Another Random Sampling

We went for a drive out on the steppe and this is what we saw:
-these ladies are Turkish and Uzbek; they set up a fruit stand on the side of the road in the-middle-of-nowhere. They sleep in blue tarp tents for a few months at a time.

-this guy was trying out a new toy at an abandoned airport. It's a good place for training; check out the horizon--no obstacles!

-socks and potatoes for sale on the side of the road.

Halloween 2010

Edna and her co-worker organized Halloween in our gated community this year. Trick-or-treating is unknown in this country except in enclave "villages" like ours. So we had a "compound party." Families from Poland, France, Russia, Canada, The Ukraine, The States, Pakistan, Uzbekistan, Tunisia and Korea attended. We had a barbeque in the parking lot. The food was exotic and extremely ethnic; ironically (or not) the hot dogs and the s'mores were very popular. That's Cody in the Spiderman costume.

Gorky Park

There's a Gorky Park in nearly every former Soviet capital city. These are our friends on the ferris wheel in Almaty's version of Gorky.

Here's Cody trying the 'drawbridge rope' in the park.

Stalin and Lenin's statues have been replaced.

Cotton candy: ubiquitous fair 'food.'

Cody's friends at school have begun calling him 'fanta.' He's rarely seen not wearing something orange, and the soft drink "Fanta" is his favourite.

Tamgaly Tas Petroglyphs

These petroglyphs are a 2 hour drive north of the city. They are 1200 years old, Bhuddist in origin, but otherwise misunderstood--Kazakh historians don’t have time or resources to study or preserve them.

Here's a faint outline of Bhudda.

If I was optimistic and more sensitive to political correctness, I would describe Kazakhstan as a "developing country" or an "emerging economy." There are so many things about living here that we really enjoy, things that we will actually miss. Tragically, the ill effects of the Soviet-era are far reaching. Colonized people around the world typically first lose their religion, then their language, then their ancient history followed by their recent history--it's inevitable that morale, values, pride, and purpose also dwindle.

Hence, this image:

This is the entry to the petroglyph site--you might call it a park, complete with a park bench. But, for a completely mystical explanation that escapes most non-Kazakhs, the amount of garbage and the profane neglect for mother nature that exists at these settings goes unseen by the locals. Soviet oppressors: bad.

Let's put the "fun" back in dysfunctional!

Only the Soviets could have conjured up this display--implements of war and destruction proudly exhibited at the "Almaty Family Fun Park."We're always a bit creeped out when we see this sort of thing amidst the balloons, popcorn vendors, and merry-go-rounds--maybe we're too Canadian.

Hey, Jerry: I think the helicopter is a Mil Mig Mi-8. Have you ever jumped out of one?

And this one, below, is either a Sukhoi S-221 or a Mikoyan Mig 195.

The image above is what aircraft should be used for: making love, not war. And they shouldn't drop bombs; they should only drop my friends at the Abbotsford Parachute Centre. Hi, Debbie.

Ili River/Kazakh Steppe

We went out for a drive onto the steppe, in pursuit of 1200 year old petroglyphs. Above Cody's head, on the other side of the Ili River (eal-ee), is an "old" nomad fortress/movie set used for the movie "Nomads" or "Mongol." The picture below is a great example of the physiography here. Flat and barren, punctuated with the occasional river canyon, or ruggedly mountainous, similar to the Rockies.

Edna and Kyla, just before we descend into the canyon, 1000 feet below.

Potatoes anyone?

We counted 30 bags of spuds in/on this car. If each bag weighs 50lbs, then at 1500lbs, I'm pretty sure the spuds weigh more than the car.