Program note: I've added video to "Broken Baku" (footage of the cocktail party in the airport) and "Finally Made It" (footage of the Kabul Airport from the parking lot).
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The exams seems to have gone all right, though we did have one student score a 5 (out of 100). There was also a 17 and a 28, but there was a strong cluster at the top of the scale, including a 98, leaving us a mean of 63. For all you (other) nerds out there, here is the distribution:
We took the exam in the upstairs of the library, which is a large, open space. That was good. The trade-off was that we couldn’t really use the heaters, so it was cold enough to see your breath—that gets uncomfortable for a three hour test.
In the afternoon, I sat down with Dr. J, our translator, to deal with those tests written in Dari. I talked him into letting me get a shot of him, but I’m not sure the photo does justice to his amazing eye color.
In the afternoon, I sat down with Dr. J, our translator, to deal with those tests written in Dari. I talked him into letting me get a shot of him, but I’m not sure the photo does justice to his amazing eye color.
Then while going through the grading, I was pulled out to talk with the chancellor of the university. Turns out, the next day (today, Wednesday) high school students would take a university entrance exam and thousands would come to KU to sit for the exam. As a result, we would not be allowed to have class the next day and sorry we didn’t let you know earlier. I protested lamely and the chancellor was shaking his head before I could even get my explanations out. So that’s a second day we’ve missed and we’re looking at pushing back our return flights. I can reschedule my Fed interview but really would like to be back for a pool party the weekend of my birthday…I guess I could postpone it and stay 31 an extra week.
They’ve invited Mary and I to come back to teach the next round, which would begin in mid-March. But they’re talking about a half-time course that would last longer. This job is already not that well paid so I’m wondering how it would work if there was only half as much classtime.
I took some video of our commute to KU. The trip has taken up to 1 hour, but typically is 15-20 minutes. I think this video is 7. There are big warning signs about taking video near the US Military Forward Operating Base, so I waited until we were out of the residential areas and into the more market-type areas. I hope it’s not too bumpy:
Since we’ve got the day, we’re going to see about going to Chicken Street, the main sort of touristy spot where you can buy souvenirs and such.
They’ve invited Mary and I to come back to teach the next round, which would begin in mid-March. But they’re talking about a half-time course that would last longer. This job is already not that well paid so I’m wondering how it would work if there was only half as much classtime.
I took some video of our commute to KU. The trip has taken up to 1 hour, but typically is 15-20 minutes. I think this video is 7. There are big warning signs about taking video near the US Military Forward Operating Base, so I waited until we were out of the residential areas and into the more market-type areas. I hope it’s not too bumpy:
Since we’ve got the day, we’re going to see about going to Chicken Street, the main sort of touristy spot where you can buy souvenirs and such.
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