Witches are comin' to getcha, getcha!!!

Happy Halloween everyone. I pulled off creating a costume, decorations for the entire school, candy and all that spooky stuff last night. Despite being sick - got a nasty cold. I will post some pics soon.

In the meantime, enjoy this youtube clip (copyright Randy King) that I am sure is sweeping the net right now!!!

Get your Peanut Butter Cup on!!!!

Jack O. Lantern

My favorite day/night is right around the haunted corner. Unfortunately, it isn’t too big here – not a single spider web or candy corn. Remember the house on Champlain that used to give out cans of Pepsi?!? It was like instant fuel to continue roaming the streets of Richardson Park, Woodcrest, and into Middleboro Manor! No skeletons or skittles here! Not even a pumpkin or a blumpkin.

BUT, I am going to have a special evening of classes on Wednesday and plan to tell the students all about it (and maybe put a little Fright(land) into them). If you have any ideas on what I can talk about, please let me know! I plan to do a few games, ghost stories, etc to try to thrill them.

Also, I’d like to channel my Wilmington Halloween Loop and throw together a costume – just stuck (and yes I’ve thought about Borat)... It will come to me at the last minute, I’m sure. You see, you can’t really do plays on words like ‘cereal killer’ or celebrities like Elvis because it may go right over their heads, so I don’t know…

3 things I do know:
-Don’t even think about hitting my house on Mischief Night – it’s toilet paper-proof!
-Reese’s Peanut Butter cups are still a worthy Halloween candy (come on! The package is even orange!)
-Halloween is a perfect opportunity to act up, act out, and act the fool!

Check for Razor Blades!

Cookies, Cakes, & Captive Audience??

The ‘internets’ was down at my school last week (this is very common and when they are up, they are slooooow), so here is a quick summary of the week, etc. The weekend of Oct 20th I had Alfiya (a young girl Amanda used to teach English with) and her father over to make cookies at my place. It was enjoyable and I (of course) taste-tested the cookies. I also had her draw and color some fish for my empty wall tank!

Thanks to everyone who sent birthday wishes. I wish I could have flown in a gangsta G4 to celebrate with all of you. The school I work at gave me a bouquet of flowers and a chocolate cake. Unfortunately, the cake was as edible as the flowers (the cakes here all look scrumptious, but taste a little bit like cardboard). Mad props to my Boothwyn office for partying without me! The people around me at the food court where I was checking gmail must’ve thought I was crazy for laughing out loud at the these pics!

My co-workers and students at my school here in Almaty wished me health, wealth, and all that stuff. Also, one of my classes gave me a stuffed camel as a present. From Amanda I received a candle, a water bottle, some candy, and a basketball (which we put to use 2 days later at a court near my apartment). We also dinner with a few other people at my place. Gifts included a picture of a seductive Egyptian woman, a bottle of wine, and a cool camel business-card holder. Amanda cooked a chicken/beans/tomatoes medley, crunchy mac n cheese (no crock pot here!), and mixed the extra mac with some peas. She also made a fluorescent orange cake (in honor of the other big October holiday) that had a bit of chocolate pudding in it. Showbiz Pizza eat your heart out….

How do you top the ballet? You topera it with the opera! We went this past Thursday (which was a Kazakh holiday – Republic Day). While I didn’t see any Pavarotti’s…. huh, that sound’s like Capriotti’s!! Is there anything as good as a big ol’ Bobbie?!? Or mix it up with a Capastrami!! Heck, why not a Slaw-Be-Joe?? Oh yeah…. back to the opera… It was a nice night out - like the ballet it was hard to follow the language. I liked it a bit more than the ballet because there was singing along with the music. Capriotti’s cheesesteaks are not too shabby either….

Random Photos / Random Hero

Playing with the Panasonic...

October 23rd...

Happy Birthday to Pele, Johnny Carson, Doug Flutie, Jasimine St. Clair, Keith Van Horn, Wierd Al Yankovic......

and me!

