CRIMEA JOURNAL - 2 19 July 1997 The Camp Director, Refat Memetov always looks glum and very rarely smiles. He is very concerned about the safety of the kids here to the extent that yesterday he forbade the students from going on a hiking expedition with Matt and me. His reason had to do that it wasn't "safe" because they could get hurt. What he seems not to realize is that the kids are more likely to get hurt playing basketball on the concrete, unswept basketball court. However, in fairness to him, his concerns are greater than that and not unfounded. He feared very much that any incident involving the kids would be seized upon by the authorities to shut down the camp and cause trouble for the Tatars. The Tatars met all manner of resistance in their efforts to set up the camp because of the deep suspicions that the Russian/Ukrainian authorities have concerning the Tatars and their motives. He made a big announcement about it at a meeting yesterday and a lot of the kids were pretty upset by it. Another thing that bothered him was that he suspected that some kids were smoking and drinking alcohol, since some empty bottles of beer or vodka had been found nearby. So the kids are prohibited from going down to the store in the village to buy anything. In his remarks following Refat's, Vladimir Leonidovich said that the bottles were probably as much as five years old. The students applauded that. After the meeting broke up, Greg said " We think you're a great bunch of kids." So, there's some tension in the air over Refat's strict controls.. The isolation has some students, particularly the Poles, saying that Refat won't let them do anything in their free time. So Matt, Mark and I decided to do a hike today with three of the boys (Konrad and Tomasz from Poland, and Orest from Ukraine) who were very eager to hike. We decided that a "violation" of the rules is called for. We set out after breakfast around 9:30 a.m., meeting them at the foot of the hill at the camp entrance. Then we went up the hillside, onward and upward in a rather strenuous climb. The path is a dirt road which seemed to have been used within the week. A couple of short stretches pass some open meadow. We continued the climb to the end of the road which was a very short distance to the base of the high rocky ramparts of the Crimean mountains. It was breathtaking, literally and figuratively. Looking up the rampart wall, appreciating the immense and formidable face, and then admiring the vista over the sea and the back sides of the huge rocky outcroppings which face the camp and block part of the camp's view of the ramparts were well worth the climb. After about a half hour of expressions of awe, we began our descent, a very easy jaunt in comparison to the steady climb. All together we were gone 3 hours - an hour and a half up, 45 minutes down, with about a half hour at the top (the base of the wall). We arrived in time for lunch in the cafeteria. The students for the past two days had been preparing for "Peace Day" today. Their parents were invited and many showed up. The kids were busy making banners, rehearsing their performances of song and dance and poetry recitals. Several students borrowed our pictorial calendar with the picture of the "Swallow's Nest". They made a freehand sketch of the building and then spent a long time painting in the shadows and color. The result, at around 1:00 a.m. (yes) last night, was a beautiful watercolor portrait of one of the Crimean Coast's famous landmarks. Sunday, 20 July 1997 Today was our excursion with the students to Bakhchisaray, the historic "capital" of the Crimean Tatars. The bus took us westward along the southern coast towards Foros and past the summer "dacha" of the leaders of the old Soviet Union and now the leader of Russia, Boris Yeltsin, and then northward to the outside of Sevastopol, where the bus then took a back road to Bakhchisaray through forested mountain country and then rolling farmland and then into the city. We drove past the Tatar settlement of hundreds of well constructed homes. This settlement is where the Osmanov family lives, as well as the leader of the Crimean Tatars, Mustafa Dzhemilev (also spelled "Jemilev"). The settlement's streets are dirt and there are no trees because just a few short years ago this was open farmland. Someday when the trees are planted and water can be brought in to feed the trees, it could be a very nice suburb. Also out in the same area are those ugly Soviet-style high-rises. To tell the truth, the Tatar settlement looks more inviting. In Bakhchisaray we had an English-language tour of the Khan's Palace. It is of Turkish style architecture. It has been restored and looks quite nice. The gardens, however, are not cared for very well, but one can easily imagine