"HAPPINESS" You look so very happy...I think you are in your element....maybe you need to change careers and become a food critic slash tour guide..... I have a friend who did that and went to Italy and where ever,,,,she really enjoyed it....Have fun and be safe...did you see where Robin brought back CAMEL CHOCOLATE for all the staff....BE GOOD AND ABOVE ALL BE SAFE...WALLY AND RUBY
A fellow foodie You can learn a great deal about a culture by their food. We often take cooking classes when we travel. Glad you didn't try the horse meat.
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Valeri: Very interesting. I never heard of Muslim men and women praying together or with their shoes on and certainly not without kneeling. They ARE beautiful mosques. Keep discovering!
Groceries How fascinating!! I’d be the same way, wondering through the grocery store. It’s so interesting what is considered “usual” in other countries. And I use Batiste!! It is amazing, love that stuff!!! ?
We are Kindred Spirits! I soooooo love the grocery stores. I've been in some wild ones over the years, Mongolia, Siberia, Borneo, Rwanda, Beijing, Namibia, Cambodia. Each time, it's like a WT AF is going on here! You can't find a higher level of entertainment.
Soul Sister! You may have found your soul sister in me - my favorite stop in a new country is the grocery store or wet market, or both. I love finding stuff I've never seen before. Sometimes, if Ii don't know the language, it can be an adventure to try to figure out what is in the clever package. In Thailand I figured out that the little single-serve containers with a picture of a cow on the front contained milk, but I was stumped by the single-serve containers next to them that had a picture of a cat. Cat's milk? Surely not.....? Turns out it was soy milk, though how people made the jump from cat to soy is beyond me.
How to celebrate birthdays I admire your husband even though I have not met him. You say, "He does not share my enthusiasm for camels or anything related to them, but he does have enthusiasm for me." He bought your airline tickets and feeds your obsessions. Sounds like an extraordinary guy. My wife for her 50th did not want a celebration. Instead she wanted to go to Thailand to do cooking courses. She treasures those times and came back with some incredible stories. Then we met in Kuala Lumpur so we could share her return. Sometimes you need to step out on one's birthday and do what YOU want to do. Here's to you for doing that!
Birthday Destination Great place to spend a birthday. Although I've not yet been to Kazakhstan, it isa place I'd really like to go. Good for you for travelling alone in the winter months to these super-off-the-beaten-track places. Thanks for sharing...
Happy birthday! I've been doing birthday trips for years as I had the same joy as a child. Keep traveling... make your day special. Except now as I'm older I celebrate the entire month... not a day.
Kayakzak Your story brought tears to my eyes for the shared feelings of missing a lovely unique friend who left the world too soon. A reminder that life is short and one should not postpone their next adventure. I am a woman who has almost always traveled alone, even as a teenager. People have thought that odd, oh well! Over the years I’ve had a few persons I’ve traveled with here and there, including my mother. Those trips were also seamless, as she was a lot of fun, even into her eighties. My husband and I travel differently. We can do it together but we really want to do different things so there’s no animosity when I leave alone. I’ve only had one or two friends I’ve ever traveled with and the one you speak of is the one I’d go on adventures with. Sadly, the other person passed away a few years ago and she and I loved him just as dearly, and my mother passed a year ago.
So I go alone, but I always did that half the time anyway, or sometimes I bring my dog if I’m not flying. And now I’ve made a new friend or two and I’ve made some travel plans so we’ll see how it is to travel with a friend. Puerto Rico in a couple of weeks. I need warm water!
Go have fun, just do it!
Safe travels!
Don't look back on life with a list of what ifs. In 2007, my husband and I sold our house, put everything in storage and traveled for 10 months. No regrets. We went back to work for a couple of years doing all those things "we are supposed to do" and found we weren't satisfied so we put everything in storage and did some interim work for a few months and then off traveling for another 6 months. You've found a community of people who understand you. Live life with no regrets. Yes, there are times when we need to be sensible, not wreckless, but.... so easy to do all those things that sound amazing to you. Life is short. Don't look back with what ifs. Oh... and your friend understands why you didn't go. You will always have her with you on your travels. Good for you for taking this trip along. Bravo. Kiss ass and keep going. Smile. You are strong and independent.
Home and Away
Bob Carlsen
Great blog...
Your affection for the city was evident. Unfortunately, I was only able to visit the airport in transit to Tashkent.