Re: movie – did anyone see this???  It was actually a really interesting flick.  Both Ben and Samuel L. Jackson were really excellent in it.  By the way, I saw Samuel L. Jackson on the Champs-Eleyses (sp?) in Paris two summers ago. I was with my mom, and of course, when you see a star, part of the fun is whispering to your friend ”LOOK!  It’s —-”.  But since my mom didnt know who he was, I had to be content with whispering to a couple behind me (who was also looking) “yes!  That IS who we think it is!”  But they were French.  And I was speaking in English.

Random news:

• I am just now starting to learn Uzbek after studying Russian for a year.  Studying the Russian language = frustration.  But I’m still plugging along. 


• My favorite phrase in Uzbek so far: ne-ma yangi-likllar bor?  (translated: what’s the 411?) 


• I noticed today (though I walk through it every day) that the bazaar next to my house used to be a working mosque and madrassah – you can see the cells where pupils used to study + a little tower where the mullah could do the call to prayer (which is now illegal).   It would be interesting to see pictures of what this place looked like before. I was also thinking how sad it is to see the “remains” of your faith, not that faith is about buildings, of course… but the abandoned buildings kind of remind people here of how their faith used to be an integral part of their public life….

I made a Quiz for You on QuizYourFriends.com: ARE YOU UZBEK ENOUGH?

CLICK on the link below or PASTE it into your browser.
http://www.quizyourfriends.com/yourquiz.php?quizname=050222041407-939411

 (shoot, the Chinese doesn’t show up here…can we say that Xanga is R-A-C-I…..???)

THE BOURNE SUPREMACY (in the Russian language, that is)

Ruggedly Handsome, but a terrible Russian speaker!

Also handsome and a far superior Russian speaker…

Cutest Chinese girl in the WHOLE World and a really good movie.

CUTEST Korean girl in the whole world – presenting, Miss Lyla Choi!!!!

Watched this with some friends last night; loved it as a pure action flick.  We ate hamburgers, chips (LAYS barbecue, no less), and drank Coke*. We could’ve been in America!

Met a local Korean girl.  Her name was Sveta Kim.  Isn’t that wild?  Maybe not as wild as Lana Kim, though.

Also, it was funny to listen to the Russian in the movie and actually kind of understand what they were saying AND realize how bad some of their accents were.  Like when my family and I went to see the latest James Bond (2-3 years ago) with the North Korean enemy and we were CRINGING at the terrible Korean.

IT’S SO COLD here.  The first question everyone asks these days is “is your house/apt cold?”  Almost everyone answers “yes”.  They’re trying to freeze us into submission over here.

* Coke is again being produced locally here.  A few years ago, Coke had a factory here that was owned by a certain high official’s daughter’s husband.  When they divorced, the ex-wife kicked both her husband and Coke out of the country.  This is why the Coke labels are from 1998. But the Coke is not. Hopefully.

Listen up all you Lovely Chinese people!

Can you please post or email me somehow the Chinese CHARACTERS for the following dishes:

• Kung Pao Chicken


• Mapo Tofu


• Stir-fried beef with Chinese spinach


• Stir-fried eggplant

Why do I need to know this, you ask?  Well, the menus at our local Chinese restaurants are written in Chinese and VERY BADLY translated into Russian or English.  Example of some of the dishes you can eat here:

• Fish in the form of grapes


• Chinese dumping


• Fried chicken fillet with some kind of green vegetable


• “Something that smells good” in a net


• Beef with vegetable


• Chicken with sauce

And since the waitresses are usually Russian, they have no idea how to explain it.

When you live abroad, simple things that you never even thought about while you were living in your home country become very precious.  These are some of the things I received over Christmas and *just recently* (one package was sent from Houston on December 7th and I received it just YESTERDAY!).  Thank you Kangs and Kims!

Help! I’m being forced to wear a crazy wig. 

• An American family from Shakrisabz has been staying with me since Saturday.  They are a wonderful, close family with two young girls.  We’ve been watching movies, eating junk food, and just hanging out.  They’ve been here for 8 years and really know Uzbek culture and have a heart for serving the Uzbek people!  I’m really encouraged by them.


• I made tortillas again!  So easy!  For 12, you mix 3 cups of flour with 1/2 cup oil with a fork.  Then add 1 cup of hot water with 1 tsp of salt dissolved in it.  Knead until smooth.  Refrigerate for 2 hours or at least 20 minutes.  Then roll them out and cook them with a little oil in a pan!  My only problem is that I can’t roll them out in perfect circles. 


• Went shopping at Turkuaz, a fancy new supermarket with prices cheaper than my local magazine (shop) or bazaar.  Of course, I do have to think about the fact that I’m lining the pockets of rich Turkish businessmen vs. Uzbek widow, mothers, and grandmothers… With so many locals shopping there, it’s easy to forget that Uzbekistan is still considered a developing country. 


• Actually closed the door and walked away from a taxi driver who was insisting that I pay more for my cab ride (a ridiculous amount – clearly trying to rip me off)  And he seemed like such a nice man.  FIGHTING!!!!

I read other people’s Xangas on this movie, and many didn’t seem to like it.  But I really did!  Of course, I watched a grainy DVD version obviously shot in a movie theater in France somewhere(because the titles all came out in French, though the audio was English.  Strange?), so it made the film seem almost art-housy. 

I thought the bit about Julia Roberts playing another character pretending to be Julia Roberts was mightee hilarious. And I thought Matt Damon was just hilarious in it, too.

It’s amazing how we get the DVDs of movies here so quickly.  It’s almost impossible to buy a non-pirated anything here – music, movies, software… the only way to get a real copy is to order through Amazon, which is possible, but not that cheap.  Also, all expats exchange media with each other on a regular basis.  The smart ones even have sign out sheets. 

The lovely art of bargaining (and why I hate it)

Very few prices are fixed here in Uzbekistan.  This can be a blessing or a curse. It’s a curse for people like me who HATE to bargain.    Riding a taxi is relatively cheap here but sometimes, I don’t want to deal with the hassle, especially if I’m not quite sure where I’m going.  I pay 500 soum each way ($.50) from home to work, so I gauge other trips based on that.  But the worst feeling is when you pay a taxi driver what you think it should be and then he complains about it.  I hate that.   I hate it because I feel cheap but at the same time, I’m annoyed that they sometimes try to rip me off, but instead of standing my ground, I usually give in, because I don’t like feeling cheap (and do I really need to argue about $.10?)

In places where foreigners or “richer” people tend to shop (grocery stores; the airport), taxi drivers try to rip you off as if it’s their obligation.  If they approach me as I’m coming out and they quote me a ridiculous price, I AM able to walk away from them, at least and give them a look of “are you kidding me?” It’s *fun* when they think you’re a tourist and they try to rip you off and then you can bust out with “I LIVE HERE” in Russian (my friend did that once and the guy meekly lowered his price).

My Korean friends are so good at bargaining.  They have no shame.  If someone quotes them 100 soum ($.10), they have no problem saying 50 soum ($.05).  FIGHTING!!!