CaucasTalk

The dust has begun to settle. The shouting receded to a murmur. It’s time for us to weigh in on the now historic UFC 229 fight between Khabib and McGregor on October 6th, 2018. Enlivening this discussion we feature  Field Notes from the night of the fight. More importantly, we are joined by local  Dagestani martial artist Ravil to give us an insider’s view on the fight and the events surrounding it. This episode touches on much more than mere sports. We find ourselves discussing one of the core questions of being human, and that is: how we can live together with our differences? While we can’t give definitive response, we hope our contribution leavens the conversation.

Links for Episode 36

The Moscow Times: How Khabib’s Dagestani Identity Dominated UFC 229

Khabib posted this on his Instagram in Russian and English. from MMA

Timestamps

2:41 – FIELD NOTES! Pre-Fight Interviews

6:00 – Our guest Ravil!

7:58 – Glottal fricative [CORRECTION: It is a “voiced uvular fricative.” Thank you David H!]

9:53 – Summary of what happened

13:52 – Ravil’s insider perspective

18:41 – Can you ignore an insult in Dagestan?

21:06 – “My dad is gonna smash me…” – Honoring elders

23:31 – How to come of age?

24:56 – Three kinds of Cultures: Shame v. Guilt

31:22 – Eli’s Theory

34:45 – Can you be civil with other cultures?

The feast continues in Episode 35 as we get into the specifics of what food people here actually eat. We take you on a mouth-watering tour through the food groups revealing a surprisingly colorful variety of cuisine. We are helped again by Cristi who brings a gravy-boatload of experience to the conversation. For many here food is the pride of their people and the taste of home. Join us for the second-best way to experience it if you can’t taste it—talking about it!

ERRATA: Apologies if you got the first release accidentally rendered at double speed! (Who knows, maybe it will catch on?)

Links for Episode 35

BBC – “Georgia’s Addictive Cousin to Pizza?” (Khachipuri)

0:53 – Train story

8:00 – Picnic Food

9:00 – The Foods of the NC

10:38 – Meat

11:17 – Breads

15:11 – The Best Bread in the World

21:07 – Pastas

34:28 – Dairy

37:47 – Cristi’s cheese story: Fremented stomach juice

41:14 – Proof that Laura Ingles Wilder is from the Caucasus

What’s one thing that ties together culture, history, and tourism here in the North Caucasus? And ties together everything else? Everywhere? That’s right: FOOD. It’s no secret that food brings people together. And here like everywhere, people love their food. Today we take a look at how food functions in society in general, and specifically in this part of the world. We are joined by Cristi, Andrew’s wife, who brings a breadth of experience about food to the table. Pun definitely intended. Let’s eat!

Having heard from the fellas, we now have a chance to hear a women’s perspective on Ingushetia. Some of our most articulate guests yet, these bright young women give us a new level of appreciation for Ingush culture and heritage. They hail from Magas, the “youngest city on earth” and bear the telltale pride of homeland we’ve come to expect from our Caucasus friends. Be sure to listen for their perspective on what has to be the craziest mother-in-law custom in the world. Just try to stay away from this place once you hear their winsome pitch for the land they love.

FIXED: This episode was originally released majorly garbled (starting at minute 20, and following). The errors have been fixed now! Try again. Our apologies!

We called in a double-episode for this one. Our awesome Ingush friends came out in droves to share about their unique and amazing land with us. In Part A you will hear from a pair of brothers about what it’s like to be Ingush in Russia today. It’s also hard to miss their beaming pride for their land and language. There’s history, folklore—heck, the guys even sing! We think you’ll enjoy hearing directly from our Ingush friends.

Our series “In Their Own Words” returns this week with a rich look at the peoples of Dagestan. With only one interviewee this time, this is admittedly a disservice to the fast array of ethnicities in Dagestan. But it’s a start and a great one at that. Our guest today shares candidly about growing up in Makhachkala (Dagestan’s capital), the popularity of wrestling and fighting,  the patrilineal transmission of ethnic identity, moving away from home for university, and what it’s like meeting other Caucasus nationalities for the first time. Oh, and a terrific Caucasus proverb toward the end.

