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'Never a boring moment': The couple who left Canada to live in former Soviet Central Asia

Zora and Dave Keffer took a trip to the Aral Sea, an endorheic lake situated between Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. (Zora Keffer via CNN Newsource)    Zora and Dave Keffer took a trip to the Aral Sea, an endorheic lake situated between Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. (Zora Keffer via CNN Newsource)
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After spending eight years living in the United Arab Emirates before the birth of their daughter in the late 1990s took them back to Canada, teachers Zora and Dave Keffer were no strangers to exploring the world.

And so, after she grew up and graduated, the couple came across a teaching opportunity in Central Asia, and decided to hit the road again on an adventure that would take them first to Kazakhstan and then later to a small city in Uzbekistan.

Despite initially fearing they had found themselves in an austere-looking former Soviet backwater, prone to power cuts and intolerable heatwaves, the couple say moving there was an incredible experience that offered positives no longer found in the West.

According to Zora, originally from the former Czechoslovakia, they 鈥渇igured it was time to resume our nomadic existence鈥 after their daughter left home. When they discovered that Kazakhstan was looking for teachers, the couple thought it 鈥渟ounded like an interesting project,鈥 and signed up, spending nearly five years there.

鈥淚 think most people are not aware (of) how large the country is geographically and how many minorities live there,鈥 she says.

Teacher Zora Keffer, pictured in Bukhara, moved to Uzbekistan with her husband Dave in 2020 when they were both offered job positions in the country. (Zora Keffer via CNN Newsource)

New adventure

Once they鈥檇 finished up in Kazakhstan, the Keffers accepted a work contract in Kuwait, and ended up getting 鈥渟tuck鈥 in the Middle Eastern country during the Covid-19 pandemic. When border restrictions began lifting, they were ready for something new once again.

鈥淚t鈥檚 difficult sometimes, to get back to normal living,鈥 Zora says of their desire to keep moving from place to place.

鈥淵ou get to experience this sometimes highly unpredictable existence. It鈥檚 sometimes frustrating. But it鈥檚 exciting.鈥

In March 2020, Zora and Dave received job offers at a school for 鈥済ifted children鈥 in Uzbekistan, and began to mull over the possibility of moving over there.

Although they were less than enthusiastic when they looked up where they鈥檇 be living in 鈥 Nukus, the sixth-largest city in Uzbekistan 鈥 and found the description less than inspiring, they ultimately decided to give it a go.

When they arrived in Uzbekistan in 2020, Zora was struck by the architecture of the country, describing it as 鈥渁 mixture of unflattering, utilitarian, Soviet-era buildings side-by-side with modern high rises.鈥

While the country was still 鈥渦nder the Covid cloud,鈥 Zora and Dave, who both had a multiple-entry work visa, settled in relatively easily, and were warmly welcomed.

鈥淭he locals are polite and friendly in the extreme,鈥 says Zora. 鈥淎nd Dave and I have been fortunate to participate in and to enjoy many of the traditions that such a colourful society offers.鈥

Cultural differences

Although life in a country like Uzbekistan can be difficult for newcomers to adapt to, Zora explains that their time in Kazakhstan meant that it wasn鈥檛 quite such a tough adjustment for the two of them.

鈥淚t鈥檚 all Central Asia,鈥 she says. 鈥淭hey are both ex-Soviet republics. Very similar cultures. So Uzbekistan was not a culture shock.鈥

And while the Keffers initially had reservations about Nukus, which has an estimated population of around 329,000, they loved living there, and felt at ease within the community.

鈥淭he people just love practicing English,鈥 says Zora. 鈥淚t鈥檚 actually really funny. They stop you all the time, and they want to chat (in English).鈥

As neither Zora or her husband speak Uzbek, they often relied on Google Translate, when it came to communicating with locals.

鈥淕oogle Translate is your best friend here,鈥 she adds.

One of the things Zora loved most about Uzbekistan was that she was always having new experiences.

鈥淚t鈥檚 never boring,鈥 she says. 鈥淭here鈥檚 never a boring moment here.鈥

However, there was one thing she was never able to get used to: the frequent power outages which occurred around the time Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022.

鈥淚t鈥檚 hot here,鈥 she says. 鈥淪o when you can鈥檛 get the air-conditioning working, it鈥檚 not fun. I (can) tell you that much.

鈥淵ou have to be very flexible, because you just don鈥檛 know what鈥檚 gonna happen. Flexibility is number one. This is not a place for rigid people.鈥

While Zora and her husband adapted to life in Uzbekistan easily, she points out that having each other to lean on made a big difference, and she says it鈥檚 likely much harder for those who relocate by themselves.

