The news from Kashka Suu
A fresh breeze blows the smell of sweet grasses into Room 3-4, my room here at Kashka Suu. Over the hill a horse whinnies. The dogs are barking down below at 
some unknown invading the camp space. Maybe it’s Ruslan, the farmer’s son from down the valley coming up for our leftovers to feed his dogs and sheep. Here we are at the end of week two of the camp. Where has the time gone? I’ve been meaning to sit down and write a few lines but the time just seems to slip away from me every day.
You know it isn’t easy being a camp director. You got to be up before everyone and go to bed last, keeping the positive vibe going throughout the staff and kids. I’m mom and dad all rolled into one and relish my role. This is my fourth year up here on the mountainside in Kyrgyzstan and I still love being here. The staff greets us like family and we joke our way through the month. Every morning I get up early to pour Tamara and the girls in the kitchen some French pressed coffee, a break from
their Nescafe. The give me fresh “boorsaki” (fritters) hot from the frying pan to eat with my coffee. Not the healthiest thing to eat but together with fresh, strong coffee, it’s heaven! We’ve been doing a bit of partying in the kitchen the first week after dinner with the obligatory vodka or cognac shots, the culmination being Tamara’s birthday last Sunday. Being a fantastic cook, she whipped together a table of food that could’ve choked a horse (almost choked me) enjoyed by the Kashka Suu and our camp staff. This week we’ve declared a dry week but we broke the rule twice already. The girls work long and hard hours in the kitchen and sometimes they need to sit and relax. Last week besides cooking for our brood of 50, Tamara had to make food for 22 Germans and a wedding party of 15 plus the full staff of 10 people. 
Yesterday Mary Lisa (one of the teachers) and I took over the kitchen for the morning and made French toast so the girls could sleep in a bit. We also made lunch too, giving them the whole morning off. Our kids set and cleared the tables and did the dishes too. The kitchen staff didn’t know what to do with themselves. Today they’re back on duty but we’ll be back in the kitchen on Sunday to make our traditional Afghan meal.
The kids this year are great. Well every year they’re great but this year the kids seem to be more contemporary than previous years and many of the boy/girl problems are non-existent. Of course there are problems like not listening or following directions but that’s more of a universal teenage problem and not specifically Afghan. We’ve had a pretty intense work and play schedule these past two weeks and hopefully by the time these fabulous kids head off to the US, they’ll be ready for American high school, as well as living in an American family. Some of my teachers are pulling their hair out but I remain optimistic we can pull it off in the week we have left.
Unbelievable that two weeks ago I was driving down here with a busload of Afghans. Seems likes a lifetime ago. Then it was a blur of teenagers from Afghanistan, now it’s 38 individual personalities (underline personalities) each with their own plusses and minuses striving to be the best that they can be or outbest the best of the best. Overall, they’re wonderful but a few worry me. I’ve had one on ones with them and so far I’ve seen some improvement in their behavior. May it last when they hit stateside. Primarily it’s boys who are used to dominating classrooms and not thinking of their fellow classmates or boys who think they are above the law. I’ve nipped that in the bud and hopefully their host families won’t put up with their shenanigans when they arrive.
High in the hills here we are cut off from most modern conveniences and to be honest when you don’t have them, you don’t miss them. Sure we have cell phones and computers but no wireless access which is fine by me. I go into town once a week to check email and you know what? Most of it is a load of hooey. I’m on a few listserves I forgot to shut off for the summer and man does it seem meaningless when you’re off in Central Asia. One in particular is one for Burning Man (where I’ll be going after all of this). Pete and Jackie back in Brooklyn are recreating Astor Place at this art celebration in the Nevada desert. I’m part of their art display
so I’m getting all these innocuous listserve emails about silly things like bike containers and goggles. Worlds away, does that stuff really matter? Not really.
