My ‘homestay’ in Almaty was almost like a history lesson on the workings of the Gulag.
Entrance to the apartment complex
I never got to meet the owner, and just received a set of instructions and passwords for getting access to my apartment. There was a huge iron gate, after which I had to collect a magnet from an air conditioning unit attached to the outside of the building, then open an electronic door with it, then find the elevator to my floor, then open another door with a digital key, and only then open the door to my own flat with a physical key!
The lobby and elevator
Thankfully, the cleaning lady had not finished her rounds yet in order to leave the magnet and the key from where I could collect them, and instead had to meet me in person to hand them over.
The long, lonely corridor outside my apartment
I was so happy to see her that I would have gladly invited her over for a cup of tea, but she was a timid sort and probably had to get home to her own place, so over the three days of my stay I had several ‘KGB’ moments! And oh, I got used to saying ‘dasvidaniya’ every single time I got the opportunity, it was nice!
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