Saturday, March 5th

Greetings from Dushanbe, Tajikistan,

Wow what a busy final week I have had here in Tajikistan. 

During my last Blog, from Khujand in the North, I reported how very, very, very cold it was last Friday.  Well, on Sunday I didn’t leave the Hotel, except for a quick breakfast and looking for some cold medicine and a quick dinner.  I was so sick, from the cold weather on Friday, a good batch of head and chest cold, which I have been fighting all week.  I was able to get some Theraflu in Khujand, and some expectorant for breaking up the Phlegm in my Chest, but once I returned to Dushanbe, I had the staff get me a broad acting Antibiotic for precaution.  I sure didn’t want it turning in Pneumonia. Seems to be helping, but still have a good coughing spell every once in a while.

We left for the airport at 5:30 in the morning, battled the lines and made it back here at the office by 9 a.m.  It had snowed quite a bit on Sunday and on Monday morning, and the rest of the week wasn’t much nicer, so it was interesting getting to the office.  I am really surprised they flew.  Although, today isn’t bad, but still very damp out.

From Monday to Wednesday, there was a consultant here from ACDI/VOCA’s home office working with the staff on a new credit tool.  He was working with them, using the model to see what role credit might play in helping to develop the Value Chain for the six commodities the Project is working with.  This was a long process to sit through, especially, when part of the staff, including me, had their minds focused on needing to complete arrangements for the various demonstration plots and the voucher programs.  I think the tool will be very helpful in the long run, but it put us farther behind from the production standpoint.

Thursday morning we left for a two-day staff retreat at a mountain resort about an hour from here in Dushanbe.  This would be a very beautiful area in the summer, as it had a stream nearby, a small soccer area, and nature all around you.  Now it was a little chilly.  The day was spent in supposedly a team building atmosphere.  Most of the time folks enjoyed themselves, but some activities were definitely not received at they had planned.  You don’t ask for peoples input and then say this is the way it is going to be.  Doesn’t sit well with many, when handled that way.  In the evening before dinner and dancing, we all went to a nearby hot springs.  The men bonded in one area of the facility and the women in another.  What a great way to e w relax after a full day of meetings.  Then it was back to the resort for dinner, followed by dancing.  The evening was enjoyed by all, I think.

Friday it was snowing quite a bit.  When our contact with USAID arrived for the meeting, it was determined that we should probably end the session at noon, have lunch and get back to Dushanbe before the weather turns to bad.  The day was focused on looking at the various scenarios from the Monday to Wednesday sessions, and then seeing what needs to be done this month to make those scenarios work.  Not what the agenda said we would be doing.  Oh well, change is good isn’t it?  Shurob, from USAID, wanted to talk with me, since today was my last official day with the project.  So I rode back to Dushanbe with him asking me a host of questions about my experience here with the Project.  I tried to answer his questions as openly and honestly as I could.

When we returned to the office, I fired up the computer to check my email.  There was an email from a Swedish project here in Tajikistan, who I had communicated with earlier about a job they had open, asking if I would be interested in doing another Short-term assignment with their project, from now until the end of the month.  They needed help finishing a proposal for which they are on the Short List.  Unfortunately, by the time I received the email, two days had already passed and they offered the opportunity to someone else.  They are on a strict timeline for submitting the proposal and had to move fast.  But I was glad that they asked me.  So who knows what doors this Consultancy may open in the future?

Before departing the office, I was thanked for my time here and presented a couple of nice gifts.  One was a hand painted clay dish and the other a tree made out of the many stones that come from here in Tajikistan.  Both are very beautiful and will serve as an excellent reminder of my time here.

Today I worked in the office most of the day on my Exit Report.  I did take time to have lunch with another Short Term consultant that just arrived this morning as part of our Project.  She will be here working with the Association of Agribusinesses of Tajikistan.  Her role is to assess their capacity for remaining a solvent and operational organization, plus she is to help them organize their International Agriculture Fair.

Tomorrow will be a day of finishing up things at the office, having an Exit Luncheon with the Chief of Party for the Project and packing.

So as you can see, there wasn’t any time to be letting the grass grow under my feet.  I have enjoyed the opportunity to share my experiences with family and friends.  God willing I will be back in Denver around 10 p.m. on Monday.  Then on Saturday, Merry and I will take off for Japan for a week, before heading to Saipan and surrounding islands and maybe a quick trip to Guam.  All part of Merry’s job – so I will once again put on my Professional Luggage Carrier hat.

The Internet has been terrible the past few days, so I will have to wait to upload additional photos until I get back in Colorado Springs.  Do, check out my Zenfolio site as there will be a lot more photos upload to the site from here in Tajikistan.

All the best.

Ray

Saturday, February 26th

Greetings from Khujand, Tajikistan.

Here it is, another week gone by.  I left on Tuesday afternoon for the Northern part of Tajikistan, the Sughd Region, specifically in Khujand.  This is the city were I came in 2005 to establish an officer for the USAID funded AgFin+ Project.  IFDC, who I am currently here representing, was a subcontractor at that time, on that Winrock International Project.  It has been nice to see the changes that have taken place since my unexpected departure in 2005.  They have many, many, many more restaurants and shops now compared to when I was here back then. 

I spent the first two nights here in Khujand in a Guest House, owed by one of the ACDI-VOCA employees and his wife.  Guess they have lived here for about 10 years now.  The rooms were nice and we had a nice simple breakfast each morning for $35 per night for a single occupancy.  I have now been in a hotel in the center of town.  For foreigners the price is 180 Somoni ($40.18)/night and for Tajik’s it is 100 Somoni ($22.32)/night.  So for me, it is better to stay at the Guest House, because it is both cheaper and you get breakfast compared to here at the hotel.  But, there are a lot more things to see and do here in the center of town.

