THE PEACE CORPS WELCOMES YOU TO 

Kazakhstan

A PEACE CORPS PUBLICATION FOR NEW VOLUNTEERS

July 2010
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

1

A WELCOME LETTER

Congratulations on your invitation to become a part of Peace 

Corps/Kazakhstan. If you accept this invitation to serve, you will 

soon begin a personal journey to an ancient culture in profound 

transition. We can guarantee that if you come with an open mind, 

flexibility, energy, determination, and dedication to your 

community, your Peace Corps service will prove to be one of the 

most rewarding and memorable experiences of your life.

This Welcome Book is designed to acquaint you with some of the 

key aspects of Peace Corps/Kazakhstan. Peace Corps service is not 

without frustration and you may have your first experience with 

this while reading this booklet since there is no single set of 

recommendations for preparation or packing. Kazakhstan has a 

complex, rich, and diverse culture, and Volunteer experiences here 

are as varied as the country itself. 

As you pack for Kazakhstan, please carefully review the suggested 

packing list, which has been carefully reviewed by current 

Volunteers. It is important to keep in mind that most PCVs in 

Kazakhstan work in professional environments, which requires 

professional dress. "Dressing down" is not culturally acceptable in 

the Kazakhstani workplace.

If you are willing to look at the world from a different perspective 

and accept the challenges and responsibilities of being a Peace 

Corps Volunteer, the wonderful people of the Silk Road will 

welcome you warmly. Welcome to Peace Corps/Kazakhstan. We 

look forward to meeting you in Almaty soon.

PEACE CORPS /KAZAKHSTAN STAFF
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

2

TABLE OF CONTENTS

CORE EXPECTATIONS .........................................................4

FOR PEACE CORPS VOLUNTEERS....................................4

Peace Corps/Kazakhstan History and Programs..................5

History of the Peace Corps in Kazakhstan ........................5

History and Future of Peace Corps Programming in 

Kazakhstan ..........................................................................5

Education .............................................................................5

Youth Development.............................................................6

Country Overview: Kazakhstan at a Glance.........................7

History..................................................................................7

Government .........................................................................8

Economy ...............................................................................9

People and Culture............................................................10

Environment......................................................................11

RESOURCES FOR FURTHER INFORMATION................12

Connect With Returned Volunteers and Other Invitees.13

LIVING CONDITIONS AND VOLUNTEER LIFESTYLE17

Communications ................................................................17

Computer, Internet, and Email Access........................17

Mail ................................................................................17

Telephones .....................................................................19

Housing and Site Location............................................20

Housing ..............................................................................20

Living Allowance and Money Management.....................21

Food and Diet.....................................................................23

Transportation...................................................................24

Geography and Climate ....................................................24

Social Activities .................................................................25

Professionalism, Dress, and Behavior..............................26

Personal Safety..................................................................28

Rewards and Frustrations ................................................29

PEACE CORPS TRAINING..................................................31

Overview of Pre-Service Training ....................................31

Technical Training ........................................................31

Language Training........................................................32

Cross-Cultural Training ...............................................32

Health Training.............................................................33

Safety Training..............................................................33
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

3

Additional Trainings During Volunteer Service .........33

YOUR HEALTH CARE AND SAFETY IN Kazakhstan ....35

Health Issues in Kazakhstan............................................35

Helping You Stay Healthy ................................................37

Maintaining Your Health..................................................39

Women’s Health Information............................................39

Your Peace Corps Medical Kit..........................................39

Medical Kit Contents.........................................................40

Before You Leave: A Medical Checklist ...........................41

Safety and Security—Our Partnership............................43

Staying Safe: Don’t Be a Target for Crime ......................46

Support from Staff.............................................................47

Crime Data for Kazakhstan..............................................47

Volunteer Safety Support in Kazakhstan........................50

DIVERSITY AND CROSS-CULTURAL ISSUES...............51

Overview of Diversity in Kazakhstan ..............................52

What Might a Volunteer Face?.........................................53

Possible Issues for Female Volunteers ........................53

Possible Issues for Volunteers of Color........................53

Possible Issues for Senior Volunteers..........................55

Possible Issues for Gay, Lesbian, or Bisexual 

Volunteers......................................................................55

Possible Religious Issues for Volunteers .....................57

Possible Issues for Volunteers With Disabilities ........57

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS.................................58

WELCOME LETTERS FROM Kazakhstan VOLUNTEERS

.................................................................................................63

PACKING LIST .....................................................................69

PRE-DEPARTURE CHECKLIST.........................................77

CONTACTING PEACE CORPS HEADQUARTERS ..........80
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

4

CORE EXPECTATIONS

FOR PEACE CORPS VOLUNTEERS

In working toward fulfilling the Peace Corps Mission of 

promoting world peace and friendship, as a trainee and 

Volunteer, you are expected to:

1. Prepare your personal and professional life to 

make a commitment to serve abroad for a full term 

of 27 months

2. Commit to improving the quality of life of the 

people with whom you live and work; and, in 

doing so, share your skills, adapt them, and learn 

new skills as needed

3. Serve where the Peace Corps asks you to go, 

under conditions of hardship, if necessary, and 

with the flexibility needed for effective service

4. Recognize that your successful and sustainable 

development work is based on the local trust and 

confidence you build by living in, and respectfully 

integrating yourself into, your host community 

and culture

5. Recognize that you are responsible 24 hours a day, 

7 days a week for your personal conduct and 

professional performance

6. Engage with host country partners in a spirit of 

cooperation, mutual learning, and respect

7. Work within the rules and regulations of the Peace 

Corps and the local and national laws of the 

country where you serve

8. Exercise judgment and personal responsibility to 

protect your health, safety, and well-being and that 

of others
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

5

9. Recognize that you will be perceived, in your host 

country and community, as a representative of the 

people, cultures, values, and traditions of the 

United States of America

10. Represent responsively the people, cultures, 

values, and traditions of your host country and 

community to people in the United States both 

during and following your service

PEACE CORPS/KAZAKHSTAN

HISTORY AND PROGRAMS

History of t he Pe ace Corps in Kazakhst an

Since the first Peace Corps Volunteers arrived in 

Kazakhstan in 1993, almost 1,000 Volunteers have served 

here. The first group consisted of 50 English language and 

economic development Volunteers. 

History and Future of Pe ace Corps Programming in 

Kazakhst an

Peace Corps/Kazakhstan’s objective is to increase the 

knowledge and improve the skills of Kazakhstani citizens, 

strengthening their ability to compete in the global 

marketplace. Volunteers meet this objective by participating 

with Kazakhstanis in community work and life, focusing on 

two program areas—education and youth development.

Education

In Kazakhstan, English is viewed increasingly as a tool to 

help students get access to information and technology, 

achieve broader academic goals, and pursue more diverse 
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

6

professional opportunities. Peace Corps/Kazakhstan is 

assisting the Kazakhstani Ministry of Education by 

improving English language education throughout the 

country. Education Volunteers are placed in village schools 

where students have had little chance to tap into the kinds 

of learning to move them up the economic ladder. 

During pre-service training, education trainees receive 

intensive instruction and hands-on practice in studentcentered, highly participatory methods of teaching English as 

a foreign language in primary, secondary, or postsecondary 

schools. Emphasis is shifting from conversational English to 

multi-skill coursework, where students can practice decisionmaking, problem-solving and critical thinking. Volunteers 

also help Kazakhstani English teachers improve their own 

language facility and instructional skills. Volunteers work 

with teachers to develop professional networks, gain access to 

information, and develop teaching materials and resources 

through formal means (e.g., university teacher training 

programs) and informal means (e.g., English teacher 

associations, language conferences, etc.). 

Outside the classroom, Volunteers become involved in a 

range of activities, depending on their interests and skills as 

well as their community’s needs. Volunteers have worked 

with their local counterparts to organize summer camps, 

environmental clubs, student-run companies, and HIV/AIDS 

trainings to name a few.

Youth De ve lopme nt

Youth development is a growing sector in Kazakhstan. 

Youth development Volunteers work with youth 

nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), schools, 

extracurricular educational institutions, and local 
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

7

government officials. The program has three pillars, 

including Healthy Lifestyles, World of Work, and 

Leadership. Youth development Volunteers focus their 

efforts in the three pillars on three levels of beneficiaries. 

Volunteers work directly with youth, with front line youth 

workers, and with organizational managers to improve 

youth development program delivery. To accomplish their 

goals, Volunteers use tools for participatory analysis for 

community action (PACA), project design and management, 

lesson planning techniques, interactive extracurricular 

activities, appropriate approaches to working with orphans 

and special needs youth, as well as effective organizational 

management, grant writing and fundraising, and facilitation 

techniques. As it is with all Volunteers, building community 

relationships is especially important for youth development 

Volunteers. It is important that Volunteers proactively 

search for opportunities and methods to build relationships 

with their beneficiaries (especially the youth themselves). 

To do so, Volunteers must participate in events during many 

evenings and weekends, when youth have more free time. 

They must also find ways to gain the trust and confidence of 

youth. This is often done through English teaching, 

spending time at schools, visiting parents and families, etc.

COUNTRY OVERVIEW: 

KAZAKHSTAN AT A GLANCE

History

For more than 2,000 years, Kazakhstan and Central Asia 

have been a meeting ground between Europe and Asia. The 

area was the place for ancient east-west trade routes 

(known collectively as the Silk Road) and, at various points 

in history, a cradle of scholarship, culture, and power. 

Kazakhstan lies at the heart of the great Eurasian steppe, 

the band of grasslands stretching from Mongolia to Hungary 
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

8

that has served for 1,000 years as the highway and grazing 

ground of nomadic horseback people. The Kazakhs remained 

largely nomadic until well into the 20th century and, as a 

result, have left no ancient cities or ruins. The name Kazakh 

is said to mean “free warrior” or “steppe roamer.”

The early history of Kazakhstan is a shadowy procession of 

nomad empires. Around 200 B.C., eastern Kazakhstan was 

briefly under the control of the Hsiung-nu, a great nomad 

confederacy from China’s northern borders. Mongol and 

Turkic peoples began moving into Kazakhstan in the first 

century B.C. Islam came to the region in the seventh to 

ninth centuries as members of the Turkish Khaganate 

settled in the area. Mongols ruled the region from 1219 to 

1447, and in the 15th century, the Kazakhs emerged as a 

distinct people. 

The Kazakhs were the first of the Central Asian people to 

feel the impact of Russia’s push to the south at the turn of 

the 19th century. Their agreements in the mid-18th century 

to accept Russian protection turned into annexation a few 

decades later. Tatars and Cossacks were sent to settle and 

farm what had been the grasslands of the Kazakhs. In the 

late 1800s, Europeans began to flood Kazakhstan. The 

immigrants were mostly freed Russian and Ukrainian serfs, 

and they brought with them straight streets, gas lights, 

telephones, parks, and hotels—all strange to the nomadic 

Kazakhs.

Gove rnme nt

In 1989, as part of the new processes of perestroika and 

glasnost, Russian President Mikhail Gorbachev appointed a 

Kazakh, Nursultan Nazarbayev, to replace an ethnic 

Russian as the head of the Kazakh Communist Party. In 
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

9

December 1991, Kazakhstan declared its independence from 

the Soviet Union, and in early 1992, Nazarbayev was 

elected president of the country by popular vote. 

Nazarbayev insisted that he and other Central Asian 

leaders be considered “founding members” of the new 

Commonwealth of Independent States. Nazarbayev still 

serves as president and advocates a secular Westernoriented regime, like that in Turkey, under centralized 

leadership.

With independence, there has been a rise in Kazakh 

nationalism. The government adopted Kazakh as the official 

language of the country and required that civil servants 

eventually master the language. However, Russian is still 

the working language of Kazakhstan and the other Central 

Asian republics. While the government continues to promote 

Kazakh nationalism, it also seeks to assure the Slavic and 

other ethnic communities that they have a place in the 

nation. 

Kazakhstan’s government is a parliamentary democracy, 

headquartered in the newly founded capital of Astana. It 

has three branches: presidential, legislative, and judicial, as 

well as a constitutional court. The majority of political 

power is concentrated in the presidential branch of the 

government, headed by President Nazarbayev. On the 

regional level, Kazakhstan is broken up into 14 provinces, or 

oblasts, each with a mayor, or akim. All oblast akims are 

appointed by the president. Provinces are further divided 

into rayons (like a county in the U.S.) and cities, each with 

presidentially appointed leaders.

Economy

Throughout the years of Soviet domination, Kazakhstan, 
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

10

like its Central Asian neighbors, was completely dependent 

on the Soviet Union for energy resources, educational 

materials, banking, postal services, and all major planning 

and administrative activities. Since declaring its 

independence in December 1991, the Republic of 

Kazakhstan has been working to establish institutional and 

economic stability, particularly through the development of 

its vast mineral resources, including oil and gas reserves.

Kazakhstan is transitioning to a market economy and is 

working on institutional reform of its enterprises, social 

services, and educational system. Prices have been freed, a 

policy of privatization is being pursued, and the government 

is actively encouraging investment and development 

assistance from the West.

People and Culture

The Kazakhs first emerged as an identifiable ethnic group 

in the 15th century. They are a mix of Mongol and Turkic 

peoples whose language is derived from Turkish. During the 

Mongol invasions, the Kazakhs acquired a nomadic lifestyle 

centered around livestock herding, largely as a survival 

strategy. From 1850 through nearly to the breakup of the 

Soviet Union in 1991, large numbers of Russians and 

Eastern Europeans were given financial incentives to 

migrate to Kazakhstan.