鈥淚t鈥檚 a small community,鈥 she says of Nukus. 鈥淵ou definitely do not have the same kind of pool of expats that say, Tashkent, the capital, has.鈥

鈥淵ou don鈥檛 get that here, because it鈥檚 a small town. So you have to work a little harder at meeting people.鈥

Sense of community

Zora says she was heartened by the strength of the local community and its members who were ready and willing to go above and beyond for their neighbors.

鈥淭he community is much stronger here,鈥 she says. 鈥淔amilies, they are tighter. We kind of lost that in the West, if you know what I mean.

鈥淧eople here still depend so much on each other to some degree. Because you don鈥檛 have the same social safety net. So it鈥檚 a necessity really. If things go wrong, you鈥檝e got your family.鈥

While they spent most of their time in Nukus, Zora and Dave traveled to capital city Tashkent every six weeks or so 鈥渇or a nice getaway weekend.鈥

In 2021, the couple took some time off work to explore the cities of the old Silk Road 鈥 Samarkand, Bukhara and Khiva.

鈥淚 cannot imagine actually leaving Uzbekistan without seeing these fabled cities,鈥 she says.

鈥淭hey really are truly amazing. It鈥檚 like going back in time. And falling into one of those stories like 鈥極ne Thousand and One Nights鈥 (a collection of Middle Eastern folktales). It鈥檚 magical.鈥

According to Zora, she and Dave were impressed by Khiva, a small town situated in the southeast of Uzbekistan.

鈥淧eople don鈥檛 know much about Khiva, because it鈥檚 not in the region where Samarkand and Bukhara are,鈥 she says, before describing the 鈥渟cary experience鈥 of climbing the Islam Khodja minaret, which measures 45 meters (148 feet).

鈥淪o many people miss it. But it鈥檚 also a wonderful city with beautiful architecture.鈥

When asked of her favorite thing about living in Uzbekistan, Zora says that this was undoubtedly her students.

鈥淭he kids here are so nice,鈥 she says. 鈥淭hat is actually the biggest plus, in my opinion, as a teacher, because we don鈥檛 have any discipline problems.鈥

Zora鈥檚 also a big fan of the food in Uzbekistan, describing the fruits and vegetables as 鈥渙ut of this world.鈥

鈥淭hey are so good compared to say, Canada or North America because of the weather,鈥 she says.

鈥淵ou鈥檝e got sunshine here all the time. And the taste is really amazing compared to the supermarket products in Canada.鈥

Developing country

Although they found Uzbekistan to be very affordable, Zora notes that this is 鈥渁ll relative鈥 as they were earning a 鈥渄ecent salary.鈥

鈥淚f we were earning a local salary, then obviously it would not be much cheaper,鈥 she says.

When asked what she missed about living in Canada, Zora confesses that going to see blockbuster movies that aren鈥檛 dubbed over was high up there on the list.

However, the couple did manage to go to watch some live ballet and modern dance performances in Tashkent.

鈥淭hat is a big plus,鈥 she says. 鈥淏ecause the tickets are very inexpensive for us. And those pieces were wonderful.

鈥淪o you鈥檝e got to focus on that. No movies, but wonderful dance.鈥

The couple were able to participate in traditional celebrations, including Nowruz, a festival marking the Persian New Year, which is an official public holiday in Uzbekistan every March 21.

鈥淏oiling a pudding in a huge cauldron for 10 hours is a big part of it,鈥 explains Zora.

One of the downsides of living in a place like Uzbekistan was that the couple鈥檚 visitors from home proved to be few and far between, mainly because 鈥渋t鈥檚 really far.鈥

鈥淭hat鈥檚 (the distance) one thing,鈥 she says. 鈥淎nd the other thing, even more importantly, is that we don鈥檛 get any time off (from work).鈥

The couple returned to Canada every summer to catch up with their friends and family.

鈥淚t鈥檚 nice just to reconnect,鈥 she says. 鈥淛ust to see that it鈥檚 still there.鈥

Zora says she鈥檇 advise anyone considering a move to Uzbekistan to take into account that it鈥檚 鈥渟till a developing country鈥 and they likely won鈥檛 have access to the same amenities and lifestyle they were previously used to.

鈥淥ne should not expect the same level of comfort and efficiency,鈥 she adds. 鈥淚t would really help to be very flexible and have a great sense of humor鈥

鈥淚 have become a lot more open-minded, and even more flexible than I had been prior to this experience.鈥

After four years in Uzbekistan, Zora and Dave once again decided to bid farewell to their place of residence and seek out a new adventure.

Now retired, they plan to spend the next year or so doing 鈥渁 lot of traveling鈥 before working out their next move.

Although they will be returning to Canada briefly, Zora says they have no intention of remaining there permanently.

鈥淲e love Canada but that doesn鈥檛 mean we intend to stay put,鈥 she says. 鈥淚 hope we鈥檒l never lose our wanderlust.鈥

When asked which destination is next on their list, Zora stresses that they鈥檙e still figuring things out.

鈥淭he future is opaque,鈥 she says.

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