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Fancy some snowy cold comfort? Life in sub-zero Astana

Although I live abroad I do try to keep up with news in the UK and most days try to skim through the online versions of UK newspapers or stick on BBC world news of an evening. The longer I am in...

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After a Dryathlon January, the search for wine is cloaked in secrecy

This January I decided to take part in the Cancer Research Dryathlon. This meant one month, from January 1, abstaining from alcohol. I didn’t really envisage too many problems with this as I had given...

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Astana builds towards its city status

Astana (meaning “capital” in Kazakh!) is, strangely enough, the capital of Kazakhstan. Before this it was a small town called Akmola, before that, Tselinograd and, before that, Akmolinsk. Since the...

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On the road in Kazakhstan

There is a joke going around here at the moment: “Live through three months of winter and get the fourth for free!” The winter this year, though not as cold as last year, has dragged on and the amount...

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Signs of spring in Astana, Kazakhstan

As the snow has slowly melted away and the river has begun to thaw, evenings can once again be spent promenading along the river. Although I tried it during the winter it was not possible for long and...

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Visa problems in Kazakhstan

In order to work in Kazakhstan as a British citizen it is necessary to have a visa to get into the country and a work visa in order to be employed here. As with many international flights, a landing...

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Alzhir – Kazakhstan’s reminder of the Stalinist years

Our school follows a British curriculum and Year 6. As far as history is concerned, however, living in a brand new city there is very little of this around, particularly not international history....

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Soviet plane adds to pull of boat restaurant in Kazakhstan

I was very excited recently, when Costa Coffee finally arrived in Kazakhstan! Not that there aren’t other coffee shops here, but I took it as a sign that international chains were finally becoming...

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Hotsprings, heights and solar powered yurts: journeys in Tajikistan

Leaving Plymouth station after six weeks summer holiday, I was for once quite apprehensive about my latest travel experience. I was meeting a friend in Istanbul airport and we were going to spend the...

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On yer bike in Astana!

So I am back in Kazakhstan after the long summer break. I decided at the end of last year that I would like to live nearer to work and moved to the so called Left Bank; the newer part of the city. The...

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Batty for bats? Maybe not everywhere in the world is keen on them

In class the other day, as I was trying to explain the indefinite and definite articles in Spanish, one of my Year 7 pupils put his hand up and asked if I had seen the bat in the Kazakh department....

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A night at the ballet in Astana

There is a strong tradition in ex-Soviet countries of ballet and opera. When I was living in St Petersburg as a student I was lucky enough to be able to go regularly to the Marinsky theatre, at a...

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