Up-to-the-date...

Just a heads up that there are 4 recent posts below... Read on and enjoy!
Also:
-I now have a bed, no more couching tiger, hidden bad back for me
-Got paid from the school, first thing I bought... 7up. Yeah, I know. Real random.
-Was able to mail a letter to the USofA -- Grandmom Dot is the lucky lady!

Miss everyone. Outtie 5G!

Root, root, root for the HOME Team...

In the dark here about all things sports. I know the Phils were swept (shocker) like a broom on a Kazakh street. The T.O.boys are leading the NFC East while my beloved Skins/the Iggles/and Midgets are beating each other up (as usual). And Samuel Dalembert is busted up (another shocker). I also assume the puck has been dropped on what should be an improved Flyer season (couldn’t be worse than last year!)

I also know that Midnight Madness is this Friday. The start of college hoops! THWND! I’ll miss it and would appreciate any updates either posted on this blog or sent to my gmail. Pre-season Top 25? Diaper Dandies and PTPers? How bad is VANILLA-nova this year?

I did manage to stop by KIMEP's gym this week. Walking up the stairs of this decrepit barn box (a new one is under construction), I saw a poster of the 2003-04 Cincinnati Bearcats schedule and had to chuckle. I wonder if the athletes know who Bob Huggins is/was? The gym was very small and along one of the baseline walls was the Head and Shoulders logo (apparently Proctor and Gamble sponsored the gym). I snuck a peek at a pickup basketball game. I immediately picked out the universal ‘role players’ of pickup ball: 1)The cry baby – a player complaining (in Russian) about fouls and not being passed the ball 2)The log – a tall player who never got back on defense 3)The fundamentalist – a player who did everything, shoot, pass, dribble and did it well 4)The chameleon – a player who was just trying to blend in and avoid any offensive touches 5)The sniper – a Pat Carroll who seemed to know all about B.E.E.F. (balance, eyes, elbow, follow-through).

I also played the role of chameleon, I merely watched from the side. Unfortunately, they play on Tuesday and Wednesday nights and because of my wall-to-wall teaching schedule, I probably won’t get to run game with them.

But I do play my favorite game on a daily basis. It’s called, “Rooting for the Dollar”. On just about every corner in this city, there is a place/store for currency exchange… where you can change your Benjamins to the KZ tenge. On the adjoining sidewalk there is usually a sign listing the different exchange rates (US Dollar, British Pound, Russian Ruble, and the almighty Euro). I cheer for the US Dollar to go higher. When I first got here it was as low as 120.1, now it has skyrocketed (I’m kidding) to 121.0. It makes me feel good to root for something, whether it’s the crimson and grey of the Hawks or the green of the U.S. Dollar….

Snack Attack!!!

Have you had the new flavor sensation that’s sweeping the Kazakh nation??? I’ve been systematically tasting the various flavors (Seafood, Paprika, Sour n Cream---that's not a typo!) Krack’s... a blatant rip-off (although much cheaper) of Pringles (with a hip-hop edge boy-eeee!)

I’ve been experimenting with different foods to try to satiate my grumbles. The store on my block carries a wide selection of food for this growing boy, but it has been difficult figuring it all out. A loaf of fresh-baked bread for merely a quarter – GOOD! A small bag of Shop-Rite (yes that Shop-Rite!) pretzels for a whopping $8.00 – BAD! It takes time and try, try, tying again to get it right. I still buy the bread, but I’ve found a great substitute of German-brand pretzels for less than two bucks!

The other night we had some delicious homemade quesadillas, and later on decided to pair the leftovers up with some tortilla chips to make some MACHO NACHOS (Joey G. All Rights Reserved). Well, upon checking out, I saw that the tortilla chips (hard to find) cost six bucks! …even though the bright orange sticker read 99¢! To add salt (no pun intended) to the wound, I saw upon further inspection that they were ‘Bickells’ and made only a short ride from my Delaware in York, P-A!!!

