Day 6 in Almaty - Shopping & Central Asian Crafts

Friday, 3 December

Our train left at 8:56 pm that night. I felt sick that morning so we didn't leave the apartment until noon. But we managed to pack quite a bit in (and get so frantic that we might miss our train!)

First, we walked the few blocks northward to Zhibek Joly Street, where the TsUM shopping center is. Lonely Planet had acted like TsUM is a shopping experience you don't want to miss. It was nothing spectacular. Huge, and a lot of the "stores" open rather than in separate rooms, but clean and a tad on the expensive side. Yes, it had a lot of souvenirs, but they were expensive.

We were hungry, and we saw a "Kind Burger." So we went in. This fast-food joint had your usual fast-food fare, plus pizza (for Sophia) and for 1000 Tenge ($6.70) a "business lunch"--an all-you-can-eat buffet that included hot tea, soup, some hot meat-and-vegetables meals, and dessert. Far better than McDonald's!

It was snowing, and we had a nice walk home, with the snow softly falling around us and on the wide, tree-lined streets.

Once home, we debated the merits of going out again--the Kazakh National Museum was having a Central Asian Arts & Crafts Festival, beginning at 4 pm tonight. But it was a good half-hour away, or more, depending on traffic and whether or not we could get a cab.

A little before 5 pm, we decided we should do it. We went out in the snow on Friday during rush hour and tried to find a cab--hard enough, and the guy charged us 1000 Tenge, well over the 300 Tenge that a local would demand. (My Kazakh friend wasn't with us to bargain.)

It was worth it. The main hallway and stairwells of the museum were full of vendors selling their brightly colored wares, all hand-made items from some place in Central Asia (countries ending in -stan.) So much to choose from!

I made the mistake of wandering and looking at everything before buying--the event closed at 6 pm that day, which I hadn't known! Suddenly, it was a mad dash to buy something before it was all closed!

I bought finger-less gloves for myself, from a lady from Kyrgystan; Sophia bought a small sheep (doll); and I bought gifts for friends. Our American friend bought a nativity set made out of wool felt (common material for toys, etc, here) and a colorful jacket; my co-worker bought a purse.

Now it was 6 pm; one hour until we needed to get a cab, to return to the apartment & check out & then get to the train station. We were a long half-block away from the big Ramstore. Ramstore is a supermarket here that is nice and clean and large and sometimes sells Western goods. This Ramstore was reputed to be huge and with even more Western goods.

So we went.

We raced through the large store--nothing special, since I already know where to find peanut butter in Astana and I don't use salad dressing--but I did buy some food for the train ride home and dinner for Sophia.

Then we went out, into the slightly-below-freezing and snowing weather, in the middle of rush hour of a huge city, and we tried to get a cab.

There were dozens of people trying to get taxis. And nobody stopping.

(In Kazakhstan, any car can be a taxi. Just hold out your hand near a road, soon enough a car will stop and then you can negotiate the price.)

One guy stopped for me, but said no, he would not take us. Maybe it was too far--there definitely was a ton of traffic between us and our destination! Maybe several kilometers, not bad during regular hours.

So we walked to the corner to try our luck again. No luck. We walked and we walked and we walked. No one would stop. We couldn't even find a bus stop!

Finally I called my friend R, who had gone to visit a friend in the city. Lo and behold, she was in a taxi at that very moment and the driver agreed to go out of his way to pick us up!!! Luckily, I knew exactly where we were (fake Eiffel Tower near Pizza Hut, on Furmanov Street), and luckily R is Kazakh and was able to negotiate a cheap price. 1000 Tenge for picking her up, driving to get us, driving us all to the apartment, waiting while we got our stuff, and then driving us to the airport! All during horrible traffic and a snowstorm!

We made it to the train station with perhaps 20 minutes to spare--and a ton of luggage to drag through the snow. I broke a wheel on a brand-new suitcase last year, in the slushy snow of Germany, so I wasn't about to wheel mine. So I carried my heavy suitcase.

Luckily, a guy who worked there offered to put all our luggage on a cart and bring it to the train (and show us where it was!) for 500 Tenge. He was amazingly fast, moving our luggage to the cart, and then wheeling it through the snow. We had to cross train tracks, too, and he had to get each piece of luggage across the tracks and then get the cart. We weren't the only ones running towards the train last-minute.

Finally, we got on the train, with perhaps 5 minutes to spare. Sophia's new snowpants were covered in ice.

Good-bye, Almaty!

Day 5 in Almay - Ice Skating in the Mountains

Thursday, 2 December 2010

About a half-hour to an hour drive outside of Almaty is Medeu. I'm not sure what it is, if there's more than the giant outdoor skating rink halfway up the mountain to Chimbaluk, where you can ski.

Last year we went to Medeu, to learn that the rink was closed due to inclement weather (icky, wet, sleety, foggy) and then we went up to Chimbaluk, to learn that the skiing was closed for the same reasons.

This year my Kazakh friend R made some phone calls and checked the Internet, so we learned ahead of time that the skiing was closed due to renovations--the great Asian games (Asia's Olympics) will be held in Almaty & Astana in February. The ice skating is closed Monday & Tuesday.

On Thursday we took a taxi to Medeu, for 1500 Tenge--$10. When we arrived, the girls expressed their disappointment--they were expecting Chimbaluk! (They didn't say "Chimbaluk", they said they wanted to be in the mountains and snow, not ice skating with mountains surrounding us.) We explained over and over that Chimbaluk was closed, we had wanted to go skiing too!

Entrance fee was rather cheap--2100 Tenge for me and my child (children being cheaper)--about $14. Skates were 1000 Tenge ($6.80) for rental; children's skates were 500 Tenge, but the sign was misleading! Children's skates only went up to size 33; Sophia is a size 34. Skates were mis-sized; Sophia ended up wearing a 35 or 36 that was still too tight on her; I wore a size 41 (my size in Europe & Asia) that was way too big.

We also had to give ID to rent the skates, I was so relieved when they accepted my American driver's license! I did not want to give up my passport!

Finally, we made it out. The rink was huge, and the ice a little rough. The weather was fair; we were okay in wool sweaters and did not need bulky coats. There was a stadium around us, behind it, tall hills and mountains, with a bit of snow. There was no wall on the side of the rink, something Sophia usually clings too.

My friend R went to watch her daughter practice--she's going to Uralsk (western Kazakhstan) soon for an ice skating competition--and I spotted a little glider thing--it looks like a walker with no wheels, perfect for someone who needs support while on the ice. We took it, but then a Russian woman with a name-tag came up to us and said something in Russian. "It's busy," she said in English. I managed to get my friend to translate--the glider was in use, and cost 300 Tenge per half-hour. There were only two available, and the one we were trying to use was not in good condition. The woman was an ice skating instructor, half-hour private lessons cost 1000 Tenge. She said she couldn't teach my friend's daughter--who's working on her triple-axle--although she did watch and comment. But she could work with Sophia.

So for half an hour Sophia practiced with this instructor, who was amazingly patient and amazingly good. Sophia copied her and learned a lot--she can skate without wobbling; she can turn around on the ice!!! For someone who used to cling to the wall, this is amazing progress!

My friend's daughter had to leave that evening for Uralsk--her plane was at 7 pm, she would fly with another girl who was going for the competition. Her coach would meet her in Uralsk and then fly her back to Astana with the other girls from Astana. All of this was last minute, causing my friend a lot of worry the day before we left for Almaty! (She'd almost canceled the trip to Amaty.)

So then we had to leave, take a taxi back to the mall near our house, and then R took another taxi to the National Museum, where our two flat-mates were. They hadn't gone ice-skating with us, and there was only one key to our apartment, and so they had the key.

I fed the girls--KFC--and took a picture of the fast-food restaurant called "Kind Burger." Then we met up with the others, who did some quick grocery shopping at the Silk Way City supermarket, in the basement of the mall, which is bigger than any supermarket in Astana.

R and her daughter made it to the airport in time; then R and our American friend went to church together, while my co-worker, Sophia, and I relaxed in our home.

One more day to go!

Day 4 in Almaty - the BIG Bazaar

Wednesday, 1 December

When I say big, I mean BIG. I mean ENORMOUS. I mean, entire cities are smaller than this place.

Over Fall Break, I went to Central Market in Astana. After four hours of shopping, I realized I wasn't even halfway through.

After 6 hours of shopping in the market on the northern outskirts of Almaty, my co-worker and I were exhausted, and we hadn't come close to halfway through. Probably not even one-tenth through. We had seen some of the clothes and coats. Definitely nowhere near all of the clothes and coats. And not the hats, boots, appliances, furniture, knick-knacks, or whatever else we missed.

(We did see some hats, but I suspect that there were aisles of them somewhere.)

