In six parts, the following essay is dedicated to an understanding of the keen differences that separate as well as the subtle similarities that unite otherwise very different cultures. The similarities and differences between Tajik and American cultures are studied in the context of a unique teahouse, a gift of the inhabitants of the city of Dushanbe, Tajikistan, to their sister-city of Boulder, Colorado. The essay investigates the history of tea and of Central Asian teahouses, the circumstances that prompted the Boulderites to seek friendship with a city in Central Asia, the genesis of the Boulder-Dushanbe Teahouse as a gift, the cultural implications of the gift, and what might constitute a fitting gift to reciprocate Tajik generosity thus extended.

America-Tajikistan Cultural Axis

1. A Trip to Varzob

2. Two for Tea

3. A Tale of Two Cities

4. Varzob All Over Again?

5. The Teahouse At A Glance

6. Cultural Implications

Acknowledgements:

I would like to thank Mr. George Peknik, editor of Akhbor, for editing and for his constructive comments, Mary Axe, former BDSC President and Jancy Campbell, current BDSC president, for their contribution to my knowledge of the genesis and development of the American-Tajik relations which began in 1982. I would also like to thank Denise Williams for reading and Carol Bashiri for preparing the essay for the web. Margarita Kasimova, Davlat Khudonazarov, Saif Rahim, Zulfiya Rahimova, Askarali Rajabov, Jamshid Usmonov, and Vose Voseov have been instrumental in my understanding of Tajik life and my ability to reflect Tajik culture in its proper context. I wish to thank them all for their contributions.