by Clarke Fountain
synopsis
Erken (Sabit Kurmanbekov) has been away from his native region of Kazakhstan while serving in the Soviet army. Now his obligatory service is over, and he returns to the adobe houses of his hometown only to discover that his fiancee has married someone else (though she's still willing to have sex with him) and he can't get a job. After a few experiences with his old friends, he decides that the grass really is greener elsewhere, and leaves.
