A Little Kazakhstan Trivia

September 23, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Kazakh stamps featuring a traditional bride's ...

Image via Wikipedia

The historic independent state of Kazakhstan has a rich, colloquial history and breath-taking landscapes that will leave visitors wanting to come back very soon.

The Kazakhs as a people are generally happy, especially as they progress to a new new Kazakhstan democracy. Life is getting better for them. Here is some trivia about the land and its people:

Reported by a 2009 Census, the republic is divided into six main groups:
  • 70.2% are Muslim
  • 26.6% are Christian
  • 0.1% are Buddhist
  • 0.2% are other religions, mostly Jewish
  • 2.8% are non-believers
  • 0.5% chose not to answer the question

With democratic freedom of religion, the number of mosques, synagogues, churches and other types of religious buildings went from 670 in 1990 to over 4,170 total currently.

Kazakh is spoken by 64.4% of the population, but Russian is spoken everywhere and is used routinely as the state language. But Kazakhstan is changing. State TV stopped broadcasting in Russian.

Kazakhstan is also a front-running nation in international child adoptions.

Kazakhstan has the Biggest, Almost

Educated sources estimate that Kazakhstan has:
  • The 2nd biggest reserves of uranium, lead, zinc and chromium
  • The world’s 3rd largest reserves of manganese
  • The fifth biggest reserves of copper
  • Three of the world’s top ten reserves
  • The world’s eleventh largest reserves of natural gas and oil.
  • The world’s seventh largest grain production

Kazakhstan exports some natural diamonds.

There are 236,000 square miles of pasture and hay lands.

Kazakhstan is the first former Soviet republic to pay off its debts to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and the loan was paid seven years early.

With 1,040,000 square miles of land, Kazakhstan is the largest landlocked country (or state) and the ninth-largest country (or state) in the world. Its size is comparable to Western Europe.
Filed Under: Traditions

The Meal Traditions of Spain

July 15, 2011 By Leave a Comment
Shellfish paella.

Image via Wikipedia

Spain holds one of the richest culinary cultures in the world. Spanish cuisine is unique in that it holds plenty of European crossover and style combined with the flavors of the Mediterranean– but it also holds Middle Eastern influence in its architecture and food thanks to the centuries spent under Moorish control. The food of Spain is as richly diverse as its history.

A Typical Day in Spain

To understand the food culture of Spain, you must first understand how their food schedules differ from those in the United States.

The Most Important Meal of the Day: Lunch

Forget quickly packed brown bag lunches. Lunch is a huge ordeal in Spain, and many people return home to have a large lunch with their family before returning to work. Dinner may be the most important meal in the U.S., but lunch reigns supreme in Spain; a typical Spanish lunch could have as many as four courses. No one rushes a meal: eating is an act to be savored and treasured.

Light Breakfasts

Breakfast, on the other hand, is lighter than the heavy egg-and-bacon breakfasts of the United States. A typical Spanish breakfast could include coffee, croissants, bread, or fruit. Many Spaniards will also have a late-morning snack to tide them over until lunch.

Dinner

Spanish citizens eat their dinners much later than the 5:00 or 6:00 suppers common to America. Alcohol is a welcome addition to every dinner. Between dinner and lunch, Spaniards often enjoy tapas, which are small, easy-to-eat bites.

 

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Filed Under: Consumerism, Traditions Tagged With: , ,

Common American Summer Traditions

July 5, 2011 By Leave a Comment
Independence Day!

Image by CR Artist via Flickr

Summer is second only to the holiday season in terms of American rituals and traditions. Few seasons are more looked forward to than the arrival of summer. Here are some common American traditions relating to hot summer days and nights.

  • Catching fireflies (or lightning bugs). Send the kids out to the field and watch them catch and release these glowing insects as the sun sets.
  • Running after the ice cream man. As soon as kids hear the familiar jangle of the local ice cream truck, they race for the door. There’s nothing like an icy popsicle or a cool ice cream sandwich on a warm day.
  • Jumping through the sprinkler. Water your grass and entertain your kids at the same time: have them jump through the sprinkler system and scream when they first hit the water. Alternatively, buy a baby pool for younger children.
  • Pack a picnic for the park. Is there anything more lovely than a packed picnic basket? Everything tastes better when it’s eaten outside.
  • Have a summer barbecue. The most popular occasions for a cookout include the Fourth of July, Memorial Day, and Labor Day, but many Americans have barbecues “just because.”
  • Grilling outside. Speaking of barbeques, how can we have a cookout without an outdoor grilling feast? It doesn’t matter if it’s charcoal or gas: we Americans love to cook over an open flame. Burgers, dogs, steaks, kabobs, even vegetables– we’ll grill anything. Some diehard grilling enthusiasts have even started grilling fruits for dessert!
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