tiny windy streets and alleys. The rest of Baku has only been here since about 1880.

Go west from Baku and you will see Yevlakh, where we are doing part of the Emergency Medicine Development program. For some reason, Gange isn't on here, although I think its bigger than Yevlakh. You can see Yevlakh is right on the oil pipeline, as most of our programs are, since we get a lot of money from the corporate social responsibility depts of the oil companys here. The train tracks give you an idea of where the pipeline is. There's a picture I took of an oil train on the pipeline going west to the Black Sea in Georgia below.

On the map you can also see Sheki, where I'm going tomorrow am. Its near Russia, north of Yevlakh. Then on Wednesday and Thursday I'll be in areas in the southwest: Lachin and Agdzhabedi. Lachin is where we have a Dept. of State program with the internally displaced persons from the Azerbaijan/Armenia wars over the land thats near Lachin, but part of Armenia on this map. Its right at the border. And Agdzhabedi is north of the border with Iran. We've had some community investment and health programs there. Is that good for maps for today? I don't know if IT Mac-istan will be able to find links to weather for those places (I wouldn't put it past her), but the southern areas are really hot, and Sheki should be a little cooler than Baku--its in the mountains, I think.

So, I think I ramble when I'm drunk....

2006-06-10T09:36:00.000+05:00

(I'm posting this morning now what I wrote last night.)
June 9, 2006 evening
You guys were about to get your first drunk posting! Lucky dogs. But the internet isn't workign right now. I did that earlier post today, June 9, not Thursday June 8th like it said. So, tonight was the first World Cup game—1800 in Germany so 2100 here. I went home at 2000 just to get a break from the office. We were there after that yummy breakfast I described, but still it was a long day. Great lunch too, but I don’t want to make you feel bad about the burger king or subway you had for lunch…. So I came back to the hotel (which is a far cry from my hotel in Baku, but still has a fridge to keep my beers and shish kabobs from spoiling. I’m reading this great book from Cori about a woman pilot in east Africa in the mid-1930’s. Its dope. But I read that, had one of my delicious beers from Baku, but supported by the French beer company Castel, and dozed. Then went back to the office to watch the first game tonight on a big TV, bought just for the World Cup--gotta love the Training line item in budgets— with all of our male staff and country director. (By the way, did anyone else notice how hot #5 on Germany was. Goodness me!) The beers here are not small. The smallest is 33 oz, I think. Good times.
I showed up in my Brazil warm up jacket (long story) and started with the Ole ole ole oleeeee, etc. That got everyone fired up and I was passed my first even larger beer, a 40 ouncer, or something similar. Following quickly after that bottle was a tray of meat and various oil-fried vegetables and fruits, and Ganja specialty sausagey-like thing. I put it all away, and thus warranted my first vodka shot. (Russian is whats spoken in Baku, but in outlying areas its Azeri.) They first asked me if I like vwetkeh. I smelled trouble coming so I said no, but I think they detected my smile at just the mention of the name vwetkeh, and before I knew it it was in my hand. And that's as far as I'll go on this family blog....
I am picking up more Russian words than just those related to intoxication. I love learning the phrases and intonations of new languages. Like getting the right inflection for ‘da’ (yes, yeah? of course, and?, etc.) And same with niet. Spazibas for thank you is one of my favorites, but also the Azeri words are fun too. I think I’ve gotten down what you need to know: yes, no, where is…, please, thank you, thank you very much, I’m sorry, toilet, its delicious, lets go, very beautiful, what's your name? my name is, just a minute, and numbers help too. So, my list has begun.
But its funny the great relationships you can have with people without speaking their language. The Ganja office cook and I are like long-lost soul mates—I couldn’t love her more. And there are just physical maneuvers of deference that go a long way too—like smiling, and hand to the chest w/ slight bow. I keep wanting to say Arabic words—they are so easy and flow off the tongue, but not here. Although some people know some Arabic from Uzbekistan, and other former-Soviet but Islamic countries.
Tomorrow is a conference for one of the USAID-sponsored programs on emergency service development. My emergency dept. nursing experience has been relied up and utilized, so that’s nice. I spent all day today, oh wait, I don’t even want to talk about it still. Anyway, we should be back in Baku Saturday night our time (while you are just getting up, or not) and we will probably hit some bars in Baku for more futbol. Then Sunday will be relaxation—I think hitting the Hyatt pool for some sunshine and fun—can’t wait.
Have lovely weekends everyone!

