Bill's Blog

The highlight of my New Year’s Day was playing basketball with Oliver and some TIS alumni and current players. The Open Gym attracted eight players, including Ollie’s former classmate, Mukhammed. I really enjoy watching Oliver compete in sports and after his Veteran’s Day attendance of the Milwaukee Bucks game last month, he is into basketball. He played well and his team won 4-3 in a seven-game series of games. I played 1-on-1 against Oliver and a short time, 3-on-3 while we were waiting for everyone to arrive. I was the referee of the full-court games. At my age, I try not to play too many team sports to avoid injury.

Of course, we needed to check out Oliver’s soccer championship banners hanging on the gym walls and his Junior Varsity Cross-Country Running Record on a bulletin board in the foyer. He completed the cross-country Junior Varisty Race at the Tashkent Botanical Gardens in 17:45 in November of 2020. His soccer teams were the greatest in school history with back-to-back Central Asian Soccer Classic championships in 2022 and 2023. With us leaving Tashkent in June, this will likely be the last time Oliver visits Tashkent and the school.

I get a lot of satisfaction from coaching sports, and it was so nice to interact with some of my current and former players during Winter Break.

It was a cold but thankfully dry New Year’s Day. I did yoga in the morning and explored the Olympic Park on bicycle in the afternoon. The complex was originally scheduled to host the Asian Games in September, but it was not ready. It is still not open to the public, but most of the sports facilities are completed. There is a new road around the complex and the new airport. As with other areas of Tashkent, the growth and development of residential and business infrastructure make the place unrecognizable. Thanks to the New Year’s Day holiday, there were hardly any cars at all, and I had a fantastic and fast 21-kilometer bike ride. I hope it opens to the public in the spring before I leave.

I am looking forward to the Inner Dimension Yoga “60 for 60” program. I did the first session entitled “Intention” yesterday. The program consists of approximately 60 minutes of yoga for 60 consecutive days. At the core of the program is Power Yoga, which was developed in the 1990s from the traditional Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga from 2500 years ago. It translates from Sanskrit to “8-limbed yoga practice with breath-linked flowing movements” in English. It essentially means smoothly transitioning between poses while maintaining focus on one’s breathing. Modern Power Yoga uses poses to increase strength, balance, flexibility, stamina, and cardio in one session. Travis also focuses on the mental health aspects of yoga through posting short meditation videos (10-15 minutes) and encouraging participants to be aware of their breathing. Every session has an inspirational message or theme. In 2026, one of my themes will be eliminating the clutter of digital media to focus my attention on what I think is important.

I will be capturing life in Tashkent and Uzbekistan over the next six months as I end my time working at Tashkent International School in June. I took the photograph on the left of the ubiquitous cotton boll logo that you still see all over the city. Back when Uzbekistan was part of the Soviet Union (Uzbek SSR) this emblem was its main symbol when it produced 70% of the USSR’s cotton. Uzbekistan is moving away from the monoculture of cotton production. The country has a desert climate, and cotton needs a lot of water. It has damaged the environment here, especially the Aral Sea in the west of the country. Water for agricultural and inefficient irrigation schemes has stopped the flow of the two major rivers in the Aral Sea. Climate change means a hotter and drier Central Asia, which is not helping the water problems that will only get bigger in the future. Uzbekistan is still the world’s sixth-largest producer of cotton ($2.31 billion in exports), but the economy is diversifying, and total cotton field acreage has significantly decreased. The cotton symbol is part of Uzbekistan’s history and heritage and is featured on today’s coat of arms. The 8-pointed star was also taken from this symbol, signifying unity. In the center of the current coat of arms is the mythical “Khumo” bird, with ironically, the two major rivers (Amu and Syr Darya) representing life-giving water sources. The Humo comes from Persian mythology, representing wisdom, healing, and divine blessing. The Russians refered to it as Семург (Semurg), based on the Persian name rather than the Turkic name the Uzbeks use.

