Our Family club went to the Kapchagay reservoir for a few days of rest. We had carefully developed a comprehensive program for this trip.

In the resort area there was a beautifully looking beach and lot’s of bright greenery. After we unpacked our things in the rooms we went to swim in the inviting blue water. Before swimming we have received safety instructions from Alexander Gudkov and Ruslan Archakov. Then we had a psychological training by Oksana Abdukadirova where we got to know each other very well. In the cafeteria we were treated with a very good dinner. Darkness fell all over the resort area. The Jewish families were happy to socialize with each other and enjoy kosher shashlyk. It seemed as though time stopped, there was no fuss of the city, and all problems were forgotten.

Every evening and every morning we had an "hour of Jewish story". Master class by Olga Drobnohod on origami was very interesting to children and adults. I would specially give credit to the video-club. After everybody saw the movie "father" about the childhood of the famous composer Shvarts, we had heated discussions. The generation gap problem was interesting to everybody.


On one of the holiday days we engaged in sports competitions under the slogan "Mama, Papa, and I - We Are a Sports Family." Family teams of Alexander Gudkov, Evgeniy Ignatenko "Piligrim", Marina Mainerman "Pirates of the Kapchagay Sea", youth teams "Mosquitoes" and "Teenagers" participated in Makkabiada.

The first stage of the competition was "Draughts Tournament". The first prize was won by the team of Alexander Gudkov, the second by Zhenya Ignatenko for his team "Pilgrim", and third was given to the team "Mosquitoes".

The second part of the competition was the "Relay Race". All teams were very enthusiastic doing the tasks, especially during playing tug-of-war. According to the strict jury, the first prize again was won by Alexander Gudkov’s team, the second - by "Mosquitoes", and the third was divided between "Pilgrim" and the "Pirates of the Kapchagay Sea".

We organized a Club of Cheerful and Witty. We had to remember how we played it when we were young. The Club competition took place on the pier at the sun set. The teams were very active. There were many jokes, riddles, and sketches. The most interesting performances were by the team of Evgeniya Chugainova "Teenagers" and "Pirates of the Kapchagay Sea".

For the whole week we were enjoying the sun, warm sand, blue sea, and yachting. And most important we were socializing with each other and had a great time with our children. We thank Inessa Chugainova for organizing the family camp and everybody who participated in it.

Galina Ignatenko