The first day here in Khujand was spent in meetings with the staff from our Project's North office.  We discussed some of their Grant Program requests.  The second day was partially spent in the office doing a write up on the Best Practices that are going to be covered in the various demonstrations this summer.  The target keeps moving every day, so it is really hard to stay focused on the task at hand.  But I am trying my best to get done what needs to be done before I fly out on the 7^th of March.  On Thursday morning, I accompanied Husnidin to visit one of the Grant Applicants that will be serving as one of the sites for our Livestock Premix Demonstrations.  I was really impressed to see the quality of these bulls.  The farm has about 100 head of bulls, plus some rabbits (large holes are dug in the ground and the rabbits develop underground tunnels – there is no way they will escape from those caves until they are taken out and sold or butchered for meat), plus some goats for meat and some ducks.  A very diversified livestock operation. Thursday evening after work, I was invited by Husnidin to have dinner with some of his friends.  I guess these guys get together about once a month, some being from here in Khujand, some from his home village and some now living in Dushanbe.  It was a very enjoyable evening.  Guess they liked me!  Well, for the rest of the story.  I learned that Boulder, CO, and Dushanbe, Tajikistan, are Sister Cities.  Supposedly, in Boulder is a Tea House that was donated to Boulder by the President of Tajikistan.  Although not authentic Tajik food, according to the Tajik's, you can experience some of the traditional dishes.  I ran into someone the other day, after that evening with his friends, who said his grandfather was the one that build the Tea House that was shipped to Boulder and reassembled. What a small World we live in.  Will have to take Merry to Boulder to experience that part of Tajik history.  When leaving the hotel to go to that dinner, I wasn't paying attention as I walked down the stairs, and hit my head on a low enterance (see Husnidin standing by the low entrance - you can tell why I feel backwards after hitting my head).  I guarantee I haven't done that since, I start looking for it before I take the first step going down.  That cement archway doesn't move, I guarantee it.  Today, the Chief of Party for the Project received a call that one of our Project's employees was supposed to be at a meeting today, but had a pain in his stomach so drove back to Dushanbe and went to the hospital.  Turned out that he had a ruptured Apendix. Good thing he was able to make it back to the Capital and not have to deal with it in countryside, where health care is not the best.

Friday was probably the coldest day of my life.   We started the day by driving approximately three hours towards the Kyrgyzstan border.  Once there, we started our day by attending an outdoor Agriculture Fair, being sponsored by Mercy Corps.  Although they had a lot more people than the first one I attended a couple of weeks ago in the South, they had less Input Suppliers in my opinion.  We then held two Apricot training programs for farmers that will be part of our Voucher Programs for Apricots.  During the last training, I had to use one of their facilities (a photo was included in my Zenfolio photos previously) to relieve myself.  My legs were so cold that I couldn’t stand up from the squatting position.  Luckily, the walls were close so I could use my arms to pull myself up.  Then, until we left the training and got into the warm car, my legs just quivered from the cold.  I am told the temperature is much colder than normal and the rooms where the meetings were held had no heat.  Once we got back to Dushanbe and were able to have some warm soup and some Vodka, life began to get better.  On Friday night, some of the staff I had hired in 2005 joined me for dinner.  It was nice to be able to finally explain to them why I left so fast in 2005 without saying good bye.  It was really an enjoyable evening and nice to have Zumrad's 4-year old daughter join us.  I told Zumrad we need to enter into an agreement for a contract marriage between her and my grandson, Hunter.  AJ and Connie, are you game for this arranged marriage?

Today, we had another Apricot training; this time at least there was a room with a small stove that used both coal and wood.  The meeting site was the office for a program for woman.  I asked the head of the womens group, "out of the 1000 hectares of Apricots in the Collective, how many are owned by women and was told “you can count them on two hands – maybe 8 or 9 women are in leadership positions out of all the land owners".  On the way out of town, I had the opportunity to visit another site of where the Project is having a Beef Premix Demonstration.  Again, like the visit on Thursday, I was impressed with the quality of the Bulls.  This ended our time with one of CNFA's Volunteers, who was here to work with the Apricot growers of Tajikistan.  It was nice getting to know John, an Arkansas boy.

When we got back to Dushanbe, Husnidin and I had lunch with the owner of the beef farm we visited on Thursday.  He was accompanied by his Veterinarian, who Husnidin went to school with.  We had a nice discussion about various issues facing the livestock sector here in Tajikistan. One major issue it that the local Regional Governor has set a maximum price beef can be sold for in the market, unfortunately, that price in below the cost of production.  So, this farmer was saying there is no way he can continue to raise beef at that price level.  He was hoping things will change by next week and he can once again start to sell his cattle.  Husnidin, was planning to go visit his parents before we head back to Dushanbe.  His mother asked him to bring some meat, as the Regional Governor there has said no meat will be sold in the market.  I asked if those new Governors were farmers and was told no – does that sound like some of the decisions that are being made back in the U.S.  That reminds me of hearing people back in Michigan say “we don’t need farmers as I get my food from the grocery store”.

We had a group of 16 Input Suppliers, a University Professor, a Government employee who is going to help our Project sponsor an International Trade Fair this fall and two of our staff members go to Osh, Kyrgyzstan this week for an International Trade Fair in that part of Kyrgyzstan.  I am hoping to hook up with some of them tonight for dinner before they fly back to Dushanbe in the morning.

Tomorrow, I need to work here in the Hotel on some projects for next week.  I am told there will be a Staff Retreat in the mountains on Thursday and Friday and this information is needed for that meeting.  I learned something interesting on Wednesday.  Employers here can use 1.4% of the wage taxes they pay for sending their employees to rest areas.  So, since the Staff Retreat will be held in the mountains at a ski resort, the organization can pay for the retreat out of the money they would normally send the Government.  I guess they could also off rewards to employees by paying for their hotel arrangements for a holiday.  Neat idea that would be nice to see in the U.S.

Well, I better sign off for now.  Do check out my photos on Zenfolio, at http://www.zenfolio.com/farmeray/p828498799, as I will be uploading a bunch from this trip.

Ray

Saturday, February 19th

Another week has flown by.  Can't believe I only have two weeks and a couple days left before heading home on March 7th.  I am scheduled to leave here that Monday at 5:30 a.m., if the plane can get here (weather related delays are common) and take off from here.  Originally my return flight included almost a day in Istanbul and routing from there through New York and Atlanta before touching down in Denver.  Now I will have a direct flight from New York to Denver arriving about 10 p.m.

This week I continued with my daily massages through Wednesday night (5 total massages).  I treated myself to a full body massage on Sunday.  For $20 it is sure worth it.  Guess you can have one of those about weekly if you want.  I do feel much better.  As a result, have done some nightly walking when time permitted or I felt like it.

