Sunday in the Mountains

We had our first major trauma this evening. That beastly, scary, ultra terrorizing monster: the vacuum cleaner. Mommy managed to leave a couple Kleenex in the pocket of her jeans when she threw them in the wash and it looked like it snowed on the bedroom carpet where I shook out the clothes that were in that load. So tonight I pulled out the little not-so-powerful vacuum cleaner to clean up the mess. Brady was in the hallway when I turned it on. He started screaming and crawled straight to me, even though I was holding the hose of the scary beast in my hand. I turned it off and picked him up. Those little arms grabbed on so tight! After a few minutes when he stopped crying, I sat him down in the living room with his toys and tried again. He started screaming the second I turned it on and came crawling across the hall to me again. He was trembling and wide-eyed and held on tight for a good 20 minutes. I couldn’t put him down or he would start crying again. Poor baby! Unlike my cats that are terrified of the vacuum and run and hide when it is on, he wanted me to comfort him. I guess that is a good thing, but what a brave little guy to seek me out even though I’m right next to the terrifying monster! I’m always looking for an excuse to not have to vacuum, guess I found it! ;)

The Serras joined Brady and I for a trek to Medeo today. Not quite sure what I expected, but wasn’t quite what we found. Medeo is a narrow valley a few miles into the mountains from Almaty. Very pretty drive past some expensive homes and apartment complexes and through many trees vibrant with fall colors. It is also the location of a HUGE ice skating rink! Apparently this rink was a training and competition site for speed skaters during the Soviet era. Now it is open to the general public during the winter months. Kate told us they are preparing the area to host an Asian Olympics in 2011. It sits at the base of a large dam built to protect the city from avalanches. I heard “dam” and expected water. Nothing of the sort.

There are 834 steps that you can climb from the rink to the top of the dam. We chose to travel up by auto instead. :) Very pretty view

It was interesting that many of the large rocks that had come down in earlier avalanches had been used to spell out names all over the valley floor.

After, we went to Mad Murphy’s for lunch. A very Irish pub where several European folks and their children were hanging out. Brady’s first meal in a restaurant and first “adult” fare was Shepherd’s Pie! He liked it, but it was just a tad too chunky for him. He hasn’t learned how to chew (gum) his food yet. Everything he has eaten so far has been pretty mushy – the consistency of porridge. He would cough after every couple of bites, then finally gagged up a fair amount. Okay, a little too soon for Shepherd’s pie. His girlfriend, Leeza, loved it though. As an “older” woman, she’s got the chewing thing conquered. The even older set enjoyed some good beer with their lunch. A good time was had by all!

Want to say a big DASVIDANYA and SAFE TRAVELS to the Serra family! They have their embassy appointment tomorrow afternoon and then are on the 3:20am flight to Frankfurt. Best wishes as they embark on the last leg of this incredible journey to bring their gorgeous daughter home. Brady and I thoroughly enjoyed their company here in Almaty.