For lunch, I usually stop in a local market (YES, they are all over / NO, they don’t even compare to Wawa). I saw they had some pre-made sandwiches at a good price, so I scooped one up with a wrapper of a glistening Thanksgiving-style turkey and grabbed a Maxi-Tea to drink (my favorite is apple flavored) and sat down in a park for lunch. The roll tasted of cardboard and encompassed a few shards of turkey skin, a couple hard-boiled eggs, three cucumber slices, and mounds of mayonnaise. Yum! I’ve resorted to the market’s meat pies. They come in different shapes and I usually order by such shapes, “One square, one triangle, and one half-moon, pazahulsta (please)” and I have the nice lady heat them up in a microwave. They’re not bad – usually some flaky dough stuffed with meat, onions, cheese. Sadly, I do not say, “One Whiz, Wit’ Out!!!” like we all do in line at 9th and Wharton (that’s Pat’s Steaks, you should know that)… It’s actually a fun game, mystery meat roulette. Hot Pockets KZ-style, all usually 3 for a dollar! But it’s not always this adventurous – I enjoy having oranges, apples, bread/cheese, at my apartment for lunch as well.

I look forward to dinner, which is usually late – 9:00 – 10:00PM and usually home (I mean apartment) cooked. It has ranged from burritos, penne pasta w/fresh tomatoes, 'shrooms, white wine/mozzarella, to some bangin’ homemade pizza (Amazing Amanda made the crust from scratch!) Amanda is big on using the fresh veggies during meal prep – peppers, cauliflower, onions. And I’ve finally learned to like rice… well at least eat it. My kitchen is very accessible and I’m surviving without a microwave (adapt), can opener (improvise), and toaster (overcome). Desserts are also a favorite – Amanda whipped up some oatmeal chocolate chip cookies (finally found baking powder!), I like a good fruit cocktail, and I’m known to ooze some vanilla ice cream on warm cookies. Tea (hot) is king here. Not a huge fan… yet.

That’s all from the food front for now. Pop the top, indeed!

Culture Club

Last weekend, I broadened my horizons with some new experiences. On Saturday, I went to a Uighur Theater. Amanda and I met David (Kazakhstani who lived in America and now is an American living in Kazakhstan), at the presentation of his mother’s new book. I also met his cousin (who apparently has seen more of the U.S. than I have!) Beforehand, we observed some talented traditional Uighur dancers. Inside the theater there were several book/poetry readings. While I didn’t understand a single word (except for ‘Asamammalakem’ – peace be with you and ‘Rakhmet’ – thank you) I did appreciate their literary prowess and was able to enjoy some Uighur singing/live music/dancing. Later on in the evening, David prepared an over-the-top meal for Amanda and me. The spread would put Berwick to shame! Salads, vegetables, fruit, nuts, etc. The main course was Uighur plof – rice, carrots, meat - it was delicious. I ate like a horse, sorry, I mean I ate horse. Yes, I tried it and it wasn’t too bad. It is usually heavily seasoned so you can’t taste too much of the meat – texture was that of roast beef. Believe it or not, I also tried lamb for the first time in my life, it also wasn’t too “baa-d”. We bounced after dessert and I received my first international call at 10PM from my ‘rents!

Okay, here come the jokes… Sunday evening we went to the Abai Theater for, yes, the ballet. I have no idea what it was called or even what it was about. But the actual theater was very neat and our seats were 50 yard line (err… I mean center stage, lower balcony). We got to look around the orchestra pit and the music was my favorite part of the night (right behind the Peanut M&Ms I had during the intermission!) See pics below of Amanda and Twinkle Toe Joe

Strobe Light Honey

Now I’ve danced with the best of them. I’ve pop-lock’d along club catwalks in Madrid, I’ve discotec’d with crazy Basque teens in Leon, and even oompa’d in the Munich beer gardens.

