Bill's Blog

Sunday afternoon we drove up to our favorite camping spot near Tavaksay Canyon. It was another beautiful, late summer evening, after the strong winds calmed down. It was difficult to set up the tent and until sunset, we were concerned that the winds would ruin our camping experience. Fortunately, they died down and we had a delightful evening of camaraderie and looking at the stars. We bought a tent in a Kazakh-owned outdoor shop for Ocean. I am impressed by the quality of materials and design. It was the most aerodynamic and sturdy of the tents in our group. The design is a little different with setting up the fly sheet first and then connecting the inner tent to the fly sheet. It resulted in a sturdier design in my opinion.

On Monday morning Aaron, Owen (my friend’s son, not my son) and me took the dogs for a long walk in the sun-baked hills. The fabulous views and making our own route along the ridges and through the ravines and depressions, made for great hike. Being out in nature recharges my batteries and getting out of the city of a couple of days does me good. Nadia likes camping too now, so it is something we can do together. It was fun learning how to set up the new tent and using all of our camping gear. We hope to go a couple of more times before it gets too cold to camp.

We are celebrating Uzbekistan’s independence with a 4-day weekend in Tashkent. President Mirzoyoyev declared both Monday and Tuesday, September 2-3 to be national holidays. The actual day of independence is September 1. Uzbekistan declared independence on August 31, 1990. This was after the failed coup of communist hardliners in the Soviet Union led by Mikhail Gorbachev. The first secretary of Uzbek SSR communist party Islam Karimov was elected the new president and led the country until he died in September of 2016. His longtime Prime Minister, Shavkat Mirzoyoyev took over in December of 2016 and is still in power 8 years later.

I had a nice day of yoga and riding my bicycle. I rode the main canal in the city. Cooler temperatures are finally here with mornings in the 60s and highs in the 80s. I also caught up on yard work and taking care of things around the house. Our big activity was eating at a new restaurant in the city, Kaspiyka. It is a Russian-owned seafood restaurant with restaurants in Moscow, Baku, Kazan, and now Tashkent. Russians have improved dining experiences here in Tashkent. It is nice to have fresh seafood in a double-landlocked country. It must be flash frozen. My favorite dish was солянка (Solyanka) which is a traditional Russian sour soup. We finished the night with drinks at the Hyatt rooftop bar.

Through the years I have been on some incredible trips with students. The secondary school starts the year at the Tashkent International School with Schools Without Walls trips to various sites in the Tien Shan Mountain range. I had a board meeting on Wednesday so I couldn’t go on the first day, but on Thursday morning, I drove up to the grade 9 campsite to join the freshmen for the last two days. It allows me to connect not just with the students, but also with the teacher-chaperones. I was so impressed with the comportment of our students, they are sweet international school kids who come from good families, and the dedication of the teachers, who on these trips are on call 24/7. I increased the number of students that I know at the school. It is my goal this year to know every student (500) by name.

The students went through four activities over the three days. The Grade Level Coordinator Victor assigned me to two sessions of horseback riding on one session of hiking. I can’t remember the last time I rode a horse. The time that comes to mind was a horseback trip we took in the Andes of Venezuela when the kids were very young. I remember Oliver falling asleep in the saddle with me! So it was over 15 yeas ago. After watching Yellowstone and the new Costner movie, Horizon, I was excited to be a real cowboy. Author Chuck Klosterman said the other day in a podcast that he thinks horseracing’s popularity waned when most Americans lost contact with horses through the 20th century. Horses are such a huge, muscular, majestic animal and I see why some people just fall in love with them. They are beasts and could be dangerous. I learned to have a strong hand in directing the horse. They constantly wanted to stop and eat while we were making the way up the canyon. It would take a lot of practice to get used to riding a horse that is galloping. It was thrilling to ride while they trotted a bit faster than a walk. Going for two rides was good for me and I felt more comfortable the second day. I learned Uzbek horse calls, “high-ya” and “chee-yeh” to get the horse to move ahead instead of stopping for grazing.

We hiked up to the top of Mount кызылджар (1866 m) on Thursday afternoon. The six-kilometer hike led us to the cell towers on top of the hill. We were afforded gorgeous views all the way down to Charvak Reservoir. It would be a nice walk all the way from the top to the reservoir. It was a dusty walk

I end this post with a photo of my daughter Ocean getting her tetanus vaccine. In preparing for her grade 11 trip, we were asked if we had a tetanus shot in the past 10 years. Her immunization booklet showed a June 28, 2012 DpT vaccine, so on the morning of the trip, I took her over to the clinic on our campus. It was a nice bonding moment as I left my morning gate duty and walked her over to the clinic. It is so convenient to have a family medical practice on campus. It was a sweet moment for Ocean and I as she went off with her grade 11 classmates.

