Nov 18-27, 2016
Turkey. Potatoes. Cranberries. Pumpkin. These are the essentials of an American Thanksgiving dinner. And luckily I was able to have them all on Thanksgiving 2016, even though I was in Kazakhstan. The composition of the meal, however, took a bit of creativity. The nice folks at our Almaty office took me out to dinner and made sure I got what I needed: duck breast with pumpkin, roasted potatoes, fried turkey salad, and a cranberry martini. Close enough.
When I landed in Almaty, the trip was off to a good start. After 11 hours of travel (a 6.5 hour flight from Frankfurt), plus a 4 hour time difference, I arrived in Almaty after midnight. With a crowded border control, filled with a bunch of tired, grumpy passengers, I expected the worst. But the border agent smiled, saying the words "Welcome", "Thank you", and "Goodbye" all in the same conversation. I don't think that has ever happened to me in my entire life. Another pleasant surprise was that there was snow everywhere. It was November 19, and there was at least a foot of snow on the ground. But actually, I don't think I imagined Kazakhstan any other way.
I flew out there a couple days before my work obligation, to spend some time touring the area. After a couple hours of sleep, I met Aigerim, a local friend from work, and one of her friends, whom she only refers to as "crazy". We headed up to the mountains (Shymbulak) to meet Yuliya, another PwCer, whom I've known for a few years. Unfortunately, I didn't have any snowboarding gear, but it was still nice to go up the gondolas, walk around in the snow drifts, and enjoy a couple hot toddies. I don't even know what a "hot toddy" is, and I probably didn't actually drink one, but when I think of a warm, alcoholic beverage consumed while surrounded by snow, I call it a hot toddy. We couldn't see much through the heavily falling snow; Yuliya even teased me, saying that the toilet was down the hill, requiring a hike through zero-visibility. I probably would still be there trying to find it, had I listened to her. I've taken long trips to the bathroom before, but not because of getting lost in a snow storm. A couple weeks earlier, while in Riga, I had to buy snow boots because of a sudden snow storm there as well...which was a good thing, because I wouldn't have managed without them.
After coming back to the city, I met with Russian Inna and her husband Zhenya. Inna worked with me in Uzbekistan in 2015, so it was nice to reconnect. Our second "Stan" country together! In all honesty, it's nice to travel with her, not only because we get along and have similar sightseeing interests, but because she speaks Russian and can communicate in this area much better than I can. Her husband didn't speak English, but I could tell he's a very insightful and funny guy. It's nice how you can get along with someone even without speaking the same language. He was constantly joking around, though admittedly some of the humor was lost in translation; one joke went something like "why does the sun rise and set?" "Because Japan is raising their flag for the day". I have a feeling Zosia would have been laughing, but I could only manage a crinkled nose and a "huh?". We walked a bit through the snow, and took the cable car from the city to Kok Tobe, an amusement park on the hill. It was similar to the park in Tbilisi, but because it was cold and snowy, there weren't any people there.
Although they consider Almaty the "soul" of the country, Astana is the capital. I didn't go to Astana, but the concept is interesting to me. They moved the capital from Almaty to Astana (then named Akmola) in 1997, then renamed it to Astana (which means "Capital City") in 1998. It's a planned city with big, attention-seeking buildings, in the flat plains in the middle of nowhere. And it's cold, similar to Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia.
At first glance, the people in Kazakhstan look Asian. That's because they are, dummy, since it's Central Asia. But I just want you to know that I didn't see a single person who looked like Borat or his award winning sister. Generally Kazakhs are Muslim, but more in tradition than in religion, if that makes any sense. I'm not sure if this is a Muslim tradition, but one important custom is that the youngest son has to ("gets to") take care of the parents when they get old. It's just a way of life; they don't question it. There are also Russians and other Central Asian and Eastern European ethnicities living there. During WWII, a lot of Koreans were deported to Kazakhstan from other parts of the Soviet Union, so you can find a few Koreans (and Korean food) as well. One of the girls at the office is Korean, grew up in Russia, and now lives in Kazakhstan. I had to ask her to explain it a couple times. Another thing that confused me is that some people speak Kazakh, some Russian, but not everyone speaks both. It's possible that you wouldn't speak the same language as your neighbor, even if you've both lived there your whole lives. Lucky for me, people that I interacted with spoke really good English.
Since Kazakhstan is so large, flat and desolate (in a good way), some of the largest gulag camps were there, including concentration camps for the Japanese WWII POWs. One such camp was very close to Almaty Lake. When I explained to a taxi driver who took us to the lake, that we also had camps for Japanese in the US, he wasn't surprised. Until he realized I said Japanese AMERICANS. Then he was shocked. Yeah, me too. Kazakhstan is also home to the first and largest space launch facility (where the Soviets launched the first satellite and person into space). So basically Kazakhstan is like Houston or Cape Canaveral.
Lake Almaty itself was beautiful, though some of that beauty was buried under heavy snow. But I can imagine how it looks without the snow. In fact, I don't even have to imagine, you can see it here in a photo that I didn't take.