This week has been extremely stressful, trying to get the various reports that needed to be developed accomplished by weeks end.  They still need some additional information before they can be totally put to bed, but the bulk of the work has been accomplished.  I worked on an Oversight Strategy for the Demonstration Plots (see number and locations by commodity below),

Crop	Number of Demonstrations	Location of Demonstration
Apricot	3	Asht, Isfara and B. Ghafurov
Lemons	1	Qumsangir
Tomato - Greenhouse	3	Spitamen, Rudaki and Bokhtar
Tomato – Field Grown	3	Isfara, Istaravshan and Vahdat
Watermelons	1	Shahritus
Onions	3	Zafarobod, Shahritus and Qumsangir

and for the Voucher Program (see number and locations by commodity below).

Crop	Number of Demonstrations	Location of Demonstration
Apricot	3	Asht, Isfara and B. Ghafurov
Lemons	1	Qumsangir
Tomato - Greenhouse	3	Spitamen, Rudaki and Bokhtar
Tomato – Field Grown	3	Isfara, Istaravshan and Vahdat
Watermelons	1	Shahritus
Onions	3	Zafarobod, Shahritus and Qumsangir

Both Oversight Documents are very specific, outlining what will be accomplished and who will do it.  We are still trying to identify the various Value Chain Partners (Farmers, Input Suppliers and Processors/Dealers) that will be specifically tied to each activity.  Time is running out, as the planting season is quickly approaching, so this has to happen soon.

In addition, this week we spent a lot of time trying to identify what Wholesalers and/or Input Suppliers will be chosen to import the various Inputs we need for our Demonstration and Voucher Programs.  Since the deadline for responding to the Tender Announcement that went out last Friday was yesterday, all responses were opened at 4:30 p.m. and we decided to accept three bids for the Inputs: an Input Supplier in the North and one in the South to supply the seeds and crop protection products (pesticides, fungicides and herbicides) and one Wholesaler who will import all the N-P-K fertilizer for the project..  Once the contracts are signed, the items ordered, we will have to keep our fingers crossed that all items will arrive in a timely fashion so the project activities can be implemented on time.  Now we must identify Input Dealers at the local levels to actually buy the various products from these three Businesses and to distribute the items to the farmers in their areas who have been selected to receive vouchers that cover a percentage of the package price.  The vouchers will be for one hectares worth of materials.  The intent is to help offset the price difference from what the traditional inputs cost verses what these new and improved items would cost. 

Because of our work schedule this week, meals were mostly eaten at the same two places (the cafeteria next door for students and workers - guess they have these kinds of places throughout town) and a local restaurant that attracts a lot of families and young people.  However, on Thursday, there was no power most of the day, so the staff decided to go as a group to a traditional Tajik restaurant for Oshi palov, which is a Tajik national dish. It is a wonderful preparation of rice and meat served along with salad (we would call this pickles of different types - green tomato, pickled cabbage, carrots and tomato). Oshi palov is also served during weddings and festivals here.  It is basically a rice dish with onions, carrots, sometimes peppers and spices along with some chunks of beef.  Then, last night, Dun who is here from ACDI VOCA's home office and I decided it was time to let our hair down.  Since the week was very stressful, we decided we needed something more than our typical 20 Sonomi ($4.46) dinner - mine varies from soup and salad (mainly sliced tomatoes, cucumbers and cheese) to a Donar Wrap (Lavash with sliced beef, French fries, and pickles) to Lamb Shashlik (BBQ Lamb with rice and Lavash). We ended up going out to a Ukrainian Restaurant that I had been to the first week I was here.  We actually were about to give the cab driver good enough directions to get us there and back to our apartments - Dun moved into the same building where I stay last Monday. So, instead of 20 Sonomi, my share of the bill was 118 Sonomi ($26.34), which included a Caesar Salad, two types of Ukrainian appetizers (a meat stuffed pastry and a mushroom stuffed pastry), bread, wine and a Pork T-Bone (definitely not as good as the Lamb Shashlik I had the last time) - thought it was going to be the Pork Chop I had seen the last time - it wasn't.  Will have to have pizza sometime before I leave here, but I am trying to maintain by diet - currently down 9.4 pounds since leaving Denver on January 15th and 48.8 pounds since last October's high weight, before starting the diet.  It is hard dieting here, eating out most of the time, but I am glad that I am still able to lose some and/or maintain what I have lost.  Was surprised to see I had lost weight from yesterday, after the meal last night and the Oshi palov the day before. Will try to be a good boy this weekend - food wise!

Not sure what is going to happen this weekend.  Currently at the office, trying to get motivated to do some refining of the documents that I worked on this week and see what else is on the To Do List.  It is raining pretty hard outside at the moment, since I got here this morning, so am not fired up about heading out too soon.

Well, better get to work.  I haven't been anywhere lately to take pictures, but if you haven't gone to my Zenfolio site and check out the photos I have taken since I have been here you should: http://www.zenfolio.com/farmeray/p828498799

All the best, until next time!  Ray

Saturday, February 12th (continued)

I couldn't wait until the next time I decide to write in the Blog - That massage was the best 50 Somoni ($10.27) I have paid since I have been here. I received a 45-minute back, neck and head message.  She asked how many times I would like it and I said, "you are the professional, how tense was the back, and what do your recommend?"  Her response was "depends on your pocketbook, but I would recommend five times in a row or 10 times every other day".  So she will be here at 3 p.m. tomorrow and for the next three evenings after that.  The back is still sore, but part of that could be the result of the massage, but I guarantee it sure felt good when she was doing it, almost feel asleep.

Off to a Korean Restaurant tonight, I think.

More later, but had to share my experience with the massage - Bud, now how much are you paying there in California for your massage?   Yes, had to rub it in!!!

Saturday, February 12th

Greetings for Dushanbe, Tajikistan.

Boy, it is hard to believe that a week has gone by since my last entry in the Blog.  This has been a very busy week here in Dushanbe, although all my time has been in the office here.  The weather this week as been very interesting, with mixtures of snow, rain and ice.  It is my understanding that January and February are the two rainy months.  So if they do not get moisture now, either as rain or snow, it will be a very dry year for the farmers.  Today, there was an agricultural fair here in town, sponsored by the Ministry of Agriculture.  Unfortunately it has been raining most of the day.  But, I was very impressed with the display of fruit trees, grape plants, shrubs and other ornamentals on display.  It was evident, that various governmental groups were picking out items for community planting projects.  Even saw some police planting some shrubs near where the event was taking place.  Nice to see the MOA, with their limited budget, could organize an event of this magnitude.

