Friday, April 29, 2011

Top five reasons I know Im back in the (former) USSR


I am on my first ever true blue business trip with Chemonics. Feeling very grown up. Destination: Astana, Kazakhstan. What an interesting place. I basically have the view of that picture out of my hotel window. In all fairness, I haven't been out of the hotel for more than an hour. I've only been here two days and have been busy. Hoping to get a tour of the city on Sunday. But from the moment stepping off the plane, I knew...I'm back. And so, beat from working 12 hour days with jet lag to boot, here is the best top five reasons I've got:

5 Exiting from the plane, a woman was crying hysterically in a wheelchair in the runway, I mean this woman was straight up screaming, and all the passengers just walked passed her without flinching.
4. The "non smoking" aiport had cigarette butts floating in the toilet and there was beer stashed behind the toilet as well. The cleaning ladies know how to party.
3. The city is lit up in every shad of colored lights imaginable. Classy.
2. All clothing however only comes in varied shades of black.
1. Я понимаю, мой русский еще хуже, чем я обычно считаю когда я в Америке
(I realize, my Russian is worse than I think it is when I'm in America)

Can't wait to get out and see this city. What a crazy looking place...more on that later.