A good friend recently arrived here in Astana and celebrated his birthday together with us in the central part of the city. We had a delightful dinner of shashlik in an outdoor cafe and then decided to stroll homeward along the river. Passing a flock of angels primping their wings in one of the gazebos, he mentioned that it would be nice to take a photo with such pretty girls. Picking up on the idea, I approached the group to ask for a photo. As it turned out, we walked straight into a hen or bachelorette party! The women were delighted to pose for a photo and made my friend's birthday memory even sweeter.
As a cultural note, I have to add that it is amazing to me how approachable and open that Kazakhs are in general. Whenever I stop to ask a question or engage someone on the street, they seem delighted to share. The friendliness does not seem to be centered on dealing with foreigners. In fact, I get the sense that most Astana residents are nonplussed with having internationals in their mix. Rather, it seems that people are genuinely nice. It feels good to be a new resident of this city.
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