Turkmenistan is a desert country situated east of the Caspian sea, north of Iran and south of Kazakstan and Uzbekistan. The capitol city of Ashgabat is close to Iran in the central south. There are few roads connecting the cities, but there is a paved road (sometimes only one usable lane) to Nebitdag, now renamed Balkanabat. On the way to Nebitdag one travels past roaming herds of camel, goat, cow, and sheep. There is also an above ground pipe that holds the water to the west. Someone once said that if you drive past a lake on the way to Nebitdag, you shouldn't expect a shower when you get there!
Trains run east to west overnight, and several of the large cities have airports. Nebitdag has approximately 110,000 people, and the country has 4.5 million. Though we assume the figures are correct, there would/could never be a census here. We also assume the numbers are fudged a bit by the government. The country is declared Muslim, but religion doesn't permeate life beyond the village. Many new mosques and government buildings are built yearly with (we figure) money from oil. Our velayat (like a state) is rich in oil, and we have an open contract with Russia giving us a great deal of money now, but many understand that it won't last forever. So we have many beautiful new "gifts from T____ the Great" to his people. There are taxes on business but not for regular citizens. The weather is like southern Indiana but with little precipitation. I won't miss it! The summers will be hot as heck, because of the desert climate. It really does look like a desert, especially out of town. For the most part, people own TVs and other conveniences. Cars are little needed because of the gypsy taxi system (which I adore).
The government is run on a purely micromanaged basis. All orders come directly from one person. Hakims are the local representatives. Most everything here works on a system of bribes. Colleges (and jobs for that matter) are techically free, but you have to have both connections as well as about $2000 given to the right person to enter. The education system runs 9 years. Just a few years back the 10th year was removed. College is supposedly 4 years, but I think it's more like 3. Army is not mandatory--for those that can finagle a way out (the draft to Vietnam?). But most go. The army is reportedly 2 years of fights, rough language, starvation, menial labor, and missing one's family. Some of the problems wth men here, I believe, may start in those two formative years. Marriage age is normally about 20-25, and most girls marry boys their own age. Many have large families here, but not overwhelming. 5 children is a bit above average. Literacy is officially 90-some percent, though I haven't met many who can read either Turkmen or Russian. The alphabet was changed from a modified cyrillic to a modified Latin alphabet in about 1995. Those out of school can't read Turkmen well, and Russian is not used officially enough to lean on. I believe literacy in the new alphabet is extremely low. Often young children read things to their parents.
Cotton is big here. The citizens as a whole are responsible for picking cotton during fall. Most is exported. The schools shut down, and older kids are bussed out to sites to pick. Many local leaders lose their jobs over low cotton numbers.
Turkmenistan wasn't ready to be on its own as we have very little production from start to finish. The economy is weak and we can't afford to import quality goods. We were the last country to leave the USSR after its collapse. We are, however, EXTREMELY, and I mean EXTREMELY proud of our independence. We are also neutral and quite proud of that as well. The people here feel safe from war in our neutral country and are therefore hesitant to critcize. Many Turkmen have said they thank Allah they were born here instead of, say, Afghanistan or any other nearby country that's had upsets. Turkmenistan is said to be a country to watch in the upcoming news. We are the only place left on earth with our unique problems and situation.
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