Hogwarts Comes to Dushanbe

As we approach the holidays, things are getting pleasantly quiet at work. There's still plenty to do, but with many people taking vacations, there are fewer emergencies. The weather continues to be very pleasant and warmer than it was last year. And while the start of cooler weather does bring the burning of cowpies for fuel, the constant haze it produces has resulted in some really spectacular sunsets as shown here.

One bit of interesting news is that Stephanie discovered that our cleaning lady seems to be drinking water out of the glasses she has washed and then puts it back on the dish drain. We haven't quite figured out how to approach the situation and this is yet another situation for which my Russian instruction to date has not prepared me. For now, Stephanie is just rewashing the glassware herself.

The arrival of the first avocados in over a year sent ripples of excitement through the international community. By the time Stephanie got to the bazaar to buy our turkey, however, they had been cleaned out. Fortunately some friends of ours had us over for guacamole today so we still managed to partake. But the reaction itself was amazing. You'd have thought that aliens landed or someone had announced that solid gold potatoes were discovered growing in Rudaki Park.

But avocados and poor sanitary habits aside, the biggest event by far was the arrival of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1 at a local movie theater. I couldn't believe it when I heard, but a friend of mine and I went down there with his son on Saturday morning and got tickets. The theater was actually quite nice - huge really, and the seats were comfortable.

We were a bit nervous when we arrived and saw an enormous crowd of teenagers showing up at the same time. It turned out that one of the local schools came to see the 10am show as well. Given my recent experience at the opera house - with kids who couldn't stop talking for 15 seconds at a time - I was apprehensive at best but the kids were remarkably well behaved. It seems that Harry Potter casts a spell even here.

The movie itself was outstanding and with the help of my knowing the story, I was able to follow the Russian dubbing with no problem. It was just really cool that I could see the film within a day of its premier in the U.S.

Other than that, we've been getting ready for Thanksgiving, which we will celebrate on Wednesday night since we're heading to China for a few days starting on Thursday. There is now a delicious-looking pumpkin pie on the window sill courtesy of yours truly. The real trick, though, will be not eating it before Wednesday.