The other night we went to a ‘dance’ at Amanda’s school for International Students. Sweet Jeezy… The music was HORRIBLE – a euro/techno/house bouillabaisse of garbage! I tried, but when the only recognizable lyrics are about fornicating with a washing machine, my ears start to bleed…

But that wasn’t the worst of it – I mean, I can at least block out the music and kind of ‘close my ears,’ right? However, the STROBE LIGHTS!

Non-stop.

Erratic.

Blinding.

You had to keep a good 3 feet apart from each other because you could easily knock into someone and chip a tooth in these conditions! It made for ease of dancing – simply move a couple inches and it looked (in the pulsing lights) like you just busted a funky move. Both of us felt sick after a few minutes into it and our eyes ached from the fluttering flashes!

We stumbled back to my flat where we proceeded to cleanse our ears and eyes with a heavy, empowered dose of 50 Cent’s latest, Curtis. Goodbye Strobe Light... Ayo Technology!

Mad Magazine

Good to see it's 'business' as usual back in the office....

My baby, she wrote me a letter...

A few of you (namely Bic) have asked about sending care packages or letters my way. Here is my school address:

While this Libra/Scorpio hybrid (Liborpio) loves presents, first a word of warning... Packages are not actually delivered. A slip of paper is delivered to the address, saying that you have a package at the post office and you need to pick it up. Many times, you simply get a piece of paper saying that your package was lost or stolen. Packages take up to 2 weeks for delivery (so give me a heads-up if you send a lil somethin, somethin')

Joseph Gawarzewski
ICC Plus

9A Zholdasbekov Street

Eurasia House, 3rd Floor

050059, Almaty
Republic of Kazakhstan

I also get free INCOMING phone calls, so if you are at Happy Harry's (I refuse to call it Wallgreen's!) pick a cheap international one up and give me a shout!

Usually dial 011 (for international calls) than 7 702 213 8564

...and as always jfgawarzewski@gmail.com

S-Choir

I scooped up the latest Esquire magazine at Philly International. Of course I killed it before I arrived at my first stop in 8 Mile Detroit. There was an article about number 18 KZ in the rag's list of 100 best things. The article gives an American bias, but paints an accurate picture in some spots. Many residents of Kazakhstan believe that Americans are only interested in thier oil and the windfall of income around the petro biz. The article is below, read on:

Esquire 100
No. 18: Kazakhstan, a Country to Watch
Smart people think there's money to be made there. And not just because of that movie.

It has a few kinks to work out, of course. Corruption, an unsettling concentration of political power, and wine that is made from fermented horse urine. Wait, that last part is from Borat. And isn't that the problem? You, for one, wouldn't know anything at all about Kazakhstan if not for Borat (which wasn't about Kazakhstan at all). In fact, Borat is probably the only reason you're reading this. But now that you're here, there's something else you should know:
A friend of mine is moving to Kazakhstan this month. He's barely thirty, and he and his new young wife will live there for two years. He works for a huge investment bank, and the people who run the huge investment bank believe that Kazakhstan is the future. So they're sending my friend there to open a new office.

The bank's reasons for this have nothing to do with Borat. At least, that's not what gave my friend's employer -- and quite a few other companies, including Deutsche Bank, ExxonMobil, Ernst & Young, Mitsubishi, and ABN AMRO Bank -- the idea of setting up shop there. Rather, it's because of the rapidly growing economy, the improved business climate for foreigners, the low taxes -- and the oil. A lot of it, discovered in 2000, gurgling deep beneath the Caspian Sea. When they start pumping the Kashagan oil field in 2011, Kazakhstan's oil production is set to double. By 2015, the country could have reserves of 110 billion barrels, catapulting it into the top five oil-producing countries in the world.

Kazakhstan!