A few hours into the experience, we stopped at a restaurant that was pretty much hidden--down a dark hallway/alley, through an unmarked door. It was your basic Kazakh restaurant, cafeteria-style, and for 450 Tenge I got barley with chicken & a few vegetables, bread, tea, and a cake. I asked for a half-plate of my main course, which was quite large!

The bazaar is on two sides of a somewhat busy, definitely crowded road. The stalls are partly inside, partly outside--shacks, lean-tos. They are located down long, cramped aisles. You are inside, but outside--the floor is mostly packed dirt, there is a ceiling, and little light from outside.

Men with carts overloaded with goods raced down these aisles, shouting in Kazakh, and ready to knock over anyone in their way. Bent women pushed carts selling tea, some pastries, and candies. And women who resembled gypsies wandered around, seemingly begging but also selling. My co-worker L had sympathy on one and gave her 50 Tenge. Then the woman gave her a pin. L thought this was sweet, but the woman wouldn't leave her alone. Our Kazakh friend translated--the pin cost 300 Tenge. L said gave back the pin, although the woman did not want to accept it. She'd rather the 300 Tenge.

My Kazakh friend had stayed home with the girls, which turned out to be good. It was a long day, cramped and crowded, and needing patience and a love for shopping. We had to take two buses there, it took about an hour. Our new American friend had a Kazakh friend from Almaty; it was she who took us there and showed us around.

I found a few good finds--including an angora hat with matching scarf and gloves for 500 Tenge ($3.40) and a sweater for Sophia for 1000 Tenge (about $6.70). Our Kazakh friend found a fur-on-the-inside, leather-on-the-outside coat for not much over $100. Amazing.

But in the end my co-worker and I wore out well before the other two women and we headed out, armed with a copy of the directions I had written down while we took the bus over here.

Outside, we crossed the road and headed in what we thought was the direction of Almaty, and I wondered at how the mountains were really hidden in the haze. When we had arrived at the bazaar, I had noticed that the mountains--and Almaty--were behind us. Then my co-worker recognized a building as one we had passed coming in (on this side of the road), and I turned around -- lo and behold, those majestic mountains! To make sure, we asked a man where Almaty was. He seemed a bit confused by the question, he gestured towards the mountains.

Then I remembered, that sometime early in our day, we had climbed down some stairs--we must have gone under the road!

So we crossed the road again and walked to where it seemed that other people were waiting for buses. A few buses later, we saw our bus--Bus 120. just to be sure, I asked the bus attendant, "Tolebi?" He said yes and helped us on the bus.

Earlier that day, on our way to the bazaar, we had changed from bus 126 to bus 120 at the intersection of Tolebi and a street whose name I could not pronounce. Since bus 120 only crossed Tolebi, I figured I was okay only asking for Tolebi.

The bus got more and more crowded, and the attendant pushed us further and further back. My co-worker had found a seat right by the door, luckily. The street in front of the bazaar was so crowded, the bus just inched along, as the attendant leaned out the door, smoking a cigarette and calling out the names of various stops along this bus's route.

It took probably half an hour to get out of the bazaar. The bus was so crowded, and I became worried that I would not recognize our stop, and I was sure that the attendant wouldn't remember my question from so long ago. (Especially since the question was a one-word question--"Tolebi?") But now I was too far from him to go up and ask him to let me know when we got there.

The man next to my co-worker wanted to get off. I saw this, but my-coworker didn't notice. The attendant started talking to her in Russian, probably asking her to let this man off. She didn't understand and soon the two were very frustrated with each other. "Nyet Russian!" she shouted. "American!" I called out to her what I thought the attendant wanted--her to let the man next to her off. She did, but soon the attendant and others were laughing and saying something about "Americans"--so, I thought, now might not be a good time to ask him to tell me when we got to Tolebi.

But then, we got to a stop and he said, "American, Tolebi!" and even helped my co-worker and me off the bus.

We were a short walk from the intersection, and nothing looked familiar. We started wondering if the attendant had purposely let us off at the wrong stop, us being stupid Americans and all.

So my co-worker encouraged me to ask a passer-by for help, she picked out a good-looking young man, and he happened to speak English and be good with maps. We were indeed on Tolebi, two short blocks from the intersection where I had assumed we'd be let off (the bus might have a slightly different return route?). And bus 126 did pass by here, all we had to do was cross the street.

We thanked him, got to the bus stop, and bus 126 showed up before we had time to ask anyone for confirmation that it would show up.

Now we had a half-hour ride, but in peace, since we knew we would recognize the Silk Way City shopping complex where we had to get off.

I was so proud of myself, returning home from the bazaar all by myself!

Day 3 in Almaty: Panfilov Park, Walking, and Funny English

Tuesday, 30 November 2010

Half of the 6 people in our apartment are early risers; half of us are late risers. The kids and our new American friend M are the early riser. My friend R and co-worker L and I are the late risers. So today was another late start like yesterday.

First, R and M had to go to the train station to change M's ticket so she could return on the same train as us. L, I and the kids decided to walk towards Zelony Bazaar (the Green Market), the place where we had decided to start the day.

It was a fun walk down tree-lined streets, and soon we felt like we could be in Paris--fancy shops on our sides. We popped into a cosmetics store where L finally found the hair dye that she uses (yet to be found in Astana!)

We arrived at Panfilov Park and decided to stop there with the kids. Panfilov Park is where the amazing, yellow Russian Orthodox cathedral is. I had seen it last year and was awe-struck. L went inside while I watched the kids at the nearby playground.

Some horse-drawn carriages came running by at fast pace, the kids chased the carriage. We found a spot behind the church with dozens of pigeons, which entertained the girls. Finally, we went inside the cathedral.

The cathedral is all gold inside, and amazing. We didn't go far in, just shopped at the gift shop in front.

By then R and M had met up with us, so we walked the block to Zhibek Zholy Street, which I now know means "Silk Way" in Kazakh.

The street was super-crowded, with vendors on the street. We shopped and bought some warm pants for the girls. (4 pants for 3500 Tenge--$24!)

Then we went inside some huge building, which kind of reminded me of Artyom in Astana--a large, overcrowded mall with stands and cubicles for stores. I found a stand with genuine Soviet pins, the cheapest being $10 and the most expensive been much, much more.

Then we walked some--we never went to the Green Market, it's well known for food, but we didn't need food and we were getting cold--and found the Silk Way Mall, which we'd heard of. But the entrance we were near was closed off, and we were hungry, so we popped inside a restaurant called Pizza Mia.

I will always remember this restaurant for its English. It was nice that they had a menu in English, but it was funny to read. Under dessert, you could choose "Ice Cream 'Move & Pick' 2 balls." We had a good laugh over that.

You could choose "bread funds" (we figured out that this was bad translation of "bread fondue").

On the door, you could "Na sebya" (Russian for "towards yourself"--eg, pull) or, in English "Inwards."

As we left, my Kazakh friend talked to the waitress and we correctly translated quite a few items for her.

The others were tired and ready to take a cab. I volunteered to walk the girls home. It was only about a mile, and we were full of energy.

It was night-time, so we just took the same route as we had before. We popped into a store which was selling ENGLISH-LANGUAGE newspapers! Unable to decide, I bought all 3--USA Today, The International Herald Tribune, and the Times of Central Asia. These 3 newspapers were a big hit at the apartment.

One more day in Almaty, a day of relaxing and conversation, a day of exploration and new finds, a day of two little girls getting along splendidly. A good vacation!

Day 2 in Almaty: Kok-Tobe Cable Car

Monday we decided to take the Kok-Tobe Cable Car. It's a cable car that takes you up a very large hill on the edge of Almaty. The ride up is fantastic, as we watched the city get distant, and the houses beneath us. There were plenty of unfinished houses and plenty of shacks, crammed into tiny spaces on the steep hill with few roads (some dirt paths).

At the top of the hill we could see the city--now I realize that it is much larger than Astana, with many tall buildings. The city was in a haze, however, which I've heard is most of time time.

And in front of us--to the south--were the mountains. Again, they were in a haze.

As the day went on, the sky became clearer, and the mountains more breath-taking. Sharp, jagged, snow-covered peaks that went on seemingly for forever. The tallest peaks seemed to arise out of the sky, especially when it was hazy; I had to squint and double-check--was I seeing mountains, or just clouds?

So behind us was the city, in front of us the mountains, and to our sides rolling hills, spotted with houses. The hill we were on was immense, and we had a lot of walking in front of us.

There were several restaurants, a Beatles statue where we all posed for a picture, and a small zoo. Sophia loved the reindeer; there were also peacocks and majestically colored pheasants.

The grass at the top was green and well-tended to, but my favorite part was the un-tended slopes on the sides. They looked just like the mountains in South and North Carolina towards the end of fall. Sloping hills, mostly bare trees, dead leaves on the ground. I hadn't dressed for hiking, but I ran down the hill, high heels and all. Sophia and her friend enjoyed playing on the hillside. In the distance we could still see the snow-capped peaks.