Kazakhstan’s population is between 15 million and 16 

million, which makes it one of the world’s least densely 

populated places. Most people are concentrated in the south 

and north. With a population of more than 1 million, the 

former capital of Almaty is the largest city; Astana, the new 

capital, has a population of 500,000 and is growing. The 

cities of Karaganda, Shymkent, Ust-Kamenogorsk, Taraz, 
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

11

and Pavlodar are the next largest, with more than 300,000 

inhabitants each. Kazakhstan has the least homogeneous 

population of the former Soviet republics: About 53 percent 

of the population is Kazakh and 30 percent Russian. Large 

numbers of Ukrainians, Uzbeks, Tatars, Germans, 

Belorussians, Koreans, Greeks, Chechens, Poles, Uighurs, 

and Jews can also be found throughout the country. 

Environment

The environment of Kazakhstan is extremely diverse, 

ranging from the forests of the north to the central steppe, 

the Caspian and Aral seas in the west, and the mountain 

ranges of the south. Climatic conditions are also highly 

variable, with mild summers and extremely cold winters in 

the north and very hot summers and mild winters in the 

south. Kazakhstan contains large numbers of endangered 

species in the mountainous regions and is home to the 

famous snow leopard. 

In terms of natural resources, Kazakhstan is one of the 

richest per-capita countries on Earth. The task at hand is to 

exploit these resources and distribute this wealth 

throughout the population. The country contains 

approximately 60 percent of the former Soviet Union’s 

mineral resources—iron, coal, oil, gas, lead, aluminum, 

copper, zinc, nickel, uranium, silver, and gold, among 

others. It also produces up to one-third of the wheat of the 

former Soviet Union.
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

12

RESOURCES FOR FURTHER INFORMATION

Following is a list of websites for additional information about the 

Peace Corps and Kazakhstan and to connect you to returned 

Volunteers and other invitees. Please keep in mind that although 

we try to make sure all these links are active and current, we 

cannot guarantee it. If you do not have access to the Internet, visit 

your local library. Libraries offer free Internet usage and often let 

you print information to take home.

A note of caution: As you surf the Internet, be aware that you may 

find bulletin boards and chat rooms in which people are free to 

express opinions about the Peace Corps based on their own 

experience, including comments by those who were unhappy with 

their choice to serve in the Peace Corps. These opinions are not 

those of the Peace Corps or the U.S. government, and we hope 

you will keep in mind that no two people experience their service 

in the same way.

Ge ne ral Information About Kazakhst an

www.countrywatch.com/ 

On this site, you can learn anything from what time it is in the 

capital Astana to how to convert from the dollar to the 

Kazakhstan currency. Just click on Kazakhstan and go from there.

www.lonelyplanet.com/destinations

Visit this site for general travel advice about almost any country in 

the world.

www.state.gov

The State Department’s website issues background notes 

periodically about countries around the world. Find Kazakhstan

and learn more about its social and political history. You can also 

go to the site’s international travel section to check on conditions 

that may affect your safety.
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

13

www.psr.keele.ac.uk/official.htm

This includes links to all the official sites for governments 

worldwide.

www.geography.about.com/library/maps/blindex.htm

This online world atlas includes maps and geographical 

information, and each country page contains links to other sites, 

such as the Library of Congress, that contain comprehensive 

historical, social, and political background.

www.cyberschoolbus.un.org/infonation/info.asp 

This United Nations site allows you to search for statistical 

information for member states of the U.N.

www.worldinformation.com

This site provides an additional source of current and historical 

information about countries around the world.

www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/

This site provides updated political, economic, and 

environmental information.

Conne ct With Re turne d Volunte e rs

and Othe r Invite e s

www.rpcv.org

This is the site of the National Peace Corps Association, made up 

of returned Volunteers. On this site you can find links to all the 

Web pages of the “Friends of” groups for most countries of 

service, comprised of former Volunteers who served in those 

countries. There are also regional groups that frequently get 

together for social events and local volunteer activities. Or go find 

the Friends of Kazakhstan site on Facebook or Yahoo.. 

http://www.rpcvwebring.org
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

14

This site is known as the returned Peace Corps Volunteer Web 

ring. Browse the Web ring and see what former Volunteers are 

saying about their service.

www.peacecorpswriters.org

This site is hosted by a group of returned Volunteer writers. It is a 

monthly online publication of essays and Volunteer accounts of 

their Peace Corps service.

Online Article s/Curre nt Ne ws Site s About Kazakhst an

1. The Economist: 

www.economist.com/countries/kazakhstan/

2. The Times of Central Asia: www.timesca.com

Inte rnational De ve lopme nt Site s About Kazakhstan

1. The United Nations Development Programme: 

www.undp.org

2. Asian Development Bank: 

www.adb.org/Kazakhstan/default.asp

3. The United States Agency for International 

Development: 

www.usaid.gov/regions/europe_eurasia/car/kzpage.ht

ml

4. World Bank Group: http://www.worldbank.org/ 

Re comme nde d Books

1. Robbins, Christopher, Apples are from Kazakhstan. 

New York: Atlas & Company, 2008

2. Hopkirk, Peter. The Great Game: The Struggle for 

Empire in Central Asia. New York: Kodansha Globe, 

1994. An account of the race between Britain and 

Russia to learn about and acquire the territory of 
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

15

Central Asia. 

3. Hopkirk, Peter. Setting the East Ablaze: Lenin’s 

Dream of an Empire in Asia. New York: Kodansha 

Globe; Reprint edition, 1995.

4. Olcott, Martha Brill (ed.). Kazakhstan: Unfulfilled 

Promise. Washington, D.C.: Carnegie Endowment for 

International Peace, 2002.

5. Remnick, David. Lenin’s Tomb: The Last Days of the 

Soviet Empire. New York: Vintage, Reprint edition, 

1994. A journalist’s account of the final days of the 

Soviet Empire. Provides insight into the history of the 

Soviet Union, the mentality of the people, and the role 

of the republics in the development and fall of the 

Soviet Union.

6. Thubron, Colin. The Lost Heart of Asia. New York: 

Harper Perennial, 1995. 

Books About the History of the Peace Corps

1. Hoffman, Elizabeth Cobbs. All You Need is Love: The Peace 

Corps and the Spirit of the 1960s. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard 

University Press, 2000.

2. Rice, Gerald T. The Bold Experiment: JFK’s Peace Corps. Notre 

Dame, Ind.: University of Notre Dame Press, 1985.

3. Stossel, Scott. Sarge: The Life and Times of Sargent Shriver.

Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press, 2004.

Books on the Volunteer Experience

1. Dirlam, Sharon. Beyond Siberia: Two Years in a Forgotten Place. 

Santa Barbara, Calif.: McSeas Books, 2004.
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

16

2. Casebolt, Marjorie DeMoss. Margarita: A Guatemalan Peace 

Corps Experience. Gig Harbor, Wash.: Red Apple Publishing, 

2000.

3. Erdman, Sarah. Nine Hills to Nambonkaha: Two Years in the 

Heart of an African Village. New York, N.Y.: Picador, 2003.

4. Hessler, Peter. River Town: Two Years on the Yangtze. New 

York, N.Y.: Perennial, 2001.

5. Kennedy, Geraldine ed. From the Center of the Earth: Stories out 

of the Peace Corps. Santa Monica, Calif.: Clover Park Press, 

1991.

6. Thompsen, Moritz. Living Poor: A Peace Corps Chronicle. 

Seattle, Wash.: University of Washington Press, 1997 (reprint).
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

17

LIVING CONDITIONS AND 

VOLUNTEER LIFESTYLE 

Communications

Computer, Internet, and Email Access 

While most Volunteers will have access to the Internet, it 

can be very slow, irregular, or simply unavailable at times. 

Do not expect to have email access in your home or at your 

site; many Volunteers must travel to larger cities to access 

email accounts. (Note that many Volunteers have difficulty 

receiving emails consistently when using Hotmail accounts. 

If you use Hotmail, please consider setting up an alternate 

email address for use during your time in Kazakhstan.)

You may consider bringing your own laptop computer, 

modem, and email software. Volunteers with computers are 

often able to connect to the Internet over their home phone 

line (assuming that they have a telephone in their home or 

pay for an Internet direct access, which is available in most 

communities), though this is an additional expense and 

option. There are several computer outlets in Almaty and 

other cities, but U.S. computer warranties are not accepted 

in Kazakhstan. Some Volunteers also bring a small printer; 

if you bring one make sure to bring extra ink cartridges 

since they may not be available locally. Some hotels in 

Kazakhstan provide fax services in their business centers 

for a fee. Telegrams can be easily sent and received from 

most post offices. Volunteers pay for their own telegrams, 

faxes, cellphones and Internet access; however, each 

Volunteer receives a communication allowance monthly and 

can determine how to spend their funds.

Mail 

Some letters from the United States may take two to six 

weeks to reach a Volunteer, while others may take three 
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

18

months or more. Some mail may simply not arrive. Current 

Volunteers have estimated that they receive approximately 

90 percent of the mail that is sent from the United States. 

Some letters may arrive with clipped edges because postal 

workers have tried to see if any money was inside. Be 

aware: it is illegal to send money in an envelope and it will 

be removed. Boxes and packages take about one to two 

months. You may have to pay a special handling charge to 

get your packages from a local post office. All items may be 

opened and inspected by government officials. Occasionally, 

items have been missing from packages sent to Volunteers. 

Your friends and family should not mail expensive items to 

you. As a general rule, the smaller the package, the better. 

If you have a package sent overnight or sent by a company 

other than the USPS, it may have to go through customs 

and you may have to pay a fee to get the package. Fees vary 

but can be up to $100 (U.S.). Generally, a letter takes three 

to four weeks to get back to the United States. However, the 

mail system here is not that efficient and it is not unheard 

of for a letter to take three months. To mail a letter to the 

United States through the Kazakh system, you can buy prestamped envelopes at the post office. It is advisable to bring 

a supply of U.S. stamps to send letters back with people 

traveling to the United States. 

Despite the inevitable delays, we encourage you to write to 

your family and to number your letters. Family members 

will typically become worried when they do not hear from 

you, so please advise your parents, friends, and relatives 

that mail and email access may be sporadic and not to worry 

if they do not receive your letters regularly. If a serious 

problem were to occur, Peace Corps/Kazakhstan would 

notify the Office of Special Services at the Peace Corps 

headquarters in Washington, D.C., and your family 

members would be contacted immediately. 
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

19

Your address only during training will be:

“Your name,” PCT

Peace Corps

P.O. Box 257

050022 Almaty

Kazakhstan

Once you become a Volunteer and are at your site, you 

should have your mail sent directly to your new address,

rather than to the Peace Corps Office. We will forward mail 

to your site address; however, it will take a long time for you 

to receive it because we only send mail out once a month.

Telephones 

Long-distance communication via telephone is available but 

expensive. If you are calling from outside Almaty, it may 

take a long time to get a line; telephone calls to the United 

States are usually made through an international operator, 

and it can take anywhere from half an hour to three hours 

or longer to get through. Long-distance calls within the 

country can be made either by dialing a special code or 

through an inter-city operator. You can order a call to the 

United States from a home telephone or from an 

international post office. In some sites it is very difficult, if 

not impossible, to call the United States. You often must go 

to the international post office to place the call. In 

Kazakhstan “smart cards” are extensively used for pay 

telephones. Cards must be purchased in Kazakhstan; cards 

purchased in the U.S. or Europe will not work. American 
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

20

telephone calling cards (such as AT&T) can be used in 

Kazakhstan by calling an access number. Often the 

connection is not good and it is very difficult to hear. 

Many Volunteers choose to purchase cellphones at their own 

expense once in-country. Due to the cost of calls, text 

messaging is extensively used among Volunteers. A 

communications stipend is included in Volunteers' monthly 

living allowances. Another suggestion is to obtain a Skype 

computer account, or any computer communication system, 

and use that for international calls. It is the least expensive 

and works well if you are able to have an Internet 

connection.

Housing and Site Location 

Volunteer sites are selected by the Peace Corps staff in 

Kazakhstan, with the approval of the country director. 

Volunteers are posted in sites upon the request of a 

Kazakhstani agency and where the need for Volunteer 

services has been established. It is impossible to say where 

Volunteers will be posted before they arrive in Kazakhstan. 

The staff matches Volunteer skills with the needs of the site. 

You should remain flexible about your job, type of housing, 

and where you will be placed during your service.

Housing

You will live with a host family for at least the first four 

months of your service, in addition to staying with a host 

family during pre-service training. Depending on your site 

placement, you may continue to live with a host family or 

move to an apartment. There are many sites in smaller 

communities where independent living is not an option. In 
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

21

those cases, Volunteers will stay with families for the 

duration of their service. If you feel you cannot live with a 

host family for this period of time, you should consider 

carefully whether you wish to accept an assignment in 

Kazakhstan. 

There are many benefits to staying with a host family, 

including companionship upon arrival at your site, a better 

grasp of the local language, and improved integration into 

the local community. Aspects of host-family living that 

Volunteers may find challenging include the lack of privacy 

and independence and the ability to adjust to the local 

cuisine. Volunteers are not allowed to supplement their 

living allowance to live in an accommodation above the level 

acceptable for a Volunteer (as determined by Peace Corps 

staff)

Living Allowance and Mone y Manage me nt

As a Volunteer in Kazakhstan, you will receive four types of 

allowances: living, vacation, settling-in, and monthly travel. 

The living allowance covers basic living expenses. The 

allowance is for food, rent, utilities, household supplies, 

clothing, recreation and entertainment, transportation, local 

reading materials, communication, and other incidentals. 