My friend will not be drilling oil, of course. The urgency in shipping him over there has more to do with the rapid, recent spread of wealth to sectors other than energy, and the resulting positive effects on the business climate. Kazakhstan recently made a huge jump on the World Bank's ranking of countries by how easy it is to do business there -- from number eighty-two in 2005 to number sixty-three last year. According to a recent Financial Times report, a slew of local banks and industrial companies have joined energy and mining companies in seeking IPOs, primarily on the London exchange, raising foreign capital and their international profiles at the same time. The same report says Kazakhstan's banking system is already more advanced than Russia's.

The government's business-friendly efforts, coupled with an average economic growth rate of 9 percent a year, budget surpluses topping 6 percent a year, and increased public spending, are going to make a lot of people rich. Sacha Baron Cohen rich. And there's no denying that, in a weird way, Borat has given the country star appeal, dragging the ninth largest nation in the world onto the international stage.

There are still those other problems, naturally. Nursultan Nazarbayev, the unpredictable sixty-seven-year-old president of Kazakhstan, manages to be both authoritarian and progressive, myopic and wildly optimistic. He has been the president for as long as Kazakhstan has been a country -- since 1991 -- and, thanks to new reforms he recently finessed through parliament, he'll run for president for as long as he likes.

Nazarbayev's big, weird project lately has been moving the capital from Almaty, a city on the southern border near China and Kyrgyzstan, to Astana, a made-up city in the middle of nowhere. Astana, which literally translates to "capital," lies in the steppes, up north near Russia. Speculation about the president's motives range from his desire to create a capital free of dreary Communist baggage to his supposed belief that Astana is easier for foreigners to pronounce than Almaty.

Besides Nazarbayev's sometimes eccentric behavior, his government also has a record of disregard for contract law, insurance regulation, and, from time to time, human rights -- things like that. (And then there's his countrymen's widespread taste for fermented horse milk.)

Still, in his most recent yearly address to parliament, Nazarbayev reaffirmed his grand plan: to make Kazakhstan one of "the world's fifty most competitive countries" by 2030. He and everyone else in the nation seem to be announcing that Kazakhstan is ready to play -- which puts pressure on my friend. "A lot of pressure," he said over the last all-beef burger he's likely to have in a while.

Catch me ridin' dirty...

If anyone has a moment to surf and try to find an English version of the operating manual for a Ariston Model AVSD107 washing machine, please let me know.

I'm looking your way ING Direct!!

Looking for a link,
So I can get out the wrink(les)...

Live from KZ... It's Weekend Update!

(note: I posted a bunch of blogs, so you may need to scroll all the way to the bottom and go to 'Older Posts' to see actually see 'New Stuff!' Please post comments - anonymous posts will be deleted fools.)

Yo Yo Yo! G. Love World Tour here!

So I’ve done a lot since I last posted (…ate something called plof, moved apartments, and actually taught a full week of English!) It is tough to post these, since the computer I am currently working on is ALL in Russian, just crossing my fingers and hoping the button I push means “POST”. There have been a lot of ups and downs (more downs than ups), but I’m taking it one day at a time. Watch out for the bullets, here they come:

-The nice lady, Alfea, (I called her my babushka) that I lived with was very kind to me. She didn’t speak any English and I speak very little Ruski, so it was fun, frustrating, and worth it. I only saw her late in the evenings (after taxi rides and working late) when I got back around 9 – 10 PM. We managed to talk about food, her late night dinners were all very edible. My favorite was a type of peirogi stuffed with cheese and I liked her battered eggplant and tomatoes. Like the good boy I am, I did the dishes, although my head hit her low cabinets frequently. I also gave her a Bath & Body Works set (Prices Corner in the house!), some flowers, and some cookies. Although, I did figure out she was diabetic – she took Sucrets with her tea (tea is the beverage of choice here). I let her know when I was getting up, catching my taxi, returning, etc. by showing her / flipping through the different times on my alarm clock. Lots of talking with my hands and body language. One night, I ‘gobble-gobbled’ my explanation that I had a turkey sandwich at school and was not hungry. So the pros of living with a sweet lady (I also found out she was 67 years old and probably Tartar) were high. But the cons of sleeping in a bed while a 67 year old had to sleep on her sofa, never really being able to unpack my 2 suitcases of pressed clothes (thanks mom!), 3 hours of taxi rides, added expense, and living in a rough part of the city were greater. I convinced the school to get me closer housing, see below. I will miss Alfea and explained to her that I plan to come back for dinner (God only knows if she understood)…

