Going to School - Taylor

Dear All,


   I have had a unforgettable experience since I last wrote.  About four weeks ago, I met I sixteen year old Tajik girl named Medina who lives in our neighborhood.  She is determined to "learn me Russian" and I like helping her learn some English.  I have been going to her house several times a week and we have quickly become friends.  One day she invited me to come to her Tajik school.  The kids here go to school half days Monday through Saturday.  So at eight o'clock Saturday Madina and I walked to school.  It was....interesting to say the least.
   They had four classes, each an hour long and half an hour for recess.  The first class was English.  In English class they were talking about holidays.  The teacher asked me to talk about Thanksgiving.  I don't think anyone really got what Thanksgiving was about even after I had finished talking.  The second class was Russian.  The Russian teacher had a stick that she banged on peoples desks to get their attention and even used on a boy who was messing around!  During recess, the boys played basketball while the girls sat on a bench and talked.  I think the third class was Language Arts but I couldn't really tell.  The fourth class was Math.  The math teacher also had a long stick.  There was absolutely, positively no messing around in math class!  I really enjoyed going to the school.  It was a neat and unforgettable cultural experience.


   Taylor