Mostly we took pictures and basked in the shadow of the mountains. How glorious!

After, we took the cable car back down and walked the short distance to the Pizza Hut where we had eaten last year.

Then it was back home and to bed.

Sophia and her friend have been getting along amazingly this week so far, better than sisters, with very few and very short spats. Mostly, they hang out, talking and giggling and letting us adults be. Her friend's English is amazing, considering she's been taught by her mother and hasn't really had it in school, and Sophia is her only English-speaking friend. But every now and then she'll have to ask her mother for a word in English. Once the word was "trash", another time "war". You have to wonder what they're talking about!

They both are very much into imaginative play, and the language barrier seems to be no issue for them. They love to play with stuffed animals when they are inside; pretend they are riding horses when they are outside. They love to collect nuts--large acorns--outside; inside they like to draw and color. Sophia enjoys putting Russian-language movies for the two of them to watch on their computer.

Monday morning, R and I were woken up at 6 am by the most delighted-sounding, "Dobri utro!" ever ("good morning!") as R's daughter pranced into our room. R responded as I do when woken up that early, with a low growl and something like "go away." Luckily, this did not upset her child, and she and Sophia played quite happily together until we did feel like waking up.

A wonderful vacation for all!!

Day 1 in Almaty

We arrived in Almaty on Sunday morning and spent the morning getting to our new apartment and then showering and resting. We were tired after our train trip (more tired than after last year's train trip... but last year we arrived late in Almaty and so had been able to sleep in on the train.

We took a taxi to the apartment complex, where the landlady met us. She seemed very professional; she and a man who spoke a bit of English helped us up the four flights of steps to our apartment.

Our apartment--so cheap!--is large, with 2 large bedrooms and a living room. My friend R & I are sharing one bed; my coworker L and our new American friend are sharing another; and
Sophia & my friend's daughter are sharing the pull-out couch. We are three pairs of generations, all single women: two women in their sixties; two women in their thirties; and two girls under ten.

After showering and resting, R went to church (I was still un-showered by the time of the last Catholic Mass at noon). Around 5 pm we decided to head out to find something to eat.

We wandered a bit and R and I kept getting a feeling of deja-vu--had we been here last week? Almaty is a great city for those who love maps and cardinal directions--the streets are all parallel and perpendicular and run north-south and east-west--but not good for those who find their way via landmarks. Every street looks identical--large, about 4 lanes, sometimes one-way, large sidewalks for walking, ditches between the sidewalks and roads for drainage, trees, and several-story tall buildings. Pretty, but every block and street corner looks the same!!

We passed a few places that seemed OK, but finally settling on a restaurant called City Cafe (with City spelling in English and Cafe in Russian). It was a great choice! The food was delicious and not too expensive; I had lamb shashlyk (like a kebob), and Sophia was able to have her favorite--cheese pizza. The menu was in Russian, English, and Turkish, and some of the food was Turkish; they also served more local cuisine, such as "manty" (dough-like noodles) and Uzbek plov.

We had beer and dessert, and just a nice time relaxing. The girls let us chat--they sat at a different table and amused themselves. We walked home slowly, taking pictures along the way.

A great first day in Almaty!

Train Ride to Almaty

Saturday 27 - Sunday 28 November 2010

A big OSCE Summit is happening in Astana for a few days this week (1 and 2 December, maybe a few other days too) and the city has basically been shut down. At first it was going to be just for a few days--Tues - Thurs--this week that the city would be closed, schools closed, roads closed--I was told I couldn't even leave my apartment! I wasn't looking forward to this!

Then the government announced a couple weeks ago that the shut-down would last the entire week, Monday - Friday--school closed as well. Well, I didn't go anywhere over Fall Break, so this seemed like an excellent time to get out of Astana!

In the end, I don't think the shut-down is going to be as bad as I'd feared, although I think I live in the "Red District" where there are more restrictions, the main roads are closed for most of the day, and even the mall will be closed for most of the day. But Monday and Friday might not be so bad, and the other side of town has a lot more freedom.

But I'm still glad I took this opportunity to go somewhere!

My friend R, her daughter, my daughter, my co-worker L, and I all got tickets to take the train to Almaty and back. My assistant helped us find an apartment in the center, and last-minute, L met another American who was going to Almaty and needed a place to stay.

So now there are 6 of us in a very nice 2-bedroom (3 rooms with double beds--one's a pull-out couch) apartment in the center of Almaty. Paying about $25 a day for this. Very nice!!

Train tickets are really cheap too--I can't remember how much I paid, but I think it was well under $100 for round-trip tickets for Sophia and me. Because everyone wanted out of Astana, the train was getting booked, so we weren't able to get one whole room for us.

The train ride was 19 hours--it cost twice as much for the 12 hour train, which didn't seem worth it. Waiting for the bus, I was so nervous we'd be late. Bus 12 arrived, which I had thought would take us to the train station, I asked, however--"Vokzal?" and the bus attendant said no. But then he said, "Ya pomagu," which means "I'll help you," and he easily lifted up my huge, heavy suitcase and ushered us on the bus. He wouldn't let us pay, but explained (in Russian) that we would get off at the next bus stop and take 21 to the train station. He helped us get our luggage off, too. He was very nice, as was the bus attendant for bus 21, who confirmed that, yes, this bus goes to the train station, and he helped us with our stuff.

I love how friendly and kind the Kazakh people can be!

So we made it in plenty of time, before our train even! On the train, we were a bit separated--Sophia and I had the top bunks in one room, L and my friend's daughter had the top bunks in the room next to us, but R had a room in the neighboring car! We were hoping someone would be kind enough to switch with R!!!

Her daughter was crying, and I thought this was because she was worried that she wouldn't sleep with her mother. I kept reassuring her--L would go and sleep in the other car, so R could be with her daughter. But it turned out that she was crying because she wanted to sleep with Sophia and was worried that she would have to sleep in the other car with her mother!

The people in L's room said they could not switch places, they had to sleep on the bottom bunks. The people in my room did not show up until the Karaganda stop, so we had several hours with one room to ourselves. We relaxed, had tea and ate. The girls drove us crazy, going up the bunks (and needing help) and then changing their minds and coming down (and needing help) but they were so happy.

R asked a guy in the room next to us if he would switch with her--she explained her situation that her daughter was over here. He very rudely said no, what's the point in switching, she'll be running around anyways?

But at Karaganda, when R asked the guy who had the bunk under me, if he would switch, he said yes without hesitating!

While they were off in the other car making the switch, the other passenger--the one with the ticket to sleep under Sophia--arrived. He had a TON of stuff, perhaps the hugest bag I have ever seen, and he was a large man. I didn't think he would really want to switch and have to sleep on a top bunk. He was settled in by the time R returned, so we didn't bother asking him to switch. It would have been nice to have a room for ourselves!

As awkward as it was to share a room with a strange man, he was perhaps the best cabin-partner you can have. At dinnertime, he took out some chicken to offer to Sophia and her friend. He was very pleasant, let them sit on his bed to eat, smiled at them and talked to Sophia's friend some. If he minded how active and giggly they were, he never let on!

At nighttime, I was starting to fall asleep to the bumps and jolts of the train--I was the top bunk, having given the bottom bunk to Sophia. The top bunks have very tiny rails to prevent you from falling off, so Sophia was sleeping on the bottom. But now I was watching my friend's daughter. She had moved in her sleep and was now so close to the edge.

R came in; she was sleeping now in the room next to us and was worried about her daughter. We considered the different options--how to make sure the girl didn't fall off during the night? We agreed that I would sleep in the other room, and R might try to squeeze into the same bed as her daughter, or just sleep across from her and keep an eye on her.

Then, the man woke up and offered to switch beds with R's daughter!!! This huge man, recently sound asleep, waking up and offering to sleep on the pathetic top bunk so R could feel safer about her daughter! How incredibly kind!

No one slept too well, though, the train rocked quite a bit--L pointed out that were were near where the two cars attached, which must be why it rocked so much. L was next to the bathroom, and drunk guys kept throwing up all night.

But we did sleep, and in the morning the man offered oranges, rolls, and chocolate to the girls to eat. Really, he was so kind after putting up with two giggly girls for so long!! (They woke up early and played for quite some time before the rest of us awoke.)

Finally, we made it to Almaty. We thanked the man as best we could and dragged our lugage off the train.

The men here who offered to help with my luggage weren't just being kind--they were trying to make money! R had to ask how much--500 Tenge per bag--so we had to forcefully say no. Not much longer, a guy pretty much grabbed my large suitcase from me and wouldn't let go. R again had to talk to him--he promised he wouldn't charge much, but no! we said.

