Kazakhstan

NEW YEAR!

Welcome to 2005. seems like ive been here forever. I haven’t posted to my site in such a long time…I guess since October. Why…well let me tell you why-

November I spent sick, and when I say sick …I was truly sick the entire month. The month was also very depressing and lonely for me. I found myself hating teaching, struggling with the language, and just dealing with day-to-day life here. I had nothing positive to write so I didn’t feel I should post a bunch of griping. regular temp -30 degrees celcius, but i got a nice warm coat.


For Thanksgiving…most of the volunteers up in the north of Kazakhstan went down south to Karanganda. It’s a city about 12 or more hours away by train (too far I thought). A couple volunteers stayed behind and celebrated with the locals in Kokshutau at the English Center created years ago by a volunteer. We had roasted chickens and potato salad and shots of vodka. It wasn’t traditional but I was with my favorite volunteer Mike. Mike has since finished his service of 2 years and went home...MIKE! I miss you!

As I finally had medication sent to me at the end of November, well it was on its way
…I should really put in here

NOTE: about the mail system here in Kazakhstan, its not like America…things get lost and you cannot track them, I have received 1 smashed package with all the contents out, and they weight it …when it weighs less then it did when it was sent…they just shrug. Another package had been opened and peanut butter was taken AND replaced with 2 very old NON-American sweaters…very odd. Also I have 2 packages that have never been received, one from my family back in August (I just got an email that I have a package in the Almaty office…I think it’s the package!) And a package from my college buddy Mike…gotta write the contents for customs or they will snoop through the package.


The first week of December I got online to find out that my grandparents were killed in a tragic car accident. Since November was really a bad month for me, December didn’t promise much either. I had to figure out how to get home, and quick. I had to get on the train (which only goes twice a day to Almaty) I got on at 1:20am…it takes 28 hours to get to almaty. I didn’t have that kinda of time, so I went to Astana …I also couldn’t get a train ticket, so what you do is bribe the conductor on the train. You end up either standing or finding a luggage rack to sleep on. That’s what I did. It was quite terrible and trains here are unbearably hot. When I arrived in Astana, my host sister Igool had contacted her friends to take me to the airport. I got off looking at every Kazak man…hmm? My host brother joked with me before I left “All of us Kazaks look the same to you, huh?” Well after maybe 15minutes we found each other, they took me to the airport, bought my ticket. It was 7:30am and I had the earliest flight, 5pm. He took me too his home to meet his sister and mother, they fed me, chatted, then let me nap. They then woke me, fed me more, and then drove me to the airport. I then finally got to Almaty where I then again had to get Help with purchasing tickets quickly to Albany, New York. I found myself at 11pm in a travel agents office getting tickets, outrageously expensive tickets…they don’t know bereavement discount in Kazakhstan…they don’t know DISCOUNT in Kazakhstan. I then had another 4 hours to kill. One of the young travel agents was very excited to speak to me in English and offered me tea and to sit, offered a couch to nap on and the remote to the TV in the office while I waited for my flight. Would this happen in America? NO.



I finally got out only to be held up at the airport in Philly…my biggest problem. Because they didn’t have enough people to fill up the plane they canceled my flight, and lost my luggage. I should have been home by 6pm with plenty of time to see my grandfather before he was cremated but arrived at 1am. The entire travel time took 4 days.


I’ll jump forward to December. I spent it mostly traveling to NY. Then I had training for Peace Corps at the beginning of January. So I had to jump back on the train and go to Almaty. Sandie had a birthday and her mom got her a night’s stay at the Hyatt in Almaty…and I was lucky enough to share it with her. OMG it was amazing. We ate spinach with brie and fennel. But what happened the day after New Years…I Again get the flu.



I did get a chance before training to visit with my Uigur host family for 3 days…all of which I was sick. But they did drag me out to their favorite restaurant and I at Dap-pan-gee (which is a HOT SPICY Uigur dish…peppers, chicken, onions and large flat noodles)





Tainsha had been decorated with beautiful snow sculptures, I took only a few pictures thinking I would have time to take more, but it turns out, after New Years Day, the boys in my town decapitate all of them.


January I have been trying to get back into the grove of things. I have made a change in my teaching, I am teaching 2nd grade –7th grade. They are easier to control and still want to please you. Plus I can draw lots of pictures for them and its more fun for me. They are very sweet. Today I had a very great and also difficult experience. I went to a retirement home with the 5th grade class. They had prepared songs to perform, congratulating them on the New Year, had a little play and danced for them. I had a hard time holding back my tears because…I get very sad when so many old people are forgotten. I had learned children hadn’t visited these people for 18 years. They were so happy to see them. They gave them little plastic necklaces and mirrors and the look on the people’s faces was priceless. I plan on visiting this hospital often. I need to work on my Russian and they need people to talk too.

The next month will bring good things I hope, my flu is leaving and I will be moving into an apartment…I should have one by February. I can’t wait. I love my host family but I really LOVE living alone.

I also want to give a VERY BIG thank you to FABLEVISION. I was shocked and totally surprised to receive such a wonderful package. The material you sent has so much value, you couldn’t possibly know. My school library has an English book section that has about 2 feet full of English books, and they are very old and falling apart. THANK YOU.

posted by ottendesign.com @ Thursday, January 13, 2005