Hello all

Hello and welcome to the inaugural blog post for DW in Dushanbe. In the coming weeks I will post to this site on a semi-regular basis in an effort to record my thoughts and tell of my experiences while here in Dushanbe, Tajikstan. Dushanbe is the capital city of the Republic of Tajikistan, a small mountainous country situated between Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan. Dushanbe is home to a little under 700,000 of Tajikistans 7,000,000+ inhabitants. If you'd like more info click here for Dushanbe's Wikipedia page and here for Tajikistan's. If you do not know why I am here it is because I am participating in the Persian Undergraduate Flagship program. I will be here for two months during which I will study both Persian and Tajiki (a dialect of Persian), while touring and immersing myself in a totally new environment.

Since arriving on Thursday (after about thirty hours of travel--DC to Frankfurt to Istanbul to Dushanbe) most of our time has been dedicated to learning about the city of Dushanbe and acquainting ourselves with local traditions and culuture. I cannot adequately describe 1he immense hospitality of the Tajik people, most notably embodied by my wonderful host family. Immediately upon my arrival I was greeted by my host-brother who ushered me home with a warm smile. I was brought into the family room where my host-mother fed me and made sure that I had eaten more than my fill. I soon after met the remainder of my Tajiki family, each of whom was just as welcoming and gracious as the one before.

Since then I have walked around the city with my friends and classmates--there is still so much to see and do. I will post again soon.

Take care for now.