The amount is reviewed once a year through a market 

survey to ensure that it is adequate. Presently, the living 

allowance in Kazakhstan is paid in the local currency, tenge, 

not U.S. dollars. The current exchange rate is approximately 

one U.S. dollar to 150 tenge. The living allowance is paid 

every month directly to Volunteers via electronic funds 

transfer to each Volunteer’s Kazakhstani bank account, 

which can be accessed throughout the country by using the 

ATM cards they are issued. 
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

22

Regarding Banking: Please keep a U.S. bank account with 

ATM access for future U.S. dollar payments when you leave 

country. It is more difficult to open a U.S. bank account 

when you are out of the country. 

A vacation allowance, equivalent to $24 per month, is added 

to your living allowance each month. A one-time settling-in 

allowance of 24,000 tenge (approximately $160) is provided 

to buy basic household items when you move to your site. 

Volunteers also receive a monthly travel allowance, which is 

intended to cover business travel during your time incountry.

Most Volunteers find that they can live comfortably in 

Kazakhstan with these four allowances, although many 

Volunteers bring money (in cash or traveler’s checks) for 

out-of-country travel. All Volunteers are strongly 

discouraged from supplementing their income for daily 

living with money brought from home. The living allowance 

is adequate, and Volunteers should be living at the economic 

equivalent of their neighbors and colleagues. If you bring 

cash, the bills should be new and void of any written marks, 

creases, or tears. Only dollars in very good condition will be 

exchanged in Kazakhstan, as banks only want bills in good 

condition.

Credit cards can be used in several establishments in 

Almaty and in a few stores in the larger cities, but they are 

most useful during vacations and travel out of the country. 

Traveler’s checks can be cashed for a 2 percent to 3 percent 

fee at most large banks. There are a few retail places in 

Kazakhstan where they can be used. American bank debit 

cards can be used in a growing number of cities in 

Kazakhstan. 
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

23

Food and Die t

A variety of food is available in Kazakhstan during the 

summer, although there are fewer choices available in the 

winter. Each town has a green bazaar (similar to a farmer’s 

market in the United States) and small food stores. At the 

green bazaar in Almaty, when in season, you can findfresh 

tomatoes, potatoes, beets, carrots, squash, radishes, 

pumpkin, cucumbers, onions, cabbage, melons, oranges, 

grapes, bananas, pears, pomegranates, and apples. Garlic, 

fresh dill, and basil are generally available; however, spices 

tend to be somewhat sporadic from site to site. Pack your 

favorite spices! 

Markets usually have chicken, beef, sheep, goat, pork, and 

horse meat. Horse meat is the Kazakh national favorite. 

Pork is forbidden by Islam, but is popular with Russians 

and other non-Kazakh ethnic groups (and to Kazakhs who 

do not adhere to these Islamic tenants). Dairy products 

include milk (from cows, horses, or camels), butter, cheese, 

cottage cheese, and sour cream. Stores usually carry such 

staples as rice, barley, buckwheat, millet, spaghetti, pasta, 

vermicelli, flour, sugar, salt, juice, sausage, butter, cheese, 

yogurt, eggs, meat, and chicken, though supplies may be 

sporadic. The bakeries carry a variety of breads. Bread is a 

part of every meal. There tends to be a lack of green 

vegetables, however.

To Americans, mealtime should be a time of relaxation, but 

in a strange country mealtime may be a perpetually 

unsettling challenge. The available food may not only be 

strange in type and appearance, but it may be unpalatable 

and even unhealthy from an American perspective. Meals in 

Kazakhstan are meat-based and fairly normal according to 

American standards, although without as much diversity as 

American meals. Eating is a significant social function and 
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

24

is a way to develop your working relationships and 

friendships. There are very few vegetarians in Kazakhstan. 

There may be issues for vegetarian Volunteers, whether 

strict or not, in most parts of the country. Kazakhstan is a 

meat-eating culture, and school cafeterias, business lunches, 

and special dinners will all feature meat. Vegetarian 

Volunteers will have to overcome these obstacles and face 

limited food choices at times. 

Transport ation

Transportation within Kazakhstan is primarily by trains, 

buses, micro-vans, or private taxis. When traveling long 

distances, it is usually necessary to book tickets on the 

national railway service. This can be done either at the local 

train station or at specialized kiosks that provide train 

tickets and information. Train transport is available in 

three classes: luxury-kupee, kupee, and platszcart. When on 

the train, it is common for the police to ask for your passport 

and other documents. 

Short distances between adjacent cities and within cities 

can be traveled by public bus. Private taxis may also be 

hired when traveling within a city. Prices for taxis vary 

widely. 

Ge ography and Climate

Covering about 2.7 million square kilometers (1.7 million 

miles), Kazakhstan is the ninth largest country in the world, 

about half the size of the United States. Its border with 

Russia in the north and west is one of the world’s longest, at 

about 5,000 km (3,100 miles). It has a lengthy shoreline 

(almost 1,000 km, or 620 miles) on the Caspian Sea and a 
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

25

shrinking one on the Aral Sea. The country is mainly flat,

except for its alpine southeast and eastern fringes. 

Southeast Kazakhstan lies along the northern edge of the 

Tian Shan. Mount Khan Tengri, at 6,995 meters (22,944 

feet), stands on the border with the Kyrgyz Republic. 

Kazakhstan’s eastern border with China is a series of 

alternating mountain ranges and gaps through which roads 

or railways pass. The only serious elevations in the rest of 

the country are the Karatau hills, really a spur of the Tian 

Shan northwest of Zhambyl and Shymkent, and a band of 

upland that stretches west from the Tarbagatay hills, 

occasionally topping 1,000 meters (3,280 feet) south of 

Semipalatinsk. The north of the country is flat, mainly 

treeless steppe. Much of it is original grassland now turned 

over to wheat or other agriculture. Farther south, the steppe 

is increasingly arid, turning into desert or semi-desert, often 

with some scrub vegetation, across much of the southern 

third of the country. The climate varies significantly with 

the topography, but generally Kazakhstan has four seasons, 

with very cold winters and hot, dry summers. The duration 

of the season depends on the region of the country. Be 

prepared for temperatures down to -40 degrees Fahrenheit

in winter and over 100 F during the summer.

Social Activitie s

In some cities in Kazakhstan, you may go to a concert, 

theater performance, bowling alley, circus performance, 

movie, museums, saunas, or local cafés. There may be a few 

interesting restaurants. English movies are dubbed into 

Russian. Chess is a national pastime. Ice-skating and snow 

skiing are available outside of Almaty; you can rent skates 

and skis there. Soccer is extremely popular, and in the rural 

districts, horse riding and hunting are also very popular. 
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

26

You will have to create much of your own entertainment, 

especially during winter or in villages.

Profe ssionalism, Dre ss, and Be havior

One of the difficulties of finding your place as a Peace Corps 

Volunteer is fitting into the local culture while maintaining 

your own cultural identity and acting like a professional—

all at the same time. You will be working as a professional 

and are expected to dress and behave accordingly. 

While some of your counterparts may dress in seemingly 

worn clothes, this is usually due to economics, rather than 

choice. The likelihood is that they are wearing their “best.” 

A foreigner in Kazakhstan wearing ragged, unmended 

clothing is more likely to be considered an affront than 

someone trying to “get closer to the people.” In Kazakhstan, 

people take pride in dressing well. Kazakhstani women are 

very fashion conscious, although the clothing available in 

Kazakhstan may be of lower quality and is often expensive.

Professional dress, especially in a business setting, is more 

formal than in Silicon Valley in the United States. For men, 

it is appropriate to wear a shirt, tie, and slacks to work, or 

perhaps a suit—definitely not jeans. Women usually wear 

skirts with shirts/blouses or sweaters or dresses. Both men 

and women should bring one or two sport jackets or blazers. 

Women can and do wear high-heeled shoes. Keep in mind, 

though, that you will be doing a lot of walking. Generally, 

Kazakhstani women wear dress boots to work in the winter 

and pumps and open-toed dress shoes in summer. Hiking 

boots at work are not acceptable. You may want to bring one 

suit or dressy outfit, but dry cleaning is not available in 

many places. Nice jeans and shorts are appropriate for 

casual wear and shorts are becoming more common among 
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

27

adults in major cities. The “grunge” look is never 

appropriate.

Overall, your clothing and shoes should be comfortable and 

warm. Many schools and offices are not adequately heated 

in the winter. Bring warm professional clothes! You should 

dress conservatively. Although local women wear miniskirts 

in the summer, you will get additional unwanted attention 

wearing this type of attire.

Toasting and drinking alcoholic beverages (primarily vodka) 

is part of the local culture in Kazakhstan and many 

Volunteers experience pressure to drink more than they 

desire or are accustomed to. Unfortunately, excessive 

drinking on the part of Volunteers has resulted in a number 

of alcohol-related incidents impacting both Peace Corps’ 

reputation and the safety of Volunteers in Kazakhstan. As a 

result, Peace Corps/Kazakhstan has implemented an alcohol 

use policy. It has been included below so you have an 

opportunity to review this information in advance of making 

a decision to serve in Kazakhstan. 

Volunteers/trainees serve 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and 

at all times are representing the Peace Corps and the 

United States. Kazakhstani culture can encourage use of 

alcohol in social situations; however, it discourages 

drunkenness and losing control of oneself.

Drinking excessively can result in behavior that is 

inappropriate and damages the reputation of all hardworking, committed Peace Corps Volunteers who have 

served and will serve in Kazakhstan. In addition, 

Volunteers/trainees compromise their personal safety when 

under the influence of alcohol. All allegations of alcohol 

misconduct will be investigated, beginning with a discussion 

with the Volunteer/trainee concerned.
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

28

Drunkenness and lewd, offensive behavior resulting from 

alcohol consumption are not allowed and will result in one of 

the following disciplinary actions:

• Alcohol Contract. An official alcohol contract that will 

either prohibit or limit a Volunteer/trainee’s alcohol 

consumption may be instituted for the duration of 

service. The Volunteer/trainee, country director, and 

Peace Corps medical officer will sign the alcohol 

contract and a violation of the contract may result in 

the initiation of administrative separation procedures.

• Administrative Separation. Violations of this policy 

that diminish a Volunteer’s effectiveness or adversely 

impact the Peace Corps’ program in Kazakhstan will 

result in the initiation of administrative separation 

procedures.

Additional Note: Volunteer candidates accepting a nomination or 

invitation to serve in Kazakhstan MUST

Pe rsonal Safe ty

also accept to serve 

under conditions in which their social behavior, dress, and 

professionalism will be scrutinized to an extent much greater than 

they are accustomed to and/or may experience in other Peace 

Corps countries. Consequently, candidates must be willing to act 

extremely conservatively and maintain the highest professional 

standards at all times, even when not “at work” or not “in site.” 

The use of even moderate amounts of alcohol can lead to 

situations that are dangerous for the Volunteer and embarrassing 

to the Volunteer and Peace Corps, and Volunteers must accept that 

such behavior is inappropriate and understand that it will 

adversely affect their service and will not be tolerated by Peace 

Corps/Kazakhstan.

More detailed information about the Peace Corps’ approach to 

safety is contained in the “Health Care and Safety” chapter, but it 

is an important issue and cannot be overemphasized. As stated in 
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

29

the Volunteer Handbook, becoming a Peace Corps Volunteer 

entails certain safety risks. Living and traveling in an unfamiliar 

environment (oftentimes alone), having a limited understanding of 

local language and culture, and being perceived as well-off are 

some of the factors that can put a Volunteer at risk. Many 

Volunteers experience varying degrees of unwanted attention and 

harassment. Petty thefts and burglaries are not uncommon, and 

incidents of physical and sexual assault do occur, although most 

Kazakhstan Volunteers complete their two years of service 

without incident. The Peace Corps has established procedures and 

policies designed to help you reduce your risks and enhance your 

safety and security. These procedures and policies, in addition to 

safety training, will be provided once you arrive in Kazakhstan. 

Using these tools, you are expected to take responsibility for your 

safety and well-being.

Each staff member at the Peace Corps is committed to providing 

Volunteers with the support they need to successfully meet the 

challenges they will face to have a safe, healthy, and productive 

service. We encourage Volunteers and families to look at our 

safety and security information on the Peace Corps website at 

www.peacecorps.gov/safety.

Information on these pages gives messages on Volunteer health 

and Volunteer safety. There is a section titled “Safety and Security 

in Depth.” Among topics addressed are the risks of serving as a 

Volunteer, posts’ safety support systems, and emergency planning 

and communications.

Re wards and Frust rations

Although the potential for job satisfaction is quite high, like 

all Volunteers you will encounter numerous frustrations. 

Due to financial or other challenges, collaborating agencies 

do not always provide the support promised. The pace of 

work and life is slower than what most Americans are 

accustomed to, and many people are hesitant to change 
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

30

deeply rooted practices and traditions. For these reasons, the 

Peace Corps experience is often described as a series of 

emotional peaks and valleys that occur throughout your 

service. You will need to demonstrate self-motivation, 

resourcefulness, and initiative in your work—perhaps more 

than in any other job you have had or will ever experience. 

Often you will find yourself in situations that require an ability 

to motivate yourself and your counterparts with little guidance 

from supervisors. You may work for months without seeing a 

visible impact and without receiving feed-back on your work. 

Development is a slow process. Positive progress is often seen 

only after the combined efforts of several Volunteers and over 

the course of many years. You must possess the self-confidence, 

patience, and vision to continue working toward long-term 

goals without seeing immediate results.

In many aspects of daily life, you may feel pulled in opposite 

directions between your accustomed life and that of your hosts. 

At times, life may seem a series of minor nagging frustrations. 

Such frustrations can accumulate, and you may come through a 

long struggling day feeling exhilarated and happy with your 

achievements and yet become angry because you have to wipe 

your mouth on your hand for want of a paper napkin.