-The school where I teach is interesting. Some staff have been warm to me, some have been short and cold to me, and some just AVOID conversation all together. The company is very woman-oriented and I am one of the few male teachers. There are apparently 3 Australian teachers (who I see rarely) and the rest (about 5) are non-native and from Almat. And as I mentioned before, they procrastinate, a lot! For example, I desperately want to activate my wireless, and I get run around (thus no skype, no blog updates, etc.) Also, I want to use my own laptop for school projects, email, etc. There is one shared teachers desktop and it has a Russian language pack – so that is frustrating. You learn to pick and choose your favors, this week it was getting a time table for teaching and apartment switch. Next week it will be talking about my contract, getting paid, and other things.

-Now for the actual work. Right now I teach from about 10:30/11:30 AM until 8:30 PM each day. I do have a few gaps on Tuesdays and Thursdays (during which I prep for the next classes) and it is common for students to cancel. This past week, I had 5 individual classes (1 on 1 teaching for about 1.5 hrs / 3 times a week) and 2 group classes (4-8 students, also for about 1.5 hrs.) So I’m usually at the school for about 10 hours/day. The biggest issue is that of all these students, they are ALL on different levels (elementary, hi-elementary, pre-intermediate, intermediate, upper-intermediate) and they ALL use different books. So lots of confusion and completely different prep from one class to the next. And not much help from the school or other teachers. A common answer is ‘you’re the teacher, right?” This week coming up, they plan to add more students to my time table and, yup, they are different level types and will use different books (which by the way are shared among the different teachers). Snap shot of some of my students 1)Nurdulat – probably 12 years old, very clever, told me he liked to collect coins, gave him a Euro from my Amsterdam layover, he gave me a Ruble from his collection 2)Guahar – very friendly mother of two, has money, we love to talk about food 3)Elena – absolutely afraid of me, 40ish housewife, husband wants her to learn English 4)Malika – smart but stubborn teenage girl, more concerned with her cellphone than the present continuous verb tense. My two group classes are Elementary Level and my fast talking creates a lot of blank stares. I have a feeling I am learning just as much as the students!

PREACH!

-Speaking of blank stares, I am still adapting to the language and culture. I am trying my best to blend in. It is so difficult to just keep my head down and not make any eye contact or say ‘sup to anyone. It’s just the way it is. I know I still stick out as a blatant Yankee with blue eyes and New Balance kicks, but I am trying. Knock on wood, I haven’t had any issues or run-ins and I will continue to represent New Castle County. Food has been okay – save an occasional fruit/veg. vendor prices are much higher here. I haven’t gotten on a regular eating schedule, but my usually weak stomach has held up and I feel in great health. There is a large store on my block (Ramstore) where I bought some things to start up my apartment (dish soap, cups, cleaning supplies) as well as some basic food (they actually carry ShopRite products, but at premium. I made dinner for Amanda last night – chicken noodle soup/saltines, Ortega taco shells filled with a mixture of pintos/onions, good tomatos, and cheese.

