This is yesterday morning's post:
16 April
Khujand
It’s almost 7 a.m. I’ve been awake for almost an hour, but lingered in a deliciously warm bed working on a crossword puzzle, then brushed my teeth, washed my face, etc. slowly waking up. Nina has graciously given me her room, and in the quiet morning it is suffused with light, gently dimmed by the patterned filmy cloth that hangs to the floor over the large window. Her soft snoring from the next room makes me think of my mom, and it’s an odd comfort. (My kids would say it sounded like me probably.) Nina’s house is in a courtyard, so whereas I hear some activity outside (a plane is taking off now…she lives a short walk from the Khujand airport , which is actually in Chkalovsk), I can’t see much. We came in through the kitchen, across a very spacious courtyard, the two most impressive features of which were the large pergola strung with grape leaves, and the big barking dog, Boss. Nina says he might be angry for a few days, but that he’ll get over it. She and several students met me at the airport with a beautiful bunch of flowers…astro-something or others. They’re still in the plastic, standing at attention in a vase in this room. The wall behind the bedstead has a rug hanging, and the other 2 walls (without the window) are papered in a textured light green. There are soft patterned carpets on the floor, and a very cheery sheet pairing of bright yellow-orange with huge pink roses and the words “Rose of Love” splashed intermittently across it. Nice.
Nina, her students and friend Tatiana welcomed me with a beautiful dinner spread last night. Two gorgeous and inviting spring salads: radishes with herbs, and tomatoes and cucumbers with herbs. I am thrilled to be among people who liberally use dill, chives and parsley again. We had meat and whole boiled potatoes, and two “tubes” of vegetarian dishes (several observers of Lent were that the table: no meat, dairy or chocolate for another 2 weeks). These dishes were in hand rolled “pasta”, one stuffed with plov (think rice pilaf), the other stuffed with potato. YUM. There was a very pretty round bread called non, and tea and Nina’s homemade wine. Wow. Only she and I drank, and we used very fancy champagne-style glasses. We had formal toasts (reminds me of Russia) and each of the 5 kids talked a little about themselves. What wonderful, delightful people. It is clear they love their teacher, and she them. Nina has gone above and beyond to make me feel welcome. Later I’ll tell you about her bathroom, which reminds me ever so slightly of Willy Wonka’s factory. I was a grateful bather, that’s for sure.
Before I close, a few words about the flight up here. We were delayed in the airport due to “problems with the plane”. Gulp. We waited an hour or so, then boarded. I met a few Americans working here to set up eye clinics in villages, very nice folks. We were the last aboard, so I got the last last last seat, near the emergency exit, about ¾ the size of a normal seat, and all the storage space was already taken by the woman next to me. There were no overhead bins. No one turned off their cell phones. The safety belts looked like something from the back of a 1974 station wagon. The armrests were rubbed to the stuffing in places. The attendant walked down the center aisle carrying a tray of hard candies: take a few. Then later he passed through with cola in Styrofoam cups. The plane had two loud propellers and a smell that took me back to crowded Moscow city buses, and not in a good way. And sadly I could not see out of the sliver of window available to us, except for about 20 minutes. The mountains truly are spectacular, their giant crags still snow covered. The woman next to me was warm and delightful (I forgave her all the bags at my feet) and explained much about the land over which we were passing and the city of Khujand. If she’s right, they have the best fruits in the world waiting for me right here, the most beautiful scenery, and the nicest people. Can’t wait to find out.
I hope she's right!
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