Woke up in my comfortable bed and had a fine homestay breakfast of Kyrgyz crepes (suspiciously similar to the French kind) with homemade cherry jam. I had managed to borrow a copy of 'The Great Gatsby' from the homestay and, having been without an English book for quite some time, decided to spend a relaxing day plying myself with too much caffeine and Fitzgeraldian turns-of-phrase.
Headed to the local cafe to sun myself on the patio. After turning a few pages, a OSCE (Organization for the Security and Cooperation in Europe) bus drove up and ~40 international election observers descended into the dusty streets. A few headed for the cafe, and I had the pleasure of sitting with a (the?) Swedish Undersecretary of Foreign Affairs. We chatted for a about an hour while he relayed a few anecdotes about his previous assignment: the governorship of a smaller province in Kosovo with a few Serb enclaves. Quite an interesting fellow, having spent more than half his life abroad in the dark jungles of Africa and Switzerland. A few others Observers straggled in, mostly politicos from every democracy-practicing country in the world, but a few randoms who volunteer for international OSCE assignments.Lunched at the restaurant serving delicious almost-Western Chinese food and then headed to the internet cafe where I met up with a few Brits that had been in Tehran during the election demonstrations. It was interesting to hear their descriptions of the goings-on: though in Tehran, they had neither heard nor seen anything of the riots on the streets or in the media! They phoned home a few days after the initial riots to relieved greetings from frantic parents better informed than they.
Headed back to the hostel to relax, read, and watch the Anime series 'Winx' with the various grandchildren strewn about the household. I drew much scorn by cheering for the villains ...
I will have to look up these dark jungles of Switzerland!
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