that they were once very beautiful. They give meaning to the the name of the town - "Garden Palace". It was quite hot there and the ice cream and Coke were very welcome. Afterwards, our buses went out a short distance from the town to Chafut-Kale, a cave town in a valley of high rocky sandstone cliffs quite reminiscent of Mesa Verde and also of the Cappadocian countryside in Turkey. There is a St. Mary's Russian Orthodox Monastery there which is being beautifully restored with new icons on the outside, new stucco, and rebuilt steps. However, the main stairway is still in dire need of repair. The chapel is inside one of these caves and the altar area is made to conform to the lines and walls of the space. On the way back we had a re-telling of the history of the Crimean Tatars return to Crimea by Refat Memetov, the camp director - Refat the Glum, who became Refat the Narrator. One of the poignant stories was about the deportation in 1944 and pointing out the vast field where the Tatars of Bakhchisaray were herded like cattle to await boarding on the trains for Central Asia. A pregnant woman was one of many who were shot to death when they weren't moving fast enough to get into the cattle cars. This woman was the wife of a Tatar officer in the Red Army fighting the Nazis in Germany at the time. When the officer returned after the war, he found that all the people were no longer there and that his wife was dead. He spoke up and fought for justice, and he had to grapple with the disillusionment and anger that what he was fighting for was a lie. His quest for justice eventually led to his own death. My respect for Refat has been elevated by his willingness to tell me the story and I now regard him as a fine person who is trying hard to make the camp a success. Wednesday, 23 July 1997 One of the teachers that I have come to know and respect is Vladimir Leonidovich Polupan, a Ukrainian from the Bakhchisray region of Crimeai, the village of Verkhorechye. His English is excellent and his demeanor is sunny and cheerful. He is an astute student of languages and has learned some Tatar. He often would explain to me the roots of certain Russian words and also engage in English word-play. Vladimir told me that he has a Bible and is a Christian, although he belongs to no church. He also is well-versed about the news and thinks for himself. He loves the students and loves teaching. On Monday Refat allowed the kids to go to the beach. This means going by bus, as it is too far to walk. Usually the bus goes up and down three times, beginning at 2:00 p.m. Before the first bus departed, Refat lectured them for 15 or 20 minutes just outside the cafeteria. His speeches are in Russian and are usually about behavior which he thinks is terrible or could be terrible. This time he told them they could go to the beach but not go down onto the stones or into the water! They were to be restricted to the promenade, but not as far as the little cafe' where they could buy candy or Coke, because he fears they'll buy vodka or beer. Of course, that could be taken care of if they were accomanied by a teacher. Well, after arriving at the beach, he relented and allowed them to sun themselves on the stones, but they were forbidden to get their feet wet. Again, we see how fearful Refat is of any problems. Yesterday, however, was a different story. He allowed them to go all the way into the water (temperature 15 C) and many did. He also allowed them to buy Coke and candy and ice cream. We Americans were supposed to leave on Friday after the closing ceremony when the students leave. We were to go to Pischanye (the name means "sandy"), a seaside beach on the west coast of Crimea, about 40 km north of Sevastopol. Well, it turns out that the reservations for Friday night were messed up and we won't be leaving until Saturday morning! At the beach yesterday I had extensive and interesting conversation with two of our students with whom I have established a good deal of rapport - Oleg Vorobyov and Boris Kotov. (Others who relate well with me are Konrad Smolinski and Alex Ivanov and Sevilia Velilayeva - my "dancing partner"). Oleg and Boris are speaking excellent English. Oleg is very interested in military ships, especially those of the 17th and 18th centuries. Boris is interested in English, German, and biology (his father is a botanist at the U of Simferopol). Both of them have questions about America, about the life I have in America, what I like to do and what will be the first thing I'll do when I arrive home. Saturday, 26 July 1997 We had our final breakfast today - hot milk (possibly goat's) with nothing in it. But, it was tasty. The meals at the camp are not very good at all, and even the native teachers thought the kitchen cooks gave us poor food. But, of