After taking these shots just above Medeo, we travelled up to Chimbulak, a ski resort that has transformed the mountain side.  We took a trip up the ski lift to a higher point of the mountain.  It was incredibly beautiful.

From the mountain, one can see the city in the background.  Also, the rushing river that runs down the mountain was lots of fun, however, the water was extremely COLD!  People drive up into the mountain to get fresh water from the river…

It was an incredibly beautiful day.  Nice, warm, but not too hot…  Come see the beauty of Kazakhstan!

When we arrived, they had just begun butchering a pig.  So the first hour was spent watching them cleaning up the mess, and then cutting up the meat.  It all seemed to go by quite quickly.  Here are a few photos from the action…

The guys raise chickens, cows, rabbits, pigs and other animals to sell to help support the center.  They have their own garden.  They try to be as self sufficient as possible.  It was great to meet them.  I got to spend some time with a brother in Christ, Sergei, who is teaching himself English (and doing a pretty good job!!!).  Then I got to spend some time with Sasha (in the red shirt).  He is a former addict who now volunteers 2 days a week at the center.

I was blessed to meet these guys!

There isn’t really too much to see along the way.  The Kazakhstan steppes cross through the heart of the country and extends almost the whole trip between Karaganda and Almaty.

There were a few photographic ops.  The city of Balkhash is about 400 km from Karaganda.  After passing through the city, the highway runs along the edge of Lake Balkhash for more than the next 300 km.  Sometimes there were a few great photos.

While it is quite flat, with very few trees along the way, the trip did have some interesting photos.  How often in the US do you see camels roaming free?

I must tell you that I do not like going to cemetaries (and my opinion hasn’t changed after this trip…).  But, I knew it was important to her so I took her.

We left at 9:30 a.m. as I knew that the day was going to be hot.  Nina has a heart problem and I was a little worried about her with the heat.  When we arrived, it was already getting warm.

We began clearing away brush and weeds in the first set of plots.

After clearing off the weeds, she took some corn pellets and laid out a Russian Orthodox cross on each grave, laid some flowers and then placed some crackers and candy between the graves.  Lastly, she took some vodka and poured it on the grave. Each of these being a Russian Orthodox tradition.

The last photo has her standing near her husband’s grave.  After she finished her work, we found a table nearby.  Many plots have a small metal table and bench.  So, she took out some food and we had a small picnic.

While we were eating I looked over at a grave marker.  While looking at the birth and death dates, I realized the person was young. It was at that time I understood that each of these markers indicate a life lived and that each of these persons indicate a person who had a story to tell.

I spent an interesting Wednesday morning at a nearby cemetary with my neighbor.  I hope to have time to post some photos later and let you know what happened.  It was incredibly insightful into the Russian culture for me.

Here are a few photos…

Last Friday I drove around with some colleagues to see the sites.  First off was a stage set up on Respublica Street.  They were showcasing children singers, dancers, musicians.

The costumes were beautiful.  The girl in the second photo is 8 years old and was an INCREDIBLE singer.  I couldn’t believe that she was 8!!!

Each “state” in Kazakhstan built a fountain in Astana as a “gift” to the city for its birthday.  Here are a few photos from the city…

By far, if I say so, the most beautiful fountain was created and built by the Karaganda region.  Here are a few photos of the fountain in front of the circus building.

We visited a park where lots and lots of yurtas (Kazakh homes) were set up.  We enjoyed the “village” of yurtas and even got up close with a brown eagle!!

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This is a great reminder that the church should be invovled in missions wherever God leads.  Whether you are called to do missions across the ocean, somewhere else in your homeland, or even in your backyard, the church needs to show others the love that Christ has for all people.

Sorry they wouldn’t let you use the saw Jake.  Maybe next time…

The day was WINDY, but we enjoyed the day.  I hope to post some photos tomorrow.

Hope you are having a great 4th of July!