Seatbelts! We've got seatbelts!!

Thanks to Courtnee Neilsen in Serdar, the country of Turkmenistan is glorifying the seatbelt.

Ahh yes, I recently came to the taxi stand in Serdar "pit of hell", Turkmenistan to get a taxi back to Balkanabat. I am not 50 yards from the cars before I hear the usual, "Ashgabat!!!" "Chiliken!!!" "Turkmenbashy City!!!" "Balkanabat!!!" called out to me, as if I would decide my destination solely based on their exuberance. At any rate, amidst their cries I suddenly hear, "Seatbelts!!! I've got seatbelts!!!!" Picking up his scent, several other drivers join in--"Seatbelts! My car has them!." "We've got seatbelts here!"

Turns out Courtnee has made a habit of requiring seat belts every time she gets in the car. They now associate Americans with seatbelts. Hey, I say that's great! We went from not being able to find one, to agreeing on seatbelts before price.

We Peace Corps Volunteers are just trying to make the world a better place--one safe car trip at a time.