I guess this would be my first ‘official’ blog post. Things have started out slow, but now are picking up to approaching the speed-of-light phase. As school winds down (only 3 more weeks left!!), my To Do list is growing and it seems that I’m adding more than I’m crossing off.
One of my biggest challenges has been when to leave Istanbul and when to arrive in Kazakhstan. So many factors are influencing this decision and so many other decisions are resting on this one factor. Going back to the States has never been a question, but I wanted to make sure I had time to say a proper goodbye to Istanbul (and Istanbulites), spend time with family and friends in the US, and arrive in Astana with time to settle in before tackling a new job.
A recent email from NISA has settled many of these issues and so I have begun to finalize my summer plans. I will be leaving Istanbul on 24 June, to stay in New Mexico with my family until 13 August, when I return to Istanbul to pick up the kitties. I cannot arrive in Kazakhstan until after 19 August, so that gives me almost a week to see friends and visit places before I leave. Work at NISA begins on 26 August, so I will have a few days to set up my new flat and familiarize myself with my new host country.
I’ve already made a new friend, Mel, who is another expat teacher in Astana. She was there last year and has decided to stay on for this coming year. She has graciously spent her precious time speaking to me over Skype and answering my endless questions about the ins-and-outs of daily life. This alone has helped ease the transition as well as to cross several things off my endless To Do list. Kudos to you, Mel! I’m looking forward to meeting you in person.
This is a conceptual drawing of what the new NISA campus should look like. It is being built right next to the Nazarbayev University campus. Here is the floor plan of the Library. I am not sure which curved side faces out, but it is going to be quite spacious and inviting.
Finally, for those of you who are still trying to figure out where in the world Kazakhstan and Astana are, here are two maps. As you can see, Kazakhstan is a very big country.
Living on the Steppes 