We had to go up some steep steps, a woman speaking good English kindly offered a hand then. Going down some steps, a man offered to help--he offered politely, and did not grab, and when we wearily asked if he would charge he laughed and said no, of course not. He helped, we said thanks, and off he went.

Some people are kind, some people are drunk, some people just want money...

Although the train was dirty and it lurched a lot, it still was a good experience. Drinking tea, good conversation... and now we are in Almaty! Former capital of Kazakhstan, a large city situated in the shadows of the mountains!

Karpatt

Saturday, 20 November 2010

So we saw the French band Karpatt last night.
http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karpatt
http://www.myspace.com/karpatt

Over the past two weeks, I've tried unsuccessfully to go to an event sponsored by the Alliance Francaise (they've had several recently), and it was nice to finally make an event.

It was at a fancy German restaurant called Tre Kronor, which is across the street from my apartment building. It started at 8; we arrived at 8:30. I went with Sophia and my friend R and her daughter.

The band was on a small stage, there was a small dance floor in front of them. The dance floor was already getting crowded (with women, no men dancing!) and the tables were all booked. Although it was a bit crowded, there was still plenty of room for us to push our way up front.

The band consists of four members--a drummer, a lead singer/guitarist, another singer and guitarist, and a bass player. They were very lively and very good with the audience. I strained my ears to listen to them when they spoke French, and was pleased that I understood some. The lead singer, Fred, spoke in English, too. An audience member came on-stage to translate what they said into Russian.

They were very good with the audience, sometimes coming onto the dance floor to dance with audience members. The lead singer saw my friend's daughter and improvised a song to her, "I love the little girl in the pink dress."

They had a routine about a fly--the bass player played his bass to sound like a fly while the two guitarists pretended to follow it around the room with their eyes. The lead singer pretended to catch it, debated killing it, and then let it free. The whole thing was synced pretty well, the sound of the fly buzzing corresponding with what the other two were pretending that it was doing.

They also made noises to the beat of the music and had the audience repeat it -- hums and other rhythmic sounds. When they saw the children, they also meowed to the beat and the audience meowed back!

They sang one song in Russian, that they had either written or someone had given them. They also sang the "Champs-Elysees" at the end and really wanted the audience to sing part--but we were pathetic and didn't know the words.

A French boy who looked maybe 12 or 13 years old came onto the dance floor and started doing some amazing footwork--absolutely fantastic. The lead singer saw him and pulled him on stage to dance. At first the boy seemed nervous but then he got into it. It must have been a great experience for him, to dance on stage.

The audience cheered so much that they performed one song for an encore. Then, we kept on cheering and hollering, that instead of a song, he sang a quick ditty in English--telling us where we can buy their CDs and how to find them on the Internet.

Then it was over.

We found the lead singer, Fred, signing autographs; he recognized my friend's daughter as the girl in pink to whom he had sung; and he signed his name on the back of a business card for her. Then Sophia wanted an autograph soon. The girls ended up with 3 autographs each, and they are quite happy with that. And it wasn't until we were in the parking lot, leaving, that I remembered how to say my ABC's in French--I had tried to explain how to spell my friend's daughter's name, but it came out wrong each time.

It was a fantastic evening--great music, a good experience for the kids, and listening to the French language.

I have to visit France again!

Comments on an International School

October 2010

*Every now and then I'm just struck -- awe-struck, in a way-- by the sheer lack of discipline problems I have at this school. Usually, I just go about my business, focusing on teaching and all the issues that come along with that. I start to get frustrated with my workload, the multiple groups I am teaching at multiple levels. And then, I remember: I used to have discipline problems. Last year and for my 4 years teaching at a public school in South Carolina, I had immense discipline issues. So much so that I rarely taught; I felt like my entire teaching life was simply managing discipline. If I could get the kids to not hurt each other or an adult, well, then, my day was a success.Here, though, discipline is not an issue. The kids are good, kind, loving, sweet, and hard-working. I have rules posted in my classroom, but I don't think I've even pointed them out to my students. THAT'S how good they are.

Most of my students WANT to work and WANT to learn. The biggest issues come from the students who speak almost no English. As they learn English, they start to behave. I have one older student with OK English who in America would be diagnosed with ADD. He has some problems, but he is not a disruption. I am more concerned about him academically and socially than I am concerned about how his behavior affects my classroom.


*As this is an international school, so many of my students are from far-away places. I know they are dealing with homesickness, culture shock etc. One 6-year old boy, with almost no English, on his 2nd day here, when his teacher tried to explain to him that he didn't need to change his shoes, crawled into his cubby and started to cry. Poor child--new city, new school, new language.


*I have a Kazakh student who is from another city. His family lives there; he lives in Astana with his tutor (or something like that). He is an older boy, but genuinely excited when his mother comes to visit. During Fall Break, he went home. This is a kid whose parents have enough money to pay the $20,000 a year tuition plus pay for a full-time tutor/nanny and for him to live in another city. What did he do over Fall Break? He collected mushrooms and grazed sheep. What wealthy American kids do that during their free time? What wealthy Americans are that close to the land and our rural roots?


*Other comments on this being an international school: Already we've had to declare our intent for next year--simply, do we plan on returning to this organization? Do we plan on returning to this school? By Dec. we'll have to say for sure and even what grade/subject we will teach! (Although that could change.) I know for sure that I'll be back, but others aren't too sure--for those teachers who have never taught abroad before, the first few months have tough and they're not sure if by the end of the year they'll be loving it or ready to high-tail it out of here.

Me, my main dilemma is whether or not I want IE (Intensive English) again. My other choice would be 4th grade. I love teaching IE, but with so many levels, it's a headache. Once our school gets bigger, we could probably get another elementary IE teacher, and I could focus on the beginners, the other teachers on the intermediate students. But for now, it's just me. Last year, there was no one, so the other teachers are quite happy to have me! Last year, the low-to-non-English speakers went down a grade or two for English class, and had an hour of Intensive English (with a local assistant) during the foreign language.


*Also, we just ordered our supplies for next year! Again, how hard it is to know now what we'll want for next year! Esp. since I'm also teaching 6th grade math--I know which supplies would have been useful to have for the units I've taught already, but I have no idea what I'll be needing later in the year! Oh well. I ordered some things to teach decimal place value with; last year, teaching 5th grade math, that was the hardest concept for the students to get. This year, too, so that's something I'm sure is needed.

I also ordered a ton of books, since the IE classroom doesn't have any books, since there wasn't an IE classroom next year. The principal let me order well over my limit, since he knew I needed the books so badly. So it would be nice to have IE next year and to use all those books!

Dinner & Movie

Saturday, 16? October 2010

The librarian invited Sophia, me, and a few other teachers over for dinner and a movie on Saturday night. Her husband picked some of us up; a few teachers walked. Yes, it took them 45 minutes (and they walk fast). I am a bit jealous. I wouldn't mind walking that far, but I know Sophia would.

The librarian is a fascinating person; she is Belgian and was born in Africa. Her husband is American and works for the US Embassy. Together, they have traveled much of the world. They have two teenaged daughters and next year they plan on retiring to Colorado.

Their home is amazing. Sheerly amazing. They live in the same complex as the principal and his wife, and it's nice because the buildings form a circle of sort, with playgrounds, mini parks, and walkways in between the buildings, and mini-marts too. A sort of micro-c0mmunity.

She lives on the 4th and 5th floors--a 2-story apartment. Her first floor is bigger than my place.

They have an entrance way, with a spiral staircase leading to the second floor. They have a kitchen that opens to a a breakfast-nook-type area that opens to the dining room and living room. The windows in the living room overlook the river and the entire new-downtown of the city. All the while facing west, so you can watch the sun set over the city. Perhaps the best view in all of Astana.

Also on their first floor is the formal dining room (currently being used as a storage room) and their daughters' very large bedrooms. Upstairs there is the study, with a small gym in the back, and the master bedroom. As well as the perhaps the best room in the apartment--the cinema. The cinema room contains a large screen for watching movies, plus several large, comfortable chairs and sofas. A bookcase stands in the middle of the room, effectively dividing it into two parts--the cinema in front and the music room in back. The music room contains guitars and other equipment for playing music. A door leads to the sauna.

Yeah, a nice home.

We ate dinner--homemade chili--and dessert, including a yummy grapefruit-like fruit. Then the adults moved to the cinema room while the children stayed downstairs to watch a child-friendly movie on the normal-sized TV.

We watched "The Emperor's Club", a movie starring Kevin Kline as a teacher at a super-wealthy, elite school. The movie excels in its nuances. Nothing dramatic happens, no one dies or is fired. Kevin Kline does not change the life of the slightly-troubled boy he meets. A teacher's life rarely has amazing defining moments, but rather small, nuanced ones. A teacher's career contains successes as well as failures.

