Interview with Gustavus "Gus" Hulin, September 22, 2021

Interview Summary

Gus tells how his education and work led him to serve in the Peace Corps in Kyrgyzstan 2014-2015. He praises his excellent training, which included living with a family in a small village. He describes his first-year projects: working in a clean-water agency to train people in accounting software; teaching English; and promoting the use of fruit dryers. He talks of Kyrgyz culture and food, and shares challenges he faced, including irregular work schedules and suspicion of Americans. He tells of moving in his second year to a new location and new projects. He describes geopolitical forces and regional conflicts that forced the Peace Corps to reshape its in-country mission, and him to return early. He reflects on the positive impact Peace Corps service had on his life and career, which included meeting his wife and becoming a U.S. Foreign Service Officer; and on the difficulty of achieving PC’s Third Goal.

Interview Keyword

Peace Corps (U.S) Kyrgyzstan (Country of service) 2014-2015 (Date of service) Peace Corps Volunteer Job: Community Economic Development Kyrgyz (Language) Minnesota Minneapolis Language Training Cultural Training Russia Uzbekistan International Geopolitical Forces Regional Conflict Bishkek (Capital of Kyrgyzstan) Issyk-Kul (Region of Kyrgyzstan) Lake Issyk-Kul (world’s second-largest high-altitude lake) Kant (City) Rahat (First name of language instructor who trained Hulin and other PCV’s) Pamela Spratlen (U.S. Ambassador to Kyrgyzstan in 2014) Tushuk (a kind of quilted blanket commonly used by the Kyrgyz people) Chirak (Kyrgyzstan village where Hulin served) Karakol (Kyrgyzstan city) Besh Barmak (Kyrgyzstan national dish of boiled sheep) Kazan (a type of large cooking pot used throughout Central Asia) Laghman (a dish of meat, vegetables and pulled noodles from Central Asian cuisine) Ashlan-Fu (a cold soup made using wheat noodles and unique to Karakol) Taza Suu (Kyrgyzstan government agency devoted to clean water) GIZ (German non-governmental organization active in Kyrgyzstan) Zooties (Children’s felt booties handmade in Kyrgyzstan) Pechka (Russian word for a type of oven/furnace used both for cooking and domestic heating).

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