2006-06-09T10:40:00.000+05:00

G'Morning all!
I'm in Ganja--about 4 hours west of Baku.
Just had a lovely breakfast outside with eggs, local bread, cheese,and tea. And my new favorite food, the creamy yummy part of milk (looks like cottage cheese) with honey. Ugh, so good , ate it with a spoon, but you're supposed to put it on bread.
Food here is damn good, so far. Its like a mix of turkish, iranian, italian, etc. Kind of goes along with Azerbaijan's cultural and religious history, which is fascinating. I guess it was a Christian nation for the most part until ole Ataturk came through. Then in 1917-1921 they aligned with Georgia and Armenia to make a Caucasus state, but soon after that, they were all annexed into the Soviet Union. I may be wrong about some of that, but it what I've pieced together from non-stop pestering of whomever I'm in an automobile with. So, its pretty much a secular state now. Iran (next door neighbor) is pretty pissed off about that since they think Azerbaijan should be a good Muslim state, (no more JLo stores....)
I really hate myself for not bringing a camera. I could post each day with a few photos that would show so much more than what I could describe. But I gotta tell you about the city of Baku, and the gorgeous drive out here, and even to see what the lovely people look like. Maybe in a later post when I'm feeling more verbose. Plus I think I can use the IMC office digital camera and just download the pictures each day.
You guys are all sleeping now anyway. Its tough, because when you guys wake up, its the end of the day for me. I've usually been out at the field sites all day, and then when I get a chance to sit down in the evening, the offices in the states open, and I get a ton of work emails. But thats when I want to email friends back, chat on msn or skype or gmail. And of course, I want to stay up and check out all the news, the French Open, the NBA finals, the World Cup, and Bunky's blog. Am I whining? I don't mean to. I love it out here.
I gotta run. Talk to you later.

Baku is sweet

2006-06-07T13:31:00.000+05:00

I have a fluffy white bathrobe and slippers in my hotel room, free pastries and Eurosport TV for breakfast; there's a JLo store right below the massive, beautiful office which is in a gorgeous old building. Its awesome. AND the women wear tight shirts and short skirts! (Meaning, I don't have to cover head to toe, which is nice.) Too bad all I packed were shirts 2 sizes too big and MC Hammer pants (ankles are very suggestive in Peshawar.) So, I look like a country bumpkin compared to the styley ladies of the office, but what can I do? Oh, I know, dress like Jenny from the Block.
Anyway, I have been doing work all day and catching up from 3 days off work email, even though I can hardly keep my eyes open. Had a planning lunch with the senior program staff to figure out my schedule here. Going to be working with the Emergency Medicine program out in the field for the next few days (have to remember to pack my new bathrobe...) Then it will be the weekend, which hopefully means fun Caspian Sea sightseeing things. Then policy meetings, and more field visits next week--I'm all booked up! I have a feeling this six weeks is going to go really quickly.
All for now. Hope everyone is well.

Back in London

2006-06-06T16:44:00.000+05:00

Hey there,
In London, at the IMC UK office. Its so fun to be back in London, and its a gorgeous day here so dying to go hang out outside. I leave tonight at 9pm for Baku, Azerbaijan. Say it with me, McCarthys, Az-Zer-By-Jan. Goood. I arrive at 0630 local time, again (same as today), so we'll see how crazy tired I am.
Thanks to my IT consultant (and good friend) Kate for the posting how-to. (Kate, can you make that picture of Jennings and I be at the top all the time?)
Gotta run. Talk soon!

How to leave comments!

2006-06-05T20:36:00.000+05:00

First of all, allow me to introduce myself. I am Mac-istan's IT administrator, Kate. While cfm is busy saving lives in the middle East, I'll try to manage the technical aspects of the blog. Please feel free to contact me with any technical difficulties at ITmacistan@gmail.com

HOW TO LEAVE COMMENTS!

When you read a post and want to leave a comment, you're faced with many options that may seem daunting. Don't let these options deter you; I assure you it's very easy (and fun) to leave comments. Just follow these simple rules:

1. At the bottom of each post, there will be a comment counter. It will say something like "1 comment." To leave your own comment, click on this.

2. You'll now see a box that says "Leave your comment." This is where you type the comment that you want to leave.

3. Here's where it gets confusing.

4. Right below the comment box, it says "Choose your Identity." This is a ploy to get everyone to sign up for an account with blogger, but don't worry, you don't have to. If you click the circle next to "Other," you can put in your own name in the "Name" field and leave the "Your web page" filed blank.

4a. Alternatively, you can select the circle next to "Anonymous" and leave an anonymous comment if you want to remain anonymous.

That's it!

2006-06-04T00:29:00.000+05:00