Of course, the story of a teacher trying to reach an unhappy student is a great movie for teachers to watch, and afterwards we had a great conversation. The topic changed to other topics in education, and pretty much everyone who had recently taught in the US had horror stories about teaching in the US.

We stayed up very late, but it was a wonderful evening; it was great to have intelligent conversation. And Sophia had a good time too.

Fall Festival, 15 October 2010

Halloween!

Our school has a high percentage of kids from Western cultures, most of them homesick. Most of the staff is Canadian or American. And many of the non-Western kids have heard about Halloween and think it's a great holiday. So, we couldn't quite ignore Halloween, could we?

We did what schools in the US, who are concerned about being politically correct and culturally sensitive, do. We had a Fall Festival.

Our Fall Festival was on Friday, 15 October 2010, from 6 to 8 pm, and was "open" to the public. That is, we didn't invite massive amounts of strangers, but we did let others know about the event. (I'm not sure how, I was told that other foreigners were told about this and allowed to take their children here, and that they were grateful for the chance to celebrate Halloween.)

This is the school's first year with a gym and auditorium, and so everyone was excited that the Fall Festival could be celebrated there, and not in the teachers' individual classrooms. Teachers had to come up with an activity. Tables and chairs were provided.

My activity was the "Mummy Wrap." I'll be forever grateful to the parent who, 4 years ago, hosted a Halloween party in my classroom in the US. She found this game on the Internet, and it has proven to be a great success. It's so simple: get tons of rolls of white toilet paper. Put students in pairs. One child has to wrap his partner up as a mummy. Whoever finishes first, wins. Children LOVE this.

I requested that my students bring in rolls of white toilet paper, finding it a bit funny that I had to specify color. The cheap toilet paper here is brown. The not-so-cheap toilet paper comes in a multitude of colors, including white.

I set up my booth (meaning, I taped the sign that the children had helped me make, and I brought out the rolls of toilet paper) and waited for the evening to get started.

I had plenty of candy to pass out, as all the parents had been asked to bring in one kilo of candy. In Astana, there is no shortage of shops that sell candies by the kilo.

The gym soon became crowded and noisy. Adults and children were dressed in various costumes. Kazakh seemed to be a popular costume for non-Kazakhs. (Think about it--what's a good costume that you can find last-minute in a city that doesn't celebrate Halloween and thus doesn't have many costumes for sale at this time of year? A Kazakh dress!) I dressed as an Indian (from India), thanks to my Indian assistant, who dressed as a Kazakh. Sophia wore the Kazakh dress that I bought for her last year.

There were mummies, vampires, witches, princesses, fairies, Darth Vader... everything you'd expect to find at a traditional American Halloween celebration. Dozens of nationalities were represented at this event, everyone clearly happy and excited. Two American teachers had spend the afternoon getting their costumes ready, creating theirs from scratch, using cardboard and other items. The pre-school teacher dressed as Khan Shatyr, the big tent-like mall. His wife dressed as Beyterek, the tall tower with a golden sphere at its top. Their son dressed as the tall building known as the "lighter building" due to its uncanny resemblance to a cigarette lighter. Their costumes were very cute, funny, and original. And proof that you don't need to buy your costume or have brought yours from America to have an awesome costume!

The vice principal and his wife, Sophia's teacher, came dressed as each other. The v.p. even shaved his beard so he could look like his wife, and his wife painted a beard on her face. They looked awesome.

My friend R. and her daughter came. She was tired form a long work week, but her daughter was clearly excited to celebrate Halloween. We hardly saw her and Sophia all evening, and whenever we did, they were having a blast and getting a LOT of candy.

The Mummy Wrap was a lot of fun. I gave up making it a contest, kids just wrapped each other up for fun (and candy). They soon discovered that playing with the used toilet paper (after someone had become a mummy, they tore the toilet paper off) was just as much fun as wrapping someone up. I started to create a new game--who can collect the most toilet paper?--because the toilet paper was spreading across the entire gym! What a mess!

But then I talked to the principal, who waved away my concerns about the mess. Toilet paper is relatively easy to clean (that is, clean toilet paper--it's not sticky or messy or anything) and he had already arranged to have cleaners clean the entire gym the next day. All I needed to worry about, he said, was stuff that was mine. Don't worry about cleaning, at all.

What a relief!

So I let the kids play and soon it was a free-for-all in my little corner of the gym, children and some adults throwing toilet paper around, making piles of toilet paper and diving in, burying each other in toilet paper. All the while some children continued to make each other into mummies and get candy.

I talked to some parents about their kids. They seemed really happy with this school so far, how their kid was doing, how their kid was feeling. My general impression about this school is that the kids are happy, and that most parents who work and live far from their native home are most concerned with how happy their child is at school. And--surprise, surprise!--happy children learn better than unhappy children.

And teachers in such an environment--where the happiness of children and staff is a priority--are better teachers. I really know my children and feel confident talking to the parents.

At 8 pm, we left. The gym was a mess, Sophia and her friend were excited and overloaded with candy, and we grown-ups were ready to go home!

A great Halloween!!

Kazakh-American Wedding -- Part 2 -- Food!

Dinner was a buffet, full of interesting items, I took a lot to try them and relied on the pre-school teacher to try all of the food. He has an amazing appetite and always tries everything whenever we go places.

I ate something that made me feel sick as I ate it, it probably was pure fat and I shouldn't have eaten it. I didn't try the tongue, though. (There was tongue!) I liked the salad with cheese, olives, cucumbers, and tomatoes and some kind of yummy light sauce. That went quickly. I also liked the fruit--cut into amazing designs. Would you like an apple sliced and designed to look like a swan? It was yummy! There were plenty of foods that I'll categorize as "dumplings"--dough or bread surrounding meat or veggies or something on the inside. Something had caviar on the inside. (I didn't try it, sorry, I'm a picky eater!) There was this large, super-thin, hard & crispy, honey-glazed bread that was definitely delicious (and a bit sticky!)

There was even more food after that, plus two pies for desert, but I was pretty full!

After most people had eaten, the toasts began. I learned last year that Kazakhs love to give speeches, and so of course at a wedding there were speeches. The bride's family had come in from Shymkent (very far from Astana, in the southern part of Kazakhstan). Her grandmother, father, mother and aunt all gave speeches, as well the the school principal. Her grandmother was a typical Kazakh babushka, short, her hair covered by a scarf, and lecturing the bride in the firm yet loving way that grandmas do.

After the speeches, the 1st grade teacher and her assistant had a Newlywed Game prepared. The shortest married couple, the longest married couple, and one couple that volunteered all participated. She asked multiple-choice questions, they answered without telling their spouse, and then the answers were compared. It was a three-way tie.

Afterwards, we moved downstairs for cake, bouquet-tossing, and dancing.

The pre-school aide is from India and majored in Indian dance; she presented quite a show, an amazing dance. She is so expressive and beautiful, the dance was lovely.

It was an amazing evening, an American-style Kazakh wedding.

Kazakh-American Wedding -- Part 1

Wedding Reception, Sunday, 10 October 2010

In August, our school's "registrar" (like a secretary) announced that she was getting married. To an American. In October. And MOVING TO HAWAII.

So it's safe to say that most of the school is jealous.

My assistant, however, had a different reaction than me. "Hawaii?!" she said. "It's dangerous!" And she was being serious. Hawaii has volcanoes, earthquakes, tsunamis...

The wedding was at a small Christian church (she had converted to Christianity), but I missed it because I was sick. The next week was the reception.

I, like many others, did not bring any dresses to Kazakhstan. Last year, luckily, Sophia had had a nice dress, which she wore for many occasions, but she's outgrown it. So we raced to find us fancy dresses. There's no shortage of neat dresses around here, but it's difficult to find anything for cheap!

Sophia picked out her dress, it's two pieces and fits her well. It's pink, the skirt is long and flowing, very much has a princess feel to it. The material is more summer-y than winter-y, but she shall wear it for Christmas anyways! I found a long-sleeved white shirt in a nice material that looks good underneath it, so she can stay warm.

I found a tan-colored dress that I can't describe really well, but it fit me well, and looked very nice and had sleeves just past my elbows, so it should work for Christmas and other occasions as needed.

We found the restaurant easily on a map, but before we could go there, we had to trek to the school (okay, only a 10-minute trek, but out of the way!) where we'd unfortunately left our dress shoes. Then back to the bus stop, where we waited for 20 minutes in unbearable heat! Sophia and I each have 2 styles of coats--light spring jackets and warm winter coats. So we had on our warm winter coats and were burning! Sophia wouldn't take hers off or even unzip hers, because she wasn't wearing her long skirt--just her fancy top and short shorts over tights.

Some teenagers who spoke English started talking to us, everyone always seems eager to try their English with us. They said that their high school would be celebrating Halloween, they were very excited for that.

Then we got on the bus and went to the reception.