-This weekend, I moved into my new spot. It is closer to school, Amanda, and other center city attractions. The apartment is actually a penthouse with lots of space. The master bedroom and bath is off limits to me. I sleep in the office, which is quite big. I arranged two sectional sofas together to make my bed and have a night table and six very small drawers. Awesome space and views, but NOT well furnished – bare minimum utensils, bedding, etc.. All I want is a bed and a place to hang those well-ironed clothes I spoke of, and there is none of that. The location and cost (free) is well worth it though. I will post pics soon enough. Lots of windows, washing machine (uggh, all in Russian), very nice oven/range, big kitchen for KZ, 2 stories (my shower is on the 2nd floor – next to the sauna), rooftop deck, clean spot. From what I figured out, it is the General Manager of my school’s property and they haven’t been able to rent it out. It is pretty empty for so much space, lots of furniture still shrink wrapped, and I am the only one living here right now. If they find a paying tenant, he/she will probably take the master bedroom space. I miss Alfea’s cooking and hospitality, but I’ve come to terms with the fact that the dangerous/costly commute was not worth it.

-Progress this week
a)I can count okay in Russian – I began taking 2 hours of free Russian from a mean old lady at my school. But its gratis and better than nothing
b)My migration/passport is being processed at the Ministry
c)I visited the US Embassy and plan to return to notarize my passport
d)I found a park nearby my school that has b-ball hoops (and actual rims), just not sure if I will ever have time to run game
e)I’ve read 50 pages of a good book called, Absurdistan by Gary Shteyngart
f)I did 3 loads of laundry in my tiny washer, I have a rack where I dry my stuff, and unfortunately no iron right now, so most of it comes out in wrinkled crumples
g)Went to Green Market – basically a very large Farmers Market with lots of levels/booths. I didn’t buy anything, but deemed it a success by leaving with a new experience and my wallet in check.
h)Breaking NEWS! Was just handed a cell phone from the school!

I miss everyone tremendously. October is probably my favorite month – hot cider, Simpson Halloween special, my birthday, leaves, and crisp days/nights.
Hearing about some of my favorite things – Phillies, the Office, Clarks Summit, etc. really make me long for home! Please continue to email or post! My learning curve continues to be great. Amanda is super busy with school (she has definitely found a niche as a great English teacher and tutor) and unfortunately she has had a bad stomach, so when I’m not at work, there’s time to think and appreciate family and friends.

So I promise to update the blog a little more frequently (including photos) soon.

Holler Back Than!!!

Photos - new spot (g room)

Photo 1 = My room. Yup I put 2 sectional sofas together for a bed!
Photo 2 = My closet. Yes that is a wall built in fish tank. Very Deuce Bigalow.

Photo 3 = Most of my clothes remain in suitcases, no real dressers, etc.

Photo 3 = Standing by the eating area, looking into bedroom.

Photos - new spot (1st floor non bedroom)

Photo 1 = back upstairs, there is the door to the bathroom, shower, etc.
Photo 2 = Da Fridge.

Photo 3= Da kitchen.

Photo 4 = Da wash.

Photos - new spot 1st floor (non bedroom)

Photo 1 = Eating Area. To the right is the hallway to kitchen, bathroom, wash.
Photo 2 = Eating Area. The frosted windows/door is my room. It used to be an office. Photo is taken from the main living room.

Photo 3 = One corner of the living room. Only furnishing is this couch and a lot of office desks.

Photo 4 = Main Living Room. Looking towards my front door. Kitchen, eating area, bedroom are to the right. This living room has a lot of windows with great views (to the left).

Photos - new spot 2nd floor bath and heading down

Photo 1 = Sauna. Behind it is the shower that I use. No shower curtain and drains poorly. But I fit in it. I am very fortunate to be moved to such a nice and big place.
Photo 2 = Toilet on the second floor

Photo 3 = Staircase heading down from 2nd floor to 1st floor (main floor). Gonna take a lot of windex to keep this sucka clean.

Photos - new spot 2nd floor

Photo 1 = View from the little rooftop deck at new place. The little monument around 9 oclock is the Independence Monument.
Photo 2 = From the rooftop looking into the 2nd floor. Note mountains reflecting. Amandas place is to the rear of me taking the photo.

