To Mary and back again

How was everybody's Thanksgiving? We had a phenomenal meal with the other Mary volunteers equipped with mashed potatoes, turkey and gravy. It was nice to spend the day just hanging out with the other Americans pigging out and laughing about the inane things.

Mary is the closest city to ancient ruins of Merv which used to be the westernmost city along the silk road. It is a nice town that is easy to navigate and has plenty to see and do, which is good because it will keep me sane to say the least. I will definetly need to learn Russian being in the city it will almost be a necessity. One of the most interesting things within the city is the framework of a mosque that was never finished. It stands guard to downtown Mary from my house like a skeleton into a tomb. According to my host family the reason it wasnt finished was that a series of accidents happened to people that step on the middle of building, including two were hit by cars, one had a heart attack and another dissapeared. Call it what you will I think they ran out of money, but who knows here.

My new host family in Mary is awesome. My host mother in Mary works at the Mary Museum as a tour guide, we have already had interesting conversations about how America was actually discovered and the history of slavery in the US. My host dad is a really nice guy that works as a car mechanic. My host brother is a nice kid that has become the local celebrity because he now has "The American" living with him. My host sister is shy but likes to laugh a lot at the funny American.

I will be working at the American Corner and will have spotty internet access while I am there. I will also find out the address when I get back into Gokje and I will send it to you via a letter. As for the future I think any packages should still be sent to Ashgabat but I think my letters can be spent to the American Corner. If you would like to send letters send them to the Ashgabat address for now.

Hope to hear from you all soon.