Wednesday, October 14, 2009

The Market


Hello Students,

I am very happy that there are new students. I am also very happy that many students I taught are continuing to study at Arlington Hills! It's very good for improving your English. Congratulations on moving to level C, Vanny. Your topics about civil responsibility and driving sound very interesting. Some of the drivers in Tajikistan need to take a class about driving! :)

I'm going to write about the markets in Tajikistan. Most people buy food in a farmer's market, like the ones in St. Paul and Minneapolis, and many of your home countries. Now is a good time of year for fruits and vegetables in Tajikistan. In the winter, there aren't very many fruits and vegetables, and they are very expensive. Now, there are lots of fruits and vegetables and they are cheap. They are also very delicious because they are fresh. There are apples, pears, pomegranates, melons, sweet peppers, tomatoes, cucumbers, onions, eggplants, and more. There are some hot peppers here, but they are not very spicy like the peppers from Thailand or Mexico. Tajik people don't like very spicy food! I miss eating spicy food, but I really like the food of Tajikistan.

In the picture, you can see lots and lots of melons at a market. One of my students works at a different market after school. He helps his brother sell watermelons. Some markets have lots of clothes, and some have lots of food. Now, the vegetables are much cheaper than in Minnesota. One kilogram of tomatoes (2 pounds) costs less than $1. One kilo of cucumbers is about $0.50. Apples are about $1 a kilogram. One watermelon is $1.50. Rice is not very cheap. It is about $1 a kilogram for a small bag. It is cheaper if you have a large family and buy a large bag of rice.

Do you like the snow in October? All my students here want to learn about Halloween, so I think we will plan a Halloween party. Will you have a Halloween party with Mr. Jim at school this year? Say hello to Mr. Jim and Mr. Jerry for me.

Love,
Teacher Bethany

Wednesday, October 7, 2009

Camping and My Class






Dear Students,
Thank you so much for your letters. I miss you very much, and I remember all of you. Don't worry, I will not forget you! How is the garden?

A few weeks ago I went camping in the mountains with some American friends. We slept in tents and cooked outside. There were lots of goats and cows walking around, and some of the cows ate our bread! In the picture, we are on the road, and we had to stop driving because of all the cows! It was so beautiful in the mountains and we went hiking.

Last weekend I went to Nurek, a small city one hour outside of Dushanbe. It is the home town of Shahlo, another English teacher at the university. We are the in picture together in front of the river in Nurek. There is a big factory in Nurek that makes electricity for many parts of Tajikistan. Many people in Nurek work in the factory.

The picture in the classroom is one of my classes. I teach 2 classes. One of the classes is only women, and the other has men and women. In the picture the students are practicing conversation. My students are in their 3rd year at the university, and they are 19 or 20 years old. Some of them speak a lot of English, and some speak a little English.

What are you studying now?
Love,
Teacher Bethany