A play for Tucker, and a talk with Sveta

Mike here. Tucker and Linda are taking a nap, and I'm enjoying some quiet time alone (don't get much of that these days).

Today, Sveta took us to a children's play at the cultural center. The Cultural Center is a very nice, newly remodeled building with all modern facilities. The play was an hour and a half long, and very entertaining -- even if you didn't speak Russian. Tucker sat next to Sveta and she tried her best to translate what was going on for him, but it was difficult because some of the plot of the play involved plays on words, in Russian of course. But still, it was great fun for all (and only 600 Tenge for the four of us -- about $4.60).

After the play, we went to a little cafe. Sveta ordered a variety of bliniys (little pancakes) for us -- jam-covered, fruit-filled, with sour-cream. Also some coffee, a "milk-chocolate cocktail" for Tucker (which downed in about a minute), and a cup of tea for Sveta (she wouldn't order more, though we pressed her). The whole thing cost us just under 1000 Tenge -- about $7.60.

We had a nice talk with Sveta. We opened up to her a little about how self-conscious we are about how Americans are viewed here -- and around the world in general. It seems that often the "worst" (our opinion) parts of American culture are all people see: violent movies, overindulgence, waste. We're also embarrassed that we're often viewed as pushy and arrogant. We realize that every interaction with local people may be the only interaction with an American that person has ever had, and we feel a strong responsibility to be good ambassadors, even though we're always trying to keep a "low profile."

The reason for keeping a low profile is that apparently much of the country has a negative view of adopting Kazakh children out of the country. Sveta says it's largely because the common person has no idea that there are so many children available for adoption, because the baby houses and orphanages themselves usually keep a low profil. Why? Because the idea of "orphans" or children otherwise available for adoption is shameful. So there's a lot of dis- and mis-information. Anyway, while we do our best to not "flaunt" the fact that we're even here, and certainly do our best to avoid the subject of WHY we're here, it's truly impossible to really "blend in" in any real way. We stand out like sore thumbs everywhere we go, and we raise even more eyebrows walking around with an English-only-speaking Kazakh child. Can't WAIT to see how it is when we have Mia as well. Whenever we actually interact with people, let alone "meet" them in some more in-depth way, we always fall back on the general policy of revealing as little about ourselves as we can without being rude, and generally trying to be friendly, courteous, and appreciative. We figure if we stick to that, we can't lose.

We also realize that Sveta herself is often in a difficult position because she is often seen with American couples around her own home town. We asked her if this is ever a problem, and she didn't really open up. But she didn't say "no," either. She said that "different people have different opinions." I think it's tough for her sometimes, and I'm very grateful to her for sticking her neck out for us. I've only seen her a little uncomfortable in public places sometimes: the time I started talking German with a guy at the restaurant; the fact that we did take-out at that restaurant instead of eating there; stuff like that. In fact, it was a rare treat to be at the cafe with Sveta the way we were during this conversation. It was a Sunday (slow day), but still a very public, outdoor place on a prominent street corner, and (duh!) we chose a very visible seat.

After the cafe, Sveta took us for a walk around a slightly different part of the neighborhood. She know the area well because she lives only a short walk from our apartment. We saw (from the outside) a swimming pool, tennis facility, a lot of official government buildings, lots of little stores, a soccer stadium, and a new playground. We stopped at the playground, and Tucker climbed and climbed. He's actually almost able to traverse a horizontal ladder by hanging by his hands and going from rung to rung, monkey-style.

Be sure to check below for new pictures...