Hooray! I finally got my visit to the mosque in. The dad picked me up after school and drove me there. First he gave me a tour. They are doing a lot of renovations and building out the basement for classrooms and a rec area. It’s simply and beautifully decorated. Very attractive. And the people were super friendly and hospitable. I was offered tea and everyone spoke to me and thanked me for visiting their mosque. Then I got to sit in on the dad’s Arabic lesson. He had prepared a sheet for me with English translations so I was at least able to follow along. Afterwards he drove me back home and he took the time to answer all my questions I had about Islam. It was a really pleasant experience. Ya gotta love the tolerance in Kazan.
And I’ve got bicycle news! The president of the Kazan Rotary is just completing an around the world bike trip and they’re building an entire conference around the event. I’ve been invited to attend the seminars next Monday afternoon. There will be international speakers so I’m assuming they will have English translations. If not, I will just muddle through with my Russian. It’s going to be mainly about how bikes can improve cities and personal lifestyles, and how we can get cities to improve their bike/ped infrastructure and how people can enjoy healthier lifestyles. I’m even taking the afternoon off to attend.
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