Russ and Travis at Murphy's
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On Wednesday we went with Russ and Cassie to Mad Murphy's Irish Pub, a local expat favorite. All of my (Amy) nine-year olds were shocked to learn I had not been there, and strongly urged me to go. So we did. A bit pricey, but we actually got thick-crusted pizza, rather than the dry, paper-thin stuff everywhere else in town that we've been to.
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Cassie and I at the spa.
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Travis and I at Thomi's coffee shop downtown.
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Three large apartment buildings in the city.
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On Tuesday we spent more time in the city and then went up into the mountains to a spa/sauna. Bath houses/saunas are commonly frequented by the locals here. The spa was incredible, boasting Finnish, Russian and Turkish baths, complete with two salt water pools, indoor/outdoor hot tubs, steam room, sauna and ice pool. I got a massage (Amy) and then Travis and I and friends soaked in the pools, ate a fine dinner, and then soaked some more for the rest of the night.

Today we walked along a street named Zhibek Zholy (I think) where there were many vendors selling art and food. Today was a national holiday, so they were having a big program on the street. Lots of people were out. We had a great day...walking and watching people, eating, and spending time together.

My favorite local dish so far (Amy) is called Plov. They sell it in big bowls like this on the street or in local restaurants. It's a rice dish with meat and carrots and, unfortunately, lots of oil. It's still so good though.
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Zhibek Zholy
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This is a typcial Shashlik stand (traditional Kazakh cuisine, a meat kebab). You see these stands all over the city, at almost all of the local restaurants.
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Last weekend I went with some friends to the Big Almaty Lake up in the mountains while Travis had time with the boys. We drove up the mountain to about 10,000 feet. It's a popular get-away spot, but as with any developing country, the mountain roads are the last to be cared for. The road up was treacherous and snowy, with no guard rails, and I spent most of the ride praying that I would see Travis again. And people follow the same rules of the road up in the mountains as they do in the city. It's no matter that you both meet on a narrow bridge that drops off on either side into icy waters below, you must play chicken in order to beat him to the bridge and across, and naturally he will do the same. Here are some pictures (not of chicken on the bridge unfortunately, just of other stuff).

A weather station at 10,000 feet.
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Around 9,000 feet sits an observatory complex. This is where we used the bathroom.
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Me lounging in the sun at 10,000 feet.
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Big Almaty Lake. This picture doesn't even capture its true color...it was the brightest turquoise water I had ever seen. The lake is created by run-off from a glacier.
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Friends from school. The kid doesn't belong to any of us. But he's a friend.
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Finally, this is a shot of Travis coaching girls' football. Of course, it's what we Americans call soccer. In fact, most of the staff at school call it that too, but I'm trying to get us to be more international.
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This is our bathroom. An old shot of the first night we arrived. Thus the empty shelves.
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This is a view of the bedroom. I'm realizing that none of these shots will give a very good idea of what it feels like to be here.
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Here's the livingroom the first night we moved in. The picture is taken from where the tv and window is.
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Many of you wanted to see more pictures of our apartment. Let's start with the kitchen.
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