thirty nine

i had a great birthday and a wonderful day. after school i played tennis with my trainer. it was one of those perfect, surreal central asia moments: playing tennis on a really nice clay court... surrounded on one side by soviet style slum apartments (including ours)... amazing views of the snow and glacier capped mountains south of town from the courts... and while i was playing i could hear the calls to prayer from the mosque up the street. it was one of those really good moments that you feel all the way down in your bones.

jen came and watched the end of my training session and she brought a bowl of fried jalapeños... my favorite! after i was done we went next door to a little shaslik place that we discovered recently. all they serve is shaslik. sometimes they have plov. sometimes they don't. full of locals smoking and drinking beer and wearing their best 1980's outfit.

it was a great birthday.