course, I eat anything and sometimes enjoy it. Although I savor a gourmet's meal, I was willing to eat the camp food out of necessity - maybe that was one of the good consequences of army experience! :-) The bus that came to take us to Pischanye was a small bus and clearly did not have the space for all of us and our luggage. So, we all went with two small bags and then the driver returned to get the big pieces of luggage. It's about an hour and 45 minute drive from Opolznevoye to Pischanye. So, we got to see Gorbachev's and Yeltsin's dacha on the Black Sea coast just past Foros. The place in Pischanye is very nice - a "pansionat" called Lukamorye ("morye" means "sea"). There are many vacationers here in the little bungalows. Ours is a double bungalow and we have 9 in one and 7 in the other. Kemal is staying with us also and is our interpreter and arranger of bus trips. Refat and Lutfi came to make sure all was OK. Refat became more open and explained how difficult it was to even get the camp established, with so many obstacles put in his way by "authorities" and petty officials. Among them is the camp facilities administrator, Alexander Somebody. He told how some, including Alexander, of these people tried to get them to discriminate against the Chechnians and the Poles by charging them more than the Ukrainians and Tatars. And Alexander wanted the Chechens to be given less food and poorer food than the others. But the policy, of course, is that all the kids are to be treated the same and he had to insist on that. And indeed it was done that way in accordance with BFE policy. If it had been any other way, BFE would not have been there. He expressed his appreciation to us for the work we did and apologized for his not being more communicative with us. After our bags arrived, we changed into our bathing gear and walked to the beach (about 100 meters). The beach has small stones, but also has sandy parts. The water was warm (22 degrees C). The beach along here goes for miles and is well populated. Then at around 6, Horace Davis, Becky White, Elly Rotheim, Marilyn and I were met by Zarema Yakubova and her father Lenur and taken to their Tatar home in Uglovoye (5 km from Pischanye). Lenur is an architect and has a bus business on the side. Like all the new Tatar developments, the roads are rutted and rough and dirt, and there are no trees. Some have their exteriors finished in stucco, but most do not. And their home was in the majority. But having said that, one must go inside to see a beautifully appointed interior - beautiful furniture, wall paper, high ceilings (3.4 m), beautiful carpets, and a palatial appearance. We were met there by Sevilia Velilayeva and her parents, her sister and her brother. Her parents are both doctors - he a surgeon and she a pediatrician. Her sister is a beautiful girl and later in the evening they danced to Tatar music with Zarema. The food was a feast! The table was loaded with all manner of food, most of it traditionally Tatar - sardines, rice with meat, shredded carrots,....etc., etc... and then dessert cake and also plenty of champagne and red wine. The closest wine to the taste of what we had is Massandra's Kokur Suroz ("Suroz" is one of the names for Sudak). Sunday, 27 July We went to a place near Bakhchisaray, led by Renart and his colleague Olga (an attractive and slender blond Russian) to visit the remains of an original Tatar village which they hope to make into a cultural interpretive site. It'll take many years before that happens. We also saw a 2000-year-old Taurian burial site at the side of the road, replete with ceramic shards and remains. Most people were bored and annoyed at "yet another Tatar thing". Yet, this sharing of culture is really among the most memorable parts of the experience. In the former Tatar village we all met a friendly and elderly Russian peasant couple. They spoke to us and the conversation was interpreted by Renart. Monday, 28 July We took the long bus journey eastward across Crimea to Sudak. The Genoese fortress, perched on the rocky precipice, is reminiscent of a Great Wall of China with its towers and connecting walls. One can find the remains of a Byzantine church and a well-preserved building that is the oldest mosque in Crimea (M thought it may have been a Christian church before that, since she saw iconography on a wall). Our guide for the day was a very attractive and vivacious Tatar woman, Elmira ****, who is the head of the league of Tatar women. The tour of the fortress was fascinating, the view of the beach below was breathtaking. Hundreds of people were swimming. It is clear that Sudak is a big tourist attraction. A beautiful place on the southeast Crimean coast. Afterwards we went to Elmira's house for a Tatar dinner and hospitality