The bride was standing outside the restaurant, talking to relatives, in a gorgeous wedding dress. The dress was American-style, but the tall white hat was Kazakh.

We went inside, and quickly to the bathroom to put Sophia's skirt on, and then checked our coats. There was a downstairs and an upstairs, so up we went and found seats at a table. We were next to the kids' table, but Sophia preferred to sit with me.

We sat at a table with two other American teachers from our school (a couple with two kids), the librarian/French teacher and her American Embassy husband (fascinating couple!), a French woman whose kids attend the school, the Russian art teacher, and the Kazakh accountant.

Birthday Party

Saturday, 9 October 2010

There are only 6 girls in Sophia's class, and so when we got the invitation to a birthday party, I knew we should attend. I discovered that it was located not far from our house, and so Saturday afternoon we went.

I was going to drop her off, but she wanted me to stay. I was going to leave after a bit, but I ended up staying the whole time. Here's why:

First, the birthday girl's father offered me some tea. It had been a busy day, so I accepted, sat down and relaxed.

Then, another teacher (who has a child in Sophia's class) showed up. She, too, had been planning on leaving, but she too had had a busy day and welcomed the opportunity to sit and relax with a cup of tea.

Before we knew it, we were ushered to another table and presented with plenty of delicious food as well as champagne. Why not stay?

The party was located in a restaurant that had signs on it labeling it as "music" and "karakoe". Inside it was decorated with festive balloons for the party. Two "pirates" led the party. They were pretty enthusiastic, and also obliging when they learned that some of the party guests did not speak Russian. We heard "one two three!" in Russian, Kazakh, and English.

One adorable little 1st grade girl recognized me and clung to me when the pirates arrived, saying she was scared of the pirates although she did find them quite funny. A short while later, after talking to this girl, the birthday girl's mother came to me and asked me how it is that this girl speaks Russian. I tried to explain that the girl's mother is Uzbek, but she was still confused. Finally, she realized that I am not this girl's mother. We just look alike, and she was clinging to me, but no, this child is not mine, and speaks Russian way too well to be mine!

As the pirates led singing, dancing, games, and, later, pizza and cake, we grown-ups sat and chatted. The birthday girl's father has lived in many different places, including Georgia (the country). He was a jovial, nice man, quite happy to have us here; his wife was very friendly and very relieved that people had shown up for her daughter's party. There were about a dozen kids there, only one boy; but they had been worried that no one would show up.

The food was very good, I had salad similar to that at the wedding. Then I had the absolutely best dessert I have ever had. The closest thing I can compare it to is applesauce, but that does this dessert no justice. There were soft apples on the bottom, and some kind of whipped cream sauce on the top but this dessert was so much more sumptuous than "applesauce with whipped cream". The apples were soft and sweet, a dessert in themselves, the whipped cream light and creamy. The other teacher and I agreed, this was the best dessert ever, whatever it was!!

They sent us home with extra desserts (beautiful little cakes that turned out to be some kind of sugary gelatinous something or other---delicious!) It was a great day, Sophia had a blast, I had a relaxing, delicious time.

Getting Sick

Over 2 weeks, end of September and beginning of October 2010. Ugh :(

Last year I NEVER got sick. I was pretty amazed--I mean, traveling to a new country, new school, drinking tap water (which locals never do! and foreigners are advised against!), working with kids who were getting sick all the time, under a lot of stress, single mom on my own for the first time, way-worse-than-freezing-cold weather.... You'd think that was a prime time for me to get sick! But I didn't. Except for a few times at the beginning, neither did Sophia.

Maybe it was all the juice I drank (I drank a lot... but I still do!) Maybe it was something in the water (ha, ha, I doubt it!) Maybe it was the Kazakh custom of everyone wearing masks when they think they might be sick (not sure if that works, because at least half the sick people don't wear their masks all the time, and sick kids are kids, pretty germy & good at spreading germs whether or not they're wearing masks). Maybe it was the Kazakh custom of keeping kids home for 10 days when they're sick. (Except... I can't believe that's the reason! You're most contagious before you really know you're sick, aren't you?)

Whatever the reason, I had a super-healthy year last year and fully expected another one.

When I got here, I got a runny nose & used up all my Mucinex-D, the medicine that works best for me on runny noses. I hadn't brought a lot.

Then, towards the end of September, I got an upset stomach. It came and went for a few days; one day I almost called in sick, but made it to work just half an hour late. Since we show up at 8 am, and the elementary classes don't start until 9 am, showing up a bit late was no problem.

Another teacher had a really bad stomach bug, so I was guessing I had something like him.

Monday, 27 September, my stomach felt fine but my throat felt like it was on fire, like it's never felt before. During the course of the morning it got better and I thought that this was the end!

Then Tuesday, I had to call in sick. I could barely leave my bed, and when I made it to the bathroom, I could barely leave the bathroom.

Always feeling guilty about calling in sick, when I started to feel better, I slowly got ready and Sophia and I went to school around noon. We could have stayed home and played the Wii, my important classes were already over, but I felt like I had to go into work.

At all previous schools I've worked at, I've felt guilty at calling in sick, and guilty that I wasn't sick enough. I felt pressure to go in, or to prove that I'm really sick. In South Carolina, of course, I had only so many sick days, so this was definitely a motivation to come in!

But here, when I showed up, other teachers & even the vice principal & principal were surprised. "You should have stayed home and gotten better!" was the universal reaction. They understood when I said I'd feel guilty staying at home, playing the Wii with Sophia, however, they said it'd be best for me to rest.

I've never gotten such a reaction. It makes sense, though, to rest thoroughly when you're sick so you can get better. But I've never worked for people who had that attitude towards their employees.

It was an awful rest of the day, as I didn't have a break (staff meeting after school!) and I had so many pieces to pick up from having missed the morning. I should have stayed home.

This sickness lasted like this--up and down--for over another week. But I didn't have to call in sick again. It slowly turned more into a runny nose and a mucus-filled throat, which was absolutely awful, and how I missed my Mucinex-D! But I waited it out, and eventually got my voice back so that I could sing with my students.

It went around the school and a lot of people got it. Sophia got sick for one day, towards the end of October. Not sure if it was the same thing.

Here's hoping, however, that that was my only time being sick this year!!

Brazilian Singer & Super-Friendly Kazakhs

Friday Night, September 2010


The librarian at our school had informed us of a Brazilian singer coming to sing at the Pyramid--a free concert of Brazilian music! Sounds like fun! Once I learned for sure that it was at the Pyramid--not far from my former school--I was sure I could get there, although I knew it would take a while. Via bus and foot, my former school is roughly an hour away. Via car, it's much, much closer.

Another teacher, L., and I met up to take Bus 35 from in front of Mega (the mall). The accountant at our school (a local) had given us bus directions, which matched what I probably would have figured out on my own, but it's nice to have extra assurance that you're doing it correctly.

Bus 35 takes a long, ambling route through the new downtown, which is not nice if you want to get somewhere in a short amount of time, but it is nice if the sun is out and you want to enjoy the sights. So we decided to enjoy the sights of the amazing architecture of downtown Astana.

We got off in front of the Ministry buildings and waited for Bus 41. (Or was it 40? Now I forget which one it was.) We took this one until we saw the Pyramid, then we got off. We then noticed that the bus turned right and stopped directly in front of the Pyramid, whereas we now had a short walk to the Pyramid. Oh, well. Living in a foreign country you learn to smile and make most of mini road-bumps.

We were barely on time for the concert, and inside the Pyramid we noticed that many people were rather dressed up. We were wearing jeans.

On the basement level of the Pyramid is a theater, this is where we went. It was getting rather crowded, but eventually we found 3 seats in a row. We noticed that we were near Mr & Mrs L, two other teachers from our school. I noticed one of my favorite students from last year sitting a few rows in front of us.

The concert was a Brazilian singer, a middle-aged woman with an amazing voice, singing, well, songs that are fit for Lite Radio, songs somewhat reminiscent of Frances Cabrel and other calm, romantic French music. Her voice was amazing, strong and passionate, but the music was not the sexy Latin music we had been expecting. Sophia, especially, quickly became bored.

She first sang the Brazilian national anthem, and then she had the musicians play the Kazakh national anthem. She didn't know the words, but beckoned for every in the audience to sing. This was funny--because, nobody in the audience seemed to know the words! Sophia & I knew just as much as everyone else! Last year, everyone in our school had sung it at the assemblies on Monday and Friday mornings. So it was quite funny to realize how few people actually know the anthem.

Between songs, she spoke in Portuguese, and waited for a reluctant translator to translate into Russian. The translator seemed to be rather unsure of his translating abilities.

