Living on the edge...

The River Yenisie near Kyzyl with accompanying snow-topped mountains.

Ever since I saw my first picture of a far away land, I've always romanticized about living in an outpost; on the frontier. I don't know what it was exactly that drew me to such a notion. Perhaps it was nature, as such places are some of the few which humans have not touched or destroyed. Or maybe it was the idea of freedom, of having a wide-open plain to run across or a tall mountain to climb without human imposed barriers, only those that nature puts in our way. And yet, it could also have been the sense of adventure that comes from all of that combined. I got a hint of such a life on Baikal when I visited and now that I've fantasized more and more about it, I finally find myself "on the edge". It is of course perhaps a bit extreme to call Kyzyl, or Tyva for that matter, the "edge" of anything because what is in fact that edge? The world is round, leaving us geometrically with no edges. One could call this the edge of Russia, but for me that implies that a country's borders are stiff and rigid, while in fact they are very fluid (in terms of culture and language). Yet with all that said, "edge" is the most suitable word. "Remote" also has its place here. Last night, I watched the news, both local and national/international. To make a side comment, Russian news is the same no matter where you are. However, seeing and hearing the anchors in Moscow, I felt so far away from "it" all - "it" being the rest of Russia and the world. Here, it is truly remote and wild.

Travelling to the edges of St. Petesrburg and to dachas and standing on the top of Vyborg's fortress to look out onto the pristine northern woods does not compare to seeing mountains here everyday or just living here on the "edge". In those places, I felt "unplugged" from the world and I would have even used the word "disconnected" to describe how I felt. I never though felt as if I were in a remote place. To reach each of those places mentioned above, I took a train and walked for a bit through the woods maybe, travelling no more than three hours. Here on the other hand, no trains are to be found, not even those carrying commercial goods. A long, lonely stretch of two lane road connects us with the cities to the north and an airport, with only propellers to be found, provides the other means of connection. The plane ride is about two hours to Krasnoyarsk - the distance approximately it takes to fly from Peoria, Illinois to Minneapolis, Minnesota. Driving to Minneapolis takes about eight hours, but driving to Kyzyl from Krasnoyarsk takes about sixteen hours (if not more). Another testament to the remoteness is found in the language here. I was glad my Russian skills had improved so much after finding out I was going to be teaching in Kyzyl. I don't know how one could live out here without speaking one of the native languages. That's right, one of them. I thought my Russian would be enough. It is of course, but I never expected that everyone would also be able to speak Tuvan. On the streets, I hear Tuvan spoken more than Russian, while all signs are posted in Russian (official postings come with a Tuvan counterpart). Interactions are easily conducted in Russian, but it is common for locals to speak Tuvan among themselves and then switch to Russian when speaking with me. One good example is the class that I taught the other day. I was speaking entirely in English and the students spoke among themselves in Tuvan while asking me questions in Russian! Of the many ethnic republics in Russia, I've been told that Tuva is the only (or at least one of the few), in which everyone knows the native language (all Tuvans at least, and some of the Russians here as well). 

I do not wish the picture I paint here to appear bleak and I assure you that it is not. All of this remoteness fuels the romance of this place, the "edge". It is indeed beautiful and I am enjoying the adjustment to life here. This post of course cannot do justice to what this place actually is. Therefore, I've decided to present Kyzyl to you in a series of "pictures". I bring you "Кусочки Кызыла" or "Bits of Kzyzl" wit the first post coming soon, so stayed tuned!

Yours,

Joey