I don’t know! I just really don’t know what I’m doing back here in Kaz-Stan, or Central Asia for that matter. When I booked a month for home it was just so cost-effective to get a round-trip ticket that I couldn’t pass it up. Plus that meant I could store some things with friends in Almaty (my super cute red guitar included) in case I did decide to stick around in these unknown lands a bit longer.

I really thought that I would just go back to Kyrgyzstan, but alas, my beloved Bishkek just isn’t striking my fancy at the moment. I believe I need a change of scenery, but I do have a want to remain in Russian speaking countries for as long as I can stand it. Finally, at the very end of my month at home I thought I had it. I found an opening for an English teacher in Kiev, Ukraine. The money sounded decent, the hours excellent, and the time off to die for! So, on my final Friday at home I had a phone interview with a recruiter calling me from Kosovo, but sadly, the call dropped in the middle and I have yet to hear back from him! So, I am not holding my breath on that one (but would still jump at the opportunity).

I got myself kind of psyched to go back to Ukraine so, of course, that got my mind rolling on how I could make this happen without the job. Besides housing, the cost of living and studying in Ukraine is not too shabby, so I was thinking that maybe I could stick out not having a proper income for a bit longer and just take some Russian lessons there for a couple of months. This would give me the proper flexibility I would need in order to make the Amanda and Brooke trip to India in January happen as well (and then continue on to Asia from there?).

Then there’s the question of how long to stay in Kazakhstan. It’s not cheap, that’s for sure. But, my visa lasts until the end of the month. Then, there’s also the flight to Latvia to be used from here when I want (I had already purchased that before I decided to go home instead). There was also talk of meeting a former Bishkek student there for a while. So, head to Latvia and then make my way to Ukraine? This might be where I’m leaning to at the moment. However, there’s still the idea of remaining in Central Asia and continuing on with Russian and adding a Turkic language as well (Kazakh, Kyrgyz, Uzbek, etc.) I was reacquainted with this idea when catching a taxi from the Almaty airport to the guest house. Even though he wanted a few hundred tenge more than I was told I should get, I let him have it since he was just so freaking nice! He spent the entire car ride trying to teach me basic Kazakh words and phrases!

What to do, what to do!?!

Any words of wisdom are greatly appreciated! What do you all think of Brooke going from Latvia-Lithuania-Belarus-Ukraine from mid-September through December?

Funny you should ask. I have been very, very busy as of the last 2 weeks. Brian and I drove all the way to New York, strategically calculating how best to avoid the approaching winter storms. Luckily, we stayed ahead of the fronts the entire journey. After laughing at state advertising, my boredom on the two-day drive set in. It led me to making an impromptu “Vote Obama ‘08″ sign, which I then placed in the window in hopes of influencing Ohio and Pennsylvania voters into supporting my man, Barack. Apparently Ohio voters drive with their eyes shut because I’m sure if they had actually seen my amazing artwork, there would have been no other way to go. Alas.

We’ve been living in corporate housing in White Plains and searching for Brian’s new apartment in the meantime. We were very fortunate to find him an awesome place in the city, just a few minutes walk from Grand Central at an under-the-market value. YAY! We were so glad to put an end to the hunt. Apartment shopping in New York is a completely different experience!

I upgraded the website to a newer version of wordpress and a new template, only now I am having issues with my collapsible page menu plugin. It should be compatible with this version of wordpress, so I think it has something to do with my template. If anyone can help me out, it would be much appreciated!

On top of all this, I’ve been preparing for my upcoming travels. I leave for Poland later today! So, I’ve been spending tons of time with Brian, indulging in foods I may not have for a while (the cannoli above!), and packing my bags. Oh man, I’m leaving today. I still can’t believe it!