Kazland - Part Three

Almaty Fun

I made it to Aqtobe – exhausted and grimy – but this time with a bit of adventure! Apparently there was some sort of bomb threat or security breach at the Almaty airport yesterday morning about 30 minutes before my plane was due to board at 7:35am. Don’t be too alarmed, seems this happens every so often. The police cleared the airport (yelling in Russian, so I just followed the crowd) and we stood outside in the damp for well over an hour before they gave the all clear and let us back in. In a way, it was kind of funny. They clear the building, but everyone just went outside the main doors and stood in the loading zones. (Almaty is not a huge airport fortunately, but there were hundreds of passengers waiting for in-country flights.) Then they had to push us back, so everyone goes a few hundred feet into the parking lot. Then they had to push us back again, to the airport gates, where they let us stay for the duration. Various emergency and military-looking vehicles came and went while we waited and speculated. Everyone was fairly patient, but I thought the few policemen holding us back were going to get trampled when the stampede to the terminal started!

I had called our Almaty coordinator, Marina, to let her know we were delayed and, bless her heart, she came down (having to walk from outside the airport for a good 10 minutes in the drizzle since the roads were blocked) and helped us through the crowds and back on our way.

Yes, I said “we.” Eileen and Patrick, another Little Miracles family from Virginia who are on their first trip to meet their child, were also at the airport having just landed from Amsterdam. Eileen and I have been chatting via email and phone over the last few months, not to mention following each others blogs. It was wonderful to meet them in person and I am thrilled they are finally in Kaz to find their child! I wish them all the best!

Aqtobe Redux

Arrived in Aqtobe about 3 hours later than expected and taken to Regina’s old apartment, rather than the one I have stayed in on prior trips. I was a little disappointed, since I had grown comfortable in that apartment and had mentally prepared it for bringing home Brady. There was also a nice mall and grocery store within a couple of blocks, which was very convenient. Anyway, this apartment is much bigger and now sports a washing machine, but is afflicted with burned-out light bulbs in epidemic proportion, so wandering around in the dark. The Mosque Mall and a very nice grocery store are within walking distance, but not quite “lug home 2 5-liter jugs of water and other groceries” close.

Happy to report that the items that “went missing” on my last trip, actually were here in the cabinet or had to been put to use in the kitchen after all. Good to know. I think someone that stayed here, just didn’t know they were private property and helped themselves. With the exception of a couple of small things, most of it was going to be left behind for families to follow anyway.

I really messed up my packing/luggage this trip. You would think I would have this all figured out by trip three! I packed very last minute too, which exacerbated the problem. I had myself in “one checked bag, one carry-on, one purse/tote bag” mode to avoid having too much to handle up til now. But, with all the baby gear and gifts, I really needed to bring a second checked bag this time, but opted to leave stuff behind (things I’m already regretting) and just expand the suitcases this time for the first time. Big mistake. Lufthansa was going to charge me $150 for my one overweight suitcase (even though I discovered after I got there that I am allowed to have 2 checked bags of 23kilos each at no charge), so I repacked at the airport throwing a bunch of soft stuff into a small duffel I had thrown in to use as a carry-on on the way home. The biggest issue (heads up to those who haven’t yet traveled) is that you are only allowed 8 kilos for your carry-on. This applies in-country as well as on Lufthansa. My 18” very lightweight rolling carry-on nearly empty except for my laptop came in at 8.3k. I’m sure this restriction is loosely applied, given what I saw was being loaded in those overhead bins! Still have three bags of things I left after court with the regional coordinator here and don’t see quite how I’m going to get it all even to Almaty! Some of it is food and supplies that I expected to use up while in Aqtobe, which I’ll have to abandon. Think I’m going cheap (if there is such a thing here) suitcase shopping in the next day or so! Idiot, I am!

Baby Plans

I want to be rested before I spring Brady. I was exhausted when I got here and decided to take a short nap around 3:30. I woke up at midnight. Oh well. Deepest sleep I’ve had in a month, so am not going to complain. Grocery shopping will have to wait.

Tomorrow I will be picked up in the morning to go sign Brady’s birth certificate, passport application, and other docs, then hopefully will get to go to the babyhouse to see MY SON!!! I want to visit him a few times there to get a little reacquainted before yanking him out of the only home he has ever known. Also need to get his schedule and find out exactly what it is they are feeding him now, so I can try to recreate at least some of it while we transition to new foods/formula. With the China formula scare, and knowing Kaz imports nearly everything from China, I brought formula from home. I may still have to buy more here, but they do carry Nestle products and some others out of Europe as well.

Marina told me that I will likely be headed back to Almaty on Friday. I was expecting to be in Aqtobe for at least 10 days (thus all the food and cleaning supplies I left behind last time) and in Almaty for about the same or even shorter timeframe. I’ll find out from Gulnara what the options are tomorrow.

These are of the countryside on the approach to Aqtobe. I’ve always managed to be on the wrong side of the plane to get any actual photos of the city itself. Yes, it is just as barren and brown as it looks in the photos.

Here’s the new airport terminal that was finished from the outside at least for the Russian-Kazakh presidential summit a couple of weeks ago, and the terminal that is used by the rest of us. ;) That fenced in area directly under the tip of the wing is "baggage claim."

I’m rambling. Sorry. Back to bed for me! Hoping to have some current Brady photos for you tomorrow!