This week we were able to move a number of things forward, with regards to items that have been holding up the progress of our efforts relating to the Project’s Demonstration Plots and Voucher Programs.  With the help of ACDI/VOCA’s Project Manager from their D.C. office, who is here for a month now, we were able to get the Tenders for the agricultural inputs and the sprayers needed for our Demonstration Plots and Voucher Programs posted in the paper.  We will have informational meetings on Tuesday morning for any Input Suppliers who see the announcement in the paper or who are contacted about it by our staff to go over exactly what they need to do, in order to be selected for the Tender Award.  We really need to be getting the NPK fertilizer and the various Crop Protection Products (insecticides and fungicides) into the country in time for the planting season. The window of opportunity is quickly closing on us, though. The letter asking for approval from USAID for the three (3) onion planters has been submitted.  Three groups of onion growers in the country will receive grants towards the purchase of this new technology.  Our project will then hold training programs/demonstration plots using this new technology.  The recipients will then receive the planters for use in planting their fall crop of onions.  Finally, approval was received this week from USAID for the purchase of 18 Tractors, from Belarus, as part of a Tractor Voucher Program.  The Project will cover a small portion of the cost (mainly the amount of what the interest on the loan would be, the farmers a portion and the farmers will obtain a loan for the remainder of the cost.  Unfortunately, because of the hold up on obtaining approval for the purchase, the cost has gone up about $1800.  The farmers will have to absorb that additional amount.  They will be required as part of the voucher program to use the tractors not only for their families but also assist other families in their communities to get their field work accomplished on time.

During the week we held a Skype conference call with the staff in the North office, to finalize the location of our 2011 Demonstration Plot and Voucher Program locations.  This has been a battle during the past couple of weeks, so hopefully we can now move forward with the implementation phase of the project.

Originally, I would be heading back to Colorado next Thursday.  However, USAID has approved me staying here until the 8^th of March.  So will be interesting to see if I am on that plane or not.  The apartment is working out nice.  Having Dun, from ACDI-VOCA, here for a month provides company for bouncing ideas off of and someone to enjoy dinners with.  Yesterday, the staff all went to a traditional Tajik restaurant for Lunch.  This was a nice team building activity/social event for everyone.  Guess they do this type of activity every once in a while.  I think we will be having the Staff Retreat that was postponed from last week sometime next week.  But in the meantime, we still have a lot of work to do implementing our demonstration plots and voucher programs.

I have been having some pains in my back this week, may have pulled a muscle walking back and forth to the office with my heavy backpack.  I have asked if they have any Chiropractors here and was told no. Well, I have an appointment in an hour with a massager.  If it works, the price is sure right, about $10 for an hour.  Will let you know how that goes next time.  I did just find out there is a Chiropractor here, the husband of a lady working with another NGO in town.  So may have a link to a Chiropractor now.

Don’t forget to check out my photos on Zenfolio at:  http://farmeray.zenfolio.com/p828498799

Ray

Saturday, February 5, 2011

Greetings from Dushanbe, Tajikistan

I have been told that it has been a while since I have posted anything to my Blog.  You are correct with that observation, as it has been a busy week here in Tajikistan. 

We left the office for the South, down by the Afghanistan border, on Wednesday afternoon in preparation for a Regional Agriculture Fair taking place in that part of the country.  When we arrived, the staff of Mercy Corps was frantically working to try and get the place ready for the next day's event.  We all prayed that night for good weather the next day, as it did not look good at that point and the venue was to have the fair held outdoors. The alternative, should it be raining was to hold it in a large theater type facility which would not have been conducive to holding such an event.  No place for the farmers and dealers to interact.  After doing what we could at the site, we checked into one of the two hotels in town.  We were told, “If you liked it, then it is the best hotel in town.  It wasn't too bad, although you needed to have full control of your faculties, as the bathroom was down three flights of stays and across the back 40.  Thank God mine were in control for once!   You will see a photo of what the toilets are like here in the countryside, so folks, hope whether you are standing or squatting you have good aim, as the hole you are trying to hit is pretty darn small.  Is sure looks so easy for folks here squatting on the side of the road to sit.  Guess experience since childhood pays off. When visiting that community a week earlier, I was told a foreign consultant, female, needed to use the facilities and would not use the local toilets.  Why was she here then?  When in Rome do as the Romans do. We had a nice dinner that night, as the team from our office, before calling it a night.  I was able to get to know some of the staff much better as a result of our time together that evening.

On Thursday morning, after breakfast, we headed down to the site of the Ag Fair.  What chaos was happening, dealers and organizations both were vying for the few tables and chairs that were available for their use.  We tried to set up our display at one of the tables in the tent that had been set up the afternoon before and was told that we had to move, as this area was reserved for some of the local dealers.  Since our crew was running around like chickens with their head cut off, I looked around and saw an open space with two shrubs that were about the right distance apart, so I told the crew to get some string and we will hang our project’s banner between the two shrubs.  While we were hanging the banner, a couple of the staff went for some tables and chairs and soon we had a nice display.  I must admit, I was very worried about pulling this off.  Well, the crowds were great and the people really appreciated receiving our educational posters and materials on growing apricots, lemons, watermelon, tomatoes and onions.  This particular area focuses mainly on watermelons, but also the farmers were interested in the other project supported crops.  As part of the Ag Fair, we said we would hold some training sessions on our pending voucher programs and also provide some technical information on the crops our project is focusing on.  The day could be determined a success, as farmers interacted with dealers and dealers established good contacts with farmers.   One of the dealers from the North, who had driven about 11 hours the day before to get to the Fair, had a great display of trees for sale; he/they had brought 350 with them and sold all of them.  He reached in his pocket, with a smile on his face, and pulled out a wade of money.  He was happy; the trip for him was a success.  Mercy Corps had estimated the Fair would go until 4:00 p.m., however, we were out of there by a little after 1:00 p.m. So, we headed as a group, both the carload that came down yesterday and the one that came today, to a local restaurant for lunch.  We all broke bread together before the one car headed back to Dushanbe.  Husnidin and I planned to stay another night, with a different driver this time, so we could meet with prospective farmers for our demonstration plots.  We used the spare time we had that afternoon, to go visit a couple of farmers further South, one growing onions and one who would be growing watermelon this year.  After visiting with those farmers, two of our 30 demonstration sites were selected, I hope!  When in the village, leaving the future site of the watermelon demonstration plot, I saw some plastic covered structures and asked if they were the Lemon Greenhouses that I have heard about and was told yes, so we stopped and I was given a tour of that structure.  While there, Husnidin was able to work with the farmer on some issues he was experiencing with his lemons.  Good Extension moment.  From there, we headed back to the hotel for a dinner meeting with USAID.  What a small world we live in.  One of the two folks we met with, was a former Peace Corps Volunteer that I met originally in 1994 in Armenia and again many times after that when I would go back to visit Armenia.  I think Chuck said he lived there for over 12 years.  We had a nice evening together reminiscing about our previous experiences in Armenia with the others at dinner.  Unfortunately, not sure we got much work accomplished that evening.  So, it was decided we would meet in the morning for breakfast and focus on work at that time.

