Over the weekend of June 20-21, 2015, 24 families with children adopted from Kyrgyzstan came together to connect their children with each other, and with the people, culture and country of their birth.
Friday Afternoon – Visit to Kyrgyz Embassy
To start off the weekend activities, the Embassy of the Kyrgyz Republic in Washington, DC, invited the families to visit the Embassy. They were welcomed there by Ambassador Kadyr Toktogulov and other Embassy staff.
Saturday Morning – Crafts and Cultural Activities
Wonderful volunteers came from Cincinnati, Ohio, and New York City, to share Kyrgyz culture with the children and their families.
The Kyrgyz Association of Ohio presented cultural topics from the new Kyrgyz children’s book, “Alippe”.
Kyrgyz Lunch
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- Goulnara prepared Besh Barmak
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- Besh Barmak “five fingers” is Kyrgyzstan’s national dish.
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- The children decorated two cakes as the Kyrgyz flag.
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- Admiring the results.
Saturday Afternoon
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- KCF’s Board Chair, Henry Clarke, introduced Ambassador Toktogulov.
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- Ambassador Toktogulov made some introductory remarks to start off the performances.
Performances
Kyrgyz dancers came from New York City to perform.
The Silk Road Dance Company presented Kazakh and Uzbek dances.
Fashion Show
Participants came onto the stage in pairs, and each couple did a little dance.
Several participants explained the significance of the traditional Kyrgyz clothing they were wearing.
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- Lastly, everyone was invited to do the Kara Jorga “black stallion” dance.
Sunday – Picnic
Sunday we met for a picnic, Shashlik, and outdoor games, including a Kyrgyz game of “Red Rover”.
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- Preparing to grill the shashlik
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- Delicious salad prep
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- Dancing.