We had a delightful evening camping in the mountains above the town of Tavaksay Saturday night. It is our favorite camping site because it is convenient, only an hour’s drive from our home and you can drive, stop, and put up your tent right outside your car. There are several flat camping sites along the dirt road leading to the big canyon and waterfalls. My favorite aspect of camping is it brings people together. You are away from the distraction of mobile phones, the internet, and the different rooms of our large home. It was Nadia, Ocean, Obi, and me and a tent.

The night was delicious with a warm breeze and a sky full of stars. We listened to music, talked, watched satellites and shooting stars, ate and drank well, and overall had a great bonding experience. We slept OK without any interruptions from sheep dogs, foxes, etc. It is awesome to walk on the ridge, overlooking the town, with a breeze on my face, and looking up at the wonderful universe. It is so different from being at home and a refreshing break from Tashkent. Nadia purchased the complete “glamping” gear, ranging from a set of Hydroflask camping dinnerware to Russian brands of air mattresses and tables. We did not want for any home conveniences.

A funny incident occurred on Sunday morning when I went out looking for birds with Obi. I went down into a gully because there was a small creek there and I found a shoe. It happened to be a friend’s lost shoe from August 2023 when a big group of us camped. An animal must have taken the shoe from outside his tent and carried it to this place. He couldn’t find his shoe last year and donated his remaining shoe to an amputee organization. We all had a laugh when I brought back the other shoe a year later.

I read author and activist Jamie Metzl’s book, Eternal Sonata, a science fiction thriller set in the near future (2025). If you want to read it, come back to this blog post later (SPOILER ALERT). The book follows the investigation of Kansas City Star reporter Rich Azadian of the disappearance of an elderly, terminally ill cancer patient from a hospice. The investigation leads to a renegade scientist who is using DNA from a rare Arctic jellyfish that can reverse aging of cells in humans. It made me think about immortality. The 8 people who underwent this process, slowly go back to the age of the stem cells used in the procedure. The negative aspect is they forget everything about their past life and need to start fresh again. I think that is good and bad and I guess they could always refer to the digital record of their past life or lives to learn from the past and keep memories of loved ones. I wonder if humanity will ever reach this stage… The book becomes a thriller involving big pharma, Israeli intelligence, and a secretive aircraft carrier in international waters of scientists that does cutting-edge research beyond the reach of any government control. The novel was not life-changing, but it was a page-turner and allowed me to fall asleep, sorting out the plot in my mind.

I found Jamie Metzl through his interview on the UK podcast, Disorder. I highly recommend subscribing it as it explores how we are dealing with or not dealing with the big problems facing earth and society that need coordinated, global solutions. They tackle things like climate change, AI, cyber security, war outbreaks, Neo-Populism, religious fanaticism, etc. Metzl is the founder of OneSharedWorld, a movement of individuals and organizations that are attempting to bring powerbrokers together to solve these global crises. I am also going to check out some of the other podcasts besides Disorder, that the parent company, Goal Hanger, produces.

One of my pleasures in life is walking my dog Obi in the evenings. I am moving to more walking than running these days, but the idea is that I keep moving. Tashkent is a pleasant city to walk in with wide sidewalks, many parks, good weather, and variety in different parts of the city. The crazy drivers make me nervous sometimes, but overall, it is a walkable city. Unlike American cities, there are always plenty of pedestrians and people outside. I think it is because most people live in small apartments and they like openness of public spaces. The “third space” (not work or home) is alive and well in Central Asia and is a channel for people to connect.

I went for a bike ride last weekend out towards Parkent and noticed the progress of the “Olympic Village”. The government is building a sports complex in preparation for the Asian Youth Games 2025 that will take place in Tashkent from September 10-25, 2025. This will be only the third Asian Youth Games. Singapore hosted the inaugural games in 2009 to show the International Olympic Committee they could host the 2010 Summer Youth Olympics. Nanjing, China picked it up in 2013, but the event was cancelled in 2017 due to the disorganization of the host, Jakarta and in 2019 due to COVID. There are 13 sports and the previous two games have been dominated in the medal tallies by China and South Korea. They are called “Youth” because they are for athletes ages 15-18. After the successful Paris 2024 Olympic Games which I absolutely loved following, it should be fun to have them in the city. Athletics, tennis, soccer, handball, and swimming will be the sports I will be following. I wonder if they will expand the games. Uzbekistan may want to add the sports they excel in, including boxing and wrestling. I can’t wait to see the finished site. I see there are several Chinese construction companies involved in the project.

