Hey oh! Another year is over and I’ve come a long way since celebrating the new year in Baghdad. This was the year I became reacquainted with life in the U.S. after eight months in Iraq. This was the year I married my boo in the most awesome wedding ever. Most importantly, this is the …
Monthly Archives: December 2010
final resting yurts
During our Chon-Kemin Christmas weekend, we took a walk around the village and found a cemetery beyond the empty fields, just a bit of a hike up the hills. I would like to learn about the burial traditions of the Kyrgyz, how generations of nomadic life eventually leads to a sedentary existence in a permanent …
Christmas
Merry Christmas, world! How did you spend your holiday weekend? I know my dad attempted to make cinnamon rolls, but apparently didn’t achieve quite as pretty results as I did. Oh well, I’ll make some for you when I visit. In the spirit of “doing something” on Christmas, the Belgians organized a trip to Chon …
cinnamon rolls
Stayed up til 3am in a “business meeting” over Gchat. Woke up at 8am to satisfy a high maintenance kitten. Looked outside, Bishkek is again blanketed in snow. A search for a snow shovel in the building turns up only rakes and ice picks. Well, looks like the only thing to do is make cinnamon …
Chains we can believe in
I heard my first joke from a Kyrgyz person the other day. There’s no real punchline, it just makes fun of how bad Kyrgyz people’s English is, so when they heard Barack Obama’s iconic promise to bring change, they were disappointed when the harsh Kyrgyz winter rolled around and Obama wasn’t providing chains for their …
Maybe you’ll never learn a new language
One of the biggest challenges about moving to Kyrgyzstan (other than finding a reliable supply of powdered sugar) has been the language barrier. I’ve never been to a place where so little English is known or used among the locals, definitely an after-effect of the Soviet Union. I barely glanced at a Russian lesson before …
replacing Arabic
Farrell’s sitting at the table working on Russian homework. I’m cursing the internet for failing yet again. The Beatles “Magical Mystery Tour” is playing on iTunes. He looks up and says, “My Arabic is being replaced by Russian.” He doesn’t look particularly happy about it.
wear good boots
The only rules for surviving winter in Bishkek: bundle up as much as you possibly can! When the -2 degree (Fahrenheit) wind starts howling, you don’t want to get caught with vulnerable ears.
Don’t worry, Bishkek!
A quick update on yesterday’s explosion. Never fear! Since the bomb was placed in a manhole, Bishkek has figured out a way to effectively prevent further attacks by welding the manholes shut in surrounding area. Don’t worry, guys. It’s real safe now.