Photo 3 = The second floor, where I try to dry my clothes. The railing leads downstairs. The door leads to rooftop. To the left is a bathroom/shower (where I shower) and sauna (which I don't think I will ever figure out how to use, if I did, I'd probably put my clothes in there to dry!

Photos... do work

Photo 1 = Last Saturday, with Amanda's schools English Club. We had to spell out the word 'HELLO' with our bodies. Needless to say, I had "L-L-O". The other two are American teachers at her school (the guy in the black is her roomate James).
Photo 2 = My Russian host 'Alfea'. She is about 4 foot tall. I no longer live with her. She also smiles more than this.

Photo 3 = A meal that Alfea made me. Basically peirogis. Bread, butter, cheese. I usually eat around 1000PM. I definitley miss having my meals home-cooked!

Photo 4 = My former bed at Alfeas. I would have zoomed out, but the room wasn't that much bigger. I kept most of my stuff as is in my suitcases.

Like Harvey Kietel in Taxi Driver, I'm a Survivor

Here’s a glance at some of my taxi-taking experiences. Since typing this, I’ve moved my crib, and it’s within walking distance, so no more crazy cabbies. For your information, anyone, I mean ANYONE, can serve as a taxi. They can charge what they want, take whatever route they want, and make you sit anywhere they want. Oh yeah, they can drop you off wherever they want while dodging you through bumper to bumper traffic. So simply hold out your hand (palm facing down) and enjoy the ride. Don’t bother buckling up… no wonder the life expectancy is significantly lower here!

BMW Gummy – The cars here range from Puegots to Hummers. This guy was very friendly and had a tricked out BMW whip. Got me where I wanted to go and I was thinking he may have been one of the new money Kazaks when all of a sudden he flashed me a toothless smile. Grill on the front of the beemer didn’t exactly match his…

Russian Bear – A very large Russian took me to school one morning in his mid 80s Audi diesel. He deduced that I was American and was excited to pop in a CD in his ‘NOT mid 80s’ Japanese stereo. Lots of Elvis, some Tom Jones, and fortunately only a little showtune action. I try to keep quiet (not just because I don’t speak the language) while being a passenger. The few times conversation is initiated, my drivers want to know (in this order) 1)why the heck did I come to Kazakhstan 2)what do I think of George Bush 3)what do American girls look like.

Carjack-izstan – Two teens in leather jackets driving a Nissan gave me ride last week. I thought the car was hot- they were playing with the lights, radio, wipers. But I made it safe and they proved to be harmless. I’ve only bailed on a taxi ride once. Why? The driver and passenger were whispering a little too much for me and they obviously thought the best way to my destination was to drive the complete opposite way – towards the snow-covered mountains. Had a bad feeling, so first red light, I clenched my stuff, and booked out of the cab.

My commute was about 1 to 1.5 hrs each way at my host stay. And it was stressful. Had to print out my address and show it to the taxi driver. About four days into it, I comprehended from one of my drivers that the address I was showing was a new street name (in Kazakh) and most people only new it by it’s Russian name. These rides put a dent in my funds too, I usually bargained about $4 USD for the ride, but sometimes $5 USD each way. The three drivers above were some of the characters, the majority of the time the ride was uneventful and safe.

Forget Tony Danza, I’m the Boss!

I got big plans..... big plans.....

A couple restless nights ago, I listened to the Notorious B.I.G.’s Ready to Die disc. Start to finish, nobody paints a Brooklyn bedtime story like Biggie. From the grunts of Voletta Wallace’s childbirth to dialtone of his staged death, this CD stands the test of time as a 5 mic rocka... Yeah, you have Puffy interrupting the flow, but I will look past that and let Big’s guttural flow and the heavy beats take over. Everytime I listen to it, I hear a new bar that amazes me.

Rakim is the Father, Biggie is the Son, I sure hope by the time I get back from Almaty, hip hop has a Holy Spirit!