On Friday morning after our morning breakfast, we started back towards Dushanbe.  However, we had previously planned to visit some areas along the way to explore where we would be establishing a Lemon plots this year.  While on our way to the village, we received a call from the office telling us not to stay to long before heading back, as it is snowing in Dushanbe and would probably be ice later.  We did go to one of the areas and meet with one lemon farmer, the site of the project’s Lemon Demonstration, last year.  He had an insect problem and again it proved to be an Extension Moment.  Before leaving the village, we spent a long time in the marketplace talking with input dealers about our project and the pending voucher program.  We also talked with some fertilizer dealers about the project before heading back to Dushanbe.  The closer we got to town, especially over the last pass, got interesting to say the least. When going through one town, near the river, we stopped and I bought a stringer of fish - good for the diet you know.  When we got back to the office, we had a short meeting with the Chief of Party for our project, about our meeting with USAID.  By this time, I was exhausted and ready to get to the apartment before the weather got too bad.  So when I got home, after cleaning the fish, I decided to put some money on my Skype account and call Merry, since she did not have access to Skype this weekend.  So the Girl ended up costing me $0.73 to talk with before going to bed.  Actually, called her a couple times before calling it a day, so now she is into me for $0.94.  What a great communication tool.  Here I am on the other side of the world and can talk to her for 2.3 cents a minute through the computer and you would think we were sitting next to each other.

After getting motivated on Saturday morning, I went to the office for a while.  For lunch, I went out with Husnidin to the restaurant we went to last Sunday.  Didn't like what I had today as much as last week, but it was still good.  This time, in addition to the Borsht, I was able to have a nice plate of tomatoes and cucumbers along with some boiled beef for the main course.  On the way home, I was asked if I would like to see where he went to the University and where he worked for two years.  This proved to be a good stop, as I had an opportunity to talk with one of Husnidin's colleagues at the University about possibly involving some of their students this summer helping with our many demonstration plots.  We will need to follow up this discussion more next week.  But he was very interested in the idea, as this could prove to be their final paper before graduation.  He said that would be one additional level of motivation for them.

Now time to head home and prepare a boiled fish dinner.  Since I had to go back and make some changes in what I had previously written, I can update you on the boiled fish dinner.  The veggies were great, the fish way to boney, so most of it found its way into the garbage, unfortunately.  More later - do visit my Zenfolio site from time to time to see additional photos that will be added when I have enough Internet access to upload the photos to my site. 

http://www.zenfolio.com/farmeray/p828498799  

Saturday, January 29th

It is hard to believe that I left Denver for Tajikistan 2-weeks ago.  So, I guess the saying "Time Flies When You Are Having Fun" is correct.  Or there are just so many tasks needing to be done with the project that it makes the time go by fast. 

This week I decided, since I will be staying longer than originally planned, that I would move from the hotel into an apartment (see photos of the apartment at my Zenfolio site).  I am in the second phase of my diet, starting once I arrived here in Dushanbe, and it has been really hard to follow the prescribed diet while living in a hotel and eating all meals out.  Although, I have managed to lose an additional 7 lbs. since starting the 2nd round of shots on the 18th.  I hope living in the apartment will help me get back on track with the diet as it is supposed to be followed.  But it took a long time to get to where I was weight wise, so as long as I am continuing to lose weight while I am here I am happy.  I still have the goal of where I want to be, come the middle of June in my head and I am striving to chip away at the weight so I can get there.  Wish me continued luck.

This week has focused on starting to inform farmers, dealers and processors of the upcoming Regional Agriculture Fair, next week in the South.  Or staff will go down there on Wednesday, in preparation for the Thursday Fair.  In addition, we are making it possible for 11 dealers from the North and the RRP (Dusanbe and surrounding areas in Central Tajikistan) to attend the Fair and show and hopefully enter into contracts with farmers from that area for improved seeds, fertilizers and Crop Protection Products (herbicides, insecticides and fungicides).  Many people are being invited to attend from the North and RRP Regions, in addition to those from the South.  The location of the Fair had to be changed at the last minute, because the newly appointed Governor of that area refused to give permission for the event to happen.  Our staff went down there to meet with the staff of Mercy Corps who will be hosting the event in cooperation with our project.  At that point, they did not know for sure if the Governor would meet with them or not, which he didn't, so the location was changed to a community where their Governor was much more receptive.  The only problem is this will cause the target group of farmers to have to travel an additional 20 KM to attend.  So hopefully, this will not effect the attendance at the Fair.  Our project will offer a number of training opportunities in addition to having an informational booth to explain our project and to disseminate informational brochures on the five target crops of our project.

This week one of our staff finalized plans for a CNFA Farmer to Farmer Volunteer that is coming here to work with the Meat Cutters and Processors.  One of our project's cooperators would like to establish a new Slaughter Facility near the major market in town.  I served twice as a Volunteer with CNFA in Moldova doing Recordkeeping with farmers of four different cooperatives that had been formed since the break up of the Former Soviet Union.  This is a nice program for folks that are willing to give of their time and knowledge to help others around the world.  The program pays for their travel costs and they volunteer their time.  Nice way to see the world, while at the same time, help others that are less fortunate than we are in America.

Last night I was working later than normal and saw a lot of commotion outside my office, I just thought it was something in conjunction with the staffs English classes.  But turned out to be a Staff Party, to say thanks for all your efforts last year in the project.  Was a nice way to end the week.  They had also invited some folks from another project down the street so that was nice having an opportunity to also meet them.