demonstration of customs, treated to a delicious coffee and cheese, a marvelous dinner, Tatar dancing demonstration and violin piece ("Tim-tim"), performed by her sister, ******. Tuesday, 29 July Marilyn's 59th Birthday! Spent at the beach. Wednesday, 30 July Anniversary Day - 37 years with a true loving companion - celebrated on the shores of the Black Sea. I made a "card" from a flat stone that had a heart-like shape and used the colored pens to put a message on each side of it - one for the birthday and one for the anniversary on the shores of the Black Sea. At 10 we left for Simferopol. It seems we should have left at least an hour earlier in order to participate in all the things the Tatars of Simferopol had planned for us. We were met by our students, Natasha ***enko, Oleg Vorobyev, and Timur "Fudzhiyama". They and we were delighted to meet again! We went off to the Crimean Tatar Cultural Center in the city where we were greeted by cultural experts and artists and presented with beautiful Crimean roses (which graced our dinner table back in Peschanoye in the evening, as an anniversary decoration). Our students each had a brief statement for us. Timur's mother made the welcoming speech. We were allowed to look at the handcrafted items on display - small rugs (whose quality of art did not appear to be very high), some handmade jewelry items. For $70 we bought a bracelet and two earrings made by a Tatar craftsman, which I thought were excellent artistic pieces. We then all went off for lunch at the Crimean Tatar cafe, "Eski-Shehir", which served us a delicious meal, one of the three most delicious meals we have had in Crimea. The soup was delicious, the traditional grape-leaved-wrapped ground meat, etc. After the lunch we went to the Tatar "Mejlis" (Parliament or Council). It is in a small building in a nondescript part of town. There we met again with Mustafa Dzhemilev and he thanked us again for coming and allowed more questions about the purposes and goals of the Mejlis. All of it recorded on videotape. A final statement for Tatar Ukrainian TV by Greg Byrne was taped and, according to Kemal's mother, appeared on the Ukrainian national news TV program. We were then supposed to go to the Marble Cave ("Marmornaya Rock"), but because of a downpour of rain, it was determined that it would be quite unsafe and dangerous. So that was canceled. Mrs. Lutfi Osmanov's wife then led us into the city center for a shopping expedition, despite the rain. It was good for some of the people to buy things. I bought a 1998 calendar, depicting the wines of Crimea that had some scenes of Crimea that we had seen. There were other things that Marilyn looked at in a craft shop, such as the nested wooden dolls. But, because the one she was interested in had the smell of fresh lacquer and was sticky, she did not purchase the item. Maybe tomorrow, when we go to Sevastopol. Then, the rains stopped and we walked about some more and then to the bus back to the beach and dinner and a swim. Thursday, 31 July This morning, Mark Doser is picked up by Refat and taken to Simferopol airport for his flight to Burgos, Bulgaria, where he will meet friends he made last year. Then - off to Sevastopol. We were met at a bus stop outside of Bakhchisaray by Vladimir and his wife. Then when we arrived in Sevastopol we were greeted by our students Alex Ivanov and Mike *** and a couple of teacher-guides. The first thing we saw there was the ancient site of Chersonesus (Kersun), a Greek settlement of 2000 years ago. There are widespread foundations and walls and pillars and an exquisite rocky beach where hundreds of people were swimming and sunning themselves on the ancient stone rubble. Offshore was a sailing craft which Alex told me was similar to the kind of sailboats that he and his club sail. Alex belongs to a sailing club and is interested in being a naval officer. We also saw central Sevastopol along the waterfront and saw parts of the Russian Navy and the Ukrainian Navy ships. Also we saw submarines in their slips. Since it was Ukrainian Navy Day, there was a band concert by the Navy Band. Friday, 1 August At 10 we took the bus arranged for us to go to the city of Yevpetoria, northwards on the coast. It was a nice drive of about an hour and 15 minutes and quite scenic farmland and villages. Upon leaving Saki, a city a few kilometers from Yevpetoria, the bus took the highway joining the two cities on the sandy strip that separates the Black Sea from a salty lagoon. The lagoon is the source of much salt and several extensive piles of salt could be seen. At Yevpetoria, a beautiful beach resort, we weer met by two teachers who served as our guides. We met them at the Dzhumi-Dzhami mosque, a 15th-century building whose design is by Sinan, the great Turkish