A more recent update from Dawn:

Feb. 2011:

Sooo, it’s been a while. I’m sitting in Kemir restaurant programming numbers into my newest phone (number 3 since I’ve been here) and trying to figure out where the heck to start with this blog. I haven’t written in a year or so and SOOO much has happened. I’m all integrated now and living a normal-ish life here in Kazakhstan. The Kaz 20s have left and the 22s are here. The 23s are going to be here before long and the cycle will start again. I’m struck by how normal everything seems now. I remember how scared I was a year ago. Last year I would walk rather than face the Marshrutka and forget trying to deal with a taxi driver. That seems like a lifetime ago. I can get pretty much wherever I need to now and can go there however I want to. I have great friends here and it makes my head spin to realize that they’ve never even met the American me. They’ve never seen me drive a car or been to a BBQ at my house. I now know how to play the Dombra and speak passable Russian. Shoot, I have to do things like buy phones and supplies and such all the time. -30 seems like a perfectly reasonable temperature now and today it’s -4 and I’ve actually commented to several people how warm it is. LOL! Sometimes, while I’m carrying my groceries the ½ kilometer or so to our apartment, I like to remember how much I hated carrying the groceries from the car into the house. That makes me smile now. I hope that I’m able to keep some of my current mentality when we get back to America. I hope that I don’t start driving to the local convenient store when it’s a 10 minute walk. I hope I don’t load up the back of our car with groceries when a bag or two would get us through the week. I hope I don’t feel like I need to keep the house at 60 degrees in the Summer and 80 in the Winter. I’m amazed at how little they waste here. I remember the very first thing I noticed in Kazakhstan was their lack of trashcans. Usually they’ll have one small (we would say bathroom size) trashcan per household and they usually don’t have to empty it every day.

So, I’ve been staying busy. That’s one really nice thing about being here. I have a decent amount of free time but I also stay busy. Somehow it’s about the perfect balance most of the time. I’m still reading an average of about 1 book a week or so. Right now, I’m reading Shantaram which is throwin’ off my average. It’s a monster of a book, but it’s really excellent. I just finished “Snow Flower and the Secret Fan,” which was also really good. I think I’m up to around 85 or so books since my arrival in Kazakhstan. Some of the highlights from this year: I did camp GLOW this last Summer which was incredible. It may be the highpoint of my time here so far. I gave two benefit concerts in October, one of which was televised here. I’ve done two TV interviews and several interviews for the local papers. We got 9 new volunteers in the Oblast raising our number to 13. They’re all amazing and we’re really lucky to have such a diverse group of volunteers. I’ve been practicing Yoga and working with a group on Sundays called Access which is run by the embassy. It’s a program to teach English to underprivileged kids. I did a camp with them this Summer, it’s a great group. The kids are so motivated to learn and they blow me away with how positive they are about everything. I did several English camps this Summer and attended a Russian language camp. I also went to Rome for a week. That was definitely cool. I took a slew of Greek and Roman history classes when I was in college so to actually see a lot of the places that I’d studied was surreal. The last night I was there, I stayed at a great hostel on the beach so I cut the sight-seeing short and just relaxed with a Mojito on the beach while I ate a plate full of fresh seafood. Heaven on Earth.

We went home for Christmas. Aaron to Texas and I to Texas, Oklahoma and Louisiana. I got to see a number of people that I’ve missed like crazy and unfortunately missed several people too. It was a crazy couple of weeks and I had a BLAST! It was soooo great to be home, especially for Christmas. Last Christmas was one of the hardest times for me. I had to work on Christmas day and they don’t really celebrate Christmas here and the people that do celebrate it actually celebrate it on the 7th of January. I didn’t realize at the time how difficult it would be to not have anyone acknowledge Christmas when it’s such a big deal in America. We had a nice celebration at a volunteer’s apt in a nearby village, but it definitely wasn’t anywhere close to being the same as being home.

I’ve started cooking quite a bit. I’ve been experimenting with the Peace Corps Kazakhstan cookbook which is AWESOME!!!!! I’ve fixed pumpkin bread several times and a mutton stew that is to die for. It’s kind of fun to do everything from scratch and try to figure out how to use stuff from around the kitchen. I had to pretty much relearn how to cook because there are so many products that you can’t get here and so many appliances and such that we don’t have. The oven doesn’t have any way to monitor or change the temperature and there’s no such thing as a mixer or a microwave. It’s an adventure but somehow I enjoy the challenge of cooking here a lot more than I ever enjoyed it in the states. I think my next experiment may be bagels…

I have couple of clubs that I’ve been running. An English club and a Cooking/Movie club. The English club is through the school and the Cooking/Movie club is at our apartment. There are several girls from my school that come to both and are really interested in both. They’ve been a great encouragement here where 3 times as many activities fail than make it. I’m also teaching about Black History this month. I’m hoping to have a big production at the end of the month where students will do a play over Rosa Parks, Read several essays over black heroes and sing “I’ll Rise” and “Heal the World.” If we can pull it off, I think it’ll be really great.

We’re already making a ton of plans for these next 6 months. They’re going to FLY. My rockin’ awesome dad is coming to visit in May, We have COS conference in June and after we leave Aaron and I are going to go to Turkey and Amsterdam for a couple of weeks and then I’m going to take a backpacking trip with my dad through Europe for several weeks. That’s just the tip of the iceberg. We’ve got a number of holidays, camps, new arrivals and on and on thrown in there at different points. I’ve heard from other volunteers that the first 6 months feels like a year and the last 6 months feels like a week. So far that’s looking like it’s going to be a pretty accurate description.

Well, that’s about it. I’ll sign off for now. Cheers from the other side of the world!

P.S. (Feb 2011):

I’ve found that death is a difficult thing to deal with when you’re so far away from home and family. I found out today that my Uncle Burl just died this week. It was unexpected and although he was older, 70, I fully expected for him to be in America when I got back. I’ve had to deal with several deaths of family members since I’ve been here as I’m sure most volunteers have. A few months ago, my Uncle Sandy died and several months before that, Aaron’s dad died. This is the first time that it was unexpected and I suppose because of that it hit me a lot harder. Thank God I have Aaron here. I can’t imagine what it’s like for volunteers who don’t have anyone they can really turn to when tragedy strikes. I never realized before how much it means to have others around you that are going through the same thing as you are when you are grieving. It’s tough knowing that I won’t be able to go to the funeral and by the time I get back most of the family will be through the hardest part of the grieving period. I knew that there would be a lot of things I would miss when I signed up for Peace Corps and it was a sacrifice that I was willing to make and I’m still glad that I made that decision, but that is little comfort when the tough times come. Or the really happy times, for that matter. I’ve missed babies being born and I’ll miss at least one more before I get back. Friends and family of mine have had tough times and I haven’t been able to be there to comfort them. That’s hard too. It’s interesting to me because in so many ways, very little changes in 2 years. Lots of people are still at the same jobs, schools, hobbies, etc as they were when I left. When I talk to a lot of people they’re doing the same things as the last time I talked to them. One of the first things that really slammed into me when I got here and called home for the first time was that nothing was new back home where my world had been flipped upside down. I guess what I’m trying to express is how strange it is to realize how much has changed in the Year and a half I’ve been here when daily life back home seems so constant. I guess that I can sometimes see the big picture of how life ebbs and flows but usually the process is so slow that you don’t even notice it. I’ve wondered several times what that picture will look like when I get back home and have a closer perspective again. I read an article once that told the reader to make two “to do” lists: One for the following day and one for the next ten years. It said that usually people, if they really try, will finish about 20-50% of the “to do’s” for the next day but if they’re focused will finish their 10 year “to do” list in 4-5 years. The reasoning that the article gave was that people overestimate what they can do in short periods of time but underestimate what they can do with long periods. I don’t know if this is true for everyone, but I know that for me the assessment is absolutely correct. I look over the last Year and a half and look forward to the next 6 months and can’t help but wonder what they have in store. I know the time will fly, but I also know that during times like these, I’m ready to be home with my family again.

“The reason that death sticks so closely to life isn’t biological necessity, it’s envy. Life is so beautiful that death has fallen in love with it.” ~Yann Martel, Life of Pi

*Editor's Note: Ok, so just to be very clear -- this is a post from Dawn which she wrote in Jan. 2010. That's over a year ago! uhhh.. better late than never?*

A message from Dawn on Jan. 2010:

So…I’m sorry that I’m so bad about doing the blog thing. I’m sure all of you that know me well fully expected as much, but I was personally hoping I might keep this up better than I have. I’ve had an equal amount of success with keeping a journal, unfortunately. I know I’m going to really hate myself in 2 years for not keeping better updates, but, oh well, thankfully, I’m not as unmotivated in my daily life!!

I guess I’ll start from Swearing in as I don’t think I’ve done a post since then.

