Destination, almost.

Hellooooo Almaty!

Well, I made it this far, rather uneventfully, and with all my luggage! Too much luggage, btw, but I knew that before I left the house. Flight was 45 minutes late leaving Denver. We aborted take-off because the brakes had overheated. Heard them and they didn’t sound good. Sweltered on the tarmac for about 30 minutes until they cooled off. Still trying to figure out why we needed brakes to take-off, but I guess it’s a good thing to have working when we land! And have to say that I have never taken an international flight that was not on a 747. This journey was an Airbus 300 (I think). Very uncomfortable seats and legroom left something to be desired. Not as bad as one trip I made on Philippine Air with knees jammed into the seat in from of me for 11 hours straight, however. Apparently, I’m a tad taller than your average Philippine native!

Had a whopping 30 minutes to make the connection in Frankfurt. Have to say those Germans (largely the population on the flight) know how to get off an aircraft in record time. Dankashen! (However you spell that!) Speed-walked with my 800 lb carry-ons to the far ends of the earth, or Lufthansa Terminal B as they called it, and paid $13 (after Euro conversion) for 2 bottles of water as the bus to my plane was boarding. Flight actually landed 30 minutes early in Almaty. Immigration was a breeze. Never a better sight to see (at nearly midnight and after 16 hours in the air) than a beautiful young woman smiling and waving at me through the glass doors on the other side of baggage claim. Marina, the Almaty coordinator, was also waiting for another family that was on my flight. They were headed to Semey today.

I was supposed to go to Aqtobe this morning, however all the flights were sold out. So I’m enjoying the comforts of the air-conditioned hotel, the scenery in the surrounding blocks, and will be on the early flight tomorrow. Once I arrive, I should go to the babyhouse for the big event. I’m thankful for the day of rest and preparation, but am worried about another day of other families arriving in the region and selecting children. I was told to get here as fast as possible for this reason. Very much first come, first served (as awful as that sounds) in Aqtobe blind travel. More on the process a bit later.

I managed to get some dollars exchanged for Tenge and had some fun with my very first excursion to a Kazakh grocery store. Wandered the aisles a bit and saw many familiar brands. Good when you can’t read the labels! Bought some yogurt, water, juice and not-so-fresh pastry (I failed to notice the 5-days-ago date on the bag). I was again reminded of Manila by the large number of employees in the grocery store. Several “stations” for different things all manned by a clerk, a woman at the front door to check your bags (apparently theft is a problem here), and various people straightening/stocking shelves, while other employees just walked around, or watched, or lurked. Seems many are employed, but likely all at a pittance.

Traveler Tip: With the focus on the crisp new bills we adoptive parents are told to bring, it didn’t occur to me to bring a few small clean bills for tips. I arrived too late to exchange for tenge at the airport. The bellhop kid was quite impressive. He hauled all my luggage at once up to the 4^th floor (what is an elevator?) and got a few US dollars in return. I do hope the currency exchangers will accept the bills – it was all I had.

Selection Process
For those of you that are scratching your heads at “selection process” and “blind travel” this is what I am talking about: In Kazakhstan, children available for adoption are only selected by prospective parents after the parents meet them in person. There is no official “referral” process as is typical in most other countries. This means I have no information at all (zero, zilch, zip) about the specific children I will be shown. The local officials know that I have been approved for a child of either gender up to 2 years of age, and that I may consider minor correctable health needs. I am hoping for a boy under 12 months old. Boys are more readily available than girls, but my primary concern is health.

Tomorrow, I expect to arrive in Aqtobe mid-morning, be taken to my apartment to drop off my luggage, quickly change my clothes, then head off to start the selection process. It is also possible I will go straight from the airport to the orphanage. At some point I will be interviewed by a representative of the Ministry of Education (the government agency that oversees adoptions in Kaz), then will meet the orphanage director. I will likely be asked a few questions about myself and the child that I desire, then a handful of children will be brought to me one at a time. From other blogs I have followed in Aqtobe, I expect to see no more than 3 children and also expect that one or more may be outside of my age range or have serious health issues. For many of these kids, the only real chance they have of being adopted is to meet prospective families. It will not be easy to “turn down” any child, but I completely understand why they may be brought to me. I know my limitations as a single first-time parent, and have to make the best choice for the child and myself. I will have a few minutes to interact with each child, then will make my decision to “bond” with one of the kids. “Bonding” is the mandatory 15-day period in which I will visit the child every day for a few hours before I am eligible to petition the court to adopt. If for some reason there is not a child that I am willing to start bonding with, my agency will attempt to send me to another region where other children may be available. This doesn’t happen often, but it is a Plan B if absolutely necessary.

So, I’m chillin’ and dozing today, reviewing some notes on the do’s and don’ts of the selection process, trying not to stress (actually doing a fairly good job of that), figuring out what I can possibly abandon/offload on the hotel housekeepers to lighten my ridiculous load ;), and am ready and waiting to go find my child. Gives me chills and still seems so very surreal. Cross your fingers, say a few prayers, and keep the good thoughts coming that all goes well tomorrow.