After a while, Sophia was antsy and so we decided to leave. However, the usher guarding the door wouldn't let us out! Several other people tried to leave, too, and she wouldn't let them out either, so we ended up sitting on the stairs and milling around the exit door, getting rather frustrated. Finally, someone discovered that if we climbed over some chairs, we could get out another door. So a large amount of people left that way. Not sure why we couldn't go out the door closest to us?

We milled around the lobby for a while. I saw my former student, he ran up to me and said, "Hello, Miss Elizabeth!" and then when I said something to him, he mumbled in Russian that he had forgotten all his English. Oh well.

We met up with the two other teachers who were there, and decided to figure out a bus home. If the buses in front of the Pyramid do a U-turn at the end of the road, as they did last year, then I felt confident that I could get us back. If they did not, and continued on in that direction, well, then, I wouldn't be so sure...

In the end we took Bus 40, which did U-turn, but did not turn back towards the new downtown and the Ministry Buildings, where we expected to get Bus 35. However, pretty quickly, everyone on the crowded bus figured out that we were foreigners trying to find our way to Mega (everyone knows that mall). Soon everyone was offering advice and ideas, in limited English and with tons of gestures. The decided-upon advice was the same idea I had come up with: Get off at Momyshuly Street and catch Bus 35 from there.

Several passengers and the attendant made sure that we got off at this stop, and that we knew exactly where to go to get to Bus 35's stop. We thanked them profusely, and got off--pretty close to where I used to live.

As we were walked towards the next bus stop (just across the street, really), a young man who had been on the bus with us came up to us. He spoke English better than most Kazakhs (not very well, but good enough for communicating without using gestures) and was eager to help us find our bus stop.

He was taking Bus 35, also, and so he walked with us to the stop, and rode the bus with us, eagerly talking to us during the whole trip.

Finally, we reached our stop, said good-bye to the friendly man, and returned home!

Quite pleased with the hospitality and kindness of Kazakhs towards strangers.

Metro - the Sam's Club of Kazakhstan

Another Saturday in September, 2010

Sometime last year, Metro opened in Astana. When I first heard people talking about it, I thought hopefully that this meant a subway system. Nope, it's a German-run discount, bulk, need-a-card supermarket store, kind of akin to a Sam's Club or Costco.

My brother and I researched it on-line, as all good nerds do, and learned that to get a card, you need a Tax ID number (which I had) and some other business-stuff (which I didn't have). Like good nerds, we decided not to go to Metro because we couldn't get a card.

This year, I learned that this is Kazakhstan, and you don't really need that stuff to get a card there.

My Kazakh friend R. offered to take me one Saturday (it's rather far away, located more on the steppe than in the city) and so of course I agreed.

She had a card, so I never bothered to figure out if I could get one.

Metro is huge and not entirely impressive. Not as much bulk items as I would have expected, and the prices didn't seem to be much cheaper than at regular stores. It did have a larger selection than most stores I've been to. It even had looseleaf, lined-paper! Something that is virtually impossible to find here, so I bought some.

It also had a ton of spices, with ENGLISH on them, I had fun looking at all of them, and ending up buying a huge jar of the French spice Herbes de Provence, which R. and I split.

In the frozen section, I found something that I had yet to find in Kazakhstan: frozen chicken nuggets. Fish nuggets are very popular, chicken nuggets seem to be unheard of. But here they were. I bought 4 packets. They were rather small, later I came to wish I'd bought every single one that the store had. I also bought a 2.5 kg bag of frozen broccoli---broccoli is the only vegetable Sophia eats. It had the frozen pizza that I buy for her (just sauce, nothing on it--have yet to see frozen plain cheese pizza!) and in the cheese section I bought some sliced Edam cheese, which took me less than 3 days to finish.

Overall, a good shopping experience. I bought a lot. Metro isn't entirely amazing, but it has a slightly better selection of things Americans like, and prices weren't bad. But it's so far away, I just have to rely on hitching a ride with someone who's driving there.

Learning to Cook Plov

Some Saturday in September, 2010

My Kazakh friend R. offered to cook for me, and so one Saturday we had a nice long, relaxing day. First, we went to Mega, the mall near my home, with the kids. We instantly got side-tracked by a music-etc. store. I wanted to see how much a Wii cost here, since I had gone to the trouble of bringing a Wii from the US. I forget how much, but around $400. My parents later assured me that they had spent far less on my Wii! So perhaps worth it to bring it from the States?

(Side note--the American Wii power supply does NOT work in Kazakhstan, even with a converter. We had to wait over a month for my dad to order and then ship me a power supply that will work here. Now our Wii works great.)

Then we looked at CDs, and soon we were browsing the traditional Kazakh music section, where CDs are rather cheap (between 400 and 1000 Tenge---$2.70 and $6.70). Rabiga helped me pick out 3 CDs and then got some for herself, plus a karaoke DVD of Russian children's songs.

Finally, we made it to Ramstore, where we shopped for vegetables etc. R. was surprised to learn that I cook so rarely that I don't have onions at home, we had to buy some. Then I surprised her when I said I needed to buy flour, so I cook cook desert. She pointed to a tiny pack of flour, but I said I needed much more flour that that! Really? She rarely uses flour.

We walked home and the kids put on a DVD in Russian (Disney's "Atlantis") while we cooked. Okay, I watched and R. cooked.

Plov is a traditional Uzbek dish. And VERY easy to cook.

The main ingredients are rice, meat, and vegetables.

R. first soaked the rice in water to soften it and then we set about to cutting up the vegetables. She took out a huge, orange-ish vegetable, which I assumed was a yam. I told her what it was and surprised her. It was a carrot. I have never seen a carrot so huge before.

In a large pot, we heated some oil, then we poured in the vegetables, the already-cut-up beef, and some salt. We let it cook for about 20 - 30 minutes and then we poured in the rice and some water. R. added more salt, tasting the water to see if it was okay. We let it simmer for another 20 minutes and then we had plov.

Really simple and kind of fool-proof, since we had the pot on the wrong burner for quite some time, and so we really didn't heat up the oil as we were supposed to. It tasted really good, although of course Sophia didn't like it and R.'s daughter only picked at hers. And it refrigerates well, so I had dinner pre-made for the next couple nights.

And it's something that you can mix up and change to your taste--change the kind of meat, change the vegetables, add different spices.

Yummy!

Then, I made chocolate muffins, from a recipe I found on the Internet. Whereas R. made hers from memory, not even using measuring cups, I followed the recipes correctly, measuring everything precisely. R.'s daugher had never seen an electric mixer before and was enamored by its use.

The muffins turned out delicious, warm and moist. We listened to the Russian's children DVD and R. and her daughter sang some Russian songs. (I tried.)

In the end, we spent about 8 hours together, shopping, cooking, eating (and drinking a little Georgian wine).

A good evening which gave me enough courage to consider maybe making plov again, maybe learning a new recipe!

Constitution Day

Monday, 30 August 2010

Today was Constitution Day, and thus no school. I had heard that there was to be a parade, and so a coworker and I decided to go with my Kazakh friend R. and her daughter. It would be near the Pyramid, and so I thought that trying to get there by car would be best.

The parade was to start at 11:00 am, we left a little after 10 am. And never made it.

The road was blocked due the parade, and we couldn't even cross the river to get close to the pyramid. We drove around for quite some time before finally parking the car by Beyterek Tower (nowhere near the Pyramid) in order to walk to the parade. The weather was in the mid 30's (90s Celsius) and the sun was VERY bright. Astana is mostly a cloudless place.

We made it onto one of the huge bridges that cross the river, and there, under the gleaming of the bright sun, we watched the jet show. Jet planes flew in formation, maneuvering and circling as they flew quite fast. They set off fireworks or something like that as their grand finale. Rather impressive.

We continued to walk across the bridge, towards the bank with the Pyramid; although, as other people kept walking back across the bridge, we began to wonder if we were too late. Finally, after asking a few people, we learned that the parade was indeed over.

At this point, however, everyone who had been to the parade seemed to be crossing the bridge, and so we decided to sit in a bit of shade and wait for the crowd to pass. The girls were hot and tired, and this was a very good idea. When we finally started walking again, it was still crowded, and R.'s daughter soon became lost in the crowd.

My coworker and Sophia ran ahead to look for her, R. ran backwards, and I stayed in the middle. After several minutes of nervousness, I saw my coworker, Sophia, and R.'s daughter. I ran back to tell R., while calling her on her phone. She passed by me in a police car. She had realized that it would be rather futile to search the entire crowd alone, and so had enlisted the help of a police officer. There were quite a few around, dealing with the crowds.

It is nice to know that, as intimidating as foreign cops can be, that they are there to help.

When we got off the bridge, we took another break in the shade, near the Ministry buildings. Then, walking back to Beyterek and the car, we passed by Arman, the restaurant that caters the food to our school. The principal had taken the new teachers there on the day that I had had off (to sleep off jet lag), and my coworker said it was really good. So we went in, and luckily they served pizza as well, so Sophia was able to eat.