To approach and overcome these difficulties, you will need 

maturity, flexibility, and open-mindedness. Judging by the 

experience of former Volunteers, the peaks are well worth the 

difficult times, and most Volunteers leave Kazakhstan feeling 

that they have gained much more than they have sacrificed 

during their service. If you work hard and make the 

commitment to integrate into your community you will be a 

successful Volunteer. Community integration is achieved 

through flexibility, open-mindedness, persistence, and simply 

spending as much time as possible in your community.
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

31

PEACE CORPS TRAINING

Ove rvie w of Pre -Se rvice Training

Your Peace Corps training begins in the United States 

during pre-departure orientation, when you come together 

as a group to prepare for your flight to Kazakhstan. When 

you arrive in Almaty, you will be met at the airport and 

transported by bus to your orientation site. Pre-service 

training lasts 10 to 11 weeks and consists of Kazakh and 

Russian language instruction, cross-cultural awareness, 

health and personal safety, and technical skills—depending 

on your assignment. Pre-service training emphasizes 

experiential learning in which you take responsibility for 

your own learning. Training is an immersion model—that is, 

being immersed in the local living and work conditions. 

During your first week in-country, you will move in with a 

host family. Expect to deal with the frustrations of language 

barriers and cultural differences from the start. Expect to 

deal with frustrations due to lack of email, telephones, copy 

machines, and computers. Training will prepare you for 

your first three to six months at site. Successful Peace Corps 

Volunteers must rely on continued individual learning once 

their group training has been completed. It is also the time 

for you to make an informed two-year commitment to serve 

as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Kazakhstan.

Technical Training 

Technical training will prepare you to work in Kazakhstan by 

building on the skills you already have and helping you develop 

new skills in a manner appropriate to the needs of the country. The 

Peace Corps staff, Kazakhstani experts, and current Volunteers 

will conduct the training program. Training places great emphasis 
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

32

on learning how to transfer the skills you have to the community 

in which you will serve as a Volunteer. 

Technical training will include sessions on the general economic 

and political environment in Kazakhstan and strategies for 

working within such a framework. You will review your technical 

sector’s goals and will meet with the Kazakhstan agencies and 

organizations that invited the Peace Corps to assist them. You will 

be supported and evaluated throughout the training to build the 

confidence and skills you need to undertake your project activities 

and be a productive member of your community.

Language Training 

As a Peace Corps Volunteer, you will find that language skills are 

key to personal and professional satisfaction during your service. 

These skills are critical to your job performance, they help you 

integrate into your community, and they can ease your personal 

adaptation to the new surroundings. Therefore, language training 

is at the heart of the training program. You must successfully meet 

minimum language requirements to complete training and become 

a Volunteer. Russian and Kazakh language instructors teach 

formal language classes five days a week in small groups of five

to six people. The Kazakh and Russian languages are also 

introduced in the health, culture, safety, and technical 

components of training.

Your language training will incorporate a community-based 

approach. In addition to classroom time, you will be given 

assignments to work on outside of the classroom and with your 

host family. The goal is to get you to a point of basic social 

communication skills so you can practice and develop language 

skills further once you are at your site. Prior to being sworn in as a 

Volunteer, you will work on strategies to continue language 

studies during your service.

Cross-Cultural Training 
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

33

As part of your pre-service training, you will live with a 

Kazakhstani host family. This experience is designed to ease your 

transition to life at your site. Many Volunteers form strong and 

lasting friendships with their host families.

Cross-cultural and community development training will help you 

improve your communication skills and understand your role as a 

facilitator of development. You will be exposed to topics such as 

community mobilization, conflict resolution, gender and 

development, nonformal and adult education strategies, and 

political structures.

Health Training 

During pre-service training, you will be given basic medical 

training and information. You will be expected to practice 

preventive health care and to take responsibility for your own 

health by adhering to all medical policies. Trainees are required to 

attend all medical sessions. The topics include preventive health 

measures and minor and major medical issues that you might 

encounter while in Kazakhstan. Waterborne infections, nutrition, 

mental health, setting up a safe living compound, and how to 

avoid HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases (STDs)

are also covered.

Safety Training 

During the safety training sessions, you will learn how to adopt a 

lifestyle that reduces your risks at home, at work, and during your 

travels. You will also learn appropriate, effective strategies for 

coping with unwanted attention and about your individual 

responsibility for promoting safety throughout your service.

Additional Trainings During Volunteer Service 

In its commitment to institutionalize quality training, the Peace 

Corps has implemented a training system that provides Volunteers 

with continual opportunities to examine their commitment to 

Peace Corps service while increasing their technical and crosscultural skills. During service, there are usually three to four 
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

34

training events. The titles and objectives for those trainings are as 

follows: 

• In-service training: Provides an opportunity for Volunteers to 

upgrade their technical, language, and project development 

skills while sharing their experiences and reaffirming their 

commitment after having served for three to six months.

• Midterm conference (done in conjunction with technical 

sector in-service): Assists Volunteers in reviewing their first 

year, reassessing their personal and project objectives, and 

planning for their second year of service.

• Close of service conference: Prepares Volunteers for the 

future after Peace Corps service and reviews their respective 

projects and personal experiences. 

• Language Training: Volunteers have access to a small amount 

of funds to continue their language training at their sites 

through self-identified tutors. All Volunteers are encouraged 

to take advantage of this resource.

The number, length, and design of these trainings are adapted to 

country-specific needs and conditions. The key to the training 

system is that training events are integrated and interrelated, from 

the pre-departure orientation through the end of your service, and 

are planned, implemented, and evaluated cooperatively by the 

training staff, Peace Corps staff, and Volunteers.
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

35

YOUR HEALTH CARE AND

SAFETY IN KAZAKHSTAN

The Peace Corps’ highest priority is maintaining the good health 

and safety of every Volunteer. Peace Corps medical programs 

emphasize the preventive, rather than the curative, approach to 

disease. The Peace Corps in Kazakhstan maintains a clinic with a 

full-time medical officer, who takes care of Volunteers’ primary 

health care needs. Additional medical services, such as testing and 

basic treatment, are also available in Kazakhstan at local hospitals. 

If you become seriously ill, you will be transported either to an 

American-standard medical facility in the region or to the United 

States.

He alth Issue s in Kazakhst an

In the past, the American press has given environmental 

problems in Kazakhstan a great deal of coverage. However, 

some of these reports are factually weak and 

sensationalized. The Peace Corps is aware of Kazakhstan’s 

environmental problems and shares the concerns of the 

Volunteers and trainees. The purpose of this discussion is to 

give you an idea of current environmental problems and 

what Peace Corps/Kazakhstan is doing to reduce the risk to 

you for your term of service.

For more than 70 years, the Soviets placed industrial 

development above other concerns, especially the 

environment. With little or no thought given to the effects 

on the environment, factories were constructed, nuclear 

tests were conducted, and endangered animals were 

poached. As a result of this blind development, Kazakhstan 

now has some serious environmental problems. The most 

pressing problem is the shrinking and destruction of the 

Aral Sea, which has resulted in increased respiratory 

problems for local inhabitants, regional climate changes, 
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

36

and decreased agricultural production. 

More likely to affect Volunteers is industrial pollution in 

large cities. Many residents place water pollution of rivers, 

groundwater reserves, and freshwater reservoirs as the 

primary environmental problem. Finally, in the former 

nuclear testing site in the region of Semipalatinsk, 

approximately 500 bombs were exploded above and below 

ground between 1949 and 1991.

Because water pollution is the primary citizen concern, all 

Volunteers receive water treatment units to ensure they are 

drinking safe water. 

Unfortunately, the problem of exposure to low levels of 

radiation is difficult to assess in any country, including 

Kazakhstan. At the end of 1994, the Peace Corps contracted 

two American radiation specialists from an environmental 

health firm to do firsthand tests at various Volunteer sites. 

Their reports, available at the Peace Corps/Kazakhstan 

office, indicate that Volunteers at the sites tested are not 

exposed to unusual external radiation levels in their 

apartments or in the immediate area of their apartments. 

Analysis of data gathered by local environmental specialists 

and reviewed by U.S. specialists indicates that the airborne 

particles from these tests do not pose a health risk given the 

short amount of time the Volunteers live in the region. In 

1995 all Volunteers were given individual radiation badges 

to help determine the amount of radiation Volunteers 

receive. Results from the badges showed no elevated levels 

of radiation. Personal radiation badges worn by Volunteers 

in two separate areas of Kazakhstan in the fall of 2000 and 

winter of 2001 were evaluated by the U.S. Environmental 

Protection Agency. Results from these radiation badges 

were all read as having “nondetectable” exposures of 

radiation. 
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

37

Earthquakes pose another environmental risk. Much of the 

southern part of the republic, including the cities of Almaty, 

Taraz, and Shymkent, lies on a geological fault. 

Earthquakes occurred along this fault line during the last 

century, resulting in destruction. Historical patterns 

indicate there may be a threat of another event within the 

next 20 years. All trainees receive a briefing on earthquake 

preparedness. Additionally, Peace Corps/Kazakhstan 

maintains an emergency evacuation plan.

In spite of the efforts of the local environmental specialists 

and several agencies of the U.S. government, including the 

Peace Corps, there is still much that is unknown about the 

environmental conditions in Kazakhstan and in the other 

countries of the former Soviet Union. If, after reading this, 

you are uncomfortable with living and working in this 

environment, do as much research as possible before making 

a commitment to serve.

He lping You St ay He alt hy

The Peace Corps will provide you with all the necessary 

inoculations, medications, and information to stay healthy. Upon 

your arrival in Kazakhstan, you will receive a medical handbook. 

At the end of training, you will receive a medical kit with supplies 

to take care of mild illnesses and first aid needs. The contents of 

the kit are listed later in this chapter. 

During pre-service training, you will have access to basic medical 

supplies through the medical officer. However, you will be 

responsible for your own supply of prescription drugs and any 

other specific medical supplies you require, as the Peace Corps 

will not order these items during training. Please bring a threemonth supply of any prescription drugs you use, since they may 

not be available here and it may take several months for shipments 

to arrive.
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

38

You will have physicals at midservice and at the end of your 

service. If you develop a serious medical problem during your 

service, the medical officer in Kazakhstan will consult with the 

Office of Medical Services in Washington, D.C. If it is determined 

that your condition cannot be treated in Kazakhstan, you may be 

sent out of the country for further evaluation and care.

With its low humidity, Kazakhstan does not have many of 

the problems of warmer climates, like malaria. You will be 

immunized against local ailments that are a problem, such 

as tick-borne encephalitis and hepatitis. You will have 

distillers to purify your water. Kazakhstan, in general, is a 

relatively healthy country when compared to our southerly 

neighbors, and this greatly reduces your risk of various 

illnesses. 

Kazakhstan is vast, so it is critical that you let your medical 

officer know immediately of any significant illness or injury 

and promptly report to the medical office or other 

designated facility for scheduled immunizations. Many 

diseases that afflict Volunteers worldwide are entirely 

preventable if proper food and water precautions are taken. 

These diseases include food poisoning, giardia, hepatitis A, 

dysentery, and typhoid fever. Your medical officer will 

discuss specific standards for water and food preparation for 

Kazakhstan during pre-service training.

Abstinence is the only certain choice for prevention of 

HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). 

You are taking risks if you choose to be sexually active. To 

lessen risk, use a condom every time you have sex. Whether 

your partner is a host country citizen, a fellow Volunteer, or 

anyone else, do not assume this person is free of HIV/AIDS 

or other STDs. You will receive more information from your 

medical officer about this important issue. Condoms are 

available from the medical office.
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

39

Volunteers are expected to adhere to an effective means of 

birth control to prevent unplanned pregnancies. Your 

medical officer can help you decide on the most appropriate 

method to suit your individual needs. Contraceptive 

methods are available without charge from the medical 

officer. 

Maintaining Your He alth

As a Volunteer, you must accept considerable responsibility for 

your own health. Proper precautions will significantly reduce your 

risk of serious illness or injury. The statement “An ounce of 

prevention ...” becomes extremely important in areas where 

diagnostic and treatment facilities are not up to the standards of 

the United States. 

It is critical to your health that you promptly report to the medical 

office or other designated facility for scheduled immunizations, 

and that you let the medical officer know immediately of 

significant illnesses and injuries.

Wome n’s He alth Information

Pregnancy is treated in the same manner as other Volunteer health 

conditions that require medical attention but also have 

programmatic ramifications. The Peace Corps is responsible for 

determining the medical risk and the availability of appropriate 

medical care if the Volunteer remains in-country. Given the 

circumstances under which Volunteers live and work in Peace 

Corps countries, it is rare that the Peace Corps’ medical and 

programmatic standards for continued service during pregnancy 

can be met. 

If feminine hygiene products are not available for you to purchase 

on the local market, the Peace Corps medical officer in 

Kazakhstan will provide them. If you require a specific product, 

please bring a three-month supply with you.

Your Pe ace Corps Me dical Kit
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

40

The Peace Corps medical officer will provide you with a kit that 

contains basic items necessary to prevent and treat illnesses that 

may occur during service. Kit items can be periodically restocked 

at the medical office.

