PRISMS AND POLKA DOTS

Book finished.  

Spent good share of yesterday watching YT videos from the country of Azerbaijan.  The videos show daily life as it is today, focusing mainly on Gramma Naila's cooking.  Watching her and her son, plus grandchilden, reminds me of what our childhoods were like.  Going to Gramma's house, where she baked and cooked our meals on a wood stove.  Proof positive that we were of the first generations to experience the old country in the new country.

As the map shows, Azerbaijan is surrounded by the Caspian Sea on the east, Iran on the south, Armenia on the west, Georgia on the northwest and Russia the north.  

Azer means 'fire.'  Long ago the people living there worshipped fire and considered it their god.  The country is known as The Land of Fire. 

Mountains cover 60% of the country.  In the Relaxing Village videos, one can see how close they live to the mountains.  A lot of their cooking and eating is done outdoors.  The country has more than 8,400 small and large rivers.

Samovar

Tea is at the heart of Azerbaijan's customs and traditions.  The video shows the son preparing the samovar for afternoon and mealtime tea.  The kids go in the backyard and pick leaves off of bushes for the tea.

Learned a wealth of information about the country that before yesterday I knew zero about.  This is my mode of travel.  Night before last, I stayed up until 3:15 a.m.  Simply couldnt take my head away from watching what life is still like in other countries......a stark reminder of just how much life has changed in America since we were kids going to Gramma's house, with her busy in the kitchen baking bread and fixing food for us to eat.  Think our generation lived through an amazing time, one that took our roots and replanted them in foreign soil.  There's a great part of me that carries the 'old-country' genes within.  In my humble opinion, that's a good thing.

Tis a sunny Saturday.  Stay safe.  Ta-ta.