architect. We went inside and saw the rather stark interior and also went up into the second level which is for the women worshippers. Afterwards we went outside and were introduced to an elderly man who had restored the gravestones along the side of the mosque. These were the gravestones of his relatives. One of the stones had a two-dotted symbol that means that the deceased person had made the hajj to Mecca twice. Then we went a block away to the magnificent St. Nicholas Cathedral, built in the late 1800's, and went inside. A wedding ceremony was being performed and the choir's singing was beautiful. The choir consisted of a few elderly women and a robed gentleman. I videotaped it. The rest of the day was strolling down a street of sidewalk vendors and riding on a tram. Our group had split off from those who went to a Tatar library and met teachers from a Tatar school who informed them of the struggle and needs and goals they have for Tatar education. This leads to some reflection on the nature of nationalism and the sense of apartness that the Tatars have. As Vladimir's wife says, the Tatars see Crimea as theirs and that they, the Russians and Ukrainians, are mere guests. This is an interesting and unrealistic opinion since the reality is far different, but the goal of some Tatars is to make this a true homeland with their own culture dominating. Saturday, 2 August A day off. Sunday, 3 August At 9:00 we began the long trip to Odessa, where we spent the night in the same "hotel" we were in when we first arrived 4 weeks ago. After a nice dinner, a few of us went out to a friendly outdoor cafe overlooking the Black Sea. We ordered red and white wines and had some good conversation. Monday, 4 August After emotional farewells to our friend and colleague Kemal, we boarded our bus to the airport at around 9:30. It was hard for the driver to find the right streets, but after getting directions from several people, he got us to the airport by 10:30. We could not check in before 12, so we all walked about the waiting area or read books or bought some Coca Cola or Fanta. And, at last, Marilyn actually found the nested dolls we had been hoping to find! I also had the chance to go upstairs to the Lufthansa office and get the name and address of the gentleman who had delivered our baggage to the camp a couple of days after our arrival! We intend to write him a letter and to thank him and reward him for his wonderful effort. (I did write to him and enclosed a 20 hryvni note and an American 10). At 1:30 we boarded the plane and at 2:00 it took off for Frankfurt. At Frankfurt we discovered that the Frankfurt-Toronto flight had been overbooked, so we agreed to release our seats to others so that we could get the DM 1200 (approx $600) to apply to another international Lufthansa flight and then take a later flight home. It turned out that we made it possible for Greg Byrne and Dorothea Heberle to have their seats on the plane. We had no problem being delayed since there was no reason to be home right away. We were booked into Business Class for a Boston flight that departed only a half-hour after our original flight. We called Anne and had John pick us up at the airport (specifically at the Logan Express station at Framingham). So we spent Monday night and Tuesday night with Anne and John and Emily!! Because Anne still has her old car, she let us drive it home on Wednesday! Very convenient! CONCLUSIONS This was a fascinating and very interesting time - meeting so many extraordinary people who have courage, professionalism, enthusiasm. The teachers that accompanied these wonderful students were superb people. Nadia, Gulizar, Fatima are credits to the profession. The students showed creativity, courtesy, and grace. I hope I meet some of them again. Another interesting aspect was meeting the leaders of the Tatar nation in Crimea. I think we were honored by the interest that Mustafa Dzhemilev had in our camp and in our organization. hearing the story of the expulsion off the Tatars was very moving and poignant. Here is a people who have suffered prejudice, violence, expulsion and yet had the fortitude to stand up against tyranny and eventually be allowed to return to the land they call their "Homeland". This brings up the key matter of what a "homeland" is. How long must a people possess a land efore it becomes a homeland. In a real historical sense, Crimea has been a homeland to many different peoples. There is no doubt that the Tatars were cruelly mistreated by Stalin and his NKVD and Red Army. Now the Tatar people are coming back "home". Their "Moses" is Mustafa and he has led them to the promised land. A new struggle is underway now. This is the struggle for acceptance by the current majority population of Russians and Ukrainians.