Me dical Kit Conte nts

Ace bandages

Adhesive tape

American Red Cross First Aid & Safety Handbook

Antacid tablets (Tums)

Antibiotic ointment (Bacitracin/Neomycin/Polymycin B)

Antiseptic antimicrobial skin cleaner (Hibiclens)

Band-Aids

Butterfly closures

Calamine lotion

Cepacol lozenges

Condoms

Dental floss

Diphenhydramine HCL 25 mg (Benadryl)

Insect repellent stick (Cutter’s)

Iodine tablets (for water purification)

Lip balm (Chapstick)

Oral rehydration salts

Oral thermometer (Fahrenheit)

Pseudoephedrine HCL 30 mg (Sudafed)

Robitussin-DM lozenges (for cough)

Scissors

Sterile gauze pads

Tetrahydrozaline eyedrops (Visine)

Tinactin (antifungal cream)

Tweezers
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

41

Be fore You Le ave : A Me dical Che cklist

If there has been any change in your health—physical, mental, or 

dental—since you submitted your examination reports to the 

Peace Corps, you must immediately notify the Office of Medical 

Services. Failure to disclose new illnesses, injuries, allergies, or 

pregnancy can endanger your health and may jeopardize your 

eligibility to serve. 

If your dental exam was done more than a year ago, or if your 

physical exam is more than two years old, contact the Office of 

Medical Services to find out whether you need to update your 

records. If your dentist or Peace Corps dental consultant has 

recommended that you undergo dental treatment or repair, you 

must complete that work and make sure your dentist sends 

requested confirmation reports or X-rays to the Office of Medical 

Services.

If you wish to avoid having duplicate vaccinations, contact your 

physician’s office to obtain a copy of your immunization record 

and bring it to your pre-departure orientation. If you have any 

immunizations prior to Peace Corps service, the Peace Corps 

cannot reimburse you for the cost. The Peace Corps will provide 

all the immunizations necessary for your overseas assignment, 

either at your pre-departure orientation or shortly after you arrive 

in Kazakhstan. You do not need to begin taking malaria 

medication prior to departure.

Bring a three-month supply of any prescription or over-thecounter medication you use on a regular basis, including birth 

control pills. Although the Peace Corps cannot reimburse you for 

this three-month supply, it will order refills during your service. 

While awaiting shipment—which can take several months—you 

will be dependent on your own medication supply. The Peace 

Corps will not pay for herbal or nonprescribed medications, such 

as St. John’s wort, glucosamine, selenium, or antioxidant 

supplements.
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

42

You are encouraged to bring copies of medical prescriptions 

signed by your physician. This is not a requirement, but they 

might come in handy if you are questioned in transit about 

carrying a three-month supply of prescription drugs.

If you wear eyeglasses, bring two pairs with you—a pair and a 

spare. If a pair breaks, the Peace Corps will replace them, using 

the information your doctor in the United States provided on the 

eyeglasses form during your examination. The Peace Corps 

discourages you from using contact lenses during your service to 

reduce your risk of developing a serious infection or other eye 

disease. Most Peace Corps countries do not have appropriate 

water and sanitation to support eye care with the use of contact 

lenses. The Peace Corps will not supply or replace contact lenses 

or associated solutions unless an ophthalmologist has 

recommended their use for a specific medical condition and the 

Peace Corps’ Office of Medical Services has given approval.

If you are eligible for Medicare, are over 50 years of age, or have 

a health condition that may restrict your future participation in 

health care plans, you may wish to consult an insurance specialist 

about unique coverage needs before your departure. The Peace 

Corps will provide all necessary health care from the time you 

leave for your pre-departure orientation until you complete your 

service. When you finish, you will be entitled to the post-service 

health care benefits described in the Peace Corps Volunteer 

Handbook. You may wish to consider keeping an existing health 

plan in effect during your service if you think age or pre-existing 

conditions might prevent you from re-enrolling in your current 

plan when you return home.
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

43

Safe ty and Se curit y—Our Partne rship

Keeping Volunteers safe requires a partnership; an effort 

between staff and Volunteers. When it comes to your safety 

in the Peace Corps, you have to be willing to adapt your 

personal behavior and lifestyle to minimize your potential 

for being a victim of crime. Serving as a Volunteer overseas 

entails certain safety and security risks. Living and 

traveling in an unfamiliar environment, a limited 

understanding of the local language and culture, and the 

perception of being a wealthy American are some of the 

factors that can put a Volunteer at risk. Property thefts and 

burglaries are not uncommon. Incidents of physical and 

sexual assault do occur, although almost all Volunteers 

complete their two years of service without serious personal 

safety problems.

Beyond knowing that Peace Corps approaches safety and security 

as a partnership with you, it might be helpful to see how this 

partnership works. Peace Corps has policies, procedures, and 

training in place to promote your safety. We depend on you to 

follow those policies and to put into practice what you have 

learned. An example of how this works in practice—in this case to 

help manage the risk of burglary—is:

 Peace Corps assesses the security environment where 

you will live and work

 Peace Corps inspects the house where you will live 

according to established security criteria

 Peace Corp provides you with resources to take 

measures such as installing new locks

 Peace Corps ensures you are welcomed by host country 

authorities in your new community

 Peace Corps responds to security concerns that you 

raise

 You lock your doors and windows

 You adopt a lifestyle appropriate to the community 

where you live
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

44

 You get to know neighbors

 You decide if purchasing personal articles insurance is 

appropriate for you

 You don’t change residences before being authorized 

by Peace Corps

 You communicate concerns that you have to Peace 

Corps staff

This Welcome Book contains sections on: Living Conditions and 

Volunteer Lifestyle; Peace Corps Training; and Your Health Care 

and Safety that all include important safety and security 

information to help you understand this partnership. The Peace 

Corps makes every effort to give Volunteers the tools they need to 

function in the safest way possible, because working to maximize 

the safety and security of Volunteers is our highest priority. Not

only do we provide you with training and tools to prepare for the 

unexpected, but we teach you to identify, reduce, and manage the 

risks you may encounter.

Factors that Contribute to Volunteer Risk 

There are several factors that can heighten a Volunteer’s risk, 

many of which are within the Volunteer’s control. By far the most 

common crime that Volunteers experience is theft. Thefts often 

occur when Volunteers are away from their sites, in crowded 

locations (such as markets or on public transportation), and when

leaving items unattended.

Before you depart for Kazakhstan there are several measures you 

can take to reduce your risk: 

• Leave valuable objects in U.S.

• Leave copies of important documents and account numbers 

with someone you trust in the U.S.
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

45

• Purchase a hidden money pouch or "dummy" wallet as a 

decoy

• Purchase personal articles insurance

After you arrive in Kazakhstan, you will receive more detailed 

information about common crimes, factors that contribute to 

Volunteer risk, and local strategies to reduce that risk. For 

example, Volunteers in Kazakhstan learn to:

• Choose safe routes and times for travel, and travel with 

someone trusted by the community whenever possible

• Make sure one’s personal appearance is respectful of local 

customs

• Avoid high-crime areas

• Know the local language to get help in an emergency

• Make friends with local people who are respected in the 

community 

• Limit alcohol consumption

As you can see from this list, you must be willing to work hard 

and adapt your lifestyle to minimize the potential for being a 

target for crime. As with anywhere in the world, crime does exist 

in Kazakhstan. You can reduce your risk by avoiding situations 

that place you at risk and by taking precautions. Crime at the 

village or town level is less frequent than in the large cities; 

people know each other and generally are less likely to steal from 

their neighbors. Tourist attractions in large towns are favorite 

worksites for pickpockets.

The following are other security concerns in Kazakhstan of which 

you should be aware:
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

46

 Location



: A majority of physical assualts occurred when 

Volunteers were in public areas (e.g., street, park, beach, 

public buildings). 

Time of day



: Assaults were reported to have occured most 

frequesntly during the evening hours of 6 p.m. to 

midnight. 

Absence of others



: In 53 percent of the reported physical 

assaults, the Volunteer was accompanied by others when 

the incident occured. In 75 percent of the reported sexual 

assaults, the Volunteer was not accompanied by others at 

the time of the incident. 

Relationship to assailant



: In most assaults, the Volunteer 

did not know the assailant. 

Consumption of alcohol: 22 percent of all assaults involved 

alcohol consumption by Volunteers and 36 percent 

involved alcohol consumption by assailants.

While whistles and exclamations may be fairly common on the 

street, this behavior can be reduced if you dress conservatively, 

abide by local cultural norms, and respond according to the 

training you will receive. 

Staying Safe : Don’t Be a Targe t for Crime

You must be prepared to take on a large degree of responsibility 

for your own safety. You can make yourself less of a target, 

ensure that your home is secure, and develop relationships in your 

community that will make you an unlikely victim of crime. While 

the factors that contribute to your risk in Kazakhstan may be 

different, in many ways you can do what you would do if you 

moved to a new city anywhere: Be cautious, check things out, ask 

questions, learn about your neighborhood, know where the more 

risky locations are, use common sense, and be aware. You can 

reduce your vulnerability to crime by integrating into your 

community, learning the local language, acting responsibly, and 

abiding by Peace Corps policies and procedures. Serving safely 
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

47

and effectively in Kazakhstan will require that you accept some 

restrictions on your current lifestyle.

Support from Staff

If a trainee or Volunteer is the victim of a safety incident, Peace 

Corps staff is prepared to provide support. All Peace Corps posts 

have procedures in place to respond to incidents of crime 

committed against Volunteers. The first priority for all posts in the 

aftermath of an incident is to ensure the Volunteer is safe and 

receiving medical treatment as needed. After assuring the safety of 

the Volunteer, Peace Corps staff response may include reassessing 

the Volunteer’s worksite and housing arrangements and making 

any adjustments, as needed. In some cases, the nature of the 

incident may necessitate a site or housing transfer. Peace Corps 

staff will also assist Volunteers with preserving their rights to 

pursue legal sanctions against the perpetrators of the crime. It is 

very important that Volunteers report incidents as they occur, not 

only to protect their peer Volunteers, but also to preserve the 

future right to prosecute. Should Volunteers decide later in the 

process that they want to proceed with the prosecution of their 

assailant, this option may no longer exist if the evidence of the 

event has not been preserved at the time of the incident. 

Crime Data for Kazakhstan

The country-specific data chart below shows the incidence 

rates and the average number of incidents of the major 

types of safety incidents reported by Peace Corps 

Volunteers/trainees in Kazakhstan as compared to all other 

Europe, Mediterranean, and Asia (EMA) region programs as 

a whole, from 2004–2008. It is presented to you in a 

somewhat technical manner for statistical accuracy.

The incidence rate for each type of crime is the number of crime 

events relative to the Volunteer/trainee population. It is expressed 

on the chart as a ratio of crime to Volunteer and trainee years (or 

V/T years, which is a measure of 12 full months of V/T service) to 
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

48

allow for a statistically valid way to compare crime data across 

countries. 
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

49

When anticipating Peace Corps Volunteer service, you 

should review all of the safety and security information 

provided to you, including the strategies to reduce risk. 

Throughout your training and Volunteer service, you will 

be expected to successfully complete all training 

competencies in a variety of areas including safety and 

security. Once in-country, use the tools and information 

shared with you to remain as safe and secure as possible.

What if you become a victim of a violent crime?

Few Peace Corps Volunteers are victims of violent crimes. 

The Peace Corps will give you information and training in 

how to be safe. But, just as in the U.S., serious crime can 

happen in Kazakhstan.If you become a victim of a violent 

crime, the decision to prosecute or not to prosecute is 

entirely yours, and in addition to the support provided by 

the Peace Corps staff, the Office of Safety and Security will 

make sure that you are fully informed of your options and 

help you through the process and procedures involved in 

going forward with prosecution should you wish to do so. If 

you decide to prosecute, we are here to assist you in every 

way we can. 

Crimes that occur overseas, of course, are investigated and 

prosecuted by local authorities in local courts. The role of 

the Office of Safety and Security is to coordinate with the 

RSO at the U.S. Embassy, local police, and local prosecutors 

and others to ensure that your rights are protected to the 

fullest extent possible under the laws of the country. We 

also may, in certain limited circumstances, arrange for the 

retention of a local lawyer to assist the local public 

prosecutor in making the case against the individual who 

perpetrated the violent crime.

If you do become a victim of a violent crime, first, make sure 

you are in a safe place and with people you trust, and 

second, contact the country director or the Peace Corps 
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

50

medical officer or the safety and security coordinator. 

Immediate reporting is important to the preservation of 

evidence and the chances of apprehending the suspect. 

Volunteer Safe ty Support in Kazakhst an

The Peace Corps’ approach to safety is a five-pronged plan to help 

you stay safe during your service and includes the following: 

information sharing, Volunteer training, site selection criteria, a 

detailed emergency action plan, and protocols for addressing 

safety and security incidents. Kazakhstan’s in-country safety 

program is outlined below.

The Peace Corps/Kazakhstan office will keep you informed of any 

issues that may impact Volunteer safety through information 

sharing. Regular updates will be provided in Volunteer 

newsletters and in memorandums from the country director. In the 

event of a critical situation or emergency, you will be contacted 

through the emergency communication network. An important 

component of the capacity of Peace Corps to keep you informed is 

your buy-in to the partnership concept with the Peace Corps staff. 

It is expected that you will do your part in ensuring that Peace 

Corps staff members are kept apprised of your movements incountry so they are able to inform you.

Volunteer training will include sessions on specific safety and 

security issues in Kazakhstan. This training will prepare you to 

adopt a culturally appropriate lifestyle and exercise judgment that 

promotes safety and reduces risk in your home, at work, and while 

traveling. Safety training is offered throughout service and is 

integrated into the language, cross-cultural aspects, health, and 

other components of training. You will be expected to 

successfully complete all training competencies in a variety of 

areas, including safety and security, as a condition of service.

Certain site selection criteria are used to determine safe housing 

for Volunteers before their arrival. The Peace Corps staff works 
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

51

closely with host communities and counterpart agencies to help 

prepare them for a Volunteer’s arrival and to establish 

expectations of their respective roles in supporting the Volunteer. 

Each site is inspected before the Volunteer’s arrival to ensure 

placement in appropriate, safe, and secure housing and worksites. 