This week, I had the opportunity to meet with a couple of different Input Dealers that are working with our project.  If you check out my photos, you will see me with one of them.  She wanted her picture with me, sad "You are a big man and I am a big woman, I want a picture with you".  So we took the picture.  I later saw her in the office and told her that my wife is mad at be having my picture with another woman.  We all laughed.  She said she is going to send the photo to her husband, too, who is a respected Cardiologist.  While talking with the other dealer, I learned that he has expanded his business as a result of the recent Onion Voucher Program.  In the past he just sold fertilizer and CPPs, and now farmers are asking him for improved seeds for other crops in addition to the Onion Seeds he started to sell during the Voucher Program.  This is the kind of information that I need to get the staff here to document.  I call this the "So What" of the program.  Documenting you did a task is good, but document what changed because of the task is what is needed to show the effects of the project.

Well, I have gotten very windy this morning.  So time to wrap this one up.  Not sure what I will be doing for the rest of the weekend, but I do hope I can catch up on some sleep this weekend, since I have been on the go since I have been here.  I hope the new apartment warms up some by the time I get home - have a number of space heaters plugged in.  Oh by the way, I am told if I take a taxi, just tell the driver to bring me by the President's house.  Guess I am living in a well protected area.

Check out my photos at   http://www.zenfolio.com/farmeray/p828498799

Wednesday, January 26th

Boy, where do I start with my Blog since last writing.  There is just so much needing to be done with regards to meeting the project's goals for this quarter.  John Allgood was scheduled to leave for the airport on Monday morning at 2:30 a.m., but he received a call at 2 a.m. that the plane would not be flying.  When I got up, I found out why - you could have cut the fog with a knife.  Well, he was finally able to get out of here about 6 p.m. and that left things in my hands. Thanks John!!!

I have continued working with the staff and ACDI-VOCA's Chief of Party to finalize plans for implementing the various aspects of the project.  Unfortunately, in the process, there was a major disagreement between a couple of the key staff members, which caused me to bring them into my office and let them know things needed to change right now.  They may not like what is planned but we have to be flexible and work through any changes that come down from USAID to ACDI-VOCA to our project.  It looks like I will be extending my stay here by at least two months, departure now planned for around April 15th.  That would give me time to work with the staff through their 2nd quarter.  Since the time will be extended, I have decided to look for an apartment for my remaining time here.  It will be much cheaper than staying in a hotel or guest house, plus I would have cooking previlleges.  Will be located between the office and one of the restaurants I like to go to. I have choicen a two bedroom, living room, kitchen with dining area and balcony to rent.  Not as nice as we are used to, but will be nice to have a little more room than the hotel, plus an opportunity to cook.  I have elected to continue the second round of shots for my diet while I am over here.  Unfortunately, eating out all the time is not conducive to the diet.  Hopefully, with this move I can get back on track - although I am still losing weight even with eating out.

Today, went to the southern part of the country, not to far from the Afghan border.  While visiting a fertilizer vendor in the market a guy came up and I guess he said "we get everything from God so don't beg from them".  One of our staff felt he was influenced by Afghan presence in the area.  I didn't know anything about it until he told me what happened.  This area reminds me a lot of what I experienced in 93 and 94 in Armenia.  The houses in the village look the same, much of the land looked the same and the sites with shepards tending their cattle and flocks was the same.  Boy what scenery I saw on our 4-hour trip, especially the mountains and the changing soil structures.

Well that is about all for now. It has been a long day, so time for the lights to go out for another day.  Be sure to check out my photo album for the new pictures taken today.  Go to: http://www.zenfolio.com/farmeray/p828498799 .

Sunday, January 23rd

Today was another busy day in this part of our world.  I started the day trying to complete a task related to the Shriner's Newsletter that I edit.  All the reviewer comments were received and I summarized them before sending onto our graphic artist in Indiana.  When I left home on the 15th, I wasn't sure if I would be able to pull this issue off from this part of the world. But at this point, it looks as though the issue will get out on time without my physical presence in Colorado Springs.

Yesterday, was spent at the office working on finalizing the project's Voucher Program document, the Demonstration Plot document and the Training Program document.  I also worked with the project's Team Leader to pull together the information needed for a letter that needs to be sent to USAID for a waiver that would allow our project to locally source the pesticides, herbicides, fungicides and fertilizer we need this spring for the Voucher Program and our Demonstration Plots.  We finished working on that task today and the letter was sent to the Chief of Party for ACDI-VOCA to review and forward onto USAID.  We are told the process may take approximately 30-days to get final approval. 

Yesterday, John and I were driven around the city to see some sites and also to visit some shops for souvenirs.  I am an impulse buyer, so now is too early for shopping.  But I did buy a few handmade items that can go on future Christmas Trees as a way to remember the time I spent here in Dushanbe. You can view some photos of the various items that were in the one store we visited - just copy and paste the link found in the header above this posting. Last night Will, John and I went out to dinner at a very nice Ukrainian restaurant.  The atmosphere, the food and the commaradier were second to none and the meal very inexpensive for what we received.  In this part of the world BBQ is called Shaslik - I had Pork Shaslik with a very nice salad, John had Chicken Shaslik with rice and Will had a very nice looking Pork Chop with an assortment of picked items (cabbage, tomato, peppers).  This was an excellent opportunity to get to know the Chief of Party for whom I will be working with while here in Tajikistan.

While waiting at the hotel for Will to come pick us up, a young man that works here, came up to John and I and said you do not have the required documents you need.  If only staying in Tajikistan for 2-days you don't need it but if you are staying longer you must have this document to leave the country.  Well that caught John's attention as he has to leave for the airport at 2:30 in the morning.  We waited for the Manager of the hotel to show up, so we both could get the document, but had to leave for the restaurant.  When we returned the Manager was gone.  So this morning we were supposed to meet him at 8 a.m., well after 9 a.m., I decided to head to the office and left my Passport with John to get the required document.  When John showed up at the office he was laughing.  He said let me tell you about my experience this morning.  "There was no clue when this Manager was going to show up.  So I told the young guy at he hotel, why don't you learn how to issue this document, it would be a good learning opportunity for you to possess.  The guy said, I know how to do it.  Why then, did you not do it for us this morning.  His response "Because You Didn't Ask Me, I thought you wanted the Manager to do it".  So I guess the lesson learned is that you must always ask the right question.

