Seven Things You (Probably) Didn't Know About Azerbaijan

I am weird. I knew Azerbaijan existed (and could find it on a map) BEFORE receiving my invitation to serve there. 

However, I realise that not everyone is as up-to-date on the successor states of the Soviet Union as I am, so I have posted a map (look right). And I will put a link to the CIA World Factbook at the end of this entry for those of you fond of facts and figures.  But I thought it would be fun to list a few bits of trivia about the country I will be living in for the next 27 months. 

1. Azerbaijan has long been called "The Land of Fire" due to the phenomena of "burning hillsides" caused by natural gas seeping through fissures in the earth. (Hence the name of this blog)

2. Some of the earliest signs of cave-dwelling man can be found in Azykh Cave in Azerbaijan.

3.  The world's first oil well was drilled in Baku in the mid-C19th. 

4. In 1879, the Nobel brothers founded a large oil company in Baku. Some of the profits went towards to the Nobel Prize award sums. 

5.  Gary Kasparov, world chess champion, was born in Baku.

6. Rustam Ibrahimbeyov, screen-writer of the Oscar-winning film "Burnt by the Sun" (1994) is from Azerbaijan.

7. In the last century Azerbaijan has switched alphabets three times: Arabic script prior to the Soviet takeover in 1922; Cyrillic script during Soviet times, and the Latin alphabet in more recent years. 

 

Sadly, I only had to Google one of these. 

For more useful information about Azerbaijan visit: https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/aj.html

How Melissa Decided To Join The Peace Corps

It was an accident. Sort of. 

I was watching TV. An advert for AmeriCorps came on during a commercial break. It looked like something I might want to do. Except it involved staying in the US. This was a deal-breaker. (It is a well-documented fact that I am fond of passport stamps.)  If only I could find a way to serve somewhere overseas...

"Hey Dad! Is there an international version of AmeriCorps?" 

"You mean the PeaceCorps?"  Slightly bemused expression. 

"Oh. Is that what the PeaceCorps does?" 

"Google it." 

So I did. And that's exactly what the PeaceCorps does. (And I'm pretty sure the PeaceCorps did it first.)

It seemed like a perfect match.  I could continue to teach English. I could live overseas. And my degree in Russian and Eastern European Studies would no longer be classified as categorically useless.  It sounded to good to be true. I clicked Apply Now. 

Months after this amusing incident I was selected to serve as a a TEFL* volunteer in the Republic of Azerbaijan from September 2009 until December 2011. 

I arrive in Baku on October 1. That means I am I am in the final stages of  preparation (and procrastination) for my adventure at the moment. Or I should be.

Stay tuned for more info about Azerbaijan and more details. :)

*Teaching English as a Foreign Language