I also noticed the upgrades to Central Asian University, which is across the street from the Olympic Village. Someone or some organization is infusing resources into the campus and its programs. Hosting conservative commentator and author Jordan Peterson does not come cheaply. I think they are trying to become a higher education hub in Central Asia.

It was a bit of an emotional week for us as our middle son Oliver earned his driver’s license, moved into his dormitory, and started his orientation at Saint Norbert College. It was sweet that our eldest son was able to drop him off and get him started as well as good family friends, Mark and Donnell. We miss Oliver dearly and are excited for him to start life on his own.

I end this post with a classic Central Asian motif. I appreciate when the Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev visits Tashkent because the traffic circle near the park named after his father and the Azeri neighborhood in Tashkent gets an upgrade. This time, they planted grass, flowers, and trees in the circle and put up a new photo billboard of the host, Uzbek President Mirzoyoyev and President Aliyev. There were a few traffic delays as the official delegations moved through the city, but the visit was mostly uneventful. I see the countries of Central Asia and the Caucasus region coming closer together. They are also being pulled in different directions by the big players in the region, Turkey, China, and Russia. It is fascinating to see how this will play out.

Nadia and I love tennis and we played for the first time this school year last Sunday. We played on hard courts at the Yunnusobod National Tennis Club. We’ve played on the indoor courts there in the winter, but never on the outdoor courts in the summer. We reserved Court #2 which is literally under the iconic Tashkent Television Tower. After watching Novak Djoković win gold in the Paris 2024 Games, we were ready to hit the courts. You can see in the video below, we got a good workout in and had a lot of fun.

I need to comment on Djokovic’s accomplishments. He completed his career “Golden Slam” by winning Olympic Singles Gold, a tournament that has eluded him for many years. He did it against his latest arch rival, up-and-coming superstar, Carlos Alcaraz. Both players were at the top of their game with no service breaks and three tiebreakers to win it. I love the format of 3-set tennis with the third set being a 10-point tiebreaker. I think tennis should move to that format more often on the ATP Tour. It is great when your favorite player is the greatest of all time and he has undoubtedly proved it. He has the most Grand Slam Titles in the Open Era (24), the most Masters Series Tennis Titles (40), the Most Weeks Ranked #1 (404), most ATP Tour Finals Titles (7), the highest overall career winning percentage (83.8%), and now he can add an Olympic Gold to his Davis Cup Title representing our beloved Serbia!

What else does Djokovic have left to play for? I guess he can overtake Margaret Court’s record of 24 Grand Slams. She won 13 of those at the Australian Open in an era when the best professionals didn’t go to Australia to play. She was the dominant player of her era and one of the best female tennis player ever, but her accomplishments do not come close to what players like Federer, Serena Williams, Stefi Graf, and Nadal have to do more recently. I would like to see how long he can stay at an elite level. He has not won a Grand Slam since the US Open last fall at age 36. The oldest Grand Slam winner was Ken Rosewell (age 37, 1 month, 24 days) at the 1972 Australian Open. Federer had to retire because of a knee injury and Rafa Nadal looks like he will soon be joining him. I would put Novak still in the top group of current tennis players. There are Alcaraz, Sinner, and possibly Medvedev that can beat him, but no one else on the tour can, especially at the big tournaments. If he can avoid playing 2 of the 3 in a tournament, his chances are good for another Grand Slam.

I end this post with giving a shout out to the Uzbekistan Olympic Team. They won 8 gold medals, finishing in the #13 in the gold medal tally. They won an additional 5 medals to finish with 13 total medals. Uzbek specialize in combat sports and all of their medals came in boxing, wrestling, judo, and taekwondo with one medal in the related sport of weightlifting. Pretty good for a country of 36 million people! All medallists won a house, car, and cash prize from the government.

Ocean’s grade 11 (Junior) school has started! She is 16 years old and is entering the IB Diploma Programme. Her classes include English A HL, Spanish Ab Initio, History HL, Biology SL, Mathematics A&I SL, and Visual Arts HL. We traditionally take a family photo on the first day of school at home. This is the first time we have had only three of us 😦 with both Owen and Oliver now at university. This is also the first time we have more females in the house than males in the house. It is definitely a different vibe with only Ocean with Nadia and I. We are buying less food, there are less dishes to do, it is much quieter, etc. At least we have Ocean here for two years. I’ll try to enjoy it as much as I can.

The first day for students was Tuesday, August 13. The first week always goes by slowly as we get out of the summer rhythm and back into school mode. Nadia is teaching Grade 1 this year. I am still the director at the Tashkent International School, starting my sixth year here. Nadia is taking morning playground duties this year so we get to school earlier than usual. I spent the extra 10 minutes with Ocean in her homeroom, talking with her friends. It is such a privilege to be able to go to school with our children. One of the perks of being in education.