Site selection is based, in part, on any relevant site history; access 

to medical, banking, postal, and other essential services; 

availability of communications, transportation, and markets; 

different housing options and living arrangements; and other 

Volunteer support needs.

You will also learn about Peace Corps/Kazakhstan’s detailed 

emergency action plan, which is implemented in the event of 

civil or political unrest or a natural disaster. When you arrive at 

your site, you will complete and submit a site locator form with 

your address, contact information, and a map to your house. If 

there is a security threat, you will gather with other Volunteers in 

Kazakhstan at predetermined locations until the situation is 

resolved or the Peace Corps decides to evacuate.

Finally, in order for the Peace Corps to be fully responsive to the 

needs of Volunteers, it is imperative that Volunteers immediately 

report any security incident to the Peace Corps office. The Peace 

Corps has established protocols for addressing safety and 

security incidents in a timely and appropriate manner, and it 

collects and evaluates safety and security data to track trends and 

develop strategies to minimize risks to future Volunteers.

DIVERSITY AND 

CROSS-CULTURAL ISSUES

In fulfilling its mandate to share the face of America with host 

countries, the Peace Corps is making special efforts to assure that 

all of America’s richness is reflected in the Volunteer corps. More 

Americans of color are serving in today’s Peace Corps than at any 

time in recent history. Differences in race, ethnic background, age, 

religion, and sexual orientation are expected and welcomed among 
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

52

our Volunteers. Part of the Peace Corps’ mission is to help dispel 

any notion that Americans are all of one origin or race and to 

establish that each of us is as thoroughly American as the other 

despite our many differences. 

Our diversity helps us accomplish that goal. In other ways, 

however, it poses challenges. In Kazakhstan, as in other Peace 

Corps host countries, Volunteers’ behavior, lifestyle, background, 

and beliefs are judged in a cultural context very different from 

their own. Certain personal perspectives or characteristics 

commonly accepted in the United States may be quite uncommon, 

unacceptable, or even repressed in Kazakhstan.

Outside of Kazakhstan’s capital, residents of rural communities 

have had relatively little direct exposure to other cultures, races, 

religions, and lifestyles. What people view as typical American 

behavior or norms may be a misconception, such as the belief that 

all Americans are rich and have blond hair and blue eyes. The 

people of Kazakhstan are justly known for their generous 

hospitality to foreigners; however, members of the community in 

which you will live may display a range of reactions to cultural 

differences that you present. 

To ease the transition and adapt to life in Kazakhstan, you may 

need to make some temporary, yet fundamental compromises in 

how you present yourself as an American and as an individual. 

For example, female trainees and Volunteers may not be able to 

exercise the independence available to them in the United States; 

political discussions need to be handled with great care; and some 

of your personal beliefs may best remain undisclosed. You will 

need to develop techniques and personal strategies for coping with 

these and other limitations. The Peace Corps staff will lead 

diversity and sensitivity discussions during pre-service training 

and will be on call to provide support, but the challenge ultimately 

will be your own. 

Ove rvie w of Dive rsity in Kazakhstan
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

53

The Peace Corps staff in Kazakhstan recognizes the adjustment 

issues that come with diversity and will endeavor to provide 

support and guidance. During pre-service training, several 

sessions will be held to discuss diversity and coping mechanisms. 

We look forward to having male and female Volunteers from a 

variety of races, ethnic groups, ages, religions, and sexual 

orientations, and hope that you will become part of a diverse 

group of Americans who take pride in supporting one another and 

demonstrating the richness of American culture. 

What Might a Volunte e r Face ?

Possible Issues for Female Volunteers 

Kazakhstan is a traditional, patriarchal society. Among the 

challenges of living and working in Kazakhstan is the 

ability to cope effectively and constructively with the 

differing status of women and men and the different 

standards of behavior to which they are held. To promote 

greater understanding, many Volunteers participate in 

Women in Development (WID) and Gender and 

Development (GAD). 

Female Volunteers may

• find that being a single woman living alone is not the 

cultural norm; 

• receive more unwanted and inappropriate attention 

from men than in the United States; and 

• have to work harder than male Volunteers to gain the 

respect of host-country colleagues.

Possible Issues for Volunteers of Color 

Volunteers of color may work and live with individuals who 

have had no experience with, or understanding of, the 

African American, Hispanic American or Asian American 
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

54

culture. Volunteers of color may be evaluated as less 

professionally competent than white Volunteers and they 

may be treated suspiciously, especially in rural areas of 

Kazakhstan. They may be the only minority trainee or 

Volunteer. The Russian word for a black or dark-skinned 

person sounds like the English word “Negro.” As such, its 

use is not meant as a racial slur. Asian-American 

Volunteers may not be accepted as Americans. They may be 

identified by their cultural heritage, not by their American 

citizenship. They may have to deal with people’s higher 

expectations of their language learning ability or crosscultural adaptability.

Volunteer Comment 

“The Peace Corps is a challenging job, and for me it is a 

double challenge. I am not only dealing with the common 

cultural and language differences, but also racial 

differences. In my site, where I have been living for a year 

and half now, people are still staring at me from different 

angles on the street, in the bus, in taxis, and at work. 

Sometimes they make me feel like I am from a different 

planet. I have had kids follow me (still follow me) and ask 

me to sign an autograph. I have had people talk to me 

nicely and suddenly ask if I am a “Negro.” Most of the 

time I try to tell them to use a different word, knowing 

that it is out of ignorance and lack of knowledge, but not 

intended as an insult. There were only a couple of times 

the term was used as an insult. I believe my presence here 

is a good way of teaching Kazakhstan about diversity in 

America. People have good and bad experiences; don’t let 

somebody’s bad experience discourage you or scare you. 

You are an individual and you will tackle the problem 

differently and successfully!”
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

55

Possible Issues for Senior Volunteers 

Respect comes with age in Kazakhstan. Younger Volunteers 

may have to work harder than their older colleagues to be 

accepted as professionals. On the other hand, older 

Volunteers may face challenges solely due to their age. 

Throughout your service, you will be working and living 

with individuals in the Peace Corps community (the 

majority of Volunteers are in their 20s) who may have little 

understanding of, or respect for, the lives and experiences of 

senior Americans. Your interactions with Peace Corps staff 

may be different than that of younger Volunteers. Staff may 

not give you the necessary personal support, while at the 

same time, you may be reluctant to share your personal, 

sexual, or health concerns with the staff. You may find that 

younger Volunteers look to you for advice or support. While 

some seniors find this an enjoyable part of their Volunteer 

experience, others choose not to fill this role. 

Peace Corps countries vary greatly in the physical and 

human resources available for in-country training. Some 

senior trainees have encountered inattentiveness to their 

needs for an effective learning environment, including 

timing, presentation of materials, comfort level, and health. 

You may need to be assertive in developing an effective 

individual approach to language learning. 

Possible Issues for Gay, Lesbian, or Bisexual Volunteers 

While homosexuality certainly exists in Kazakhstan, there 

may not be as much cultural acceptance as there was in a 

Volunteer’s home community. Moreover, host country 

acceptance of homosexuality among nationals may be quite 

different from their acceptance of homosexuality among 

foreigners. Lesbian, gay, or bisexual Volunteers may serve 

for two years without meeting another gay Volunteer. 
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

56

Straight Volunteers and staff may not be able to give needed 

support. 

Most lesbian, gay, or bisexual host-country nationals will 

have migrated to the larger cities, while many Volunteers 

are posted in rural sites, where cultural difficulties may be 

greater. Though relationships with host-country nationals 

can occur, they may not be easy and could result in 

dangerous situations. AIDS (SPID in Russian) is a critical 

issue in many countries, including Kazakhstan. There is a 

backlash being felt by gay American men for supposedly 

bringing the disease into some areas. 

Civil liberties are sometimes nonexistent or ignored. 

Homosexuals may be hassled in bars or on streets. Lesbians 

will face constant questions about boyfriends, marriage, and 

sex (as do all women). Wearing an “engagement ring” may 

help. Gay men must deal with machismo: talk of conquests, 

girl watching, and dirty jokes. 

 

Volunteer Comment 

“Serving as a gay Volunteer, I have found that I have 

needed to make a few extra minor adjustments. 

Homosexuality is legal, but not widely accepted here in 

Kazakhstan, with the exception of a few clubs in Almaty. 

For the most part, I have not come out to any host-country 

national, finding that this may add tension to my working 

relationships. I have, though, found great support in my 

fellow Volunteers and the Peace Corps Medical Office. We 

have even set up a lesbian, gay, or bisexual and friends email network to help eliminate that feeling of being the 

only gay or bisexual person in the world. I work as a 

public health Volunteer at an AIDS center in Karaganda. 

Through my work, I have also been working with a gay 
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

57

men’s nongovernmental organization located in 

Karaganda. Although it is the only one of its kind, it does 

show that slowly times are changing even here in 

Kazakhstan.” 

Possible Religious Issues for Volunteers 

Volunteers are free to exercise their personal religious 

beliefs, but you may not engage in religious proselytizing or 

otherwise engage in activities that could be contrary to law 

or would impair your effectiveness as a Volunteer.

Possible Issues for Volunteers With Disabilities 

As part of the medical clearance process, the Peace Corps Office 

of Medical Services determined that you were physically and 

emotionally capable, with or without reasonable accommodations, 

to perform a full tour of Volunteer service in Kazakhstan without 

unreasonable risk of harm to yourself or interruption of service. 

The Peace Corps/ Kazakhstan staff will work with disabled 

Volunteers to make reasonable accommodations for them in 

training, housing, jobsites, or other areas to enable them to serve 

safely and effectively. 

As a disabled Volunteer in Kazakhstan, you may find that 

you face a special set of challenges. In Kazakhstan, as in 

other parts of the world, some people may hold prejudicial 

attitudes about individuals with disabilities and may 

discriminate against them. There is little to no 

infrastructure to accommodate individuals with disabilities. 
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

58

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS 

How much luggage am I allowed to bring to 

Kazakhstan?

Most airlines have baggage size and weight limits and 

assess charges for transport of baggage that exceeds those 

limits. The Peace Corps has its own size and weight limits, 

and will not pay the cost of transport for baggage that 

exceeds these limitations. The authorized baggage 

allowance is two checked pieces of luggage with combined 

dimensions of both pieces not to exceed 107 inches (length + 

width + height) and a carry-on bag with dimensions of no 

more than 45 inches. Checked baggage should not exceed 

100 pounds total with a maximum weight of 50 pounds for 

any one bag.

Peace Corps Volunteers are not allowed to take pets, 

weapons, explosives, radio transmitters (short-wave radios 

are permitted), automobiles, or motorcycles to their overseas 

assignments. Do not pack flammable materials or liquids 

such as lighter fluid, cleaning solvents, hair spray, or 

aerosol containers. Please check the Transportation Security 

Administration (TSA) website for a detailed list of permitted 

and prohibited items at 

http://www.tsa.gov/travelers/airtravel/prohibited/permittedprohibited-items.shtm.

What is the electric current in Kazakhstan?

The electricity here is 220 volts, 50 Hertz with Shuco-style 

plugs (two round prongs). Even if your appliance says it is 

220V-compatible, you will need an adapter that allows you 

to plug it into an outlet for two round prongs. Adapters do 

not convert electricity—they only allow you to plug in an 

appliance with an American-style plug into the Kazakhstani 

two-round prong electric sockets. It is possible to find 

converters and adapters in Almaty. There are almost no 
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

59

grounded outlets in Kazakhstan.

How much money should I bring?

Volunteers are expected to live at the same level as the 

people in their community. They are given a settling-in 

allowance and a monthly living allowance, which covers 

their expenses. Often Volunteers wish to bring additional 

money for vacation travel to other countries. Consider 

bringing extra money (say $300) to buy a local coat, hat, and 

clothes. Credit cards and traveler’s checks are not 

particularly useful in Kazakhstan, since only a very limited 

number of establishments in Almaty and a few of the larger 

cities accept them; however, they can be useful on vacations 

outside the country. If you choose to bring extra money, plan 

on bringing the amount that suits your own personal travel 

plans and needs. Only new (offset picture) dollars in very 

good condition can be exchanged. It is safer to bring a debit 

card (ATM card) to access money directly from a U.S. bank 

account. Most larger towns and cities in Kazakhstan now 

have ATM (Bancomat) locations.

When can I take vacation and have people visit 

me?

Each Volunteer accrues two vacation days per month of 

service (excluding training). Leave may not be taken during 

training, the first three months of service, or the last three 

months of service, except in conjunction with an authorized 

emergency leave. Family and friends are welcome to visit 

you after pre-service training and the first three months of

service as long as their stay does not interfere with your 

work. Education Volunteers in Kazakhstan work in schools 

and these schools operate on an academic schedule similar 

to that of the United States. Therefore, vacation time is 

available during winter, spring, and summer breaks. 

Organizational and community assistance program 
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

60

Volunteers may take vacation at a time that is convenient to 

both the Volunteer and his or her host agency. Extended 

stays by visitors at your site are not encouraged and may 

require permission from your country director. The Peace 

Corps cannot provide your visitors with visa, medical, or 

travel assistance. 

Will my belongings be covered by insurance?

The Peace Corps does not provide insurance coverage for 

personal effects. However, such insurance can be purchased 

before you leave. Ultimately, Volunteers are responsible for 

the safekeeping of their personal belongings. If you wish, 

you may contact your own insurance company; additionally, 

insurance application forms will be provided, and we 

encourage you to consider them carefully. Additional 

information about insurance should be obtained by calling 

the company directly. 