For lunch today we walked down to a smal Tajik restaurant.  I am a soup lover, so I ordered a bowl of vegetable beef soup and a salad.  When the salad arrived, it was a bowl of stewed tomatoes.  Glad I like stewed tomatoes! In the late afternoon, John and I met one of the Peace Corps Volunteers that I interacted with in Armenia in 94 and 1999-2000 when I was over there with USDA.  Chuck in now here in Tajikistan with USAID working as a Project Manager overseeing some of their agricultural funded projects.  It sure is a small world.  When I arrived, I also learned that another person I knew from my past just recently left Tajikistan, after being here four year.  Wish we could have broken some bread together.  For dinner, I munched on some of the leftovers that were given to us on Friday night from the dinner we had at the home of our project's Team Leader.  Was good that night and also tonight.

So another good day.  More later.  To view photos from over here go to  my photo site: 
http://www.zenfolio.com/farmeray/p828498799

Friday, Januaray 21

Today we continued with project planning for the rest of the year, with emphasis being placed on future training sessions for the farmers and agro-input dealers that are working with the USAID Productive Agriculture Project here in Tajikistan.  In the coming months, the staff will be wearing multiple hats:

• Conducting a voucher program that will provide partial payment for seed, fertilizer and crop protection products for the participating crops.  In order to receive a voucher, the farmers must have participated in the training programs and the field days at one of the project demonstration plots.
• Implementing demonstration plots/feeding trials in three regions of the country (North, Central - near the capital city and the South) for the project supported crops and beef fattening project.
• Conducting training sessions for the farmers and agro-input dealers in the three regions of the country.  Next year, the farmers who participate in these training and field days will be eligible to participate in the voucher program.

At the end of the day, John and I were invited to the home of the staff member of the current project, who I had hired in 2005 for the other IFDC project.  I was surprised to meet his younger brother, who also worked in the office of our previous project, but with the organization that actually had the contract with USAID.  In three months previously, I was only invited to one home here in Tajikistan. So I told John, we were very honored to be invited into a home at this early stage. I know I will have that opportunity again before I leave.  Now for the cultural difference - we saw none of the women in the family - they were in a separate room preparing the food that was brought into the room we were meeting in by our host's son.  As we were leaving, I aske our host to thank his wife for the nice table.  This is the response I received "my woman only has one job - to take care of me, my son and my quests".  Although the meal was very simple, there was plenty of good eating and good fellowship had by all.

Thursday, January 20th

Today was another day working with the IFDC staff here in Tajikistan in planning for the implementation of the voucher program for six crops and some animal feed.  We spent the day today developing an action plan for carrying out the various aspects of the Voucher Program.  There is definitely going to be alot needing to be done between now and March 31st.  This process, although long, will provide the staff with benchmark dates to shoot for, in order to get everything accomplished by March 31st.

Today for lunch I ordered Borsh.  Very tasty and good for my diet - I hope!  Lost 1.2 lbs yesterday.  So hopefully that trend will continue.  However, it is hard when you are staying in a hotel and have to eat both lunch and dinner in restaurants.  Tonight we went for a long walk to have dinner where we have driven in the past.  The weather was cool and damp, but provided for a nice walk to dinner.  I had a nice BBQ lamb dinner.

This afternoon we had the opportunity to visit a large Agro-Input Dealer, who was originally from Afghanistan.  We learned today that they now have 30 small shops throughout the country.  Very clean and well organize. Yesterday, we had the opportunity to meet a lady for the north region who is a very large Agro -Input Dealer.  She is a member of the Association of Agro-Input Dealers here in Tajikistan.  That is an organization that was started back in 2005 by the group I hired when I was working here.  She is also cooperating with the Dealer we visited today. We also visited the Green Market, a very nice Farmers market.  Most of the evening, however, was spent finalizing the report we worked on today and preparing something for tomorrow's discussions.  Getting late here, so will write more tomorrow night.

Wednesday, January 19th

Today was another day in planning with the IFDC staff here in Dushanbe.  Most of our efforts focused on the Voucher Program for Apricots, Lemons, Tomatoes, Watermelons, and Onions. In addition, there will also be a Voucher Program for a Beef Pre-Mix.  In all cases, the Voucher Program follows a series of demonstration plots and educational programs centered around those particular commodities. We also discussed the various demonstrations that will take place this year with these commodities in different locations from last year’s demonstration program.   Input suppliers, who will be selling the inputs covered by the Vouchers will be encouraged to conduct their own demonstration plots this year with the assistance of the IFDC staff.

We also spent time today discussing how IFDC can best partner with Mercy Corps on the upcoming Trade Fair happening in early February in the southern part of Tajikistan, down by the Afghanistan border.  This next month will be very busy for the staff as they work through the Voucher Program, the Trade Fair and a 2 day Staff Retreat at one of the mountain ski resorts.  I thought it was funny yesterday when we were first told about the pending retreat, that if there is snow we won’t be able to get to the ski resort and if we can get to the resort, there won’t be any snow for skiing.  So it should be interesting either way.

The last two mornings we have had snow, but it is melted by the afternoon.  Our agronomist with the project is very happy to see the snow as this has been a very dry year here in Tajikistan.  The wet snow has made for some muddy walking to and from the hotel to the office and from the office to the cafeteria next door where the various NGO’s go to eat lunch.  I spent less than $2 today for a large bowl of soup, a salad and some tea.  Dinner cost three of us, less than $12 tonight. So meals are very reasonable here. 

Yesterday, I started the second round of shots for my diet.  I am finding it very hard this time around to eat the correct foods that are part of the diet.  However, I am working at trying to follow the diet to the best of my ability.  I may explore moving into a guest house or an apartment for the rest of my stay here, in order to better meet the requirements of my diet.  But as long as I am not gaining weight, I am moving in the right direction.

Well it is late and I am still facing the effects of Jet Lag.  So I will sign off now and wish everyone a great day.

January 15th - January 18th

Friday, January 14, 2011

My trip to Tajikistan began

 when I dropped Coco off at the dog sitter’s.  I then proceeded to Denver where Merry and I had reservations for two nights as part of the International Shrine Horse Patrol meetings and also the National Western Livestock Show.  Unfortunately, the opportunity to go to Tajikistan as part of a USAID project funded through ACDI-VOCA and subcontracted to IFDC, the organizationt that I worked for in Kosovo in 2003-2004 and in Tajikistan/Kyrgyzstan in 2005 came about and I had to forego the meeting and rodeo.

