This is Aizhana’s translation of the post written by Aiman, our contributor from Uralsk, about the myths that surround the foreingers in Aksai, Karachaganak Field in the West Kazakhstan.

Once, in winter, I was riding in a “marshrutka” (a minibus) from Aksay to Uralsk, the spot I got was perfect; it was beside the driver and beside the heater, I could stretch my legs, and the people in a car with me were pretty interesting. You have to admit that when you travel with interesting people, the time runs faster, and since I am a sociable person, I will never refuse a good conversation with people. The driver was a young man, Kazakh, of pleasant appearance, with warm smile. Playfully, with jokes and introductions, he collected payment from the passengers, and we were on our way.

A young girl sat between me and the driver, on the front seat, with light make-up and without a hat. Judging by her huge back-pack, I figured that she is a student. A conversation started because I automatically started to fasten myself with a seatbelt. In international company where I happen to work it’s an essential rule and not obeying it could cost you your job. Now it became a habit, besides, winter road isn’t very safe, especially when you sit in the front. The driver, observing my not very skillful way with the seatbelt laughed and asked: “You probably work at KPO (Karachaganak Petroleum Operating)?”. I nodded my head and he continued: “Well, yeah, everybody who works there uses a seat-belt, even in our mini-buses”.

Then, I had to listen to more of the driver’s stories of how hilarious and weird the foreigners are, and how they “bamboozle” the local personnel. I decided not to argue with him, because that’s not a very grateful doing, you can’t prove to everyone that the safety-belt in a car isn’t just for decoration. For about five more minutes he was telling us stories that he heard from people who work in KPO or SSS-Saipem (the Arab company, built the Gas Processing Complex). The driver, apparently, didn’t even know that in principle, these are two different organizations, in content and contingent. But the story isn’t about him; it’s about a girl, who was sitting next to me. Like thunder in clear sky she began to chatter with slender voice. She was quiet and pretended that she wasn’t interested in the driver’s talking for a long time, then, suddenly she laid down a sacramental phrase: “Foreigners are better than Kazakhs and Russians, they are polite and well mannered, they don’t know how to swear and don’t steal!” To say that I was taken aback isn’t even going to cover it. With astonishment, I was examining her face, and wondering where she came from. I wanted to answer, but she continued: “they even treat women better, than the Soviet men; I wish to marry a foreigner”.

I’ve worked in KPO for a long time, and I came across a lot of different people while working there. There are a lot of people who “assign” almost “godly” assets to the foreigners, but the kind of “miracle” like that girl in a mini-bus, I’ve seen for the first time. I tend to think that that kind of opinion exists because of the prolonged closeness of USSR. Many thought that “there” they live better because they are smarter or better than us. Many thought and assumed that alcoholism is a thing inherent only to us, and that stealing exists only here, because we are poorer. (more…)