Pancake Day!

One weekly event I look forward to is Pancake Day with my best Azeri friend, Lale.

I started cooking a little with her before she left for PST, but it was after she returned that we started doing pancakes. One night for dinner I made us breakfast and discovered Lale's affinity for the delectable treat. Since then, we've started Pancake Day. The main goal, aside from eating and getting quality time in, of this delicious day is to make a new pancake every time we get together. We've only done this for 3 weeks now, but we've done plain, chocolate chip, and apple cinnamon pancakes and I don't see us stopping anytime soon (so you can keep on sending the syrup my way :)). It's a day that we both look forward to to catch up, chat, laugh, eat, and unwind. Ah, the simple things.

This past Pancake Day was a bit more exciting, too, as our friend Nazim is back in town on a 10 day leave from the Army. It was great to see him again, though I don't think he enjoyed the pancakes as much as Lale and I do. To each their own.

The Year of 2 Thanksgivings.

Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays. Top 3, at the very least. I've always been fond of the day, but a few years ago I experienced a Thanksgiving that I will never forget. Ever since that lovely Thanksgiving I find that I look forward to the next one with much anticipation. Last year was my first Thanksgiving in Azerbaijan, but this year was my first real Thanksgiving in Azerbaijan. And, I had 2 of them! I definitely made up for my McDonalds Thanksgiving last year (though it was still nice in its own taste of America kind of way).

My first Thanksgiving was the Peace Corps' Thanksgiving - the Saturday before Thanksgiving. Almost all of my group went to Baku to celebrate at the Charge D'affaires' place. It was a wonderful and generous invitation for him to extend. Meredith, the Country Director, and he provided turkeys and drinks and all the volunteers brought everything else - potluck style. Everything was delicious. We were all also able to stay with American Embassy workers and families. I cannot even begin to express how amazing the family I stayed with was. They were warm, welcoming, friendly and truly American. I was finally able to be in a family dynamic again and I realized how much I miss it. My stay with the family was more incredible than I ever imagined it to be. Not only was it a slice of America family wise,

it was also a complete revisit to the amenities and lifestyle I once took for granted. For the first time in over a year, I was able to use a washer... and a dryer! I currently smell like Bounce fabric softener and it is glorious! It was spectacular to catch up with old friends, eat incredible food, spend some time in Baku, meet new people, and watch a fabulous talent show (that included a speedo, Disney tunes, and human pyramids).

Mingechevir also had our own little Thanksgiving on the actual day. We did another potluck event and I made stuffing and mac and cheese. There was a good amount of more great food and I am still full! It was nice to have a small event after our huge Baku get together and spend quality time with those I spend so much time with. We also had 2 guests, but it was still intimate and great. Not only did I get to eat more yummy food and hang out with people I enjoy, I was also able to Skype my family back home and see everyone! Everyone! I saw my mom, dad, brother, sister-in-law, and the baby! It was the first time I was able to see the baby and my brother as a dad. It was nice to "see" them and spend some of both our holidays with each other, even though we're worlds away.

This year I have a lot to be thankful for. I've come a long way in a year even though, at times, it feels like I've gone no where at all. My support networks are strong and I know I have stellar people in both of my worlds, friends and family. Being with my American Embassy family, I realized I'm able to find wonder in the simple things that exist back home. I have beautiful people in my life in Azerbaijan ranging from my first host family to expat friends and, of course, my Peace Corps family. And, finally, I have an incredible amount of things and opportunities to look forward to in the future. Who knows where I'll be or what I'll be planning on doing a year from now, but I'm thankful for all the prospects - as scary as they may be.

Let Them Eat Cake...

... and lasagna.  

There's never too small a celebration for us in Ming.  Any excuse to have cake or a dance party is good enough for us.  So, when we have a legit reason for it, we go all out.  Tonight we celebrated Andrea's birthday (a few days early)!  And, in tow, was a special birthday cake and made from absolute scratch lasagna, per her request.

My feat of the day was making the lasagna.  We don't have lasagna noodles here, so I had to make them... from scratch.  Since I was being all fancy and putting in the work, I decided to make them with spinach, too.  It took hours.  Prepping, mixing, kneading, resting, rolling, drying, boiling, cooling, draining... whoa.  But, in the end, they were awesome.  I also made 2 sauces for it and, of course, used lots of cheese.

Making things from scratch isn't abnormal for me anymore, but this seemed a bit intimidating to me.  I doubt I'll get to spend 5-6 hours on one dish once I get back to the States or wherever, so I'll enjoy it while I can.  

