Jet lag looms over us so that coherency is near impossible these days, but we're hoping to recover within the week. Other than that, life in Central Asia has been great! We've been exposed to a nice glimpse of the way things work here with regards to dining, transportation, religion, shopping, etc.

We went to church today that meets in a night club...talk about redeeming lost places! Coming from a church (Church Under the Bridge) that also seeks to bring light to dark places, we appreciated that this church serves as a beacon in an area that only hours earlier was a haven to sin.

On Monday we transition out of the city to the village where we'll be living for the next year. While there, we'll be in a temporary house that is already furnished until we can figure out what we want to put in our home.

I figured that these first few days will be a blur once the jet lag wears off, so I've been jotting down some initial observations while making sure to take plenty of photos:

1. It is custom here for everyone to take their shoes off when they go inside homes. Once they do, they're given slippers to wear. This is a custom all over the region. It kind of makes sense too because it's really muddy and sooty, and plus most folks use outhouses, so you don't want to track in whatever you step on out there.

2. Men greet each other with a hand shake and/or putting your hand over your heart and bowing your head. Women often kiss each other on the lips. Men and women never greet each other with anything other than a 'hello'.

3.That taxi system is pretty wild. Pretty much everyone who owns a car
can be a taxi driver. There are no taxi companies--rather, you just stand
out on the side of the roade with your arm out and if someone wants to
offer you a ride they pull over and you tell them where you want to go and
how much you'll pay. Then the driver either accepts the offer or drives
off without you. It's pretty funny. We had some interesting "taxi" rides
yesterday.

4. Lamb, lamb, lamb...I've fallen in love with eating lamb. :) Beef,
pork, chicken, horse, and lamb are all available (including all of their
heads, organs, tongues, and more) to eat. Of all of them, I like lamb
a lot. The chicken is the most expensive and isn't all that great.

Si sleeping in a bassinet on the plane ride over

Our day at the bazaar...
anyone want a sheep head or heart?

Well, we made it! With jet lag setting in, we're starting to adapt to life in Central Asia. We'll be in the city for the weekend before moving to our village.

Thanks for all the prayers! I'll try to see abouto getting a photo or two up soon.

Well, today's the day!

We fly out in about 4 hours for the next 9 months. We appreciate the words of encouragement you've provided.

I'll continue updating this site as much as possible. Feel free to drop us a line!