Museum Visit

 Yesterday was World Embroidery Day so thought I’d share our visit of July 11th to the Central State Museum of Kazakhstan located in Almaty.

From 1931, the museum was based in a former cathedral (built by A.P. Zenkov between 1904-1907) but a new building was designed and erected in 1985.

 It is said to be one of the biggest museums in Central Asia and houses a collection of more than 300,000 artifacts across 7 main exhibition halls.

My favorite sections of any museum are always those that depict the traditional culture, life, household items and arts and crafts of a place and its people which always includes textiles that are woven or stitched or hooked.

The last exhibit we entered showcased collections of clothing, crafts and other items particular to many of the different Central Asian ethnic groups.

Although the grounds surrounding the museum were a big mess with some sort of revitalization going on, inside everything was very organized and a pleasure to walk through, providing inspiration via the craftsmanship and artistry of long ago 

Hope you enjoyed this quick tour.

Sunday blessings.

Long Time

 Three months since my last post.

Where do I begin?

We traveled to Bishkek, Kyrgystan end of April-early May where I sprained my left wrist while on a hike and that meant I had to abandon the 100 day creativity project.  (It took nearly a month for my wrist to heal.)

(Alamedin Gorge, Bishkek, Kyrgystan, May 2, 2022)

At the end of May, I went to the States for a month to see my boys and to be with my mom when she had wrist surgery.  (She fell months earlier and the bone did not heal properly so surgery was necessary to try to get some movement back in her wrist/hand/fingers.)

(Idaho Springs, Colorado, June 18, 2022)

Just as I got over the jet lag from that trip, we went to Almaty, Kazakhstan for 5 days.  Unfortunately, a nagging eye problem had me in bed our last afternoon there and once back in Kuwait, a doctor's visit was necessary. (Thankfully, the two eyedrops, ointment, and two different pills did the trick after about a week and my eye finally feels fine.) (Statue of Kazakh composer, Mukan Tolebayav, Almaty, Kazakhstan, July 11, 2022)

Yesterday was the first day that I stepped out the front door since we got back from Kazakhstan on the 13th (except for going to the eye doctor).

I met up with my crafty friend, Zhraa, who gifted me with a belated birthday gift (that she apparently had to totally redo -- my birthday was in February).

Traditional granny squares are my favorite and I'm so in love with how colorful and beautiful this sweater is.  She even ordered a special tag to attach to it that is totally awesome and so true since it really did take her freaking forever to finish.

She said she missed my IG posts about my neighborhood walks so I forced myself out the door this morning for a wander which always includes picking up litter and feeding kitties.  Before 9:00 a.m., the temperature is still just below 100 F so I need to get out before then if I'm going to keep this up.

As always, I hope this finds you doing well.

Take care.