8

Thus far, this has been far more about me, and less about Kazakhstan, for which I apologise, and will try to remedy that.

This past weekend was spent an hour west of Almaty, in my host cousin’s village. It was lovely to get away from the suburbs, and the village life is everything I hoped Kazakhstan to be. The community is close-nit and friendly, everyone grows their own vegetables and there is less litter!

Being away from the sprawl of Almaty not only improved the air quality no-end, but also allowed FOR ME TO GO HORSE RIDING! I think I last time I rode a horse was when I was 8, so it was genuinely exciting to ride around in the hills. I was far too big of my horse, as the photos (link included at the bottom) prove, but great fun none the less. And I was able to help shear a sheep, which was certainly the first time I have done that. “Harder than it looks” would be the phrase I think best sums it up. Fun though! The village life is a world apart from the suburbs where I currently live. It conforms much more with the classic image of rural life that I had hoped to see in Kazakhstan. I cant wait to see where I will live for my main site, but I certainly hope it will be somewhere rural.