Taraz City

Taraz is the oldest city in Kazakhstan.  It has gone through various name changes, but has at last been returned to its original.  Thousands of years ago, it was a major crossroads for the silk road.

The people here are very proud of their city.  There is a historical museum that has artifacts from Kazakhstan's past -- particularly Taraz -- and several historical sites.  In this area and in the nearby mountains that separate Kazakhstan from Uzbekistan, archeologists have found ancient sculptures, rock carvings and tablets of an early written language.

Currently, there is a MAJOR archeological dig where a central market place was located.  The market has been moved and the buildings taken down.  Underneath, they are unearthing the ancient city.

More recent history provides beautiful mausoleums and mosques that are still in use.

There is a sense here of people discovering their past and their culture's historical significance, and it has created a great deal of pride.

Transportation

I live quite a way from school, so I have to find transportation.  In the morning, I take a taxi.  When we were first here, someone asked, "how do I recognize a taxi?"  The answer, "Hold out your arm.  If a car stops, it's a taxi."

Once a taxi stops, I need to make sure I can communicate where I want to go.  Luckily, the school is well known and I happen to live above a well know cafe.  If I am going someplace else, I sometimes need to resort to drawing pictures or doing pantomime.  After agreeing on a destination, I have to negotiate the fare.  An average ride to school is about 700 tenge (I pay a "foreigner tax" and never get a price as good as the locals) which is a little under $4 for about a 10-15 minute ride (depending on which streets are closed off).

To get home, I take the bus for 45 tenge ($.25).  One of my colleagues described it as Mr. Toad's Wild Ride.  Two people operate the bus: the driver and the young person who collects the money and herds the people on and off.  Don't get on his bad side!  The driving is erratic and the horn is always beeping.  Sometimes, even though I don't understand Kazakh, I know the driver is cursing all the others on the street.

Old people are given deference, so I usually get a seat :).  This time, the driver made the young man collecting the money give me his seat next to the driver.  He insisted I sit and then put American disco on the radio for me.  He was quite pleased with himself.

Today, Hotel California was playing on the bus.

When it is close to your exit stop, you pay the collector and make your way to the door.  It is an experience not to be missed.

Arriving in Taraz

I arrived in Taraz, my new home, on Saturday, August 23.  We flew in from Astana on the only airline that flies into Taraz: SCAT.  I'll leave that to your imagination.  There is one bumpy runway, and an old soviet pick up gets your luggage and brings it to the door for you to reclaim off the truck.

The principal and one of his vice principal's took us from there to the school. 

Here are some of my colleagues walking up the front walk for the first time.  On the far right is Carla, a math(s) teacher from the Philippines; Stephen, a biology teacher from Uganda; Charlene, a global perspectives teacher from South Africa; and a local teacher who is also married to the vice principal.  I'm sorry that I have not yet remembered her name.

They put out a big spread of food for us, including besbarmak and kumiss.  I will leave those for you to look up!

We toured the school a bit and relaxed waiting to be taken to our apartments (another post) and shopping for supplies.  Here are my new principal, Arsen; and another colleague, Aaron, an English teacher from DeKalb by way of Thailand.

On Sunday, I went into work with Arsen and his #2, Nurgali.  They are young, enthusiastic and very bright.  They have treated me with respect and have made me feel like I can be part of their team.  I will be sharing an office with Nurgali, seen here at his desk on Sunday playing that traditional Kazakh instrument.  He is very good!

This post was so late in coming because I have been waiting for an Internet connection.  I should be good now.  I have a stockpile of things to tell you all!

Take care.

First Day

Finally, the first day of work!  OK, it was just orientation, but it was what I came here to do: be part of the Nazarbayev Intellectual Schools.  All of the new international staff, along with all the principals and vice principals, met at the new school site in Astana.
We were educated and inducted.  We learned about the vision, mission, and progress of NIS as well as the more specific areas of curriculum, assessment, and professional development.  But, the highlight of the day was having lunch with my two new colleagues Arsen, the principal and Nurgali, another vice principal.  These two young men have been friends from their teaching days and now run the Taraz campus.  They are smart, passionate, and funny.  They know what needs to be done and are willing to work hard to make it happen.  I am really looking forward to working with them.  I feel very fortunate to have been placed in Taraz.  I can't imagine that my philosophy and vision for a school could mesh any better than it does with them.
Another highlight of the day, was the ceremony that inducted the new staff into the NIS family. I have learned that the Kazahs love a good reason to dress up and celebrate.  There was singing, dancing, costumes and gifts.  I've included a few of pictures:

We were greeted by a student band:

One beautiful girl in a costume for each school:

Two students playing a traditional Kazak instrument.  It only has 2 strings. They were amazing:

My scarf and pin make me official:

Arriving in Astana, KZ

After 2 days of travel, I arrived in Astana KZ early Monday morning.  NIS staff met me at the airport, loaded up my luggage and took me to our hotel.  My first impressions of Astana:  The cleanest city I have EVER been in.  On the way to the hotel, we passed a number of street sweepers.  There is not a speck of garbage on the sidewalks or the streets.  The parks are spotless and filled with flower beds of  marigolds, petunias, and other bright colored flowers.  A river runs through the center of town, and in the evening the river walk is crowded with people going to restaurants, enjoying the weather and having a good time.  The city comes alive after dark.

As non-Kazakhs, the international NIS staff stand out in public.  We get a lot of stares, but the people have all been kind and helpful.  When shopping or navigating the bank, the younger people are eager and willing to try to communicate in English.  Apparently, instead of lining up in the bank, you find out which customer arrived most recently before you, let them know you are after them for service, and take a seat somewhere.

All of the new international staff hired to work in the NIS schools across the country are here for orientation.  We have been enjoying getting to know each other.  My new colleagues are a mix of all ages and backgrounds.  Some with vast international experience and some overseas for the first time.  There are Americans, Canadians, South Africans, Australians, Britons -- anyplace that provides native English speakers.  What we all seem to have in common is a love for kids, a belief in the power of education, and a desire to make a difference.

Orientation will take place Thursday and Friday.  Saturday morning I will board a local flight with the rest of my international team and fly out to Taraz.  I am eager to get there, get settled in and begin working with the staff and students.

Here are a few photos from Astana.