valerie

March 12, 2023 - shiny lights in a food court with a wall mural of a woman wearing an elechek in the background

March 11, 2023 - does this car from a Kinder Surprise egg count as a gimcrack?

March 10, 2023 - ritual walk to where I take Russian lessons

March 9, 2023 - working together at a cafe

March 8, 2023 - going out for a walk

March 7, 2023 - got a whole lot of chocolate for the International Women’s Day holiday (tomorrow) from students and my school

March 6, 2023 - faulty engineering leading to uneven streets and sidewalks?

March 5, 2023 - ornate tile in my friend’s apartment. only in this space

March 4, 2023 - one of the parts of the zipper on my winter coat which I bought last year fell off earlier this season. It still zips just fine, it’s just a little harder to do without a longer piece to grab on to

March 3, 2023 - solitude on a street at night

March 2, 2023 - decent weather and a view of Vefa shopping center

March 1, 2023 - windows on the first floor are often secured

February 28, 2023 - hide wires in the walls? nah, too much work

February 27, 2023 - what seems to be tuberculosis records on paper which are surprisingly accessible to the public??

February 26, 2023 - “Ikea” store in Bishkek (there’s no real Ikea branch here but there are a couple places that sell what seem to be real Ikea items)

February 25, 2023 - glad to have found the Actual оптика (optika) instead of the Fake one

February 24, 2023 - vaccination room, in Kyrgyz (эмдөө = vaccination; бөлмө = room)
Was here for a medical test (all is fine), and gotta return for results next week

February 23, 2023 - weird to have been in Bishkek long enough to notice changes like these new buses that replaced a fleet of old, run-down ones. They even have USB ports on the grab bars/poles (but didn’t test). super nice, but admittedly I will miss the charm of the old buses

February 22, 2023 - can you tell that this was taken from an apartment building window?

February 21, 2023 - unfortunately sick, but fortunately have support to go out and buy me medicine

February 20, 2023 - what I understand to be the current Russian equivalent of Coca-Cola. Tastes like Pepsi

February 19, 2023 - пастила боярышник ромбик, or ‘hawthorn fruit paste flavored diamonds’. So good and addicting

February 18, 2023 - takeaway borscht from a popular restaurant. This is only the second or third time I’ve eaten borscht. (I also added smetana after I took the picture, so the broth turned a lighter color)

February 17, 2023 - had to buy a new kettle and was reading the ‘English’ instructions for fun. My favorite lines:
Safety #1: “Keep away from their kids” (whose kids?!)
Safety #2: “If (the kettle) is out of line, do not use, and contact your local dealer”

February 16, 2023 - my friend has been giving me Russian lessons from her friend’s office in a strange building. This sign was in the stairwell. Interestingly it’s in Kyrgyz and English but doesn’t have Russian? It says not to use phones on the stairs