There’s a stadium behind the supermarket Poitaht. Everything in Dushanbe is named Poitaht, lest you forget that you’re in the capital (poitaht means capital in Tajik). But when you’re here, you can’t forget that this is the seat of power – the BMW signals at you, reminds us that the parliament is on the left, the Somoni statue looms ahead, turn right to the presidential palace beyond the ten foot fence. And don’t forget the new construction, built with the president’s generosity, ubiquity, omnipotence. Since the end of the civil war, the people here have experienced peace and growth. But I saw this wall today, the one that surrounds the sports stadium, it is crumbling before my eyes.

• My Son My parents asked me if I was going to adopt him. I had never even thought of that before. Maybe some bureaucrat in California needs to mark something on a piece of paper, or maybe some civil servant in Washington will give me some sort of bonus if I do.......
• Nurek Hydroelectric Power Plant The dam, the central feature of the Nurek Hydroelectric Power plant, stands 300 meters high, and supports nine hydroelectric generating units. The facility provides as much as 98 percent of Tajikistan's power (as of 1994). Designed as a pyramid straddling the Vakksh River canyon, the dam measures over 700......