Day 22: Lady Models

Why hello Suzie! I can't believe it's already here... we're supposed to leave now?! Just when we're feeling comfortable and accepted? So is life, I guess. I'm so unbelievably thankful for this whole experience, I've never felt so culturally aware or explorative. I'm in love with this place and its people, even with all its quirks :) Anyway, off to the races!

Today was a great 'ole QSI day. All was normal except we went to School 17 to see a Kazakh public school. It was very different than expected in more ways than one. We thought we were coming in to see a few lessons, tour the school and ask questions of the staff. Nope! We sat in and participated in an English lesson and then were led to a conference room where the high school students asked questions of us. It was kind of funny though, most of the questions were aimed towards, "I want to go to an American university, how do I get in?" or the one question we received, "What do you think of Barack Obama?" This question made the staff very uncomfortable and they reassured us that we did not need to answer the question. We were in no way offended and would have responded if asked again, but the culture here in regards to leaders is very different. Nasarbayev, Kazakhstan's president, is much beloved and considered to be the end-all-be-all for many. He is a poet, song writer, peace keeper, everything! And it is illegal in Kazakhstan to besmirch the name of the president or his family, punishable by jail, regardless of diplomat status or the like. I think the thought of insulting a president in public was too uncomfortable for them... very interesting.

A cool parallel I saw today though was found in a student's question: "I will probably be going to America in the summer, where should I go to see American culture?" I began to think about it and thought, "hmmm... what kind of America do you want to see?!" I started thinking about how many different cultures America sports; there's Texas with its stereotypical cowboy culture (not always correct), Boston culture, NYC Big Apple Culture, Maine lobster fisherman culture, deep South culture, California culture, Pacific Northwest culture... I began to think, "pigeon-holing a country to fit a single culture simply doesn't work! Just like America is diverse, every country is diverse. To assume each country follows a culture we see glorified in cinema or embodied in one acquaintance is unfair to their culture." I answered her question by saying that the cultures in America are as different as the cultures in Astana and Almaty. The students all nodded their head in agreement, so there's always a cultural universal understanding that one's home country is diverse in its own right; it takes traveling to other cultures to see that others follow the same rules.

In the English class, the students read poetry (memorized by some... in English!) and discussed how poetry affects their lives. They then asked our opinion and such, it was good :) after that we left and Keri and I wandered around Astana (a favorite pastime) taking pictures and playing in an Ice City close to our house. IT WAS AWESOME. I was particularly fond of the dragon-themed ice slide... anyway, went home and actually had a good, stress-free dinner with our host family ('bout time! And good thing, too, it's our last one...) and got all packed to leave. Tomorrow we'll be moving back with Tim so we don't have to wake everyone when he picks us up to go to the airport. One less stop, and Keri and I can't say we weren't glad to escape our host family early!

I still am in shock, we leave day after tomorrow. My kids were asking me to stay when they thought I was just going to the public school for the afternoon, I don't think they know tomorrow's my last day.... I don't wanna say goodbye to them, they make me want to stay forever. If you met them, you'd see why. But the thought of my future students in Dave's class make the switch worthwhile :)

Okay, final day! I apologize in advance if there are tear drops on my email (not possible, but you get the idea). Dasvidanye!

Chels