We had a quiet New Year’s Eve this year by celebrating at home, watching television with Oliver and Ocean. I didn’t make it to midnight, falling asleep around 11:00 PM. Nadia and I had a nice day together, working out together in the TIS gym with her trainer Svetlana and hanging out at home. The weather was miserable all day with rain, sleet, and snow from 7:00 AM to 5:00 PM. I went for a 6-kilometer walk after doing yoga in the evening and snapped the photo below in front of the Piramit Tower and Mall. It is not open to the public yet. Central Asians love lighting their buildings, trees, and light posts in the evenings. The building to the right is adjacent to the Piramit Tower and I think it is a business center.

We are loving relaxed family time together here in Tashkent for our Winter Break. Oliver and I went for another bike ride yesterday as temperatures got into the high 60s F. Quite a change from the snow and cold last week. The New Years holiday started today in Tashkent with local schools not in session until next Monday. The Mirobod Bazaar market was full of holiday shoppers and New Year’s Baskets for sale. The middle photo below is an all too common sight on the streets of Tashkent. Many Uzbeks drive at reckless speeds and there are many accidents like this one you come across in the city. The warm weather is much appreciated!

We visited the viewing deck of the Tashkent Television Tower. I don’t recommend it. The $8 admission price only gets you about midway up the tower. All the rooms smell moldy, and the observation windows could be better designed. We stopped at the Ukrainian Butcher shop to get pork shoulder for pulled pork sandwiches Nadia is making today for us.

We are looking forward to New Years Eve and our trip next week to Georgia!

Nadia and visiting Pangyo, South Korea, in September was my fifth visit to South Korea. When we lived in Japan, I attended twice for head of school meetings (Busan, Pangyo) and twice as a family while we were in transit, leaving Japan.

Our hosts took us to visit the city of Suwon (수원), 30 kilometers south of Seoul, to see both the modern and ancient sites of the famous city. As you can see in the photo above, the Hwaseong Haenggung Palace (화성행궁) is a UNESCO World Heritage Site built in the late 1790s by King Jeongjo of the Joseon Dynasty. It was a temporary palace used when he visited Suwon to pay respects to his father’s tomb. He planned to move the capital to Suwon, but did not accomplish it. The Japanese destroyed the site when they occupied Korea. Local officials painstakingly reconstructed the site to its original glory. It reminded us of a smaller version of the Forbidden City in Beijing. That makes sense since the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1897) governance was based on Neo-Confucion principles, including “rigourous civil service examinations”. I guess over 500 years of this shaped the exam and competitive academic environment of South Korea today.

We watched actors in traditional Korean clothing perform a martial arts dance for tourists. I also played the traditional game of Yut Nori (윷놀이) as an homage to Squid Games. As you can see from the video below, I would have been eliminated. Today, the city of Suwon is home to the Samsung Headquarters and 1.2 million people. We went for lunch and a coffee in the artsy and cute city streets near the fortress. Again, it felt similar to Japan in tourist area and we didn’t see many foreign visitors. I wish we had more time to explore some of the hiking trails to the nearby mountain peaks.

I am not sure when the next time I’ll get to visit the country. With so many Koreans in Tashkent, I follow the country closely due to my friends and school community members.

I am catching up on blogging during the Winter Break. Writing and reflecting on my experiences helps me make sense of the world and leaves a record for future generations of my family. This semester I conducted a job search as this is my last year in Tashkent. It felt like a second job, filling out cover letters, researching schools, preparing for interviews, and then all the correspondence. It is exciting, stressful, and always develops me professionally. I learn a lot from other schools and, more importantly, myself. The job search process crystallizes what I value in education and brings my leadership strengths and areas for growth to the forefront. I always wanted to try this with faculty and staff. Ask them to interview each other with the instructions of the interviewee: What special talents and strengths do you bring to the classroom and the school? It gets people out of their usual routines of preparing for teaching.

In mid-September, Nadia and I visited Pangyo, South Korea, for several days on one of the interview trips I did as a finalist for potential schools. Pangyo is a suburb of Seoul and is the Silicon Valley of Korea. Over 1,300 tech companies are headquartered there. It was a planned “eco-city” when it was developed in 2003 to alleviate the housing crunch in the adjacent Gangnam district. It certainly was green with trails along the Tan Cheon (Tan River) and the lush forested Cheonggye San, Geumto San, and Bara San mountains surrounding the city.

