Winter (shiver)

Our greatest fear upon arriving in Dushanbe back in September '09 was the cold of winter, given that we heard horror stories about electricity being out for days at a time in the homes of expats paying >$1000 per month, and our housing budget was significantly smaller. We spent 2.5 weeks looking at different apartments, trying to figure out if the central heating would really work (landlords all swear it does, in order to get you into the apt), or, if the place didn't have central heating, would the electricity supply be constant, or rationed?

What kind of windows does it have? What kind of walls? Stalin-era buildings are known for insulating because they're made of porous rock, which acts as insulation. But Brezhnev-era buildings are made of thin concrete, and they're often colder than outside because they radiate cold during the day.

The place we settled on is a Stalin-era building, and the landlord said he had worked on it to make it comfortable for the winter. Of course, many landlords had told us the same thing, and we really didn't know what that entailed. But we took this place, figuring that, all other things being equal, we liked it the most.

As it has turned out, this winter has been relatively mild--to our immense relief. The temperature, even at night, has only dipped below freezing a few times. Days have been downright warm, regularly reaching 55 degrees. Yesterday it snowed several inches for the first time, previously the most we'd seen was a dusting. Today is cold again, but tomorrow is supposed to be warm again. All this means that people aren't running heaters 24 hours per day, so there's been no rationing of electricity in our part of the city (although there has been in the center, where the higher rents are!!) Thus, we have been warm :)

People are beginning to talk about Navruz, the spring festival, which will arrive on March 21st. There are only about 40 days until then, although we've been told this is the 'chila', the coldest 40-day period. At this point, though, we're reaching the end of the winter season and if it's cold for a couple of days, there's light at the end of the tunnel. The number 40 is important here, as it was in Armenia, as well. The 40 days after a wedding, funeral, or birth are special periods during which certain rules must be strictly observed--for example, only relatives are allowed to see a newborn.

When Navruz does arrive, there will be celebrations all over the city. In Iran, and maybe Afghanistan?, there's a week off from work, although here the vacation is only 2 days (inherited from the atheist Soviet Union). There will be large feasts, and Buzkashi matches. Buzkashi literally means, 'Goat Dragging', and it's a game like polo, played on horseback, in which players must reach down off of the horse to grab the body of a headless goat (~150lbs) and carry it to a 'goal' circle, dropping it in the circle to score. It's every man for himself, with 20-30 riders, and you can punch, kick, or run over your opponents in order to get the goat from him. There is no 'field', so spectators must occasionally dodge a stampede. I can't wait to go and watch.

Look up 'Rambo buzkashi' on YouTube for an example.