The lake is a source of water for the city, and there are exposed pipes running down the hill. While up there, I started to film a submission video for a TV travel show application. I heard about the need for an English speaking host for some travel show, ala Anthony Bourdain, so I submitted a video. I haven't heard back yet, but it's only been 10 months, and I'm sure it just takes time for them to go through all of the applications. I expect a call from Hollywood any day.
Another thing I am waiting for is to be told about the house I might have won. There is a brand of restaurants called Parmagiano, and while I was there, there was a contest in that you would receive a certain number of entries in a drawing every time you spent a certain amount of money at one of the different restaurant brands. If you're reading this, you can come live with me when I win the house. I'll know you read this if you say the password "Stacy's pita chips". Life will be comfortable for you there, not only because there will be at least 10 bedrooms (I assume), but because Almaty has McDonald's, Starbucks and Uber now (my ride from the hotel to the office only cost 30 cents), so it will be just like home.
Because it was Thanksgiving, of course that meant a lot of eating. In addition to the modernized Thanksgiving dinner, I actually was able to have a second one. On the next day, Yuliya took me and her young son to the American Chamber of Commerce Thanksgiving celebration. There were a few American families around, but it seemed that most of the guests were local, with some ties to American companies. The sight of 4 roasted turkeys put a huge smile on my face, but unfortunately, there weren't a lot of other traditional Thanksgiving dishes. It was hard to deal with the fact I wouldn't eat any pumpkin pie.
Other local foods I had during the week were a horse t-bone steak (nice), rabbit liver (not nice), a tasty cafeteria dinner with undefined meat, rice, potatoes, salad and bread for only $3 (double nice!), and a couple servings of beshbarmak. The version of beshbarmak that I had was made with sheep meat and noodles, a bowl of broth on the side, and a slice of horse sausage. It was salty and fatty, but had a really nice flavor. I needed some ayran and bread to balance the richness and unclog my arteries. At the restaurant "Gakku", they also had camel and horse milk, sheep lungs and intestines, and something called "sub products", which scared me. I didn't try any of that, but they also had sheep head, so you know it's a legit place. A more "normal" traditional food (from Uzbekistan), are manty dumplings. They were so good that I found an Uzbek restaurant in Warsaw so I could eat them again. Another restaurant I would recommend to a visitor in Almaty is "Kisklak". The beshbarmak there was the best of the places I tried, and they have traditional robes hanging on the wall, which I assume are for customers to wear while eating. Maybe?
All this talk of intestines and heads is making me hungry. And I'm already looking forward to next Thanksgiving...only 2 months away!
Turkey. Potatoes. Cranberries. Pumpkin. These are the essentials of an American Thanksgiving dinner. And luckily I was able to have them all on Thanksgiving 2016, even though I was in Kazakhstan. The composition of the meal, however, took a bit of creativity. The nice folks at our Almaty office took me out to dinner and made sure I got what I needed: duck breast with pumpkin, roasted potatoes, fried turkey salad, and a cranberry martini. Close enough.
Thanksgiving dinner
When I landed in Almaty, the trip was off to a good start. After 11 hours of travel (a 6.5 hour flight from Frankfurt), plus a 4 hour time difference, I arrived in Almaty after midnight. With a crowded border control, filled with a bunch of tired, grumpy passengers, I expected the worst. But the border agent smiled, saying the words "Welcome", "Thank you", and "Goodbye" all in the same conversation. I don't think that has ever happened to me in my entire life. Another pleasant surprise was that there was snow everywhere. It was November 19, and there was at least a foot of snow on the ground. But actually, I don't think I imagined Kazakhstan any other way.
I flew out there a couple days before my work obligation, to spend some time touring the area. After a couple hours of sleep, I met Aigerim, a local friend from work, and one of her friends, whom she only refers to as "crazy". We headed up to the mountains (Shymbulak) to meet Yuliya, another PwCer, whom I've known for a few years. Unfortunately, I didn't have any snowboarding gear, but it was still nice to go up the gondolas, walk around in the snow drifts, and enjoy a couple hot toddies. I don't even know what a "hot toddy" is, and I probably didn't actually drink one, but when I think of a warm, alcoholic beverage consumed while surrounded by snow, I call it a hot toddy. We couldn't see much through the heavily falling snow; Yuliya even teased me, saying that the toilet was down the hill, requiring a hike through zero-visibility. I probably would still be there trying to find it, had I listened to her. I've taken long trips to the bathroom before, but not because of getting lost in a snow storm. A couple weeks earlier, while in Riga, I had to buy snow boots because of a sudden snow storm there as well...which was a good thing, because I wouldn't have managed without them.