On Friday night, I went to the airport about 9 p.m. in order to pick up Merry at 11 p.m.  While there, I wanted to weigh my luggage to make sure I was not over weight, which I was by 9 lbs.  But they waived the fee because I was flying Business Class.  So at 11 p.m., I went back to the counter and checked in my luggage and obtained by boarding pass, so I could sleep in about 30-min longer.  Either way it was a short night.

Saturday, January 15th

Merry and I headed back to the airport at 4:15 a.m. for my 6 a.m. flight to Atlanta.  When I arrived in Atlanta, I met up with John Algood from IFDC.  Thanks to John, I was upgraded to Business Class from Atlanta to JFK in New York and then from JFK to Instanbul.  I was great having a chance to get updated on the people and programs of IFDC, since my medical evacuation for Tajikistan in 2005.  The flights were uneventful, but long, and the food in Business Class was great.

Sunday, January 16th

We arrived in Istanbul about 9:30 a.m. for our 9 hour layover before flying onto Dushanbe, Tajikistan.  Sure will be nice to get there.  If my calculations are correct, it will be 31 hours from the time the plane left Denver, until in lands in Dushanbe - taking in the layover in Atlanta, New York and Istanbul. Since we are flying Business Class, we were able to visit one of the hospitality clubs at the airport.  Boy is that nice, the chairs were comfortable, the atmosphere very relaxing and they had all kinds of snacks/food and drinks you could enjoy during your time there.  I particularly enjoyed their Mushroom Soup and various types of cheese.  Our flight on Turkish Airlines was not as comfortable.  John and I were separated on this leg of the flight.  Luckily I was given an exit row, which provided for extra leg space.  I was sitting with a young guy from Sweden who comes to Tajikistan about six times per year as a consultant for 2-3 weeks.  The other young guy travels all over consulting with the Embassy.  This is his first time here, so he was really picking our brains about what to expect.  I do not remember alcohol being the issue it was in other parts of the Former Soviet Union, however, the Swedish gentlemen was saying it was.  So will see for myself when I get here.

Monday, January 17^th

We arrived in Dushanbe around 3:30 a.m. – boy was there confusion at the airport, trying to get through Immigration.  Unfortunately, I think we picked the line with a new employee, because he had to keep calling his superior over.  Finally, he was sent away and the other guy just took over.  Once we got through that process, it was off to find my luggage, and luckily it was here in one piece.  We were then greeted by the IFDC Team Leader and a Driver. I had heard his name and seen it in reports, but it did not sink in.   I had hired him in 2005 before I was Medically Evacuated.  What a small world we live in.  The reunion was very special, although both John and I were ready to get to the hotel for a few hours’ sleep before starting our time here.  We decided to forego breakfast, since it was 6:00 a.m. when we finally got to the hotel, and go directly to the room for a little sleep.  At 11 a.m. we were again greeted by the Team Leader and the Driver and taken to a restaurant for lunch.  This time was spent getting an update on the project and some staffing challenges that are taking place with the project.  From there, we headed to the joint ACDI-VOCA and IFDC office to meet the team.  Our first stop was meeting with Will Bullock, the Chief of Party for the ACDI-VOCA project, for about an hour. We then had a joint staff meeting with the two teams.  They linked their satellite office in the North up to the meeting using Skype.  Didn’t work so well, but was nice to have a visual to go with the sound.  Following the meeting at the office, we went to dinner with the team leader.  Although the music was a little loud, interfering with our ability to totally understand what was being said, we did enjoy the evening.  It was now time to crash back at the hotel. But before that could happen, I tried unsuccessfully to get hooked up to the Internet via the computer in my hotel room.  Will have to wait until tomorrow to contact Merry from the office and then find out if the hotel has Wireless.

Tuesday, January 18^th

I woke up about 3:30 a.m. and couldn’t get back to sleep.  So wondered around the room, after staring at the ceiling for an hour, and decided to hang up my cloths.  Before I knew it, it was time to head downstairs for breakfast.  They provide a very nice breakfast in the morning with a variety of food items for you to choose from.  Since I elected to start the second round of shots for my diet this morning, will be taking daily shots for the next 40+ days, I only enjoyed some fruit and tea.  But I could have had a variety of breads, cold pancakes, cheese, eggs, sausage, and yogurt from the buffet table.  We then headed to the office, where we had scheduled a daylong staff meeting to see where the project is with regards to the various deliverables for this Quarter: Demonstration Plots (Lemons, Tomatoes, Onions, Water Melon, Apricots and Beef Cattle Feeding), the Voucher Program (Seeds, Fertilizer, Pesticides and Black Plastic), Trade Fair, and Training Programs.  Earlier in the morning, I was approached by Will, asking for my help in pulling together information from the team as to how we see IFDC and Mercy Corps working together on a Trade Fair in the southern part of Tajikistan the Winter.  This proved to be a very interesting discussion.  It looks as though USAID wants this to happen and for IFDC to be a part of making it happens.  Tomorrow, I will have to see about arranging a meeting with the COP for Mercy Corps and his staff in the very near future.  This would involve travelling about four hours to the south, near the Afghanistan border for the meeting.  I feel we had a very good discussion today on the various deliverables for the project, we will continue that discussion tomorrow.  We had a nice lunch at a cafeteria next door to the office – it is only open for lunch – nice selection of food – wish I could try most of it, but not good for the diet I am on.  Dinner was at a traditional Tajik restaurant.  Nice music and traditional dancing – they had one young lady dancing to the music and some of the men; I think two sheets to the wind, would get up and dance with her.  Nice evening, but again the music was too loud to carry on a conversation, especially when communicating with someone who has just learned to speak English in the last three years.  I could not believe how well I held up today.  But once back in the hotel, I was a sleep before I knew it.  I was Skipping with Merry and she actually told me to go to sleep as I was falling asleep anyways.  Another day tomorrow.  Oh by the way, I couldn’t believe what kind words were shared with John about me from six years ago when I started the IFDC project in the Northern part of the country.  I guess I had touched lives in a positive way at that time.  Sounds like they are going to try and arrange for a party with the crew I had hired back then – that would be nice.  Unfortunately, they were pretty much left in the dark when I did not return to work on Monday, after flying to Dushanbe to meet with the Embassy Doctor and then being flown to the Vienna Medical Center and the home.  So would be nice to see them again.