Turispekov is a Kazah familie of four: Serik, Dana and two kids, 3 year old boy Mukhtar and eight month old girl Kausar. First, I met Serik on the street in Almaty (Kazakhstan). I had just crossed the border wit Kyrgyzstan dragging my half broken suitcase when Serik stopped to offer mi a ride. He's not an official taxi driver but the price he offered was the most reasonable one. You can't chose him, he can only choose you. So, I was the chosen one and I wasn't Ivana any more, I was Ivanushka from Kazakhstan and Serik was my Kazakh connection. He doesn't speak Englis, I don't speak Russian but we managed to understand each other. I tried to turn words from Serbian language into Russian language simply using the Russian accent. Sometimes it would work, sometimes it wouldn't. Serik had a solution when we didn't understand each other. He would call his wife, who's multilingual. Dana speaks Kazah, Russian, Chinese and English.
I hadn't book any hotel in advace and the one I had on my mind was fully booked. I was a kind of stunned but Serik took the things in his hands driving me to some spot where a lot of men and women standing in a row. As soon as he stopped tha car they approached to the car, throwing their heads through the window speaking with Serik in Kazakh language and trying to be a chosen ones too. Serik was talking back to them but I didn't understand a word. They looked excatly like a people who are offering their love skills late at night. I couldn't quite understand what I got myself into, it was dark and I got a bit afraid of the whole situation when one lady just opened the door and went into the car. Seeing me a kind of uppset, Serik called his wife Dana who explained me what was all about. At the moment Dana and I were in a kind of a virtual relationship. Serik called her every minute to translate for me. I was relieved when she told me that these people offer an accomodation. I thought I would have seen everything so far but this situation was quite new for me. It was like Air BnB alive. It was even better because I was able to see the apartment in person. Serik had warned me that they would offer me a higher price because I was tourist, so he tried to negotiate with them about the real price. After I had seen a few apartements, I choose the nicest and neatest one and Serik left when he had made sure that I was all set.
Next morning, I spent the most of my time looking for a public transportation to the National Park. When I realized it was a mission impossible to get there by publics means, I needed to call a Superman called Serik. I asked one Kazah lady, who also didn't speak English, to make a phone call for me. Serik had answered but he sounded like he didn't know who I was. I tried to remind him speaking English and "Russian" and whatever language I know because Dana wasn't at home. After a while, he remembered who I was and he told me he was on his way to pick me up. I was waiting for him more than an hour. When he finally showed up and when he saw me unhappy, he explained to me that he needed to take care of kids because Dana was at work. To get myself relaxed, I tried to imagine Serik as a babysitter. He still looks like a kid, not like a person who can totally hold the kids under control. I just couldn't imagine him raising his voice on the kids. Most likely, he makes a mess taking care of the kids but luckilly Dana works only a part time.
This time conversation was not a problem because Serik had a google translation with him so we didn't need to bother Dana anymore. Our conversation went very smoothly just as we spoke the same language.
It was a very hot outside until we reached the National Park with a beutiful lake 3000 meters above sea level. I got the chance to play in the never melting snow wearing a shortz. On the way back, we stopped to get some fresh water from the mountains when Serik invited me to try Kazakh kebab in the local restaurant with his familly.
I was waiting for him again more then an hour. He showed up, with the car full of kids. Two of his that I had knew about and his eight year old niece Aida. They were all tired and sleepy, leaninig on Dana. He showed up with an excuse that people from Kazakhstan are always late. He's a kind of person you can't get mad at.
Before Serik had orderd the dinner for everybody, Dana gave me a present: a woolen shawel and gloves. I was already surprised with unpredicted dinner invitation but the present was really something I didn't expect from someone who saw me for the first time. Is Serik so nice to all his customers? I don't think that all Kazah taxi drivers treat customers this way. So, why would I be the special one?
I didn't get used to eat sheep or goat meat, even beef has a strong aroma for me, so I was scared that I could stay hungry. I was waiting to try it anyway because I don't come to Kazakhstan very often.
The meet was served on the longest skewers ever, cut into pieces. I took it one by one on my plate and when I tasted it was so soft and juicy that it would just melt right away in my mouth like a piece of sugar. That was the softest meet I had ever tried with no undesirable aroma at all. Maybe because of the strong fire, only strong barbecue taste had left and I really loved it. Dana had a dinner in the car, not in the restaurant with us, because the kids fell a sleep.
They invited me again next day for a dinner, but this time at their home. This Kazakh family just kept surprising me. They live in a simple but very warm apartmant with a lot of space for kids to play. Mukhtar brought his boxing gloves, a toy number one for Kazakh adult men as well, and showed me his skills. He knew that it was just a game so hi didn't give his best to me. I love playing with kids because no language is necessary. Their way of communicating is universal. Kausar was a little bit shy and she started to cry as soon as I talked to her. She didn't get used to crowed, we hardly caught her on the camera, while Mukhtar was posing like a boxing champion.
Dana and Serik started talking about the kids. They explained me that families from Kazakhstan are big, they both have four siblings, but still that is nothing compered to their parents who have ten or more siblings. Kazah population is not endarged. They were surprised when I told them I have only one brother. Dana asked me if I feel too old for kids. When she got married at the age of 24, she was considered for being too late by the "village standards". Serik wants to have a lot of kids while Dana wants to take it slowly. She told me that whispering so Serik couldn't hear it. They told me the way they had met each other. A common friend introduced them to each other when Dana was still a student, without money, and Serik used to take her and her friend to the movie theater. He needed to put some effort in order to get her attention until she finally realized that he is a good man.
Following a traditon of serving meat to guests, Dana brought a horse saussage as an apetizer and a big plate of nansalma which is made of noddles mixed with a beef stew. It was the first time for me to try horse meet and I felt sorry because one of these free horses in the mountains ended up in my plate but I enjoyed tasting it. We were talking about my traveling around the world and I showed them all my pictures. By the time we finished the dinner it was a bed time for kids and Dana didn't want to let me go home until I see Kazakh's baby creddle. The creddle has a cover on the top and I told her I knew what's the creddle look like but then she showed me a little hole in the middle. The hole has a small pot inside and it goes together with a small pipe that helps kids to take a peepee at night without a diapers. It is more like a machine than the cradle. She used it more for Mukhtar but for Kausar it is just a sleeping cradle because it is much easier to put diapers. Mukhtar recognized his sleeping eqipment and he wanted to jump in but Dana explained him that he was too old to use it.
The reason why Dana and Serik invited me for a dinner was to introduce me to their Kazakh's tradition. I'm so grateful for that because there's no better way to find out about some culture then the locals showing you their customs. This is Kazakhstan everybody wants to see, I think. I would probably never be able to see this cradle anywhere, or I wouldn't be able to see the way it works. I didn't see a lot of places in Kazakhstan, but I saw a lot of Kazakh's culture. This cute couple made me feel like I was at home. This is exactly the way I would treat my guests and, most of all, I wish I can host Turispekov family one day. And, I am looking forward to wearing my new shawl and gloves.
The last time I saw Serik was on the way to the airport. He was on time, wishing me a nice trip.
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