I swore in as an official Peace Corps Volunteer on October 31, 2009. I had to say goodbye to our Issyk host family after the ceremony, which was really difficult and sad. I then took a train with Aaron, his Counterpart, and a heck of a lot of luggage to Aktobe. The 42-hour (not a typo!!) train ride was actually quite fun and we got to hang out with Sarah and Lauren, two of our site mates, quite a bit. We arrived in Aktobe with a really warm welcome from the current Aktobe PCV’s.

I absolutely love my school. They’ve been incredibly welcoming and helpful. I’ve taught a mixture of 4th, 5th, 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th, and 11th graders, but I usually teach the 4th, 7th, 9th, and 10th graders. The school year has almost ended at this point and next year will be quite different. My counterpart (the local woman that I work with), Zhanat, is pregnant, so I’ll have to find a new counterpart next year. I also work with several other teachers, but since the end of the year is coming, I’ve pretty much just been working with Zhanat since I’ve been back from the states.

I’ve been really busy so far. Some of the projects I’ve attempted to start have been: A kickboxing class, methodology class for teachers, a beginning English course for teachers that don’t speak English, a college abroad Prep course, a discussion/listening class, English Olympiad training, some Toefl prep work ( a big English Test for foreign speakers), a couple of different concerts/competitions including a Christmas concert. It’s been a lot of fun, but a couple of projects have already fallen through, at least for the moment. I couldn’t get the kickboxing class going and the Methodology class has fallen through but considering what I hear from other volunteers, I’m actually off to a pretty good start!!

I’m also busy with some personal stuff. I’m taking Russian lessons from 2-4 hours a week and Dombra (Kazakh national instrument) lessons for 2 hours a week. I’m doing vacation planning right now too. I’m planning on going to Russia and Paris (hopefully) this summer and then I’m backpacking through Western Europe with my dad next summer! When I think about it, I also try to study for the GRE, but I’ve got a while to focus on that. I was trying to pick up the guitar (again!!) for a little while, but that’s kind of gone by the wayside until this summer. I’ve also been reading a TON of books. I’m averaging a little over 1 a week so far since I’ve been here. So, approx. 40 or so books. I’ll try to post my reading list separately if I remember… I’ve been here almost 9 months now. I’m ¼ of the way done.

Other misc. stuff I’ve been up to… I’m on Peer Support Network for Peace Corps, Aaron and I have been to several local events (charity, celebrations, etc), we’ve been in the paper and on TV several time (Aktobe media loves us!!!), I had an interview on a morning show, I’ve sang a Kazakh traditional song at several big concerts and awards ceremonies, and I also sang at the big New Year’s party my school had. I’ve helped randomly with stuff like the local English Club, Aaron’s discussion club, etc. and of course I banya as often as I can!! LOL

I’ve grown really attached to this place over on the far side of the world. I’ve been making a list of all the stuff I’m going to miss from here that I can’t get in the states!! I’m sure that list will have grown quite a bit by the time I have to leave…

*cough* *cough*

Excuse the dust cloud that erupts as I touch this blog again.

The real reason I dusted off the blog was so I could give a shout out to my mom! So...

“Hello Mom!” Hope all is well in the States, and I love you very much.

Coming soon: A sighting of the strange and extremely rare animal – a blog entry from Dawn!

I remember when I had been working for my org for only a few weeks and I went with two of my colleagues to help clean the wheelchair assembly factory that had just been remodeled. We arrived at the factory and I expected to be given an assortment of chemicals, mops, brooms, etc. Between the three of us we had one bucket of water, two old torn up t-shirts, and a stick. I believe the stick may have been a broom or mop handle at one point in time. My first impression was, "Hell, I think Dawn uses more chemicals and equiment to clean her fingernails...” But afterwards - at the end of the day - the place looked clean, and it was no more difficult a task than if we had been using industry level tools and chemicals.

In our apartment in Aktobe the story is similar. We have only some basic chemicals and basic supplies. Yet the apartment stays clean. I think back to our house in the States.. we had an entire kitchen cabinet stocked with cleaning supplies. I remember sprinkling chemical powder on the carpet – just so we can vacuum it up two minutes later. Hehe. I made my carpet dirtier so that I could make it cleaner. Oh but that powder was mainly for the scent right? No – we had special “put in the vacuum bag” beads for that.

So where am I going with this? I'm really not taking a fanatical view on this, just asking the question - how much stuff do we really need to clean a room? How many impractical chemicals do we buy, use, and throw away? How much MORE healthy might we live if we switched to more natural agents... or even eliminated some altogether. Not preaching, just wondering.

The Dirty Truth of it All

Ok, I've talked about cleanliness - now I want to talk about being dirty. I had a funny discussion with Dawn the other day. The Back story: we don't have a washing machine (or dryer for that matter). So we wash our clothes by hand - which isn't all that uncommon here. Its also not that strange to own a washing machine. Many people in the city have washing machines. It's safe to say that in the villages the opposite is true. Anyway - every so often into the bathtub goes the clothes. Then add soap. Swish-Swish-Swish by hand. Rinse. Wring. Hang up. The first time that I washed my clothes by hand I had the following conversation with Dawn:

"hey Dawn!"

"yea?"

"I'm pretty sure they add some kind of chemical into the detergent to make the water brown."

"What? huh?"

"I mean -- look at this water -- I don't think my clothes are actually that dirty. C’mon - its good marketing sense, right? Put a chemical into the soap and then it turns the water a little darker when activated, and it looks like your clothes are really dirty and it feels SOOO good to clean them. Totally makes sense."

"I don't think so... I don't think that they do that. Actually, I think your clothes are just that dirty."

"huh..."

So. Of course, many of you will appreciate that I had to do a test. Dawn left for summer camps and I took the opportunity of free time to get busy with my clothing. Well don't let the suspense kill you - my clothes are just that dirty. They don't add anything to the detergent. Its friggin gross. Really gross. Some of my socks I had to wash and rinse several times, because we play frisbee out in the dirt and .. well its just gross. There are dust clouds everywhere. Even in my bathroom now.

America - Appreciate the fact that you don't have to face your own dirt.

This is one area where I was happy to throw chemicals at the problem. And the Kazakhstan distributors of Tide will be happy to know that I'm sure I will be keeping them in business, because i probably added way too much detergent to my clothes after I figured out that the brown water was actually dirt and not some chemical additive.

This article always makes me feel better about my clothes and worse about my computer: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/7377002.stm

With Love and Dirt,

Aaron

Way back in March 2010 I wrote a blog entry.  Ironically enough I stated at the beginning of it that I had written ALMOST a blog entry every month.  And now three months have passed with no update.  However, as many of you know – there was a hiatus in our service and we recently visited the United States for a few weeks.  So really I consider myself only about a month behind.  Also if you're counting you can blame another few days on Icelandic volcanic ash.      It is said, “Distance is to love like wind is to fire - it extinguishes the weak and strengthens the strong. “  My distance from America has only strengthened my love.  I’ve never known America to be a perfect country, but America has many wonderful qualities and attributes and my love for these has been magnified greatly during my Peace Corps service.  The first thing that hit me when I stepped back onto U.S. soil was the diversity all around me. Everyone seemed a different shape, size, and color.  Although I’m not new to international travel – this time I re-entered the diverse world of the United States from a different perspective.  I feel very grateful that this diverse mix is such a mundane scene in America. AMERICA – I LOVE YOUR DIVERSITY!  Random types of people I love: Punk rockers, project planners, really conservatives, super liberals, people that celebrate their differences w/o letting themselves become defined by them, intellectuals, working moms, anybody down and out, fly by the seat of their panters, people who have the means to appreciate the finer things in life, people who fight fate and just  won’t give up… and many more. Random types of people who challenge me to develop a more encompassing form of love… aka People who annoy me:  People that cut me off in traffic, cold callers and hard sellers that just won’t quit, super fanatic fanatics, and people who don’t like Texas.