Volunteers should carefully consider whether to bring 

valuable items overseas. Jewelry, watches, radios, cameras, 

and expensive appliances are subject to loss, theft, and 

breakage, and in many places, satisfactory maintenance and 

repair services are not available. 

Do I need an international driver’s license?

Volunteers in Kazakhstan do not need to get an 

international driver’s license because operation of vehicles is 

prohibited during service. Most urban travel is by bus or 

taxi. Rural travel ranges from buses, to mini-buses, to 

trucks, to a lot of walking. 

What should I bring as gifts for Kazakhstan

friends and my host family?

This is not a requirement. A token of friendship is sufficient. 

You are likely to visit local families during your pre-service 
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

61

training. Some gift suggestions include: Knickknacks for the 

house; pictures, books, or calendars of American scenes; 

souvenirs from your area; hard candies that will not melt or 

spoil; and photos to give away. Most people would probably 

enjoy candy, especially chocolate, from America more than a 

small souvenir. Apartments and houses are small and 

eating candy while drinking tea and conversing is very 

important culturally. It is highly recommended that you 

bring pictures of your family, home, local area, and other 

points of interest to you. Sharing photos is a great ice 

breaker and social norm here. 

Where will my site assignment be when I finish 

training and how isolated will I be?

Peace Corps trainees are assigned to their sites after 

completion of pre-service training. This gives Peace Corps 

staff the opportunity to assess each trainee’s technical and 

language skills prior to assigning sites, in addition to 

finalizing site selections with their ministry counterparts. 

Many factors influence the site selection process and the 

Peace Corps does not guarantee placement where you might 

ideally like to be. Approximately 70 percent of Volunteers 

will live in towns or rural villages while the rest live in 

cities. Some sites have only one Volunteer; larger cities may 

have up to five. Many sites are from 24 to 40 hours away 

from the Peace Corps office by train.

How can my family contact me in an emergency?

The Peace Corps’ Office of Special Services in Washington, 

D.C., provides assistance in handling emergencies affecting 

Trainees and Volunteers or their families. Before leaving 

the United States, you should instruct your family to notify 

the Office of Special Services immediately if an emergency 

arises, such as a serious illness or death of a family member. 

During normal business hours, the number for the Office of 
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

62

Special Services is 800.424.8580; select option 2, then 

extension 1470. After normal business hours and on 

weekends and holidays, the Special Services duty officer can 

be reached at the above number. For non-emergency 

questions, your family can get information from your 

country desk staff at the Peace Corps by calling 

800.424.8580.

Should I bring a cellular phone with me?

Kazakhstan has cellular phone service and Peace Corps 

staff members are equipped with cellphones to attend to 

emergency calls. Because of the lack of radio transmitting 

stations, cellular service is not widespread in some rural 

areas. Differences in GSM technology make many U.S. 

cellphones incompatible with the Kazakhstani system, so 

only phones and cellular plans purchased here will function 

in Kazakhstan. Local communication methods are reliable 

for Peace Corps Volunteers and many have home phones. 

For convenience and social purposes, most Volunteers 

choose to purchase cellphones at their own expense once 

they arrive in-country.

Will there be email and Internet access? Should I bring my 

computer? 

Some Volunteers have email access from their homes and 

can check email daily. Other Volunteers must travel up to 

four hours to a city to visit an Internet café and, therefore,

can only check email once every couple of weeks. Many 

Volunteers bring laptop computers to Kazakhstan and find 

that having a computer makes their life easier. However, it 

is difficult, if not impossible, to have computers repaired at 

most sites and U.S. warranties are not honored in 

Kazakhstan. If you plan to bring a computer (and printer), 

consider purchasing property insurance, as theft of laptops 

has been a problem in the past.
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

63

WELCOME LETTERS FROM

KAZAKHSTAN VOLUNTEERS

Welcome Future Volunteers!

You have a lot of reading material, you’re saying goodbye 

to everyone and tying up a million loose ends, and you want 

to be ultra-prepared because you think you can be. 

But how much can one really know a country and its 

people until you’ve really lived there? Every year, thousands 

of folks like yourself take the plunge into the incredible 

adventure that is Peace Corps. If you’re reading this letter, 

you’re probably looking for some sort of nugget of wisdom 

that will better prepare you, or to allay your fears. So here 

goes: 

• You will get out of your service what you put into it. 

Your motivations and mindset for doing Peace Corps 

work determine how much “extra” you’ll get.

• Bring a sense of humor and an open mind. 

Kazakhstan has norms for general behavior, and 

respecting those norms will, in turn, earn YOU the 

respect necessary to succeed. Relationships are 

everything. Your language and cultural missteps are 

easily forgiven when you show that you care.

• Have the right perspective from the beginning: If 

things were perfect, the Peace Corps wouldn’t be here. 

So do not personalize the adversity inherent in the 

schools, nongovernmental organizations, etc. You are 

coming to help people and should measure your 

success that way, too.

• You can make a difference in Kazakhstan, regardless 

of your age or background. Really! 

Peace Corps work will challenge you, for sure. As for 

packing to meet those challenges, I’m sure you have read the 

handbook. Email current and former Volunteers for 

additional advice and for personal reflections. Check the Web, 
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

64

too.

As for my personal feelings about Peace Corps service—

it’s tantamount to asking someone about their children. 

After all, kids can be simultaneously wonderful, 

unpredictable, frustrating, amusing, and dozens of other 

things. But, parents will say, despite all the ups and downs,

they love their children and wouldn’t trade them for 

anything. That’s my Peace Corps experience. 

Best of luck!

—George Wunder

The train ride from Almaty to my site was 30 hours long, 

and for 30 hours the Kazakhstan steppe rolled past my 

window. For the entire first day on the train I watched 

unpopulated grassland speed by, punctuated only 

occasionally by small, dusty towns with grazing sheep and 

concrete buildings. At night, I slept eight hours and awoke 

to see the exact same landscape still rushing past me, 

apparently unchanged. I had loved the emptiness of the 

American West, but Kazakhstan, I thought to myself, is 

truly enormous.

Now I can differentiate between the rocky outcrops by 

Lake Balkhash, the salt-dusted deserts by Kyzylorda, and 

the scattered pine forests of my own region, and the 

landscape from the train doesn’t seem so homogenous 

anymore.

But my impression of the immensity of this country has 

persisted, and to its literal size I’ve added a breadth of 

lifestyles. In Kazakhstan, I’ve been a guest at a village 

mansion with big screen TVs and a washing machine, and 

I’ve been a guest at a hut in the middle of miles of empty 

steppe with a shed made out of cow dung. I’ve been at a 

restaurant and ordered coke, a cheeseburger, and fries (with 

Heinz ketchup!) in English, and on a different occasion come 

home to my Kazakh host family to see that dinner was cow 

head—again. The Almaty “McMansions” are springing up 

next to people who are still living in corrugated iron shacks. 
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

65

And although I do have hot running water in my Kokshetau 

apartment, people still pasture their goats outside my 

window.

In a country that’s this big and changing so rapidly, it’s 

hard to tell you, a new Volunteer, what to expect at your 

assignment. You might have a hot shower and eat Lays 

potato chips, or you might have a squat toilet and eat cow 

innards. Of course, wherever you go, you’ll be surprised, 

frustrated, adored by some and antagonized by others, and 

may experience triumphs where you least expect them. And 

you might surprise yourself with what you come to love. I, 

myself, have come to prefer squat toilets, and the smell of 

steamed intestines on rice makes me feel at home.

—Ryan Giordano

Welcome to Kazakhstan! 

Fasten your seatbelts, and make sure your seats and tray 

tables are in their full and upright position—you are about 

to embark on the adventure of your life! It would be unfair 

to think anyone or anything can adequately prepare you for 

the next two years. The most important things you can 

bring with you are an open mind, a good attitude, curiosity, 

a willingness to try new things—and plenty of pictures from 

home. 

One mistake I made was not having many pictures of my 

family or hometown. It is important to realize from the start 

that as many questions as you have, the people of 

Kazakhstan will have even more for you. In addition, 

because most people watch old U.S. television programs like 

“Dallas,” “Santa Barbara,” and “Beverly Hills 90210," it is 

important to show people that life in America is not like 

what they see on TV. Be prepared for most people to believe 

you are friends with movie stars and that you led a lavish 

lifestyle before coming to Kazakhstan. That said, people 

here are quick to understand that America is a large 

country with a diverse population. If you are not from a 
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

66

large city, you might consider bringing a U.S. map to show 

people where you have lived in the States (if you are an

education Volunteer, colorful U.S. maps are light and easyto-pack visual aids for your classroom!). 

As married, mid-career Volunteers, my husband and I are 

always fielding questions about why we do not have 

children. Family is important in this culture. There are 

many extended families in Kazakhstan. It is not unusual for 

a woman to live with and care for her parents, 

grandparents, and nieces and nephews. Married or not, 

some people can’t fathom spending two weeks away from 

their family—let alone two years half a world away. Every 

week, someone asks me if I miss my family. Of course I do, 

but because I love the life and the work we have here, in the 

end, everything balances out. Believe me, two years will be 

finished before you know it!

Just remember this one thing: local friendships are the 

best gifts you can take home for yourself! Even when you 

are tired and don’t think you could answer another question, 

take the extra moment to have a conversation with a 

student, co-worker, or the lady at the market—you never 

know where a friendship will begin. My husband and I 

spend every weekend with our local friends.

When I came to Kazakhstan, I had very little teaching 

experience. The biggest mistake I made in the beginning 

was to try to teach as I was taught in America. Because the 

cultures are so different, the American style of teaching just 

does not work. One of our tasks, though, is to introduce new 

teaching methods to the local community, so I have found 

that the most successful lesson plans are a recipe of fun, 

innovation, and flexibility because, truly, you never know 

what will happen during a lesson. I have had active 

students, bored students, attentive students, and students 

breaking rulers over each other’s heads. You have to take all 

of it in stride and keep reaching out to your students. Listen 

and try to learn from your students because they will be 

your best teachers. You will soon learn that children know 
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

67

everything—about you, and about everything in town. 

Kazakhstan has four beautiful seasons: pack a little of 

everything, but do not forget your long underwear. Be 

prepared to wear the same clothes repeatedly, and know it 

is perfectly acceptable to wear the same outfit for a week at 

a time. Besides, since you are probably washing your clothes 

in the bathtub, how much time do you want to spend 

washing five or six different outfits each week? Make sure 

you have clothes that can mix and match well. In general, 

people dress more formally here than in America, but be 

advised that the styles here can be extremely different. 

Some rural communities dress very conservatively, while in 

large cities (and some small communities) people dress as if 

they have just walked out of an American nightclub. A good 

rule of thumb is to bring durable, comfortable clothes. Stay 

away from light colors, as they get dirty easier. In general, it 

is better to dress more conservatively as it keeps some of the 

attention away from you. 

Bring anything durable and of value to you (like music, 

photos, a camera, etc.). If you have a laptop, bring it, as the 

Internet is available if you are lucky enough to have a 

phone. If you bring a computer, also buy a good bag for it 

and a European surge protector (or UPS) as power surges 

are frequent. Bring a good English/Russian dictionary. I 

recommend the Kenneth Katzner English/Russian, 

Russian/English Dictionary—it’s the only good dictionary 

based on American English. It will be one of the best things 

you will bring with you. 

Good luck and have fun!

—Jen McFarland

Welcome to Kazakhstan! 

Little did I know, when I said, “Sure, I’ll go to 

Kazakhstan!” I’d be able to tell you two years later that now, 

without batting an eye, I can give a comprehensible toast in 

Kazakh, eat parts from a sheep’s head, bathe in a banya,
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

68

and squat with the best of them. I’ve had a tarantula 

crawling in my bag, been begged for hundreds of 

autographs, was head-butted by a cow, and stood about 20 

feet from President Nazarbayev himself. And that’s just the 

beginning.

What to bring? Things I’ve been glad to have: an 

English/Russian dictionary (I use it all the time with 

teaching and writing), several pairs of quality long 

underwear, and hand sanitizer for trains and public toilets. 

Also, bring something to make you (or your room) smell 

good—trust me, you’ll want it! Don’t bring too many clothes. 

Everyone wears the same clothes over and over again. It’s 

easier, and means that you don’t need as many things. You 

will be able to buy clothes here, even if you’re an unusual 

size. (I’m large and 6 feet tall and still managed to find a 

warm winter coat.) Women can wear pants and jeans, but 

don’t plan on wearing shorts, especially if you live in the 

south.

What to expect? Expect the unexpected. Nothing will go as 

you think it will. Everything changes, everything happens 

at the last minute. Be flexible and go with the flow ... and 

keep in mind that “the flow” has absolutely nothing to do 

with a straight line!

It’s difficult to prepare for an experience like this; that is 

part of the great adventure. I am a university TEFL 

(teaching English as a foreign language) teacher, currently 

in Kyzylorda. I’ve taught at three universities, lived in two 

vastly different sites, and have had a plethora of wild, 

challenging experiences. I’ve had an incredible, 

unforgettable, two years. If you can find in yourself 

patience, open-mindedness, tolerance, and a sense of humor, 

especially when the chips are down, you will, too.

Good luck!

—Megan Schulte
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

69

PACKING LIST

This list has been compiled by Volunteers serving in Kazakhstan

and is based on their experience. Use it as an informal guide in 

making your own list, bearing in mind that each experience is 

individual. There is no perfect list! You obviously cannot bring 

everything on the list, so consider those items that make the most 

sense to you personally and professionally. You can always have 

things sent to you later. As you decide what to bring, keep in mind 

that you have an 80-pound weight limit on baggage. And 

remember, you can get almost everything you need in Kazakhstan.

Luggage 

Your luggage should be durable, lightweight, and easy to 

carry. If you cannot carry it by yourself, do not bring it! 