Links for Episode 32

NatGeo on Tightrope Walking in Dagestan

Conor McGregro vs. Khabib Nurmagomedov

Timestamps

2:16 – News Minute! National Geographic Article

7:10 – Dagestan on the World Stage

10:10 – In Their Own Words: Dagestan!

15:10 – Overview of Dagestan

25:27 – Mixing with other Caucasus nations: “We are all Muslims”

27:13 – Deeper into Dagestan

32:18 – Preserving culture in Makhachkala

36:48 – Languages of Dagestan

40:18 – Geography of Dagestan

41:28 – MMA in Dagestan

46:13 – “Главный не тело льва а дух орла” = The most important thing is not the body of the lion, but the spirit of the eagle.

49:28 – One thing to tell the world about the North Caucasus: Hospitable and “the safest place on earth”

Ladies and Gentlemen, it is our great pleasure to introduce to you our No.1 fan, the model CaucasTalk listener, our very first emailer, Kevin Abernathy! Hailing form the deep south, Kevin and his pal Justin are on their way to summiting the Seven Summits of the World. Elbrus was their number 2, and they made a point to stop off with Andrew for a chat. It’s a great in-depth look at climbing Elbrus, plus a wonderful testimony to their positive experience visiting the North Caucasus. Kevin and Justin, congratulations, and thanks for swinging by!

Timestamps

8:55 – Interview with Kevin & Justin, after summiting Elbrus!

41:00 – Don’t miss this! Great tribute to visiting North Caucasus!

42:53 – Sad, sad announcement

Errata

Andrew meant Aaliyah, not Toni Braxton.

Last week we took a look at the place in the North Caucasus of one of the world’s most famous and beloved sports—football (soccer, if you’re an American). Today we look at the place in the world of the most famous and beloved sports in the North Caucasus: combat sports. The Caucasus region by far outstrips any other spot on earth in cranking out world-class boxers, wrestlers, and mixed-martial artists. In fact, some of the highest-ranking athletes competing for other countries in these sports hail from the Caucasus. It is more than a cultural past time; these sports are part of who they are. Take a listen and learn a bit more just what that means.

Episode 30 Links

American Football in the North Caucasus: The Stavropol Stones

Article about Malcome Gladwell’s book, Outliers

Timestamps

0:38 – American Football in the North Caucasus

3:34 – Who we are!

5:18 – Sports QUIZ #1 for Eli

9:51 – Sports QUIZ #2 for Eli

13:10 – Malcom Gladwell’s Outliers

17:57 – The Caucasus a “talent factory”

18:48 – Wrestling guests in the living room

19:18 – Why is this the case?

21:00 – Gladwell’s finding: The Law of 10,000 Hours

28:16 – What are the contributing factors for this?

36:06 – The connection between Lezginka and martial arts

37:33 – What would you do?

The World Cup has just ended in Russia, but passion for football (or soccer, if you will) burns bright as ever—and that is no less true for the North Caucasus than the rest of the country. Today in the first of a two-part deep dive into sports in the North Caucasus, Andrew unveils amazing Caucasus connections with the Russia national team and football in general. We also have a quiz for you our listeners and some exciting news!

Links for Episode 29

Article about Chechen hospitality for fans

Spartak Nalchik’s tolerant fans

Our new Facebook page! Visit! Like! Love!

Timestamps

0:23 – Crushing the gap

0:32 – Facebook page

2:37 – Shout outs to recent contacts

4:46 – How to access the shownotes

6:06 – The World Cup (and bad French)

10:26 – Quiz for Listeners

16:10 – Great article about visiting the Caucasus

20:30 – Caucasus players on the Russian National Team

26:51 – Deeper dive: Football in the Caucasus

Today is August 5th meaning there are 10 days left to inquire about the upcoming CaucasTalk Adventure. What’s that, you ask?? The trip of a lifetime specially-designed for our beloved CaucasTalk community. Join us February 2-9, 2019 for an 8-day, 7-night journey into the heart of the North Caucasus!

Inquiries, information, and registration at: www.beyondredsquare.com/podcast