I feel pretty good about educating Americans on Kazakhstan: Peace Corps Goal #3. I think I've given about a blog entry a month.  I've also uploaded photos to Facebook, emailed friends and family, and I’ve even uploaded some cool videos from when we first arrived to site.  One thing that I haven't felt I've done very well is to describe the actual work that I'm doing here.  So this blog entry is related to that: describing more about my organization and the work I'm doing in Kazakhstan.  I also hope that future Peace Corps volunteers in Kazakhstan might get some good information out of this entry.  I know I scoured the web looking for “what is life like in Kazakhstan for a peace corps volunteer”  websites.  Of course, every story is different, every city is different, as is every program, director, counterpart, person, mission, and organization.  With that said - here is a look into my work life:  As you know I work at an organization that serves the disabled citizens of Aktobe.  The literal translation is “Society for the Protection of the Paralyzed Citizens of Aktobe.”  Sound long? How about the Russian: “Общество Защиты Парализованных Граждан города Актобе.“  I prefer the acronym: ОЗПГ.  Also - the acronym looks cool.  So.. Oh, you want to know how exactly we serve the citizens? I’m glad you asked –  The answer is that there are many ways that this organization serves its constituency.  We have services that cover a wide range.  We help with legal and medical counseling, advice on government services for disabled citizens in the Aktobe oblast, and psychological counseling.  My organization has helped - indirectly or directly - countless citizens in Aktobe.  Every day there are people who visit our organization asking for assistance.  There are also individuals who come daily offering assistance - and this organization partners heavily with the local government, other social organizations, and the community. ОЗПГ holds celebrations during the holiday season for its constituents – and hosts events where the goal might be fund-raising or an increase in social awareness.  In addition to the services offered by my organization there are several projects that are ongoing.  We have a volunteer club that is partially funded by a local NGO – the previous volunteer (click here for Perry Teicher's blog) worked with my counterpart Марал Нуралина (Maral) to start a collaboration with local university students and the disabled children in Aktobe.  Its since grown and the volunteer club is greater in scope than just visiting disabled children.  Another project called “Knowledge is Power” involves educating children in the Aktobe region in several different arenas.  A third project funded by another Kazakhstani NGO involves bringing knowledge of business and volunteer-ism from the regional center to oblast villages that don't have access to the knowledge and resources in Aktobe.  A fourth project is the development, production, and sale of wheelchairs – a wheelchair factory made possible by international partnerships and the collaboration of the local Akimat government organization.  As you can see – my organization has far reaching services and projects of varying size and scope.  One day I might be engaged in helping hand out holiday gifts to the children we serve, the next day I might be discussing our organizational growth strategy with our Board of Directors. One of the primary goals of Peace corps is to provide skills that can be shared with the local organizations.  I recently met with the local government, media, and my organization's leadership for an overview of Peace Corps and how specifically I can assist throughout the next two years.  Afterwards, I had a more detailed discussion with my director, and our Board of Directors.  I had been interviewing (more like informal discussions) the organization's staff, constituents, and leadership over the last few months and I identified four primary areas of focus: Technological Infrastructure, Organizational Strategy Development, Project Management, and Business Development.  I won't bore you with the details regarding each area - but each area had specific sub points – areas where my skills and the needs of the community line up well.  After much fruitful discussion we decided I will focus on Technology Infrastructure development and Project Management.    Here are a few slides I used when talking about improved project/program planning & technology infrastructure (the best practice for presentations here is to have Russian and English translations always- here I've included one Russian slide and one English slide for your entertainment):

In addition to the org's access to my background in project and program management, the Peace Corps provides its own flavor of Project Design Management training.  I will attend this training in March with representatives from my org.  My primary goal at the training will be for us to build a lexicon of PM terms together.  Also there is an extra oomph when a training is Peace Corps sponsored, so I can leverage this training to advance my own PM agenda.  Regarding Technological development - there is a large opportunity here for advancement in many areas.  The areas listed above are just a few examples of the power of technology that can be leveraged here in my specific organization.  After my discussions with leadership - I think we will focus outward towards areas that can directly benefit our constituency instead of the specific organizational infrastructure related areas that are listed here.  Who knows exactly where the next two years will take us - we'll see! How exciting!So - I'd like to leave you with a few more glimpses into my world here in Kazakhstan… these are just a few random things that occupy my daily 'headspace' right now:PDM Training – Our Peace Corps delivered Project Design & Management training is in March.  I’m bringing my counterpart and the project owner of the wheelchair factory in an effort to increase momentum, sustainability, and planning. Nauruz – Click here for more info on this Kazakh new year.  Each year many PC volunteers head to Shymkent (Southern Kazakhstan) to get a feel for this traditional Kazakh cultural celebration.  I'll be there! IST (In Service Training) - Peace Corps sponsored training where we learn more scrumptious skills regarding living in Kazakhstan, working in OCAP or EDU, and all about grants, language, and culture. Do My Job -  After the meeting with leadership I have a feel more specifically where I can be focusing for the next two years.  My action item from that meeting: develop out the specific long term plans and start working immediately on the urgent items we identified.Guitar Club, Discussion Club, English Club, Volunteer Club, Random Parties - In addition to our "jobs," PC volunteers are usually involved in various activities after-hours.  These range widely... I have a guitar club for English speakers that I've started - its a way for individuals to practice their English skills while learning how to play the guitar.  I've also created a discussion club for intermediate level speakers where we talk about themed topics - women's issues, health issues, music, you name it.  And the list goes on - there is no shortage of ways that Peace Corps volunteers are involved in the community. No escape from daily life in Kazakhstan - There is an endless list of administrative tasks, forms, follow-ups for Peace Corps, my org, daily life, emails to catchup with, Facebook, etc.  Here is an example week from Outlook (last week):

Not too horrible, but It gets pretty busy when you account for normal working hours on top of the special meetings, todo items, etc.  Add that to the fact that Outlook isn’t showing past 7 o clock – and yes there are meetings scheduled there that start after 8 o'clock.  We regularly meet w/ other volunteers or overseas partners after the standard workday ends because do to scheduling conflicts or time differences.  Some weeks are better – easygoing and relaxing, but those are becoming farther and fewer between… It’s not just a marketing cliché when Peace corps says it’s the toughest job you’ll ever love, or that you’re a volunteer 24/7.  I get calls regularly before or after work – often from random people who have received my contact info from friends.  Usually its individuals who want to speak with a native speaker, get help with translations, or are just interested in meeting a foreigner.  I’m for it – I tell all my friends to give out my phone number and I try to meet with everyone eventually.  Often times the conversation is short because they are looking for a permanent English teacher and I am trying to steer them towards an English club, discussion club, or guitar club.  Some of my favorite interactions are the random meetings in the bus/supermarket/train when strangers hear me speaking HEAVILY accented Russian and they come up to me to practice their English.  Don't get me wrong - there are the days where I want to just blend in and not talk to anyone... I feel like crawling inside my skin and hissing at anyone that comes to close… I try not to blog on those days.  :)All for now - Lots of love, Aaron 

The next day we started our tour of the city -- we had a bus that was wheelchair friendly and even a tour guide! We drove around the city seeing many of its wonderful sites. There is a LOT of construction going on in Astana, and the architecture was beautiful to look at. Check out my Facebook page for some of the photos. Also Kazakhstan has a set of strategic plans – perhaps this construction is part of that, I’m not sure. Check out the Kazakhstan 2030 plan here if interested:

http://webapps01.un.org/nvp/frontend!policy.action?id=882

The first day we stopped at two museums. The first was your standard art, cultural, and history museum. Very interesting, but I enjoyed the second museum much more than the first. The second museum was also the first house that President Nursultan Nazarbayev lived in after he became president. For more info on Nazarbayev visit his wiki page here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nursultan_Nazarbayev

One thing I learned at the presidential museum was that if you are ever president of a country you get some really cool gifts. There were all sorts of machine guns, knives, jewelry, carpets, statues… most of them were gifts from dignitaries of other countries.

After looking at the president’s sweet arsenal we ate lunch at a tasty restaurant. We had the usual: borscht, monte, and ubiquitous bread. Then we saw a cool 4d movie celebrating the history of Kazakhstan (movement and wind were the fourth D), and we then proceeded to walk around checking out the sites and stores at a local mall. We also took in an aquarium where I had this interesting experience.

So, there I was hanging out in the middle of an aquarium looking at some funny looking fish... and two children run up to the tank I'm looking in and started chatting away in American English. I could tell by their accent they were probably from the South. The other people from my organization poked at me and pointed at them saying – “They are speaking English, right? Maybe they are American too?” Truth be told, I was kind of excited to meet some other Americans in a random aquarium so I hung around until I saw the kids run up to a woman who I thought was their mother. I walked up and said, “So are you guys from the States?” She said “Sort of…” in a heavy Russian accent and then herded the children off. In Kazakhstan a lot of people perk up their ears when they hear someone speaking English and just want to converse with them to practice their own English speaking skills. I think she thought that I was wanting to practice my English with some native speakers, but what I really wanted was to connect for a minute with another American in Kazakhstan. Then, an answer to my prayers, I hear “Privyet Aaron!” I turn and its another Peace Corps volunteer -- Michael Hotard! Yes, he happened to randomly be in Astana at the same time, randomly be in the same mall, and coincidentally walking through the same room of the same aquarium. So I got my wish, we hung out for a while. And then we proceeded to watch a live mermaid show. What is a live mermaid show, you ask? You know those shark tanks that you walk under and can look up and see the sharks swimming around? Well they had a girl in a mermaid outfit swimming around in the tank. It was pretty awesome actually. And it was a great opportunity to learn the Russian word for mermaid - русалка. And I'm sure that word will come up very often. I will make it come up now that I know what it is. Feel free to leave comments with interesting sentences including the word mermaid… remember my Russian is limited… "Anybody seen a mermaid lately?" "Who here has a mermaid?" "Have you seen my mermaid’s dog?" or my favorite new phrase "I speak Russian like a Siberian Mermaid."

