Never Have I Ever... Until I Came to Azerbaijan

1. Never have I ever eaten so much candy, sugar, and butter in my life.
2. Never have I ever eaten just potatoes for so many meals.
3. Never have I ever walked in so much mud.
4. Never have I ever walked up an off ramp of the highway to wait for the bus on the side of the highway.
5. Never have I ever hung out of a bus door while it was driving down the street.
6. Never have I ever had a donkey tied up to my front gate.
7. Never have I ever been so aware of getting home before dark (attributed more to PC's policies of traveling at night.)
8. Never have I ever been so happy to see a glass of wine.
9. Never have I ever eaten food straight off the table and not cared.
10. Never have I ever been so scared of a small little old woman yelling at me to take my muddy boots off before I go into the school.

I've been here for about three weeks now and I feel like I have done a lot but at the same time have not seen much of the country. I have training six days a week for about 8 hours each day. Language for half the day (which is coming along quite well but the sounds of the language are so different for English.) Then I teach for half the day which is chaotic but going well. The weather is getting cold and rainy. There's a lot of mud everywhere and I'm constantly nervous about slipping. My host family is still great, but my little host sister was running around with a knife the other night aggh! Her hand's are still always sticky too from the candy she eats. Since the minute I landed here it's been nonstop. But there are definitely things to look forward to. Next weekend I'm going on a site visit to Shirvan where I will spend two days with some PCVs from AZ6 just to see what it will be like. Then on the 18th I will find out where my permanent site will be! Then my birthday! A visit to Baku the following weekend and then swearing in soon after that. I actually only have four more weeks til training is done and I can NOT wait! Training is intense and while I know it is completely necessary, I want it to be over and start doing what I came here to do.
Next time I promise to put up pictures.