International Women's Day, and Going to the Library

In Kazakhstan "International Women's Day" is a national holiday, so everyone got the day off of work! We decided to try a restaurant/bakery that had been recommended to us to celebrate. We were quite pleased. The bakery is beautiful and called "Eclair" (which happen to be the specialty) and the restaurant above is called "Al Fresco". The food was delicious and the ambiance so comfortable.

In Kazakhstan restaurants are designed to have guests stay awhile. There are very wide benches to lounge in while you eat :), and you are expected to chase the waiter down when you want your check (why would you not want to stay all night).

Thursday (the 15th) the kids and I decided it was time to go back to the "library" or bookstore/coffee shop. And thus we embarked on the hour journey there (it was an hour traveling the way we were shown, as of today I now know a rout that cuts it down to 30 min max). Upon exciting the bus we noticed that the tulips are out! In order to celebrate the coming of spring (and because TULIPS are FROM KAZAKHSTAN) the city places statues of tulips all around town. It is beautiful and they look great dusted with snow :)

The bookstore is in the older, Soviet era, part of town. As such the buildings are more unkempt, closer together, and Soviet sculptures (i.e. gas lines) are everywhere. It is fun going over to this side to explore things. We had bundled up because we knew there were several outdoor parks in the vicinity.

We enjoyed the parks, and felt empathy for the children who play there. The one see-saw was frozen to the ground, the plastic slide was severely cracked, and the swing was missing a seat. The evidence of improvising parents touched my heart. For truly, children are loved all over the world.

We retreated into the bookstore/library (we are allowed to check out 6 books at a time between our 2 memberships) to read and eat cake. What a heavenly nook on a cold Astana day.