We had dinner at the Mega - and – I had Fried Chicken! From some sort of KFC subsidiary or something. The packaging was all in Russian and the branding was a local company - but a KFC logo was printed in an inconspicuous place. Of course, it wasn't really like the crispy treat of American KFC, but it was a nice try! In a truly Kazakh manner we stashed the uneaten food away for the train ride back the following day.

We wrapped up the day with a movie - Black Lightning. Sure not to be shown in theatres in the States. Hard to describe – here is my best effort: Imagine Spiderman’s superpower was a car that could fly. If you saw the movie you would understand.

After the movie, we went back to the hotel, drank chai, then we had more wonderful dialogue, then more chai, then discussion about going BACK out to another movie.

This was about 8 o’clock. I was tired and not up for it.

Then everyone decided they might want to go to a disco instead. I was still tired and even less up to it.

Hoooowwwweeeevvverrrr… The crew that wanted to go to the disco… every one of these people were in their mid-late 30's - 50's.

I had a hard time allowing myself to go to sleep early, when I was below the median age of the group that was so amped up to go dancing.

So... around 9:30pm we set out into the night. There was a disco close so we decided just to go by "foot." This meant we were pushing the wheelchairs through snow and ice, but this was actually very easy, the roads were more even because the holes were packed with snow and ice. And I probably would have fallen 20 times on the walk if I hadn't been pushing a wheelchair, because it was very slippery.

The first disco we stopped at just didn’t have a good vibe, so we decided to go to the second - the second was cool, but there were two flights of steps that would have been very challenging to navigate due to the design of the stairs, and the design of the wheelchairs. You see, not all staircases are made equal, as I’m sure certain people are very aware – disabled people, furniture movers, architects, etc. I’d never before assessed a staircase, but after this trip I know find myself looking at each staircase and nodding approvingly or thinking “What were they thinking? There is no way you could get a wheelchair up that without major problems!”

The third club was a charm. We arrived, found a table, and ordered some finger foods (horsemeat included of course). What then proceeded was perhaps one of the best nights of my life. The disco was fairly empty, they were playing everything from Kazakh/Russian pop, to retro dance music, to Whitney Houston. We proceeded to the dance floor.

No disco would be complete without an annoying drunken man.

And there was a drunken man who proceeded to annoy, hit on, and generally aggravate us. He was intent on spinning the wheelchairs around in an offensive manner that I believe was his attempt to dance with us. His attempts were fought off once, twice, a third time. Finally it was made clear through eye contact with the club's bouncers that they would need to intervene to keep the affair civil. And they did, escorting the man, politely - away from us a few times. Our evening was not marred at all by the event, we cast it off, and proceeded to make a few toasts. We toasted to friendship (new and old), to family, to long lasting relations between Kazakhstan and America. The Kazakh toasting tradition is beautiful, and everyone is involved. You don’t have to be drinking alcohol - toasts can be made with juice, or even water. We celebrated our new friendships, and danced more. The evening culminated in an especially beautiful dance between Deena and Yerlan. I found out later than Deena had won a wheelchair dancing competition the year before. It was obvious Yerlan had experience dancing with someone who was wheelchair bound, and dance they did. He turned and twirled her beautifully. Deena is a very beautiful woman, and graceful on the dance floor. Yerlan is a strong young man, confident, and they made a beautiful team.

When we left the disco we took taxis back to the hotel, and blissful sleep.

The next, and last, day we saw the Kazakhstan Pyramid of Peace and Accord. Check it out here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palace_of_Peace_and_Reconciliation

The pyramid was built for the Congress of Leaders of Traditional and World Religions. For me it was a very physical symbol of religious freedom in Kazakhstan. My favorite site visited!

We also visited Baiterek. Said to be the symbol of the new capital, Baiterek is a beautiful 150 metre high tower. At the top there is an imprint of the President's hand that you can place your own hand into -- and traditionally make a wish. See more on Baiterek here:

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=baiterek&aq=f&aqi=&oq=

We finished up the last day eating at a very nice buffet, then heading to the train station. Once we were nicely loaded onto the train I settled down for an exhausted nap.

It seems like I woke up 22 hours later and back in Aktobe.

We arrived back in Aktobe to see several co-workers at the train station to welcome us back! Our group parted - exchanging phone numbers along the way, and promises to gosti (visit). As I was walking back to my the apartment I was left with a very strange feeling… a feeling that I hadn't expected or felt for a long time. It was a feeling I'd known back in the States – I'd experienced it many times after a business trip or vacation. It was the comfortable feeling of arriving back home.

(Pre-Blog Note: It seems like access to the blogging website Blogger is being blocked across Kazakhstan. We're still not sure if this is intentional or a technical issue. Most volunteers (including me) are accessing through a proxy, or switching blog providers. I've decided to stay with blogger, but go around the censoring by proxy. Its more difficult to edit through proxy so please be patient if the blog isn't pretty - all the info is there.)

Sometimes it seems like time moves so slowly and so quickly at the same time. Sometimes it seems like every day blurs together with a horrible monotony, and sometimes it seems like each day is packed with so much intensity that I’ve lived a year in a day’s span.

Recently my organization took a trip to Astana, the capital of Kazakhstan. The excursion ended up being one of those spans of time that packed SO much into it that it would take a book to write it all. But we’ll have to be content with just a really long blog entry! Grab your popcorn, sit back, and enjoy!

Our organization was invited by the Kazakhstani government to bring several disabled citizens (инвалид) from Aktobe to visit the capital of Astana. Each one of the invitees was also allowed to bring a family member or assistant. The goal was to give these citizens chance to visit their nation’s capital. A doctor accompanied us as well - my good friend Yeltai. I was invited to go along to assist with manual labor, visit Astana, and generally get deeper insight into the life of a disabled person in Kazakhstan. I wasn’t disappointed in the least.

To get to Astana from Aktobe, you spend 22 hours on the train. Having already spent over 150 hours on trains in Kazakhstan, I felt comfortable with that part of the cultural experience. I arrived at the train station Friday morning and waited for the others to join. I was anxious for our journey to begin. I knew that I would be travelling outside my comfort zone. Being spoken to in Russian and Kazakh every day means that I’m always a slightly outside my comfort zone, but this trip I would also play a critical role – being of service to the disabled citizens I was accompanying. I was worried I wouldn’t know how to help correctly, and that my language and cultural ignorance would exacerbate any confused situations. I think it was for exactly this reason that it was a great idea for me to accompany the group. Some of the greatest lessons I learned on the trip were very practical – how to carry a person in a wheelchair up stairs, how to assist with the opening of a door, and how to intuit when assistance is undesirable or unnecessary.

A note on disabled citizens in Aktobe –

Getting around Kazakhstan can be difficult for everyone. Freezing weather means that its icy and cold -- you are slipping and sliding.. also there are often random holes in the middle of streets or sidewalks - holes that are deep enough to break legs. I'm not sure, but I think these are typically some sort of sewer access. Manhole covers are often either missing completely or lopsided so that the unsuspecting traveler could easily step in and then step out with a compound fracture. Now take these conditions - add a wheelchair, or prosthetic limb, or a neurological disorder. It can be a very difficult ordeal.

So, we successfully loaded everyone onto the train – a great triumph, because as there is no handicap access, we had to first carry the individuals, then the wheelchairs, onto the train. For those of you who haven't been to Kazakhstan -- the train corridors are thin and cramped - especially when you first enter and pass by the "hot water station."

There is a whole cultural and social system that is specific to the train. There is train etiquette, the sharing of food, the drinking of tea, and there are even rules for when its ok to go the bathroom (or not). Suffice to say that I was in a train car (koopay) with three other completely awesome individuals. Janat, Azamat, and Anuar were my koopay mates. Check out my facebook page for photos! We had incredibly interesting conversations that ranged wildly from cars, to religion, to the state of corruption in Kazakhstan, and the plight of sex workers. It was great to be with individuals that were patient with my language skills and would pantomime or use easier words to get the point across. The result was that we were able to share many cultural insights and differences.

22 Hours Later:

We checked into the hotel -- which was splendid compared to most hotels I’ve been in here. We ate a wonderful dinner. Then I ran to change before the opera (which ended up being a ballet). I was mortified to find that I had forgot to pack my dress pants. I had a tie, jacket, dress shirt, and jeans. I lost the tie, and tried to pull off a relaxed business casual look. I didn't feel as bad when we arrived at the ballet because there were many people who were dressed down.

