Name:
Location: Ellensburg, Washington, United States

I am a deputy prosecuting attorney in rural Washington state.

Sunday, November 20, 2005

Day 15: Three Worlds



Today is our fourth day at the apartment with the boys and we're still standing. No way are we going to let two humans who've only been on this Earth for 4 and one-half years take us down without a good fight! The miracle of their bonding captures our attention constantly...spontaneous shared games, kisses, Russian discussions about Lonya owning all toys, smiles, etc. It warms even the most frigid heart.

Candace notices that Kazakhstan is such a mix of Three Worlds. The Kazakhstan village mentality is alive and well with frugality and hospitality. Last night we had the opportunity to experience a traditional Kazakh tea with our landlord and her children. We had Lipton tea with Kazakh traditional fry bread, fancy European chocolates, and other sweets from the store. At one point, we had to actually stop the intake or the boys may have exploded and we didn't want to have to clean that up!

Next we have the post-Communist world. Candace got to go out yesterday with Galina, our beloved translator. During the errands (while Sue suffered with two toddlers) Candace entertained Galina by demonstrating the expression that we two Americans have tried to assume in order to fit in on the streets. Can you say "DOUR?" Galina thought it was funny but agreed that only young people in Kazakhstan are friendly on the streets, and even that is limited. She agreed that that could be a remnant of Communist oppression.

Lastly, we have the modern Kazakhstan with American rap blaring from the neighbor's radio, casinos everywhere, and a strange sprinkling of trendy American names for restaurants and clubs.

We want to share our grocery shopping experiences again. We tried to buy canned meat (it even had the chicken on the outside) but instead we found it to be a slightly gross form of pate', At times we see labels from the US, including Nestle, Pampers, Johnson's baby shampoo, etc. but usually it's anyone's guess! We've had an interesting time trying to create meals that are edible. Tonight we're going to give it a hero's try for a chicken, vegie, cheese, egg fritatta. Our friends are saying that they're really quite good. Who knows.

Oh, speaking of eggs...they come in packs of 10 which are in thin, clear bags. It is hard to make it home with a handful of groceries, trudging through snow, and still arrive with 10. Sue had only 2 survivors one day and it was not pretty! Let us tell you that if one is broken, it's headed to the garbage. There is no resuscitation for the broken since the shells come with feathers attached and other chicken leftovers that we'll not mention here.

The grocery store makes us feel like spies, indeed. At the end of each aisle is a young man with a walkie-talkie, speaking earnestly, as they watch us move through the store. At first it was unnerving but now we're used to it. No more friendly smiles and attempted Russian niceties. Instead, we walk past like we're one of Them. Today Sue was treated by the cashier to a lengthy Russian greeting and could only say in return "Ya nye penemaiou." It's hard to be so undereducated! Speaking of language mastery, our landlords's daughter, age 10, speaks fluently in Russian and Kazakh and gets by nicely with English. She has also studied French and German. Her future is bright. What are we missing in the States?

An interesting fact---the unit of currency is the tenge worth about 3/4 of a penny. All tenge are actually multiples of one. They have nothing smaller that represents a part of a tenge. They don't have anything like our quarters, dimes, nickels, etc. You get the picture. And it actually seems much more managable than our system at home.

3 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

It seems things are settliing in some -- this is good :-) I wonder if you will go into some kind of culture shock when you return to the States. It's very grey and misty out here -- but no snow yet. I'm happy for that since it means easier travel between school.

The best advice I can give for "winning or losing the fight" is --- learn to lose gracefully :-)

See you soon, Nancy

11:05 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I hope you know that I wasn't implying that you will always lose :-) Although there is some truth in what I said -- I was just trying to be funny :-) Looking forward to more stories about "The Land of Kaz"

Nancy

6:32 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Wow, it sounds like things are about normal for life with two toddlers--although it will get easier (really) once you get home and get into a routine of some kind. It is ALWAYS harder to be traveling. They do sound like wonderful active boys.

3:43 PM  

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