Чёрная Касса

Jyldyz (my new boss), Omurzak, and I went to lunch the other day. As I was proofreading a report that Jyldyz had written in English, she and Omurzak were discussing a way to save money. She said the banks in Talas are not good, because you cannot deposit and withdraw money whenever you want. She then proceeded to tell me about Чёрная Касса which translates to ‘black cash’. It’s a way that women in the villages save money. A group of women get together, and each month they deposit money into the ‘bank.’ The bank is held by one woman in the group, and the holder alternates each month. You can give as much as you want and withdraw anytime. It’s a creative solution to save money if the banking system is so untrustworthy.

And now for an update on the RDC. I got a call from my PC coordinator in Bishkek the other day. Apparently, Sanjar went to the Peace Corps office to complain about me not working with him. After I told him a few weeks ago that I would work with both NGO’s, he hasn’t been at his office when I’ve gone to see him. The rest of the staff at the internet café gives me a bad vibe, so I don’t hang around to wait for him. I much prefer the company at the RDC office. I guess Sanjar thinks I’m his pet volunteer. The PC staff told him that it’s my choice to work where I want. After they figured out all of the details of the situation, they suggested that I not work with Sanjar at all. Well that sneak was not satisfied with this response. When he returned from Bishkek, he called Malinda (another business volunteer) and asked her to schedule a meeting because our coordinator was changing her NGO to the internet café. That was a complete lie. Luckily, she called and asked me what was up before the meeting. I encouraged her to go anyway, so we would know what he's up to. Sanjar has also been asking all of the volunteers to teach another language besides English. None of us know another language well enough to teach it. We just studied in college, but that doesn’t make you fluent by any means.

My host sister has been conspiring with Sanjar, so I’m on the hunt for a new apartment. Jesika was here when all of this was going down. She was in the room with the telephone, fixing her hair, when Aida was on the phone with Sanjar. She started by whispering, and then realized if she spoke in Russian we couldn’t understand. But she said our names, and kept her back to Jesika without looking at her. Sounds sketchy.

Today Sanjar came to the office and asked if I have a Peace Corps stamp. He informed me (didn’t ask) that I would be filling out a recommendation for an application he’s working on. It’s a USAID program that would send him to America for a few weeks. I looked at the recommendation form and I have to rate his professionalism amongst other things. So now I have to explain to him that I know he’s been underhanded and I will not do this for him. I will, however, be filling one out for Jyldyz. I feel like I’m playing favorites, but that’s life I suppose.

My New Jizzob

I'm not working at the internet cafe. Thank goodness, because I don't know how I would have spent my days. Instead I'm working at a place called RDC-ELET (Rural Development Center). They were originally funded by the UK government, but that funding runs out in September and they're supposed to be sustainable by then. Guess what. They're not sustainable. What the NGO does is help poverty stricken people in the villages throughout the state start their own businesses. They give them mini loans to buy sewing machines and supplies, farm equipment, seeds for planting, etc. They've helped quite a few people get started, and they make a good amount of money for Kyrgyz villagers. So they have a good mission, and a good sense of business. It seems that they're dependent on grants and don't want to change that. My job will probably be to get them funding. But in the process I'll be teaching them to write their own grants and find ways to become self sustaining. They also have their hand in tourism and there are some great places to stay around here. If anyone wants to visit Kyrgyzstan, I've got some great resources!

This past week, I spent 3 days traveling around Talas to see the different villages. There was freshly fallen snow and it was beautiful. Dangerous and beautiful. We traveled in a Russian jeep and it was like off roading except we were on roads. But there was very little heat, and my toes and calves were in so much pain. I hope we don't do this again next week.