A side note on Kazakhstani cultural etiquette:

The American norms for theatre, opera, ballet, etc, aren’t shared in Kazakhstan. At the very beginning of the ballet cameras with flashes were going off everywhere -- obviously flash photography at the ballet NOT ok in America. The ushers ran around the theatre trying to shut down the repeat offenders, but every time a new beautiful scene came on there was at least another few rounds of flashes. I was later very annoyed when my trip mates were showing me their photos, because I would have liked to have had some decent shots of the ballet as well but my Americanness wouldn’t allow me to flash a camera during a ballet production. Just the sight of it made me cringe inside. But then I heard something that TRULY made my blood run cold. A TELEPHONE RANG, and it was right next to me. I instinctively shrank away from the offender anticipating immediate accusing looks and glances. And of course I expected the owner of the malicious technological device to search desperately and frantically to shut it off before even one more second of ring tone disruption. But instead - unbelievably - he ANSWERED IT. And took the call. And this is not an uncommon occurrence, quite the norm here. Every volunteer seems to have stories of conversations, text sessions, telephone calls, and other what-would-be-called-disruptions-in-the-states at similar performances. It appears that it is not necessarily offensive in this culture to take a break from the ballet to take a phone call. Also, it seems that business meetings, trainings, etc, follow this same - phone calls allowed rule. I’ve even seen several instances where the presenter is the one taking the phone call. Perhaps this is because no one in Kaz has voicemail (at least no one I’ve met so far). If you have a cell phone – it either rings constantly until you answer, or if its turned off when someone calls they get a message like “this phone is turned off.” Either way - you don’t get voicemail. If you want to leave a message – you send an SMS text. SO, maybe this is why everyone here answers their phone, because they don’t have a voicemail to let it roll too. I don’t know, just food for thought. I’m figuring out most of this stuff as I go. Ok, back to our regularly scheduled program…

After the opera/ballet we retired to the hotel and I went with one of the other travelers to a billiards hall next door. It was an interesting experience… When we entered there were only two pool tables, but there was a table in the back with six men, cards, a stack of money, and a few half empty bottles of vodka. They were nice guys and only one drunken man was a little annoying, the rest were actually quite cool. Every one of these gentlemen was from Shymkent (a region in Southern Kaz). I was excited because everyone in Kazakhstan says Shymkent is like the “Texas of Kazakhstan”. In my mind that makes Shymkent my sister city - so they were automatically like family. I proceeded to tell them as much and they proceeded to try and get me to drink vodka and gamble with them. So-o-o-o predictable. But I have mastered the art of avoiding vodka shots in Kazakhstan and I told them that the only style of poker I played is Texas Hold-em. We decided on a compromise - I promised to come back the next night to gamble… they knew, and I knew, I wouldn't.

After an hour of pool and great conversation we left, walked back to the hotel, and slept

(I’m breaking this blog entry into several entries so that you have natural coffee/chair breaks built in. Yes, I know, I’m such a considerate blogger. Coming up in the next entry: I visit the President’s home, then I randomly run into another Peace Corps volunteer in the middle of Astana – then we proceed together to watch a live mermaid show together. I couldn’t make this stuff up.)

A.K.A. -- "What do you get when you mix Old Crow Medicine Show, Plov, Father Christmas, one disability organization, a trilingual school, a little Leonard Cohen, and a few Kaz-21 volunteers?"

I started Christmas morning dressed for success and took a taxi to work. I took a taxi because I decided to catch the extra z's instead of getting up early to iron, tie a tie, etc. Part of my Christmas present to myself was avoiding the horrific bus ride and all the elbows, culturally awkward moments, and existential musings that come with it. Christmas magic shined down on me early as I caught my favorite taxi driver - "The White Wolf." This is his nickname because he has pure white hair and piercing blue eyes that seem wolflike. He is very nice, he is not a sympathetic listener, but he is patient while listening to my wannabe Russian. Later I found out that he thought I was Turkish because "they speak bad Russian like you." We talked on the way to work - he told me about his Ukrainian father and then proceeded to fill me in on the details of how to cook the perfect dish of Plov.

Then my organization threw a New Year's party where local municipalities also got in on the action by hosting wonderful musical performances, speeches, and gifts for the disabled citizens in and around Aktobe.

The festivities continued as I headed over to Dawn's school in the afternoon. They were holding an actual Christmas party (since they are heavily focused on teaching English they often celebrate American Cultural holidays as well). They gave several awesome performances while myself and another volunteer (Andrew) were honored guests and judges. Andrew also received the honor of dressing up as Father Christmas!!

Here are some photos from Dawn's School Celebrations:

After the festivities we retreated to Candy (the local cafe) where we studied Russian with one of our Russian tutors. Afterwards we headed home and Dawn and I both had the opportunity to say hello to several family members back in the States. The evening ended on an especially high note as our two host "sisters" asked me to sing - they were enamored with the song Hallelujah and insisted I teach them. It was lovely - their accents, easy manner, and excitement were contagious. After we covered several verses of Hallelujah they insisted I teach them another. Turns out that they are Old Crow Medicine Show/Bob Dylan fans and just didn't know it, because they wanted to learn the song Wagon Wheel. So here is where Christmas evening in Kazakhstan found me... teaching OCMS/Dyaln and Leonard Cohen songs to two Kazakh English teachers in Aktobe. Imagine bursts of English, Kazakh, and Russian language pouring out between lines like "and I'm thumbin' my way into North Caroline." As surreal as it was, I was pleasantly warm despite the -25 outside temperature.

So dear friends, family, and the random blog lurker, I leave you with some beautiful Christmas wishes...

As part of Dawn's school celebration several of the students wrote letters to Santa. Here are three of our favorites. I've also written my favorite below - I couldn't have said it better myself:

Dear Santa!! Merry Christmas! My name is Aisaule. I am 13 years old. I am from Aktobe in Kazakhstan. I really like Christmas. I like your coat, your presents, and of course your "Ho, ho, ho." you are very kind. I love you because you make children happy.

Please stop the wars and killing in the world too. Please be sure to help the children and families who don't have homes or peace. And don't forget the people who are all alone and sad this Christmas. I don't want any presents. I want happy and funny Christmas for all people.

Everyone should have a merry Christmas!

I wish every child in the world receives a gift of love from you this Christmas. Merry Christmas Santa!!!

Love: Aisaule

So we've been in Aktobe for a few weeks now. Here is our new address - I just put my name on here to simplify the label. But don't worry - I promise to share the goodies with Dawn!

Click here to print the photo off as a label! Happy sending!

And here is our new and improved wish list for those putting together a care package:

12 Oz. Plastic Bottles Dr. PepperMascaraButterfinger BarsCoffeeCry Baby gumBacon (precooked sealed etc.)Flavored coffee creamerCocoaHershey Kisses with AlmondsAny kind of sugary bubble gumBlow popsVelvetta CheeseScrabble Apples (the game)White out penMulling SpicesPotato Chips (salt and vinegar)Reese's PiecesReese's Peanut Butter CupsDental FlossAny Children's Books (not religious please - to be used for students)Travel Coffee MugGood Shampoo and ConditionerStickersBeef Jerky

Thank you for all your support - we are always overjoyed when we receive a comment, email, letter, package, or phone call!

Love,Aaron and Dawn

As everyone knows - we've just completed training and we are now embarking on our service in Aktobe. During training we met many wonderful people. Local individuals, individuals from America, Peace Corps staff, trainers, and more - here is a video which shows just a few of the people we've met. We are grateful to have had the opportunity to learn with, learn from, and have spent time with these individuals during the last few months.

Sometimes a picture REALLY is worth a thousand words. So this blog entry we are going to take a few photos and narrate a little about our lives before Aktobe! Enjoy - I know we did. Moo.

Autograph Session

For some children in Kazakhstan it may be the first time for them to meet an American (or any foreigner), and it can be a very exciting event for them. They may even ask for autographs -- here we see how I got caught in one of those autograph sessions. In Issyk we’ve played football (soccer) with the children from the surrounding community, ultimate frisbee, and even have a semi-regular basketball game going. It’s a way for us to stay fit – and get to know the children on a more personal level! The above photo was taken after a volunteer ultimate frisbee game that turned into a USA vs Kazakhstan World Championship Soccer game. Not sure who won, it was 30 Kazakhstani children against about 7 volunteers. I think it ended up a win for both.

Site Placement

This was in the school audotirium where we found out what site will be at! Gimme an AHK! Gimme a TOE! Gimme a BAY! (phonetically our city is ahk-toe-bay). They also gave us chocolate and apples, that is why we are smiling those huge smiles. All joking aside – PST (pre-service training) is what it is – training. Also all joking aside, Kazakhstan really does have the best apples in the world. Also, in this picture you can see the name of our Regional Manager in the background (Ainura) – I’ve had the chance to work with her in technical training and we are excited to work more with her over the next two years!