We enjoyed the elegance and development of East Asia. Prior to coming to Uzbekistan, we lived in Osaka, Japan, and we find the two countries to be quite similar. Nadia bought a juicer that she accidentally burned on the 220-volt outlet when we first arrived in Tashkent. On our rest day after an overnight flight, we visited a nearby mall for lunch and shopping. Everything is perfect in East Asia and we joke sometimes it feels like we are on a movie set. In our two trips to the 8-floor mall and walking around the city, we didn’t see any foreigners in the entire trip outside of the school. Korea is much quieter than Tashkent. We love the cuisine, nature, sophistication, and politeness of the culture of Korea. With our Latino/American background, however, the tightness of East Asian cultures sometimes causes us stress.

I would like to thank our hosts, the Korea International School. The hospitality and logistics were outstanding and had a delightful time learning more about the school and the city.

Oliver and I had quite the adventure on a late afternoon bike ride in Tashkent last week. While cycling along a side or minor canal, we came across a dog chained to a house that was a few meters from the canal. I am familiar with the dog because in our former house in Tashkent, I often walked by him on this same canal. I always walked on the opposite side of the canal to avoid trouble because the dog looked quite fierce. The dog would always bark and try to break his chains in rage at the sight of me and Obi. This time, however, we were on bikes, and the opposite side is loose stones and not apt for cycling, so we rode on the side of the dog. I thought we could squeeze by between the dog and the edge of the canal. When we were near the dog, it leapt out and bit my pant leg and tore a hole in my pants. Thankfully, it was mostly pants that the dog’s teeth sank into, and I was left only with an abrasion. The dog would not let go until I pushed him off. I collected my composure and went after the dog using my bike as a guard. I was so angry at the dog. Suddenly, a woman comes out of the house with a big knife and starts yelling at me. I was yelling at her for not training her dog better and for blocking a public pathway. Oliver calmed everyone down, and we went on our way. I went back a couple of days later and took the photograph of the house below. The dog was not there.

I hope she was working in the kitchen and came out to see what the commotion was, and not specifically grabbed a knife to stab me. It is a very poor, industrial part of Tashkent. I guess the dog is there for protection, although there is not much crime in Tashkent. I feel sorry that the dog is being tied up all day and not cared for properly. As a precautionary measure, I went to hospital #1 for a rabies booster, mostly to calm Nadia than the risk of rabies. TIC was kind to support us and sent along a nurse to assist with translation.

The economy continues to boom here in Tashkent. The rate of new building projects is amazing and changing the skyline of the city profoundly. Below is a mixed-use (residential, commercial) “Piramit Tower” shown below. The size and distinctive lighting make it an iconic part of the skyline. I walked to it from our house with Obi the other night since we see it all the time. The Turkish Koç Holding Company built the 215-meter, 48-floor, $150 million dollar building, making it the second-tallest building in the city after the Nest One development. There are 240 offices, 398 apartments, 96 retail shops, and an InterContinental Hotel to boot. I want to check it out sometime soon.

Nadia went all out to prepare a sumptuous Christmas dinner feast for us. We had a baked ham, dressing, Bolivian corn salad, and a dessert of apple pie and ice cream. Ocean loves Thanksgiving/Christmas dinner fare! It was so funny to watch her eat. We laughed a lot while taking photos. At dinner, we went around the table and said something nice about each family member. Owen was sleepy, but joined us from Costa Rica via FaceTime. These holiday family dinners are so special to Nadia and me. I want to thank her for being the engine that drives our family time.

Ocean, Oliver, and I rode our bicycles along the Ankhor Canal. It was their gift to me, and I happily guilted them into spending time with me. It was a bit cold and gray, but fortunately dry. Conditions were good for biking, with only a couple of patches of ice/snow left. As I write this a couple days later, there is very little snow left from the storms we had last week. You don’t know how many more Christmas holidays we will have with the kids, so savoring the day and time with them.