some unknown invading the camp space. Maybe it’s Ruslan, the farmer’s son from down the valley coming up for our leftovers to feed his dogs and sheep. Here we are at the end of week two of the camp. Where has the time gone? I’ve been meaning to sit down and write a few lines but the time just seems to slip away from me every day. You know it isn’t easy being a camp director. You got to be up before everyone and go to bed last, keeping the positive vibe going throughout the staff and kids. I’m mom and dad all rolled into one and relish my role. This is my fourth year up here on the mountainside in Kyrgyzstan and I still love being here. The staff greets us like family and we joke our way through the month. Every morning I get up early to pour Tamara and the girls in the kitchen some French pressed coffee, a break from
their Nescafe. The give me fresh “boorsaki” (fritters) hot from the frying pan to eat with my coffee. Not the healthiest thing to eat but together with fresh, strong coffee, it’s heaven! We’ve been doing a bit of partying in the kitchen the first week after dinner with the obligatory vodka or cognac shots, the culmination being Tamara’s birthday last Sunday. Being a fantastic cook, she whipped together a table of food that could’ve choked a horse (almost choked me) enjoyed by the Kashka Suu and our camp staff. This week we’ve declared a dry week but we broke the rule twice already. The girls work long and hard hours in the kitchen and sometimes they need to sit and relax. Last week besides cooking for our brood of 50, Tamara had to make food for 22 Germans and a wedding party of 15 plus the full staff of 10 people. 
Yesterday Mary Lisa (one of the teachers) and I took over the kitchen for the morning and made French toast so the girls could sleep in a bit. We also made lunch too, giving them the whole morning off. Our kids set and cleared the tables and did the dishes too. The kitchen staff didn’t know what to do with themselves. Today they’re back on duty but we’ll be back in the kitchen on Sunday to make our traditional Afghan meal.The kids this year are great. Well every year they’re great but this year the kids seem to be more contemporary than previous years and many of the boy/girl problems are non-existent. Of course there are problems like not listening or following directions but that’s more of a universal teenage problem and not specifically Afghan. We’ve had a pretty intense work and play schedule these past two weeks and hopefully by the time these fabulous kids head off to the US, they’ll be ready for American high school, as well as living in an American family. Some of my teachers are pulling their hair out but I remain optimistic we can pull it off in the week we have left.
Unbelievable that two weeks ago I was driving down here with a busload of Afghans. Seems likes a lifetime ago. Then it was a blur of teenagers from Afghanistan, now it’s 38 individual personalities (underline personalities) each with their own plusses and minuses striving to be the best that they can be or outbest the best of the best. Overall, they’re wonderful but a few worry me. I’ve had one on ones with them and so far I’ve seen some improvement in their behavior. May it last when they hit stateside. Primarily it’s boys who are used to dominating classrooms and not thinking of their fellow classmates or boys who think they are above the law. I’ve nipped that in the bud and hopefully their host families won’t put up with their shenanigans when they arrive.
High in the hills here we are cut off from most modern conveniences and to be honest when you don’t have them, you don’t miss them. Sure we have cell phones and computers but no wireless access which is fine by me. I go into town once a week to check email and you know what? Most of it is a load of hooey. I’m on a few listserves I forgot to shut off for the summer and man does it seem meaningless when you’re off in Central Asia. One in particular is one for Burning Man (where I’ll be going after all of this). Pete and Jackie back in Brooklyn are recreating Astor Place at this art celebration in the Nevada desert. I’m part of their art display
so I’m getting all these innocuous listserve emails about silly things like bike containers and goggles. Worlds away, does that stuff really matter? Not really.
posted by Tom T at 1:22 AM
2 Comments:
That stuff DOES matter!! did you know at burning man huge dust storms ensue (hence, the need for goggles), and you need to bring all of your own water (hence, the bottles), and since the place is so damn big many people just bike aroung instead of walking (hence, the bikes).
find photos online if you have not yet done so. it will give you an idea of what you'll be up against. it all fine and dandy to be bold and adventurous but from what i hear the key to surviving burning man is to be PREPARDED. do exactly what pete and jackie tell you to do. you can't just "wing it" all hippy free-love style. those days are long gone...
i sure hope you have a fab time. i am envious.
Thanks for the update, Tom. Always newsworthy, always, always appreciated. And thanks for all your efforts. I can testify to their effectiveness! I owe you so much already.
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