Last year on Andrea's birthday, we found out Laura was going to be our sitemate.  This year, I found out making a lasagna is worth all the work because good food goes far for our mental health.  Then, add a cake (of which we may or may not have had a giant slice each) and we're good to go.

Happy Birthday, Andrea!  Here's to another year of knowing you.

Baku Goodbye Tour: Quiches and PCVs.

The next day consisted of lunch with a PCV pal, Amy, and hanging out.  For dinner, we went to Kent's and I got to spend more time with good company.  I had come up with the idea, too, to make a meal for the lovely Amy and Kim for being so gracious as to hosting me in Baku this week.  On the walk from Kent's, I asked Kim what she would want and she said something

 with eggs.  I let my mind wander for a few and thought it would be good to make a quiche.  It's easy, good, and a great brunch food that's light enough for us to all still be hungry at dinner time.  I thought about my amazing friend, Sarah, and her idea for a quiche and I ran with it tweaking where I saw fit.  I was able to spoil my friend and myself with cheddar, broccoli, and a Diet Dr. Pepper!  I'm still excited about how awesome it was.  Keep in mind, I haven't had cheddar since last September, same with Dr. Pepper.  I've only had broccoli twice since being here.  All the aforementioned products are hard to find here and, when you do, it hits your volunteer budget pretty hard.  

That night, we had the final goodbye dinners for Kim and Rob.  Rob left from the restaurant and Kim left early the next morning.  Sad face.  We saw Kim off at 5 am and I'm still coming to the realization I won't be seeing her next time I'm in Baku.  I already miss her a lot.  Goodbye Kim and Rob!

This was also the night of the big hoorah for the AZ5s leaving.  After dinner, dessert, and some lingering about, I headed to the party.  I ducked out early that night because of Kim's impending departure.  I got back and woke up at 4:30ish to say goodbye again and we all helped with taking her stuff down 6 flights of stairs.

I moved from Amy's after Kim's departure and headed over to a friend's to hang out.  It was a quiet day that consisted of a good lunch.  We made our way over to Finnegins for happy hour

 and met up with other volunteers.  Me and Laura snuck out to get apple pie where Bev and Natalie met us and I ran into new friend Evan and Pam!  Baku's a small place, apparently.  This was the majority of the AZ5's last night in town, so we said goodbyes and moved on. 

Sitemate Alexis' birthday was Thursday as was Philosopher's Lunch with Amber!  We trekked over to the Baku Roasting Company, a slice of America in Baku, hung out, chatted, and enjoyed coffee and American music.  I also got to see new friends Kent, Josh, and Evan!  Told you, small place!  I liked it!  I got jacked up on coffee, but was still, somehow, incredibly tired at Bev (and Alexis') dinner at Adams.  Indian food was yummy, but I was dead tired so me, Agsu Rachel, and sitemate Laura peaced out for soft serve at McDonalds.  It was a nice, quiet night and we watched the Bourne Ultimatum.  Or, more accurately, they watched it and I fell asleep a few times.

The rest of Baku was calm and lovely.  I spent quality time with Agsu Rachel and Jacksta, enjoyed sushi, salads, and sandwiches, saw new friend Evan (again!), worked (a little), had a softball meeting, said goodbye to the best 5 ever (Bev), and took the mental health break I needed away from Mingechevir and the 5 cats.  

When You See Asparagus, Buy it... Always Buy it.

Last week, wandering through the bazaar, me, Agsu Rachel, and sitemate Laura almost had a cow - we saw bunches of asparagus! Typically, this would not be a highlight of the day, much less the week, but here in AZ, it's a world where those types of ideas are flipped.  Normal here is no way normal by home standards and typical is what you all would probably think atypical.  

I've slowly learned a lesson here about products, though, when you see something you want, buy it (especially in the regions)!  Yes, it hurts the volunteer budget, but the likelihood that you'll see that particular something again is a gamble that you'll probably lose.  I've been good at taking my advice about buying things (chocolate chip cookies, Pringles, curry, Ferrio Roche chocolates), but this past month, with the move and coming off Georgia spending, I've been dirt poor.  So, that day in the bazaar, I saw asparagus and I passed it up.

Further more, I banked on asparagus man having asparagus today.  I planned an asparagus stir-fry tonight with a box of tofu an amazing sitemate, Bev, provided, but, alas, no asparagus, no asparagus stir-fry.  The main ingredient is non-existent and, for the second day in a row, I've been disappointed with a small thing about AZ.

When life doesn't give you asparagus, make a better stir-fry.  :)