Language Class

We tried hard to make language class fun. And we had a really wonderful language teacher (Dasha) and she often made learning Russian a blast! Sometimes however there is nothing any mere mortal can do to staunch the dementor-like soul draining power of the Russian language. Learning Russian can sometimes seem like the linguistic equivalent of water boarding. If you’ve ever tried to learn Russian you will laugh and wince simultaneously at the accuracy of this statement. Here is a moment of fun learning parts of the body (taking a break from the merciless Russian verbs of motion). BUT, effort is rewarded, and I’ve found the language to be very rewarding in many ways and I expect greater returns as I move beyond statements like "Bathroom. Now. Please."

Local Garb

Here is a snapshot from a local event. It shows one of the Kazakh cultural costumes that can be seen at local cultural events. You do not typically see the local girls walking down the street dressed like this.

It's a dogs life

In many places in Kazakhstan there are a lot – a LOT – of stray dogs running around. With regards to animals cruelty I was prepared for the worst and I’ve been pleasantly surprised in some ways. I’ve seen taxi drivers regularly swerve to avoid hitting the dogs (although it may be more about the car than the life of the animal) and I don’t see random acts of animal cruelty daily. However the situation regarding animal rights is VERY bleak. Not the least of which is a massive animal control problem, illustrated here.

Hooka

I really wanted to insert a Mitch Hedberg joke here, but really it's just a hooka filled with strawberry flavored tobacco, nothing to see here folks – please move on.

Kazakh Cultural Monument

I received some information from my host brother in Issyk about this statue. Apparently it's of the Golden Man who was found purportedly near Issik. He gets his name from the fact that when he was buried he was buried in golden clothes. In olden times, people rich were buried with their goods, but many looters would rob them. So sometimes the families would make fake burial plots so that the robbers wouldn't know where the real one was located. Apparently that is how the Golden Man escaped looting. A local business was grading and leveling the area for a new building and when they broke ground the saw an underground structure there. More research showed that what was found was one of the old burial tombs and inside was the Golden Man. Read more here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Issyk_kurgan Sorry about any inaccuracies - what I've written was given to me word-of-mouth.

At Peace Corps Kazakhstan HeadquartersHere I am in Almaty at Peace Corps headquarters. I'm taking a picture of the plaque which looks like…

A Plaque

It is written in English, Kazakh, and Russian.

The Other Side

Did I say Russian language class is interesting? Nothing more interesting than labeling your own behind with a post it note. I belive I’m caught here asking something like, “So how exactly DO you pronounce ‘behind’?” These things you ought to know. BTW – in the photo here is Dasha – our language teacher, and LCF (Language Cultural Facilitator). I could write a whole blog entry on how great she is -- wonderful teacher, great cultural facilitator, and put plainly a good soul. Oh, and I almost forgot the MOST important quality – she has more patience than anyone I've ever met. Peace Corps is lucky to have her on its team!

P.S. - Thanks to Susan and Paul! Many of the photos seen here were taken by them -- check out their blog at http://susanandpaulkz.blogspot.com/

The big news last week was that we found out where Dawn and I will be living and working for the next two years! Drum roll here… and the site placement for Dawn and Aaron is… …. … (wait for it)… …. Aktobe!

Although I know that everyone in the U.S. is current on their Kazakhstan geography I’ve added a few links at the bottom of the blog post for those who are longing to supplement their academic knowledge of Aktobe with multimedia enhancements.

Here is some interesting info on Aktobe –

From where we are now (near Almaty) Aktobe is 42 hours by train.

But what does that REALLY mean? To put that in "Tulsa Oklahoma" terms imagine that you are in Tulsa. Now imagine that you are going to the moon. … by train…

About Aktobe:

Aktobe is the second largest province by area in Kazakhstan. The city of Aktobe (located in the Aktobe Oblast) is a medium sized city – it has about 300,000 inhabitants. The ethnic mix is about 55.6% Kazakh, 23.7% Russian, and 20.7% other. We are excited that we are in a city because we will have access to the villages, but still also have accesses to the amenities only available in a city. Also, we are excited about the ethnic mix in Aktobe – although we will be well suited to navigate the city with our Russian language skills – we will also have the exciting opportunity to better our Kazakh language – Aktobe is heavily influenced by Kazakh culture and we are told Kazakh is spoken heavily in Aktobe as well as Russian.

The Russian city of Orenburg is located some 200km to the northwest, while the Russian city of Orsk is about 150 to the northeast. Fun fact: we will be closer to Russian than even Sarah Palin. Aktobe has a continental climate, with wide seasonal variations in temperature. In winter, temparatures can reach a low of -41C, with an average of -24C.

The organization I will be working for “Society for the Protection of Paralyzed Citizens of Aktobe” has been working to bring opportunities to marginalized citizens for the last ten years. I will be the third volunteer at this organization! Dawn will be working with a trilingual school - they have classes in Russian, Kazakh, and English (some Math and Biology is taught in English). She has met the counterpart she will be working with for the next two years. They were introduced at counterpart conference last week and they are both very excited to embark on this team teaching journey!

From current volunteers who work in Aktobe we know that the city is full of promise and there are many citizens interested in a foundation for ongoing change. Aktobe has a number of universities, institutes, and colleges. Also, although there are restaurants, cafes, and discos within reach – you are not very far from the steppe where you can hang out with some camels and forget the “busy city life.”

We are very excited to be in Aktobe and I am very excited to be working for this organization in particular. It is a mature organization that has a very driven and capable staff. The previous

volunteers have worked hard and set a high bar – I will have large shoes to fill in meeting the demands of the org as well as bringing new ideas to the table.

Info on Aktobe here: http://aboutkazakhstan.com/Aktyubinsk_oblast.shtml

For fun - Play the Aktobe Anagram game! After we found out where we were going to be placed I couldn't sleep so I made up a few Anagrams - match the correct phrase with the anagram of Aktobe!

For Example:

1. OK A BET ---> Approved Gambling

The Aktobe Anagram Game

1. TKO ABE a. Mediocre dance music

2. TAO BE K b. Too much sun

3. TO BAKE c. A great baseball player

4. O, TE BAK d. That Chinese philosophy is great

5. KAT BOE e. Puss’n boots Karate Style

6. K, TAE BO f. The corn just wasn't enough

7. TAE KOB g. Billy Blanks is cool

8. BAT EKO h. Knock out the president

9. ATE KOB i. Love those thongs

10. TEA B OK j. Kazakhstani cultural pastime

11. OK BEAT k. Sonar in Caves

***************** Scroll Down for the Answers! ******************************

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1. TKO ABE - Knock out the president

2. TAO BE K - That Chinese philosophy is great

3. TO BAKE - Too much sun

4. O, TE BAK - Love those thongs

5. KAT BOE - Puss’n boots Karate Style

6. K, TAE BO - Billy Blanks is cool

7. TAE KOB - A great baseball player

8. BAT EKO - Sonar in Caves

9. ATE KOB - The corn just wasn’t enough

10. TEA B OK - Kazakhstani cultural pastime

11. OK BEAT - Mediocre dance music

******************************************************************************

So, since I’ve waited so long to write this first blog, I guess I’ll just start with a kind of summary and highlights and hopefully I’ll have more time to keep this up in the future…

So, for any of you that don’t know yet, we won the lottery on host families. The family consists of a mom (Tanya), dad (Xenya), brother (Damon), sister (Natasha), and Babushka(grandma). They’re a Russian family and the coolest people we could have been matched with. Aaron is teaching Natasha how to play chess on the weekends and she’s amazing. We also are lucky enough to have a TON of amenities: Indoor toilet, shower (although not what Americans think of as a shower), banya, washing machine, steady electricity (for the most part), and hot running water. The entire yard is a garden (literally), so we have fresh fruits and veggies all the time for now.

Scheduling right now is kind of hit or miss. My language teacher isn’t available all the time, so we get weird breaks, and sometimes don’t really get a lunch. Usually (as much as there is a usually here) my day starts at 8 and ends at 6. I usually have between 20 and 35 hours of Russian language class a week. On Mondays I have TEFL training (How to be a teacher 101), I have 4 lesson observations a week (until next week when I start teaching!?!?!?!), and once or twice a week I have 2 hour Cultural classes. I also have some random classes such as Health and Safety training (aka "How not to die in Kazakhstan"), HUB days, and community mapping projects. I work at a different location and have a completely different schedule than Aaron does, so we don’t get to see each other during the day.

I’ve found it really interesting the things that I miss about America. Some of them aren’t surprising. I knew, of course, that I’d really miss all of my friends and family. I knew I’d miss my animals and I knew I’d miss certain foods. I didn’t realize how much I would miss ice. I really, really miss ice. Nothing you drink here is really cold. I had a fountain drink in Almaty (the really big city about an hour from us) on Saturday and thought it was the best thing I’d ever tasted. I also found that although I knew I’d miss Echo, I didn’t realize how much. Until a couple of days ago, anytime I thought or spoke of her, I’d immediately tear up. It really caught me off guard! I’ve also become an American snack food fiend, which is really weird to me since I don’t really snack all that much in the US. There aren’t that many American snacks here and what they do have is really expensive. A small bottle of Tabasco sauce here (when you can find it) is the equivalent of 12 American dollars!

