I just took candy from a stranger. I walked down to the kiosk to try and buy some m & ms, forgetting that you haven’t been able to get them lately, and when I got there a man, his wife, and his daughter were already at the kiosk. The man bought a bag of hard candy, whacked it against his hand to open it, and promptly gave to pieces to his daughter, with the instruction “eat it!” Then he gave two to me, with the same instruction. I tried to refuse, but he just repeated himself. So I took the candy. Ate it, too, especially since the kiosk didn't have any m & ms.

Tuesday, in Dashowuz, the hospital director had a lunch for us after the awards ceremony. At that lunch, we did something that could only have happened in Central Asia. We drank a champagne toast to my Muslim heritage. This, believe it or not, is what I love about this part of the world.

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USAID is one of many donors for the project I work for. The views expressed herein are the author’s own views and do not necessarily reflect those of the author’s employer or especially those of the United States Agency for International Development or the United States Government. And I mean it. I probably give the US government heart attacks.