Clothing 

Bring clothes that you like to wear. Family and friends can 

send you clothing. Weight fluctuations are common during 

your service. For this reason, bring basics to Kazakhstan–

along with a few items that you enjoy wearing.

The clothing you bring should be durable and versatile. The 

weather in Kazakhstan varies quite a bit. The summers are 

very hot. Spring and fall are rainy and the streets get pretty 

muddy. The winter is cold and windy with snow and rain. 

Kazakhstanis dress more formally than Americans, and 

there will be many occasions where you can dress up. 

Professional dress is required, but this does not mean 

expensive dress. As long as your clothing is neat, clean, and 

conservative it should be acceptable. Kazakhstanis may be 

offended by American "dress down" style, especially at work.
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

70

You may want to bring one suit or dressy outfit, but keep in 

mind that dry cleaning is not available in many places and 

you may get only occasional use out of these items. 

You will be walking a lot, and all of your shoes should be 

comfortable and, if possible, waterproof. Good shoes are 

hard to find, and imported shoes are very expensive, so do 

not skimp on these. Again, do not skimp on these! Your 

shoes will take a beating and wear out quickly, so bring 

shoes with sturdy soles. Be sure to bring shoes appropriate 

for all seasons (i.e., sandals, boots, etc.). Local women wear 

high heels with incredible skill on uneven surfaces and ice. 

Unless you possess this skill, high heels are not 

recommended. You will be taking your shoes off and putting 

them on as you enter and leave homes here, so slip-on shoes 

are much easier. For men, bring smooth leather hiking boots 

that are insulated, waterproof and durable. 

It begins to get cold in Kazakhstan in October. Although you 

can purchase winter clothing in Kazakhstan it is highly 

recommended that you bring a good winter coat and boots 

from the U.S. Good quality clothes in Kazakhstan are more 

expensive than in the States. Also, make sure you bring 

some warm clothes with you (i.e., sweaters, jackets, gloves, 

and hats). If you are assigned to the northern part of the 

country, it may already be snowing with temperatures in 

the 30s when you arrive at your site in early November. 

While there is a bazaar where you will be able to purchase 

nearly everything you need, there will not be a great deal of 

time to make these purchases as training days are long and 

the quality may not be very good.
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

71

General Clothing

• Winter coat–It is recommended that you bring a 

winter coat (if you have one). Kazakhstan is a large 

country. If you are in the north, you will not need a 

heavy coat. 

• Waterproof, lightweight jacket (black or gray 

recommended)

• Boots—warm non-skid soles. Snow and ice are not 

often removed from sidewalks or walkways.

• Three pairs of warm socks—white is impossible to 

keep clean and should be avoided

• Winter gloves (extremely warm and waterproof), scarf,

and hat

• Underwear 

• Two sets of thermal underwear (tops and bottoms—

some Volunteers recommend polypropylene; others 

recommend silk); you will wear these under clothes for 

warmth and for sleeping. It is wise to purchase a 

heavy and lighter weight pair. The long underwear 

you wear in the spring and fall is different than what 

you will wear in the winter.

• Several good sweaters and turtlenecks 

• Bathing suit

• Belts 

• Sunglasses

• Baseball cap 

For Men

Men here dress in suits for business meetings, weddings, 

and work. It is appropriate to wear a shirt, tie, and pants 

(not jeans) to work. Sports jackets with nice pants and dress 

shirts are acceptable. Most local people wear the same ties 

daily. You probably do not need more than two to four ties. 
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

72

The acceptability of shorts will depend upon your site. 

Shorts are only worn here by men for sporting events or 

exercise. A cultural point to consider is that hair is worn 

short by men in Kazakhstan, and beards on younger men 

are rare. Varying from these norms will negatively impact 

your working relationships and cultural integration.

• One suit 

• One or two sport coats 

• Three ties 

• Three dress shirts (long and short sleeves—bring 

short sleeves even if you do not wear them in America) 

• Three pairs dress slacks 

• Three pairs of shorts

• Three T-shirts/regular shirts for everyday wear

• One pair of slacks/shorts that zip off at the knees (you 

cannot wear shorts to training events and if you have 

afternoon plans these will be a life-saver; also great if 

you know you will be visiting a mosque in Kazakhstan 

or if you go on vacation to another Muslim country 

like Turkey or the UAE and don’t want to wear pants 

all day.)

• Two pairs of jeans (not usually acceptable for work 

attire) 

For Women

Kazakhstani women are very fashion conscious. In a few 

communities, schools do not approve of women wearing 

pants in the classroom. Also, blouses and upper portions of 

dresses should be modest. In certain cities and towns in 

Kazakhstan, you will see women in mini-skirts and other 

scant attire. However, you should be aware that for the 

Kazakhstanis, this sends a negative message about your 

character. Generally, Kazakhstani women wear dress boots 

to work in the winter and dress sandals in the summer. 
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

73

Hair is styled in all sorts of ways, and shouldn’t be a 

problem. Local hair-coloring products are not to U.S.

standards, and we’ve seen some interesting interpretations 

of henna and even blond hair coloring. Go with your natural 

color, or bring what you need.

• Dress jackets 

• Plenty of mid-length and long skirts and dresses

• Jeans (acceptable in larger cities, but not at work)

• Dress pants 

• At least one good outfit for formal occasions

• A few pairs of shorts or skirts 

• Tights and leggings

• Jewelry and makeup (both are worn here, and 

available)

• Slips (cotton, lightweight)

• Sturdy winter boots, which can be worn with skirts 

and dresses and dress pants

Shoes

Personal Hygiene and Toiletry Items 

• One washcloth and one towel (these are available 

locally, but quality is often not that great)

• Razors or electric shaver, shaving cream

• Shampoo and conditioner (might not be your favorite 

brand, but many types are available here)

• Nail clipper

• Toothpaste (Crest and Colgate are available)

• Good toothbrushes 

• Soap (if your skin is sensitive, you may want to bring 

a good supply)

• Deodorant (available here)
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

74

• Feminine hygiene products are available at all sites in 

Kazakhstan so there is no need to bring an extensive 

supply

Pert Plus, Gillette, and even Herbal Essence can easily be 

found at the smallest bazaars, so don’t go overboard on the 

toiletries unless there is some aftershave, shampoo or other 

item that you can’t live without for two years.

Work Clothes

Do not pack any work clothes that you hope to use after two 

years! After two years of your hand washing and sun-drying, 

the clothes will be rags, especially if you end up in a village. 

Do not, however, come like some Volunteers do, thinking 

that looking like a pauper in the Third World is the norm 

just because it is the Peace Corps. People do dress up 

regularly, and clean, ironed clothes are a must in this 

culture. People may have only two outfits (some of your 

students will have only one), but they will look like they 

were just store-bought even if they wear them every day in a 

given week.

Medical Supplies

The only medical supplies you should need are initial 

supplies of prescription medications—Peace Corps will 

provide the rest.

Cooking Supplies 

Bringing spices you like with you is an excellent idea, both 

for yourself and for introducing yourself to locals. You will 

get requests from locals to cook things and it is a nice thing 
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

75

to do for people who will, no doubt, be cooking for you 

repeatedly. A few other hints: ranch mix and barbecue sauce 

are always missed by Volunteers.

Office Supplies

Office supplies are of poor quality here. Many Volunteers 

say bringing Sharpies and markers were helpful. These 

things can also be sent to you.

Laptops

See Tech Guide or contact the Country Desk for a copy

Miscellaneous

• Flashlight: very powerful and illuminating (power 

outages are regular, which makes it a pain to shave or 

make posters for a lesson, so this will help 

tremendously)

• One or two sturdy water bottles (e.g., Nalgene)

• Battery charger and at least four rechargeable 

batteries

• Electricity converter kit (the voltage is 220 and is 

uniform across Asia. It should have a pair of parallel, 

round prongs)

• Computer (great for staying connected to friends and 

family). Please update your anti-virus software –

viruses are a huge problem here. It is also wise to 

bring an external hard drive! Bringing an Ipod is 

encouraged.

• Leatherman or Swiss Army knife

• Two luggage locks

• Day planner/diary
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

76

• Toiletries bag and initial set of toiletries 

• Flashlight for your key chain 

• Digital camera (great for emailing photos home and 

you do not want to carry pictures around for two 

years)

• High-quality backpack (will need to get your stuff to 

Kazakhstan, as well as for vacation out-of-country and 

when you go camping in-country; there are lots of 

beautiful places to go camping in the eastern and 

western parts of the country)

• Hand sanitizer (important to have when eating out 

since many places will not have bathrooms or you 

wouldn’t want to use the facilities if they did. Clean 

hands will help you avoid sickness during pre-service 

training. Your body will have enough things stressing 

it out already.)

• Pictures, pictures, pictures—People in Kazakhstan, 

especially your students if you are a teacher, love to 

see pictures of their Volunteer’s life in America. From 

pictures of the close major cities to you and your 

family to things as mundane as the local supermarket 

and the car you drive, these will all be crowd pleasers. 

They will also serve as a great icebreaker with your 

host families, which you will be desperate for since 

you will have just two Russian language lessons under 

your belt on the day you go to live with them.

• Gifts for two host families (key chains from your city, 

American chocolate or scented candles)
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

77

PRE-DEPARTURE CHECKLIST

The following list consists of suggestions for you to consider as 

you prepare to live outside the United States for two years. Not all 

items will be relevant to everyone, and the list does not include 

everything you should make arrangements for.

Family

• Notify family that they can call the Peace Corps’ Office of 

Special Services at any time if there is a critical illness or 

death of a family member (24-hour telephone number: 

800.424.8580, extension 1470).

• Give the Peace Corps’ On the Home Front handbook to 

family and friends.

Passport/Travel

• Forward to the Peace Corps travel office all paperwork for the 

Peace Corps passport and visas.

• Verify that your luggage meets the size and weight limits for 

international travel.

• Obtain a personal passport if you plan to travel after your 

service ends. (Your Peace Corps passport will expire three 

months after you finish your service, so if you plan to travel 

longer, you will need a regular passport.)

Me dical/He alt h

• Complete any needed dental and medical work.

• If you wear glasses, bring two pairs.

• Arrange to bring a three-month supply of all medications 

(including birth control pills) you are currently taking.
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

78

Insurance

• Make arrangements to maintain life insurance coverage.

• Arrange to maintain supplemental health coverage while you 

are away. (Even though the Peace Corps is responsible for 

your health care during Peace Corps service overseas, it is 

advisable for people who have pre-existing conditions to 

arrange for the continuation of their supplemental health 

coverage. If there is a lapse in coverage, it is often difficult 

and expensive to be reinstated.)

• Arrange to continue Medicare coverage if applicable.

Personal Papers

• Bring a copy of your certificate of marriage or divorce.

Voting

• Register to vote in the state of your home of record. (Many 

state universities consider voting and payment of state taxes 

as evidence of residence in that state.)

• Obtain a voter registration card and take it with you overseas.

• Arrange to have an absentee ballot forwarded to you overseas. 

Pe rsonal Effe cts

• Purchase personal property insurance to extend from the time 

you leave your home for service overseas until the time you 

complete your service and return to the United States.

Financial Manage me nt

• Keep a bank account in your name in the U.S. 

• Obtain student loan deferment forms from the lender or loan 

service.
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

79

• Execute a Power of Attorney for the management of your 

property and business.

• Arrange for deductions from your readjustment allowance to 

pay alimony, child support, and other debts through the Office 

of Volunteer Financial Operations at 800.424.8580, extension 

1770.

• Place all important papers—mortgages, deeds, stocks, and 

bonds—in a safe deposit box or with an attorney or other 

caretaker.
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

80

CONTACTING PEACE CORPS 

HEADQUARTERS

This list of numbers will help connect you with the appropriate 

office at Peace Corps headquarters to answer various questions. 

You can use the toll-free number and extension or dial directly 

using the local numbers provided. Be sure to leave the toll-free 

number and extensions with your family so they can contact 

you in the event of an emergency.

Peace Corps Headquarters

Toll-free Number: 800.424.8580, Press 2, then 

Ext. # (see below)

Peace Corps’ Mailing Address:

Peace Corps

Paul D. Coverdell Peace Corps Headquarters

1111 20th Street, NW

Washington, DC 20526

For Direct/

Questions Toll-free Local

About: Staff Extension Number

Responding to Office of 

an Invitation Placement

Europe,

Mediterranean,

and Asia Ext. 1840 202.692.1840

Programming or Desk Officer Ext. 2427 202.692.2427

Country Information

Email: kazakhstan@peacecorps.gov

 

 
PEACE CORPS | KAZAKHSTAN WELCOME BOOK 

06 – JULY-2010 

81

 

For Direct/

Questions Toll-free Local

About: Staff Extension Number

Plane Tickets, Travel Officer Ext. 1170 202.692.1170 

Passports, (SATO Travel)

Visas, or Other 

Travel Matters

Legal Clearance Office of Ext. 1845 202.692.1845

Placement

Medical Clearance Screening Nurse Ext. 1500 202.692.1500

and Forms Processing 

(including dental) 

Medical Handled by a 

Reimbursements Subcontractor 800.544.1802

Loan Deferments, Volunteer Ext. 1770 202.692.1770

Taxes, Readjustment Financial

Allowance Withdrawals, Operations

Power of Attorney

Staging (Pre-departure

Orientation) and 

Reporting Instructions Office of Staging Ext. 1865 202.692.1865

Note: You will receive 

comprehensive information 

(hotel and flight arrangements) three to five weeks

before departure. This information is not available 

sooner.

Family Emergencies Office of Special Ext. 1470202.692.1470

(to get information to Services 24 hours a day

a Volunteer overseas)