Here is a quick video of our host family, the home we are staying in, and the food! Enjoy,

Our Kazakhstan Phone Numbers:

US to Kazakhstan international dialing format : 011 + 7 + ??? + ???? ???

http://www.howtocallabroad.com/kazakhstan/

Aarons Cell Dialing from US would be: 011+7+777 + 736 8439

Dawns Cell Dialing from US would be: 011+7+777+736 8437

Be careful! Cost of calling Kazakhstan may be very expensive depending upon your plan. Please check with your provider first before calling to ensure you don't end up with a short call and a long bill. My advice if you are wanting to speak with us is to use a service like Skype which allows you to take advantage of very cheap rates by calling over the internet.

Skype: www.skype.com

Skype help guide: http://www.skype.com/help/guides/

Remember we are about a 12 hour difference from the US!

The town we are receiving our training in is called Issyk (my poor transliteration). Here are a few shots from around town. We were pleasantly surprised at how beautiful the town is - rolling hills, mountains, and Almaty is only an hour bus ride away. We also have a wonderful host family which makes me think that we are the two luckiest volunteers in Kazakhstan. Enjoy the shots from around town, and soon to come - a video introducing our host family!

Hello!

Dawn and I have received several emails from individuals asking about care packages. Just receiving your emails and words of encouragement are - in the words of our Peace Corps medical officer - "honey for my soul." But if you so desire to send us a little bit of America here in Kazakhstan here are a few items that we have noticed are hard to get or in some cases extremely expensive in Kaz:

Coffee - course ground Columbian Starbucks

Dr Pepper (12 oz bottles)

Zip Lock bags - all sizes are super handy

Potato Chips - BBQ, Salt & Vinegar, Sour Cream & Cheddar

Cry Baby Tear Jerker Gum (hard to find even in the States)

Packets of Apple Cider

Spices to make homemade mulled wine

Small marshmallows

Downey Wrinkle Releaser ** (a divine chemical invention)

Pre-cooked Bacon (one of Dawn's Sam's Club favorites)

Spot Remover

Italian Dressing (easy to make packets or bottle)

Salsa / Tortilla Chips

Sirachi Sauce

Tabasco Sauce (Green)

Swiss Miss Hot Chocalate Packets

Beef Jerky

Frosted Mini Wheats

Cocoa

Vanilla Extract

USB Thumb Drive

Also, here is information on how to send us packages:

http://followthedawn.blogspot.com/2009/08/tips-and-tricks-on-sending-us-mail.html

Thanks to all -- Cheers!

Hello! Here is a quick video from our staging experience. For those of you who have never been a Peace Corps volunteer :) the first thing that Peace Corps does when you arrive in country is to give you a few days of "staging." This process encompasses exposing you to the culture, food, and language in a gentle way. They provide skits, games, and presentations... then you get shipped off to your host family and training site for the real fun. Staging only lasts a couple of days - but its full of wonderful moments. Here are a few captured on video. Enjoy!

Dawn and I are in two separate Peace Corps progam groups. Her group is focused on Education and teaching English, my group is focused on community and business development.

OCAP (Organizational and Community Action program)

... it goes by many names - organizational development, business development, community development. The program's goal is to develop skillsets, potential, and capacity within local organizations - typically a NGO. This can mean many different things and is a broad and comprehensive program -- one I'm excited to learn more about.

Looking around at fellow volunteers is very uplifting. Not only does each person I'm working with in the OCAP program have a deep passion for volunteerism, but this is one of the most qualified teams I've ever worked with. To put this into perspective - the job I sadly left behind to join the Peace Corps gave me the opportunity to work with a team of world class business development professionals. The last statement isn't hyperbole - just this last year the team I was working with was nominated for a prestigious internal award "Presidents Choice." This was a company with over 30,000 global employees and a strong cash balance - enough to make a 1.2$ billion dollar acquisition shortly before I left. I was honored to work with that group and now I have the honor to introduce to you the current group of team members I'm working with. Here is a quick snapshot at some of the qualifications of my current trainee partners:

* Degrees in International Development, Sociological Studies, Economics, Robotics Education, Economic/Political development, Human Rights Law, etc.

* Over 5 decades of IT experience -- Project Management, Business Development, experience up to the VP level.

* Former volunteer accomplishments range widely from Peruvian micobank startups to positions with the American Constitutional Society for Law and Policy (a DC organization working closely with the Obama Administration).

*Hobbies like formula one racing, street fashion, skydiving, and coaching swim teams.

This group could travel globally and easily translate between Mandarin, Korean, Japanese, Romanian, French, German, and Russian.

This isn't even the entire Peace Corps Kaz team -- this is just my NGO group of 10 individuals that I get to work closely with on a daily basis. Yet with such an impressive group - each volunteer is down-to-earth and nonassuming. From ivy league to small town college - big city to down home country - each volunteer maintains an open minded approach to learning new skills and rearranging old paradigms.

We miss our family, friends, and co-workers immensely -- and we are comforted greatly by the new set of wonderful friends, team members, and host family. Soon to come: video of our training village - Esik, and host family.

Cheers!

So yesterday was a VERY exciting day. A very big day for a Peace corps volunteer trainee -- we met our host families. Of course the volunteer pool was full of anxiety -- would our host family like us? Would we make some horrible cultural gaffe immediately? Would they give us edible food that would seem so foreign that we would mistake it as unedible? This first foray out of the warm bosom of Peace Corps adminstration made some vols feel uncomfortable and worrisome over security. Dawn and I were lucky - we knew we would be together. We figured there wasn't too much we wouldn't be able to handle together. But as prepared as we thought we were we certainly weren't prepared for what we got.

Let me set it up -- we dropped off the first group of volunteers in a city outside of Almaty to cheering Kazakh families and we waited while they got their luggage sorted out. It was a funny sight - several Americans huddled around the side of the bus peering out around at the Kazakh families as they peered curiously back at us.

Then we piled back on the bus (those of us heading to Issyk) and arrived at the next stop... as we pulled up - sure eough - there were smiling waving kazakh families holding signs with our names on them. Now just so you know how interesting this scene is -- we are volunteers with little to NO Russian language skills -- these are kazakh families with little to NO english skills -- so those first few moments when you walk up on your host family can be pretty funny.

I was very proud of myself because I was able to string together in broken Russian the following conversation:

Aaron: "hello!"

Host Mom: "hello!"

Aaron: "My name is Aaron. "

Host Mom: "My name is Tanya."

Aaron :" Please to meet you."

Host Mom: "Likewise."

Aaron:"I speak very poor Russian."

Host Mom:"No problem, my son and daughter both speak English."

Aaron: "Whoa! Cool. " (this was actually said in english because i haven't learned whoa cool yet in Russian, but she got the idea from my beaming face)

Host Mom: "Where is your wife."

Aaron : *pointing back towards the bus because Dawn hadn't quite made it through the crowd yet*

Host Mom: "My husband is pulling the car around and will be here soon."

So.. our meeting stepped off on a very good step because we were able to commnicate with broken Russian and pantomiming. It is truly amazing -- you dont' realize how much you can say without words until you absoutely have to.

We loaded up Tanya and Zhenya's vehicle with our bags and off to our home we were! Already we were happy because we didn't know if we would have a car to load our bags into - we were told we may have to walk the distance back to the host families house. Carrying 100lbs of a mile or more wasn't exactly a nice thought.

Earlier in the post I stated we weren't prepared for what we got -- and (insert drum roll) ... it was a host famly which was more than we would even dream of!

We arrive at the house which is enclosed by a high wall and not easily seen from the street.

As we pull down the street and get close to their home - the host dad pulls up to a couple of kids playing in the street. He stops the car yelling at them to come over and as they come up he scoops one up planting a big kiss on the kid as he is rewarded with giggles. Then he scoots him back out and speaks something to him in Russian - the little kid runs to the back of the car and starts to "push it" - our host dad gives just enough gas to keep the car inching forward all the time yelling at the kid to keep pushing! This has the desired effect and the little kid is all giggles as he "pushes" the car down the street the host father encouraging him along the way. Smiling I asked if the children were his - but they were neighborhood children. I'm guessing their day is lit brighter every time Zhenya drives up the street distributing kisses and praising their car moving strength.

With a lighter heart we made it into our host families home and hope beyond hope - it is gorgeous! The room we are shown to has beautiful wooden floors, more space than twice the hotel room we had been in the night before, beautiful large windows which look out over a huge "garden" maintained by the family. This garden is organic and our dinner was a traditional Uyghur dish (Manpar), a rich & tangy salad, freshly made pickles (processed themselves), and garden fresh organic tomatoes. This was complemented with a wonderful sweet champagne, and homemade raspberry juice - made from indredients straight out of the garden!

