July 2nd, 2019

We went to a little supermarket today, and I bought some snacks. Sour cream and onion chips have never tasted so good. The normal food here is not very good in my opinion, so having something that tasted even remotely familiar was nice. The reason I have not yet written much about the food is that if I spend too much time on the details I start to feel a bit nauseous. But I will try to write more soon, when I feel up to it. A tailor came today for our cultural activity after class today, and measured the girls for dress (and one boy for a shirt/pants combo). They had all already bought fabric at the bazaar on Saturday that I missed when I was sick. 

 

On Tajik Clothes

            The traditional Tajik dress is more common among men than women. For men, it’s pretty much just this hat that is sort of shaped like a chef’s hat but a lot smaller and made of a dark fabric  (black or dark blue) with embroidered designs in white thread. A lot of women wear the traditional female Tajik national dress, which is like a loose dress/tunic and loose pants underneath. The fabric is usually very bright. In his continuing emphasis on secularism, the president (I use the term loosely) has been encouraging more of the national dress and encouraging use of the more class bright colors. Sometimes the fabrics will have little gemstones or detailed designs on them (especially around the neckline). I will try to include pictures (at least when I get back).
(https://www.pinterest.com/pin/486740672204613742/)

            Most women I have seen where this sort of dress, though longer dresses also seem popular, especially among older women. That said, there are definitely women who don’t wear that. I have seen women in jeans and pants. They are usually relatively young women however. Many women have their hair tied up in Tajik-style headscarf, which is worn more like a bandana might be (will try to include a picture) and our in the same bright colors of traditional Tajik dress. I have seen a few women wearing a hijab, but it is not very common. The president in a measure he claims prevents the spread of terrorist ideology has actually banned wearing a hijab in schools or government offices.
https://ajammc.com/2018/09/30/national-islamic-fashion-tajikistan/

Kids seem to wear whatever they want. My host brother (age 2) regularly runs around in just underwear and tank top. This seems typical of the little kids I see in the street. Kids are also seen in shorts a lot. Generally, nobody wears shorts, but my host mom did say I could wear shorts if I wanted to. Her son (age 38) does wear these pants that go about 1/3 of the way down his calves and could count as shorts I guess. Generally, men just wear pants (including jeans) and a t-shirt. That is what most of the American students I am with wear (myself included). I have also noticed that men don’t wear sandals, while women and children do. When they do, it is usually the slides-type sandal.

People also have indoor and outdoor clothes. Once folks get home they will change into their indoor clothes, which stays the same for a length of time I have yet to determine (as in, I have yet to see it change). Sometimes their outdoor clothes don’t even change. I have adapted the idea of indoor clothes and change when I get home now. It certainly saves one from walking around in very sweaty clothes.

Overall clothing is pretty conservative, with women especially expecting to be more covered than in the United States, which is pretty common in Muslim-majority countries. But lots of bright colors and more freedom than people might initially expect.