A Visit From Family

Do you ever feel paralyzed by a seemingly insurmountable to-do list? I do. It may seem silly, but lately catching up on blogging has had me feeling a little overwhelmed! It seems there is so much to cover!

BUT... I will endeavor to do just that!

We recently said good-bye to Chris' dad, mom, and two younger sisters. Although we had a lot of fun visiting with them, we didn't do a very good job of documenting it... so, I will show what we have here and in another post (for another day).

Here we are waiting... I don't know that this is easy to see, but the floor is actually sloped (and at a VERY obvious angle).

Inside our transport...

Our transport! I'd never been in an aerial lift before but it was kind of fun.
A supporting tower... keeping us aerial (definitely a good thing)...
The view from our car:



You may not be able to see this very well, but that yard has sheep and chickens. That may not strike you as being amusing, but seeing as Almaty has a population of probably 1.5 million (it was at 1.2 in 2005) it easily compares in size to many of the top ten cities (population-wise) in the U.S. To get a little more specific, that means it best compares to: Phoenix, Philadelphia, San Antonio, San Diego & Dallas... and there are sheep and chickens in a backyard.
...And an outhouse.
Our destination! Kok-Tobe means "Green Hill" in Kazakh. We took the aerial lift to the hill so we could see the city.

Although it was still a nice view, it was unfortunately, a bit overcast and smoggy...
An apple fountain! Quite appropriate for the city named after an apple.
A map displaying some of the various amenities and features available on the hill. There is a small amusement park, zoo, various shops and restaurants, etc.
Dora loves rock & roll, which means she was pretty excited about getting a picture with The Beatles (bronze version of course).
Chris kept joking that I was getting a little to friendly...
These are replicas of the yurta. The Kazakh people are originally a nomadic people. A yurta is basically a tent, but it was shaped like you see here (circle with a dome top). The frame was made of wood with the covering being made of felt. Carpets were/are often hung on the inside to give greater insulation and warmth.
Some tile work on the yurta.

I thought these bird houses were sort of fun...
The sheep farthest from the camera was pretty shaggy looking... but it didn't want to pose...
I kept calling this a reindeer, but it is a Kazakh elk.
Some peacocks (they refused to spread their tail feathers for us...)
These birds were probably some of my favorites, they are different kinds of pheasants.

Not for sure, but we think this is a turkey. I loved it's coloring: black with white polka dots!
Check out the rooster!
Her hat is a little too big and often shifts to a position like this... surprisingly, she doesn't usually complain (at least... not much)
Mom & Dad at a special spot on Kok Tobe...
The rest of us...
Check out the ears on this little guy! The Kazakh version of a squirrel is called a byelka.
We have seen a number of trees like this throughout the city. This isn't the best example, but the tree branches have a tendency to wind around each other.
After our visit to Kok-Tobe we visited the various homes Chris' family living in during their years in Kazakhstan (sorry, no pictures...) and then I went to the Green Bazaar with Mom and Clari. It was a relatively short shopping trip followed by dinner with old friends, the Kabdigalive family. I was introduced to bishbarmak, a traditional Kazakh meal which translates to five fingers--because you eat it with your hands (we used forks). It is dish made with noodles (wide, flat, and homemade), potatoes, onion, and meat (traditionally horse, but ours was made with beef).