Then over the next few hours we experienced the Kazakh hospitality -- we were fed a wonderful meal, ate choclates, desserts, and drank Chai (tea). We were also offered coffee - a nice suprise since coffee is not near as regular as Chai.

Oh and guess what.. our host family brother and sister are excellent English speakers. So we do our best in Russian and they answer in English and we often meet in the middle to resolve any communication problems.

And the surprises just keep coming - not only are we not the first PC volunteers in this home - they have hosted SEVEN OTHER VOLUNTEERS. This means that they understand us quirky Americans and we didn't experience many of the cultural snafus that often accompany this first evening in a new host home. And they are not only culturally sensitive to Americans, but globally knowlegeable - well travelled, and express a true love for learning from other cultures. All in all Tanya, Daimon, Zhyena, and Natasha made our first evening a beautiful one. We made toasts to the partnership of America and Kazakhstan, toasted volunteers that came before, and the goals and aspirations of our families.

After dinner -- we were shown the family banya and Dawn and I proceeded to take much needed and incredibly enjoyable steam bath.

Cheers from Kazakhstan,

Aaron and Dawn

"I want a great life story..."

these words were spoken today in a Peace Corp training session by one of the other volunteers and they really resonated with me. We are surrounded by individuals who want - and many already have - a great life story. In this blog I want to share a little bit about our fellow Peace Corps volunteers, but first I want to catch you up on where we are at now in our journey.

So we made it into Almaty on Friday. Jet lagged, wide eyed, and feeling overly American we made our way into the Almaty airport about 1:20ish AM to truly begin our in-country adventure. We were met by Peace Corps Volunteers and shuffled through customs easily. They had thought out the logistics well and our baggage was unloaded and placed onto buses with ease - we were off to Almaty in a 'jiff'. As we exited the airport - we saw our first random street dog, a seeminlyg simple element of the environtment, but poignant in that it was our first of many other firsts. We made it over to the hotel - and unloaded - into our rooms with the chance for a few tiny hours worth of sleep before our 7:30am wake up call to begin staging.

One of my goals throughout this blog is to educate you on goals and myths of the Peace corps as well as Kazakhstan. One well known piece of information regarding the Peace Corps is that their training programs are world class. CHECK - TRUE. W/o going into specifics -- the Peace Corps methodology and trainers are the best. Second Myth -- Peace Corps qualifications? I've heard people who perceive Peace Corps Volunteers as idealistic doe eyed youths directly out of college signing up for a two year government paid vacation -- and others think the Peace Corps attracts highly qualified men and women who have generous skill sets and life experiences to offer. I'm sure the Peace Corps attracts elements of both but I know that one thing is for sure - anyone looking for a vacation had better look elsewhere -- the peace Corps training regimen starts before 8am and runs until after 6pm-- and we train for 6 day work weeks -- Monday-Saturday. We train in language skills 4 hours a day - we train in cultural and business/education skills the rest of the day. We walk 40 minutes to our training center and after training walk 40 minutes back to our house only to continue home studies.

Finding some free time to even update the blog has been a challenge this first week. And although I can't speak for the experience past the 10.5 week training period - I can say that the training period is challenging from a time/mental perspective. AND... thats how we like it!

Hello all! Well we've officially left America. We're now sitting in the Frankfurt airport and getting ready to jump on the flight to Almaty. Just wanted to share a little bit of our experience so far. Here is a video of the awesome group of people we've met so far -- its a quick shot of a small group of us out at dinner, then riding the bus to Dulles airport, our jaunt through Dulles and the gate which we boarded at. As soon as we reach Almaty we go into training so we may have little to no internet access for a while. So enjoy and we'll talk to you soon!

The world is a marvelous and awesome place. It seems that the difference between mundane and magical is sometimes just a minor shift in perception. As Dawn and I have moved through the physical preparation for our two year journey we've had an accompanying emotional and spiritual preparation as well. Part of the process has been a deepened appreciation for friends, family, and co-workers. Thanks to everyone and all who have helped and encouraged us through the final few weeks of preparations before our departure.

Our family and friends have opened their homes to us these last few weeks. I've learned how to make a guest feel very much at home by being hosted myself in so many loving homes. My sister, friend Tommy, friend Ragen, Dawn's parents, and friends Brian and Lea have housed us - providing showers, food, beds, clothes washer, and loving company.

Our former places of employment have showered us with encouragement, support, and well wishes.

Random strangers have glad-handed and encouraged. I even had a purchase of a few gumballs at a convenience store bought for me by a well intentioned patron upon hearing we were joining the Peace Corps.

We joined the Peace Corps because we felt convicted. Although there is a humanitarian aspect, I think it is fair to predict that we will receive as much and likely far more than we will give. The life lessons and realizations I've learned in the preparation alone have been worth a fortune.

And the precious moments shared during transition are priceless... a late night philosophical conversation with a friend.. Or a unique and loving moment shared with a sibling. Not that one needs to join Peace Corps to have these moments - or appreciate them. But the journey we are about to embark upon has made me view them from another perspective. A new perspective. What was once mundane now seems magical. I have a greater appreciation for the things I am about to temporarily leave - and if I never step foot in Kazakhstan, I will be content and peaceful in the knowledge that I've already learned many a life lesson from the preparation alone.

My beautiful sister:

Ragen and friends:

Stayed up until sunrise more than once talking on Tommy's front porch:

Hello Potential Letter and Package Senders,

It benefits us to make your potential package and mail sending activities as easy as possible. With that in mind - here are some guidelines from the Central Asia Peace Corps Desk regarding the logistics of sending mail to us while we are at our 10 week training site in Kazakhstan:

The Central Asia Desk has created some guidelines for family and friends that want to send a Trainee letters, care packages, and other correspondence by post during Pre-Service Training.

This address will only be valid through late October 2009, so please plan your deliveries accordingly.

Feel free to make several copies of the following address sheet. You can cut and tape the address directly to an envelope or a package. You do not need to change the names into Cyrillic (see example below). Delivery of your letter and/or package will be delivered if addressed only in English – however, an accompanying Cyrillic version may expedite delivery.

At the post office: Airmail delivery of letters and packages generally take between 7-14 days. Your post office will be able to assist in determining a reliable and cost-effective way of shipping items to the Trainee.

A note on sending packages: Please be sure to seal all packages with strong packing tape. Insuring the package may discourage tampering and pilfering. PC/Kazakhstan cannot be held responsible for damaged or open packages.

For example, the address is as follows:

Feel free to print this blog post and cut out the above address label to use in addressing letters or packages.

Happy mailing!

Hello friends, family, fellow Kazakhstan volunteers, trainees, future Kaz-PCVs, and random blog lurkers. This blog is the story of Aaron and Dawn Bean’s adventures in Peace Corps Kazakhstan. It is now the beginning of August 2009 and we are getting ready to embark on our 27 month Peace Corps service. We will fly to Washington, D.C. at the end of August for a brief 2-day staging before we are off to Kazakhstan. Although it seems this particular journey is just now starting there is actually already quite a history. “Let me explain. No there is too much let me sum up… “ Although the Peace Corps is a volunteer organization (Wikipedia Peace Corps), the process for joining – or – being selected – is long, arduous, complex, frustrating, and I believe the process itself is meant to be a part of the selection in the sense that it surely WEEDS out many an aspiring volunteer. We began our process of finding out what the Peace was really all about over a year ago. At that point in time we also began the application process. I won’t go into the process here, you can find information on the Peace Corps application and selection process elsewhere online. But I will say that it appears to be a very thorough vetting process… in addition to the expected resume, educational history, discourses on why you are qualified and why they should select you, there is also FBI level background checks, a full medical examine including dental and vision, vaccinations, lab work, complete with a financial survey that leaves no stone unturned. It's also an introduction to government level beauracracy for those who haven’t experienced it before – it is often hard to get a straight answer as to where you are in the process, minor misinterpretations or mistakes can add weeks - or even months - to the process, and there is a delicate balance you have to strike on being proactive, engaged, and resourceful BUT not being pushy, annoying, and callus. With that said, almost all of the interactions I’ve had with employees of US Peace Corps have been positive and it is generally the process that is laden with red tape. With just a few weeks left we are very busy with finishing up work projects, getting all of our affairs in order, and other general preparations for our journey. A big part of this process is taking time to reflect on friendships, family relationships, and just generally taking time out to appreciate what our life and lifestyle has afforded us for the last few years. It’s been a humbling, energizing, and very poignant last few weeks. We both feel very blessed to have such a wonderful circle of family and friends – to have worked with world class co-workers - and to live in this wonderful country! Cheers for now,Aaron & Dawn

Hello and welcome to Dawn and Aaron's blog concerning their Peace Corps service in Kazakhstan!

This will be our primary means of communication to our friends and family back home in the states as we serve our two years of service. Part of the Peace Corps mission is for Americans to experience the culture of another country and I hope that you find our blog an entertaining and learning experience!