I always photograph the sunrise and sunset on December 21, the shortest day (Winter Solstice) of the year in the northern hemisphere. Most people are unaware of the significance of this day. This was a big day for humans historically, marking the return of the sun and hope for warmer weather. The sunset was at 4:56 PM in Tashkent. The next day, sunset was 4:57 PM. Tashkent is located at 41.3 degrees north latitude and you can really feel the loss of daylight. Most days, I arrive at and leave school in darkness. January and February are still a bit bleak for my taste, but when you can’t do anything about the weather, you need to embrace the cold and dark of winter. As you can see above, the morning sunrise at my house, it was overcast. We spent most of the day in the Tashkent City Mall, Christmas shopping. I snuck out and took a photograph of the sunset on the rooftop.

I don’t like shopping, but I do like spending time with my family. Oliver, Ocean, Nadia, and I had a lot of fun! We also made travel arrangements for Georgia in January. I am writing this on Christmas Eve morning. I spent most of Monday and Tuesday closing the school office. We are finishing recruitment, preparing for an alumni gathering, and monitoring winter construction works. In the afternoon, I took Obi for a run/walk along the Ankhor Canal. The sun finally came out in the afternoon.

I am closing the office at school on Monday and Tuesday, so I worked most of the day. Everyone wants to see the director before a long break. I spent the morning catching up on emails and tasks. In the afternoon, I played Yandex Driver. I picked up Nadia from her swimming workout, took Oliver and Ocean to the dentist, and then Nadia and I to the sports complex. We had a late lunch at a nice cafe on the ground floor of the Orient Business Center. We had a delicious (облепиха) Sea Buckthorn tea. The popular winter drink in Russia and Central Asia is full of antioxidants and many health benefits including lowering cholesterol, skin hydration, and with 12 times as much Vitamin C than oranges, it is also a boost to the immune system. I am going to find some at the market this week and try to brew my own this winter.

Nadia and I played tennis at the Yunusobod Sports Complex. It was the first time I played in many months due to a sore elbow and shoulder. My shoulder loosened up over the course of the game, but I still felt a little bit of tenderness in my elbow. I defeated Nadia 6-2, 1-2 before our hour expired. Complex officials arranged three tennis courts in the indoor volleyball stadium. The surface was a little slippery, but it felt great to be back playing tennis! Nadia and I had some spirited points and it is something that we enjoy doing together. Followers of my blog know we love and follow tennis. We are all looking forward to the 2026 ATP/WTA seasons. I had a great post-match interview, which Nadia missed. 😦 Nadia and I then went grocery shopping and a bit more of Christmas shopping. I picked up a nice bracelet for Ocean.

It was a quiet weekend, and nice to be back home after a busy travel schedule. One of the highlights was waking up my daughter and taking her to the SAT exam at school. Being the director of the school, I have access to the test site and snapped the photo of Ocean (above left) right before they started. Our school is a College Board testing center and our personnel do a good job of providing a comfortable and secure testing environment.

Nadia and I were forced out of the house Saturday night because Ocean was hosting a Halloween party with her friends. We had a delicious meal at Manana Restaurant, a new Georgian restaurant near the Shevchenko district. We both want to visit the country before we leave Central Asia. We then stayed out longer by shopping at the Tashkent City Mall. I replaced my black winter overcoat, which got lost in the move. Nadia’s seamstress made some alterations (removed pocket flaps, reduced the length, shortened the collar) that really makes it much more comfortable. We had a couple of below-zero Celsius temperature days, the first of the autumn.

I went for a bike ride on Saturday for the first time in a long while. I also ran at the Milly Bog Park. I am trying to exercise more. Between being busy at school, early sunset, poor air quality, and cold temperatures, I am working out less than this summer. The days are sunny and warm and it was refreshing to be exerting myself outdoors. Since this is my last year in Tashkent, I am photographing and documenting the sites of the city. Below is an autumn photo of the bike trail along the canal and the Transportation University near our house.