R., my coworker & I all ate the first dish that we saw--something like noodles with meat. R. explained how they make the noodles, they really aren't noodles, they're made differently, from dough, and are really good.

After that, R. drove us home. I had been planning on going into the school to do some work, but the hot sun and walking had gotten to me. I was exhausted.

But it was a wonderful day, even though we didn't get to see the parade. Spending time with friends and seeing just how beautiful Astana can be in the summertime.

Back to Church!

Sunday, 21 & 28 August, and 5 September 2010

It was wonderful returning to church and seeing familiar faces. When we left in early June, the Mother Teresa nuns had already left the country, sorting out visa issues, and it was unclear when they would be able to return. The day we left Astana, Sophia's teacher and another teacher, also parishioners, also left the country, never to return. A week or two after we left, the other teachers who attended the English-language Mass also left the country.

As the nuns slowly left, we learned just how much work is put into making a Mass nice. Who decides who will do the readings? Who picks out the songs? Who sings in a loud, clear voice? Who decides when to start singing?

Our singing was falting and somewhat awful. Mass started late just so we could work out, in a last-minute whispering frenzy, who would do what reading and what songs we would sing. We stopped singing the Gloria and the Christe, Eleison, among others.

But, it wasn't so bad. I learned to show up early for church. Sophia's teacher and another Filipino teacher--who has an amazing voice--sorted through the hymnal and picked out and led songs.

Then we all left, leaving much of the details up to the the altar boy's Ukrainian, non-Catholic mother (she's Russian Orthodox, which is similar, at least).

Sometime during the summer, the altar boy's family left for vacation.

On the same day, we all returned--3 Filipino teachers, including the one with the amazing voice; Sophia & I; and the altar boy and his family. Not the nuns, not the teachers who hadn't planned on returning, but still, that's 9 people added to a rather tiny group of people. Including singers and people who know the routine.

When the priest looked out before Mass began, he broke into a wide grin and couldn't stop smiling all during Mass. He was clearly happy.

He told us that the nuns were due to return next week.

After Mass, I hugged and gossiped with my former co-workers, the Filipinos who have returned to work at my former school. We were all so happy to see one another.

The next week, the nuns were back, and the singing was even better, crystal voices in the still air of the large, open church. The nuns were happy to see everyone, too.

The week after that, they added a piece to our small service--the procession that brings the offering to the altar. Our congregation had been too small, this piece had been left out up until now.

Sophia would lead the procession, carrying a candle. Before Mass, we practiced, and she became terrified. If there is a shy gene, then I've passed it onto her. She flew from the church, crying, and hid in a corner by the big entrance doors. A nun saw her and came up and offered words of advice--it's okay if she chooses not to participate; this procession is for Jesus Christ.

Sophia calmed down, we re-entered the church, and when it came time to do the procession, she was willing to do it. I walked next to her as she slowly carried the candle down the aisle, others followed with bread and wine and other offerings. Everyone was pleased that she had chosen to participate.

Hopefully soon we'll be able to get her in preparations for Reconciliation and First Communion, I have to talk to the nuns, I think one will be able to give her private lessons, since she is the only English-speaking child of age.

After Mass, we passed on a present for one of the Filipino teachers--a bottle of maple syrup, that he had requested from America. He was thrilled. We had already given our other present-from-America to the other teachers.

Earlier that week, Marilyn & Emily had come to our apartment--a full hour away, by bus and foot--to borrow our modem, as I had let them know that I now have an extra one. The teacher who lived here last year had bought one and left in the apartment, as his new apartment already has one. Well, no use in me keeping two modems and only using one! So I let the other teachers know that I had an extra modem to lend. Marilyn & Emily were thrilled, since modems cost about $50.

They came over and I gave them the modem plus the American presents--lotion from Bath & Body Works. (per request)

They told me that when they had told the vice principal that they were coming to me to get the modem, he had grown suspicious and asked, "Is it the school's modem?" Thinking that perhaps I had "stolen" a modem bought for me by the school.

No, they assured him, I had used my own money for this modem.

They were happy to see my place and we were happy to talk, but it was getting late and they had an hour return journey!

Astana's a small city but it can take quite some time to travel via bus.

But it's great to see familiar faces, to feel welcome. It's good returning to a city.

Khan Shatyr, the Palace of the King

Saturday, 28 August 2010

Khan Shatyr is Kazakh for Palace of the King, and it has been in the process of being built for several years now. My Lonely Planet puts its opening date in 2008, but it was not completed until this past summer and had a grand opening in July.

Khan Shatyr is, basically, a tent. A massive, leaning tent which contains a massive shopping mall. Another shopping mall for Astana.

Khan Shatyr is a big deal because it will maintain a consistent pleasant temperature all throughout the year, maybe 15 to 20 degrees Celsius. Even in the coldest of winter.

It was supposed to be like a mini-city, complete with parks, and contain the 4 seasons. Instead, it's just a big, extravagant shopping mall.

My friend & I were not impressed. My daughter and her daughter were.

Khan Shatyr has 6 floors. The bottom floor (basement) has a large supermarket, Green; there is a Green near Artyom where I once found tortillas for Sophia. There are some other stores on the bottom floor.

The first floor (or 2nd, depending on how you're counting them) has a large, open area in the middle. When we came on Saturday, a band was playing hip-hop music and dancing to it. They looked like your average scrawny, punk-ish, hip-hop-ish American boys. Except they were Russian and singing in Russian and actually the dancing was pretty amazing. (Break-dancing)

Behind them was a large pole leading up to the top, attached to the pole was an amusement-park-style ride, where people were sitting and the ride went up, halfway to the top of the building, and then the ride free-fell down. Up and down it went, sometimes going down slowly, sometimes as fast as you would if you were falling; sometimes going all the way down, sometimes going only halfway down. The people on it raised their hands or clung to the safety bars, squealing. Sophia, of course, wanted to ride (we didn't).

We could see all the way to the top, the funky leaning-tent ceiling, and partially outside, as the outer material is some kind of near-see-through material, supposedly good for maintaining a good climate inside.

The levels immediately above us seemed to contain shops, above that, we could not see. On one of the top levels there was another ride--like a roller coaster, but not fast or scary, just a roller coaster-like set of cars that went around some track, circling the 5th floor, way above the ground. Interesting. Perhaps dangerous, I'm not sure what the safety standards for rides are in Kazakhstan.

There were lots of plants, perhaps trying to give the place a park-like feel. (Fail)

The 2nd & maybe the 3rd levels had shops (I can't remember the floors exactly). Then came the level with food and some games for kids. The usual video games, Chucky-Cheese-like stuff, and.. bumper cars, and some amusement-park rides. Wow. We also saw a "Krusty Krab's" fast food restaurant--the restaurant from Sponge Bob Squarepants!!

We went up and there was a water ride. Kind of like the log ride, where you and one other person get in a log and then go around in water on various turns and sorts, and then go down really fast and splash and get wet. Sophia and her friend had plenty of fun watching the ride.

Then we found the entrance to the beach and spa. This was one floor above us, but to get up you had to pay or have a membership. Another teacher had been given a tour of the beach when he inquired about a membership, so I told my friend that that's what we would do.

The woman working there recognized us from the dancing lessons we'd attended last year. How nice!

The price list sheet was in Russian and the prices all had too many zeros on them for me to figure much out. 8000 Tenge ($54) for one day at the "beach", 4000 Tenge for a child. Membership for a year cost 400,000 Tenge ($2714). That's almost half a million Tenge for a membership!! Which includes the spa, but still!!!

So we asked about a membership and were given a tour. We got in the elevator and went up.

Upon exiting the elevator, there were two "beaches". Which looked like shallow and not-too-large pools surrounded by sand. There were a few people wandering around in skimpy bathing suits or robes.

One of things I like least about the beach is the sand. So why pay 8000 Tenge for sand plus a pool?

There were some water slides at one pool; later, one of my students would come here and then draw a picture of himself rather happy on the slide. There were waiters and food, and a spa somewhere.

But seriously. 8000 Tenge for one day. I'd pay close to $100 just for Sophia and I to go to a pool with sand. The pool that my friend had taken us to last year cost about 500 Tenge a person. And it was much nicer. Maybe the water slide wasn't as fancy, maybe it wasn't as warm, maybe there was no restaurant. But a nice 3-foot deep pool with a slide, a wading area for young children, a hot tub, and an Olympic-sized pool that was at least 12 feet deep on the shallowest end, with high-diving boards. Much better than what Khan Shatyr had to offer.

The Palace of the King... Maybe I'll come to like it in the winter, but seeing as it's a 20-minute walk, and in the winter nothing is worth 20 minutes in hellish-ly freezing cold, then maybe not.

(This picture is of the inside of Khan Shatyr, taking around Christmas-time)