Spending the Holidays in Kazakhstan

Holidays don't become memorable or special because someone dedicates a specific day for celebration. I say that because...

The primary religion in Kazakhstan is Islam. Next is Russian Orthodoxy. Muslims don't celebrate Christmas (hopefully that's not a revelation) and the Russian Orthodox Church celebrates Christmas on January 6th (Three Kings Day).

All of this means... that December 25th is just another day to the majority of the country and people of Kazakhstan. Since it was still a special day for us, we decided to do special things. Christmas is what you make it. We dressed up Addie on Christmas Eve, and Chris traveled around the city picking up "special-specials" for our special day. ;) We didn't purchase a Christmas tree because they were way too expensive... as were all the other decorations. So our apartment was not very festive... until Christmas morning.

I am sharing our "special-specials" because they are definitely courtesy of a Christmas in Kazakhstan. Quality merchandise here is about three times the price you would find in the States, which means we avoid buying things in general (other than food, of course).


The imported generic-brand American cereal and pop-tarts were a real treat... at their going rate, we won't be buying them again!

The best thing about the "Christmas chair" is the lovely bunch of evergreen on the top. Chris stepped out Christmas Eve to pick something up from one of the little stores near us. I asked him to take Addie with him which he hesitantly did (very unusual). Some time after their return (the trip took an unusually long time) I was looking at Addie and realized she had dirt in her eye! I couldn't figure out how it got there, so I mentioned it to Chris. He said he thought she might. (!) He wouldn't tell me why or how she might, and the topic was dropped. Later that evening, Chris talked to his parents on Skype and I joined the conversation a little while after it was started. His mom mentioned something about our Christmas branch, and Chris got a little flustered and said something to her about spoiling the surprise. I was able to begin connecting the dots and Chris filled in the blanks on Christmas morning (he is very good about keeping surprises a surprise). He decided to get our "tree" from just outside our apartment building and did it with Addie in the carrier. As he was working on removing little branches Addie was content with staring up, mouth wide open, catching dirt and everything else that fell onto her. Hence the dirt in her eye.

So, we had a really nice morning and then went to an Indian restaurant for lunch--and found out they have a buffet! The food was pretty good, but definitely not the best Indian food we've had (we've since been back, and the buffet is gone, but the food was much better). After lunch we walked around one of the shopping areas (similar to a mall) for a while and then walked home. Later, we joined our neighbors for a Christmas/birthday dinner. Their daughter turned seven, so we celebrated her birthday as well as the holiday. It was a lot of fun. We were able to introduce them to cinnamon rolls, which we've decided will become another Christmas tradition. Aptly named Clone of a Cinnabon, they are yummy!

The Saturday after Christmas was our branch Christmas program. The members presented a re-enactment of the story of a woman who prepared for a visit of the Savior, instead hosts various other people who are in need (shelter, food, etc.), and at the end of the day, is disappointed that the Savior never came. She prays and realizes that in serving those various people she was really serving the Lord. It was a nice message, and it was followed by various musical presentations of Christmas carols and hymns. I snapped a picture of our primary girls (we have one boy in primary and he is three!) all dressed up like angels.

The biggest holiday in Kazakhstan, and probably the entire former Soviet Union, is New Years. Traditionally families get together on New Year's Eve and have a late dinner and celebrate the coming of midnight together. We were invited to join two different groups for the festivities and we were really excited... until we got sick! We attempted to cancel both our plans, but our friends Aundrey and Anya refused to let us miss out on all the fun. =) So around 9:30 p.m. we wondered next door with some cinnamon rolls (another batch!) and waited for Grandfather Frost (Santa Clause) to come. (S)He did, and we had a blast! Some of Chris' family may recognize this Grandfather Frost, as it is our very own Sveta.

Some of their traditions for New Years are quite similar to what we do for Christmas. Everyone puts up a New Year's tree with all the trimmings, they give gifts, Grandfather Frost comes and gives gifts... BUT! There are some very distinct and fun differences! Children dress up for this holiday, as you can see by Stacia's fairy princess costume. (They don't mess around either, these costumes are amazing!) Grandfather Frost actually visits with the children, and in order to receive their gifts they have to solve or retell riddles they are given, sing songs, etc. It was a lot of fun to see and experience. Also, the city is bright with fireworks. We heard them going off for days before and after New Years, but the sky was bright all night long on New Year's Eve. I was actually awakened at 5:00 a.m. by fireworks going off near us, and heard them go off a few times the following hour.