At 3 AM I arrive in Dushanbe, Tajikistan. Having never been here before I didn’t know what to expect. I tried to get clues everything I saw; the people, the landscape, etc. being well aware that first impressions can sometimes be wrong. My flight from St. Petersburg was filled with men with about 10 of the 100+ passengers being women. This wasn’t a surprise because I was told that lots of Tajik men go to Russia to work and return with the earnings to support their families.
After leaving the chaos that is most arrival/custom halls, I was greeted by Faruhk, my host. I felt bad that he had to pick me up at such an ungodly hour knowing that he’d probably already put in a full day at work. We spoke briefly and decided that I’d meet with the artists and students that are interested in participating in the project later in the day at about 3 PM.
We then made our way to the apartment where I’ll call home for the next couple of weeks. The apartment was located right off one of the main streets. A tour of the space revealed a large (by any standard) apartment with all the amenities for modern living. A flat screen tv with Satellite TV in the living room, a washer in the eat-in kitchen, a queen size bed in the bedroom with ample closet space, even a little office with desk and chair. Each room had large windows, which no doubt would allow for a lot of natural light. Just before leaving, Farukh informed me that there will be no water from 1 PM – 5PM, and pointed to a small orange bucket filled with water - my emergency supply. I made a mental note to be up before 1, said our goodbyes and prepared for bed hoping to get some rest before my first meeting.
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