Gregory Wallace’s book “Into Siberia: George Kennan’s Epic Journey Through the Brutal, Frozen Heart of Russia” was fascinating. Wallace details Kennan’s journeys in the 1880s and 1890s in Russia’s vast region of Siberia. I am interested in all things about Russia and the name George Kennan was familiar to me. George Kennan’s younger cousin was a famous diplomat and the foremost expert on the Soviet Union during and after World War II. They met each other in 1910 when the future diplomat was six years old. It was a symbolic changing of the guard, with the older George Kennan being the great 19th century expert on the Russian Empire and his namesake, the younger Kennan becoming the foremost expert on the USSR. The younger Kennan founded the Kennan Institute in honor of his older cousin.

George Kennan first went to Russia to search for a route for Western Union Telegraph lines from St. Petersburgh through to Alaska. At the time, it was not thought that an undersea cable across the Atlantic was possible. Western Union was looking for a land route through Siberia to Alaska instead. He wrote a riveting account of how hard travel was in the far east Siberian winter. The native people helped his crew through. Kennan loved the adventure, much better than his boring life as a telegraph operator in an Ohio town. Plans for a cross Atlantic telegraph line eventually worked and Western Union called off the plan for lines across Russia. It was cool that there were Pony Express-like stations across Siberia where travelers could change horses and rest before moving on.

After the Telegraph experience, Kennan went back, traveling through the Caucasas region. He eventually did an expose on the Exile System under the Tsar. He thought it was a good system because families could move out east with the convicts. Kennan also thought they were truly criminals, but when he did a tour of the prison system, he found otherwise. He became a Human Rights advocate in the US after his observations, which eventually turned the USA away from being friendly with Russia. I didn’t know the gulags and Siberian work prisons were part of the Tsar’s playbook. Stalin the Soviets just kept up the tradition, and probably enhanced it. Other interesting notes are below.

• Tsar Alexander II in 1861 publicly supported Abraham Lincoln which made Russia the only European country to openly support the Union.
• George Kennan grew up in Ohio and was one generation away from when it was on America’s frontier. “Mortality among children on the Ohio frontier was high. Simply wandering off and getting lost in the forest could mean death for a child.”
• According to Caucaus historian Charles King, in Greek mythology the Caucasus was “the far edge of the world where Prometheus the fire stealer was exiled by the Gods.”
• Kennan noticed in Dagestan that the men slept late, socialized and smoked in mosques and although some men worked in the fields, it was mostly a male dominated society that depended on the near enslavement of women.
• I love Fyodor Dostoevsky’s observation when he candidly wrote, “By capturing Asia our spirits and strength will lift…in Europe we were hangers-on whereas in Asia we will arrive as masters.”
• I need to find “Notes from the House of the Dead” by Dostoevsky, an account of his time in Omsk.
• Checkov wrote of a steppe crossing that “on and on you travel but where it all begins or where it ends you just cannot make out.”
• Kennan noticed the unendurable smell of the exiles’ prisons.

(refering to Dostoevsky’s exile) The wooden floor of his prison on Omsk was covered by a slippery, inch-thick layer of filth. He wore chains day and night and shared an excrement tub with hundreds of convicts, many of whom hated the elite inmates. ‘They would hae eaten us alive given the chance.’

We are in the middle of a heat wave in Tashkent with temperatures hitting 100F (38C) often. Uzbekistan has a dry climate so most nights it cools down because of a lack of moisture in the air to trap the earth’s heat escaping land after absorbing sun all day. However this month the nights have been warmer than usual. As I am getting older, I appreciate the small things in life much more than when I was younger. Last night I went for a swim in our pool and air-dried on the top chan in our garden. It was so nice to cool off and fall asleep on a sultry summer night. It is so relaxing with the Christmas lights and the quiet of the stars above. I awoke at 2:00 AM and went into the air-conditioned bedroom.

I am savoring life every day and stopping to notice things. On my morning walk to work on Friday, I noticed the woman below (left) selling cigarette lighters, candy, etc. in front of the shops in our mahalla. That must be a tough way to make a living and I would be interested in hearing how many sales she makes a day, where she gets her products from, how long she is out there, etc. I also noticed the donation box of the local mosque. The Al Badr Mosque is located adjacent to our school on the back side. We often hear the call to prayer at school. A nice aspect of Islam is one of their core tenets of helping the poor. You see donation boxes like this all over the city.

This morning I went for a run along the Ankhor Canal and loved the view from the bridge near the Minor Mosque. The Uzbek Rowing and Kayak Association has its headquarters on the canal and a flotilla of kayaks was out on the canal this morning. The new Crowne Plaza Hotel is in the background.