In an attempt to do as many Central Asia-related activities (and buy as many Central Asia-related things) as I possibly can before I move to Belgium, I went a bit crazy collecting different fabrics with the intention of getting some sweet threads made. Why? Mostly just because it seems like a ridiculous luxury to get …
Category Archives: daily life
this is what sucks about being an expat
I had to say goodbye to a really good friend last night. Farrell played a show at an outdoor cafe with Eholami and Dad Manki. It was a beautiful, clear night, and I sat on the grass while Darwin managed to sleep for several hours in a pair of “junior-sized” noise-blocking earphones. People rocked out. …
Orto Sai haul
Do I love Orto Sai Bazaar because some of my closest friends go nearly every weekend, or because it is truly a source of amazing treasures? This is what I bought this weekend: A suitcase for 200 som. Look at those patterns! It is in decent shape, too. One of the latches is slightly crooked, …
Spring in Bishkek
The weather has been absolutely gorgeous lately. It’s like a switch has been flipped, suddenly I’m acting in a way that one might call “being social”. I’m searching for cafes that have their patios set up (not fast enough!), I’m willingly dragging the stroller outside on my own, and I’m foregoing sleeves. Bishkek is finally …
Zil is a ski resort
One fine Saturday a couple weeks ago, a new friend (who has already left Bishkek) invited Farrell and I to go to the mountains. We learned two very important lessons that day: 1) Zil, the place he said we were going, is a ski resort. 2) In Russian, to “go to the mountains” implies skiing, …
new apartment
I’m currently in the midst of moving into my fifth place of residence in Bishkek (ugh!) and I always forget there’s an unavoidable lag with getting internet hooked up in the new location. Regular posting will resume soon, I went to Karakol last weekend and I have so much to share!
another dreary day
This is my third Bishkek winter, and yet again I trudge through cold puddles under sludge-colored skies and think, “Wait, what made me want to move here again?” The weather has been particularly atrocious, so this morning when I saw a fresh layer of snow, I got up with Farrell and decided I might as …
a busy week at the office
My business in Bishkek essentially works based on contracts. It’s hard to sum up what we do in terms that are general enough to encompass everything, while also being specific enough to give a satisfying response, because it really does vary from month to month, project to project. On the one hand, this is great …
Things to do before leaving Kyrgyzstan
I bought my tickets, I’m leaving Kyrgyzstan (temporarily) on November 1st. I won’t get back until January 24, meaning I’ll be in the states for nearly three months. That’s practically a whole life chapter, an entire season in a different location. I’ve got about four weeks until I fly back and… you know, give birth …
my war on stuff
Maybe it’s because I’ve moved so often in the past six years (I’ve never lived in one place for more than 12 months, most places less than that), but I’m extra conscious about the amount of stuff I own and constantly thinking about how to reduce it. It’s looking more likely that Year 3 might …