Like for everyone, 2020 has been a rollercoaster for us. But we’ve landed on our feet (except when I fall snowboarding). We hope all of you are finding health and happiness in your respective corners of the world.
The pandemic meant all four of us switched to online classes in March, which quickly turned our cozy townhouse into claustrophobic future crime scene. But we managed to survive and pass our respective courses thanks to patient and flexible teachers. I’m especially proud of the boys. However irritating they have been at times, they’ve stayed generally positive and productive through an incredibly tumultuous year, which included starting a new school year online in a new country, never having met their teachers or classmates before. I suspect they felt algebra and expository writing online were the equivalent of sharks with laser beams.
A side note on online learning: my old university gathered memoirs this year of our overseas teaching adventures. My third vignette here reflects on what we learned about online education with the military back in the early 2000’s and how it might be relevant today.
We moved to Almaty, Kazakhstan in August. Almaty is a strikingly beautiful city, framed by postcard-like mountains which allow for regular skiing and snowboarding excursions. The work is interesting, and there are plenty of nice restaurants and walking areas. Although the winter air pollution is a real challenge, Kazakhstan is indeed, very nice (and decidedly not in the Borat way- check out this tourism promo video and see for yourself).
Kirstin is teaching high school chemistry and middle school science at the international school here. She continued running with her group in Virginia before we left and now takes advantage of our nearby gym. She uses her Russian periodically, often to the amusement of the gas station attendants and shopkeepers. And in spite of the pandemic we’ve managed to socialize a bit with some of the school community. It’s a fun and supportive cohort of teachers and families. They have helped immensely with our transition.
Also worth noting: there are two eighth grade science teachers, which means we avoid familial explosions by separating mother and teenage son. Safety first!
Ruben, approaching 14, has surpassed the six foot threshold. Of note, he won his middle school geography bee in January, and then qualified for the Virginia state final. Alas, COVID robbed him of a chance at the national finals, as well as the opportunity to discuss obscure geographic minutia with a willing audience. As an extreme extrovert, Ruben was understandably bummed he didn’t get a proper goodbye with his Falls Church buddies though they remain in touch via fantasy football. Otherwise he continues to create cohesive sporting narratives of his Madden NFL games with impeccable color commentator cadence. Of note, Ruben created one NFL quiz on sporcle and a youtuber picked it up and recorded himself trying it, with 40,000 people to date having watching it. I would mock these viewers, but reflecting on my decidedly low-brow YouTube viewing list of running and chess videos, I should not cast stones.
Ruben says: 2020 has been a difficult year for all of us understandably with a global pandemic. There have been many challenges but I and hopefully you as well have been able to overcome them. For me many of my favorite events have been canceled this year and moving can be difficult. At this point in the year I have shifted my focus to football as at the time I’m writing this Washington needs a win to finish 1st place in the NFC east.
Rohan remains our little guy even though he’s the tallest in his class and increasingly clever. He acquits himself well watching Jeopardy and playing Scrabble. He remains an introvert, so online schooling somewhat suited him, and he gladly spends his freetime reading, playing on his switch, or watching minecraft youtubers. He also joined his parents doing various crossfit-type videos during the quarantine. He doesn’t like competitive sports, but seems to take to individual challenges. He and his brother are both picking up skiing nicely. And finally, Rohan chose to learn the euphonium this year (like a big trombone), which made sense to him until we returned to in person classes. But it’s too late to switch to the flute…
Rohan says: if there is some all powerful person thats rules above the earth, he was probably having the time of his life with 2020. and i’m glad its finally over. (2021 ominously chuckles in the distance) i got a lot of switch games and we moved the kazakhstan this year i also had to suffer through 10 long months of covid and social distancing. but there were some good stuff that happened this year, like a lot of my favorite video games getting big updates and lots of good books and video games that i read. so overall 2020 was a kinda bad year with the corona virus and i hope this dosen’t happen again. (more ominous chuckling from 2021)
Photos and Videos:
Ruben with his cronies celebrating his 13th birthday. 
Rohan likely debating nintendo features with his bestie. 
Pre-covid, the library remained our weekly haven. 
And hiking thankfully remained a favorite. 
We all went virtual from March. Some with better posture than others. 
Scrabble was a regular activity this year. 
We managed to get some Vermont lake time. 
And see the cousins. 
As well as a trip to the Outer Banks. 
Packout turned Rohan’s room into a den of sloth. 
Sadly, we had to part with Shake-man, as moving a lizard during a pandemic seemed too daunting. But we found a good family to dote over him. 
Zenkov’s Cathedral in Almaty. 
But most picturesque in Almaty, especially with limited pandemic exploring, is the mountain view. Several shots here to show the changing light and seasons. 
Boys continued online til November. Rohan made the best of it on Halloween. And they were ecstatic to return to in person (as were the parents!). 
Occasional work events, including a tree-planting at the newly renovated botanical gardens. 
Got one trip to Nur-Sultan (the capital: think Brasilia purpose-built with Dubai scale and decadence). 
Yurts are a real thing. And super cozy! 
Hiking and skiing are great options, especially for distancing (from others). 
The boys have really taken to skiing.
And proof that the Russian department can produce comprehensible speakers. This was about as nervous as I’ve been in forever as it was livestreamed, but I managed not to break down and start repeating Я американски дипломать (I’m an American Diplomat) so I’ll call it a win.
Final Thoughts:
I have many thoughts on the state of things in the United States. But this is a holiday card and I don’t want to bog it down with weighty things, particularly this year. But among the silver linings of the pandemic, we’ve been able to connect more regularly with friends and family near and far. In spite of zoom fatigue, we feel decidedly more connected with many people, and hope that continues post-pandemic.
For candor and posterity’s sake, I’ll note K and I both tested positive for COVID in April. Thankfully we both made it through ok, but definitely scary knowing how devastating the virus has been. Here’s hoping for swift and comprehensive vaccine delivery in 2021. And it’s otherwise a good reminder that life is unpredictable. Try to enjoy the moments, control what we can control, and don’t sweat the small stuff.
As I daydream about next year, I’m reminded of Andy and Red’s embrace at the end of Shawshank Redemption. Here’s hoping we can share many such moments together in 2021. Best wishes, Anand, Kirstin, Ruben, and Rohan.