With Aigerim and Yuliya
Lots of snow everywhere
View from the office
After coming back to the city, I met with Russian Inna and her husband Zhenya. Inna worked with me in Uzbekistan in 2015, so it was nice to reconnect. Our second "Stan" country together! In all honesty, it's nice to travel with her, not only because we get along and have similar sightseeing interests, but because she speaks Russian and can communicate in this area much better than I can. Her husband didn't speak English, but I could tell he's a very insightful and funny guy. It's nice how you can get along with someone even without speaking the same language. He was constantly joking around, though admittedly some of the humor was lost in translation; one joke went something like "why does the sun rise and set?" "Because Japan is raising their flag for the day". I have a feeling Zosia would have been laughing, but I could only manage a crinkled nose and a "huh?". We walked a bit through the snow, and took the cable car from the city to Kok Tobe, an amusement park on the hill. It was similar to the park in Tbilisi, but because it was cold and snowy, there weren't any people there.
Inna, the bird lady
Although they consider Almaty the "soul" of the country, Astana is the capital. I didn't go to Astana, but the concept is interesting to me. They moved the capital from Almaty to Astana (then named Akmola) in 1997, then renamed it to Astana (which means "Capital City") in 1998. It's a planned city with big, attention-seeking buildings, in the flat plains in the middle of nowhere. And it's cold, similar to Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia.
At first glance, the people in Kazakhstan look Asian. That's because they are, dummy, since it's Central Asia. But I just want you to know that I didn't see a single person who looked like Borat or his award winning sister. Generally Kazakhs are Muslim, but more in tradition than in religion, if that makes any sense. I'm not sure if this is a Muslim tradition, but one important custom is that the youngest son has to ("gets to") take care of the parents when they get old. It's just a way of life; they don't question it. There are also Russians and other Central Asian and Eastern European ethnicities living there. During WWII, a lot of Koreans were deported to Kazakhstan from other parts of the Soviet Union, so you can find a few Koreans (and Korean food) as well. One of the girls at the office is Korean, grew up in Russia, and now lives in Kazakhstan. I had to ask her to explain it a couple times. Another thing that confused me is that some people speak Kazakh, some Russian, but not everyone speaks both. It's possible that you wouldn't speak the same language as your neighbor, even if you've both lived there your whole lives. Lucky for me, people that I interacted with spoke really good English.
Since Kazakhstan is so large, flat and desolate (in a good way), some of the largest gulag camps were there, including concentration camps for the Japanese WWII POWs. One such camp was very close to Almaty Lake. When I explained to a taxi driver who took us to the lake, that we also had camps for Japanese in the US, he wasn't surprised. Until he realized I said Japanese AMERICANS. Then he was shocked. Yeah, me too. Kazakhstan is also home to the first and largest space launch facility (where the Soviets launched the first satellite and person into space). So basically Kazakhstan is like Houston or Cape Canaveral.
Lake Almaty itself was beautiful, though some of that beauty was buried under heavy snow. But I can imagine how it looks without the snow. In fact, I don't even have to imagine, you can see it here in a photo that I didn't take.
Great Almaty Lake
How it's supposed to look
It's not easy to be a TV host
Another thing I am waiting for is to be told about the house I might have won. There is a brand of restaurants called Parmagiano, and while I was there, there was a contest in that you would receive a certain number of entries in a drawing every time you spent a certain amount of money at one of the different restaurant brands. If you're reading this, you can come live with me when I win the house. I'll know you read this if you say the password "Stacy's pita chips". Life will be comfortable for you there, not only because there will be at least 10 bedrooms (I assume), but because Almaty has McDonald's, Starbucks and Uber now (my ride from the hotel to the office only cost 30 cents), so it will be just like home.
Maybe this is my new house?
Call an Uber and you can avoid these taxi lines on the side of the road!
Eternal flame
Because it was Thanksgiving, of course that meant a lot of eating. In addition to the modernized Thanksgiving dinner, I actually was able to have a second one. On the next day, Yuliya took me and her young son to the American Chamber of Commerce Thanksgiving celebration. There were a few American families around, but it seemed that most of the guests were local, with some ties to American companies. The sight of 4 roasted turkeys put a huge smile on my face, but unfortunately, there weren't a lot of other traditional Thanksgiving dishes. It was hard to deal with the fact I wouldn't eat any pumpkin pie.
Other local foods I had during the week were a horse t-bone steak (nice), rabbit liver (not nice), a tasty cafeteria dinner with undefined meat, rice, potatoes, salad and bread for only $3 (double nice!), and a couple servings of beshbarmak. The version of beshbarmak that I had was made with sheep meat and noodles, a bowl of broth on the side, and a slice of horse sausage. It was salty and fatty, but had a really nice flavor. I needed some ayran and bread to balance the richness and unclog my arteries. At the restaurant "Gakku", they also had camel and horse milk, sheep lungs and intestines, and something called "sub products", which scared me. I didn't try any of that, but they also had sheep head, so you know it's a legit place. A more "normal" traditional food (from Uzbekistan), are manty dumplings. They were so good that I found an Uzbek restaurant in Warsaw so I could eat them again. Another restaurant I would recommend to a visitor in Almaty is "Kisklak". The beshbarmak there was the best of the places I tried, and they have traditional robes hanging on the wall, which I assume are for customers to wear while eating. Maybe?
Beshbarmak from Kisklak
I hope that photo isn't to show who you are eating
All this talk of intestines and heads is making me hungry. And I'm already looking forward to next Thanksgiving...only 2 months away!
