In an interview with Turmush, she shared details about her family, mother-in-law, and events that shook her.
Adilia was born in 1989 in the village of Barskoon, located in the Jeti-Oguz district of the Issyk-Kul region. She graduated from the biology faculty of the Kyrgyz National University.
“After finishing school in 2007, I enrolled in the biology faculty of KNU. In my fourth year, my mother was diagnosed with cancer and soon passed away. I experienced a profound loss, and my studies took a back seat; mostly, I just attended classes. Starting from my second year, I worked in the evenings at a café — it helped me distract myself a little,” she said.
“One day, a friend I had worked with in Moscow called me. He offered me to go there to work when he learned about my mother's death. In my confusion, I quickly agreed and left for Moscow,” Adilia added.
“In Moscow, I wasn’t awaited by high-ranking officials (laughs). I worked without documents and had a hard time finding a job: I was a painter, sold beer to Moldovan women, and traded at the market. Life was very tough. Later, I got a job as a saleswoman in a store owned by an Azerbaijani, who regularly paid my salary,” she shared.
Adilia recounted how she met her future husband:
“He came to my store every day for groceries, and I wondered why he needed so much food. It soon became clear that he was feeding his crew working on facades. He confessed that he came just to see me. That’s how we started communicating,” she noted.
“He registered me at his place and helped me obtain a work permit. Thanks to this, I got a job at another store where Russian owners worked. After four months, I managed to save up for a plot of land in Bishkek to build a house. My husband supported me a lot, encouraging me not to spend money on food and housing. In April 2013, we held the 'nike' ceremony — a Muslim wedding,” Adilia recounted.
When the children grew up, in 2016 she returned to her studies and graduated a year later.
In March 2020, her mother-in-law fell seriously ill, and her husband went to Syria. A week later, the COVID-19 pandemic began, and all flights were canceled. He stayed in Syria, while Adilia and the children remained in Moscow. In June, her mother-in-law passed away, and she went to Syria with her two children.
“When I arrived, I knew about 20 Arabic words. Now I can speak the language halfway. At first, I worked at a private school where I taught Russian, as there are many Russians in our city. We gather for holidays and drink tea,” she reported.
Her husband is from the city of Tartus and is 54 years old. The couple has four children: two sons and two daughters, who speak Arabic and Russian fluently, and also understand Kyrgyz, sometimes using it in their daily lives.
“When I first arrived in Syria, my husband's relatives had breakfast with dates and nuts, and I set the table like we do: butter, jam, tea. My sisters-in-law were surprised and still laugh when they remember how I treated them with butter and tea,” she added.
Adilia also shared amusing incidents from her life in Syria:
“At school, I initially spoke in English since I didn’t know Arabic. One day, a funny situation occurred: they have a word 'haf', which means 'I am afraid'. A girl brought me coffee, and I said: 'I have anything.' She understood it as 'I am afraid' and started to comfort me: 'Don’t be afraid, it’s not hot,'” she recounted.
“Also, there are many Russian girls in our city whom I sometimes meet. One day, I went to a café with them and asked for a glass, but they brought me a plate with cutlets because their word 'kibai' means glass, while 'kibbi' refers to bulgur cutlets. I encountered many such misunderstandings,” Adilia added.
She noted the differences between Kyrgyzstan and Syria:
“Although I became a daughter-in-law in another country, there is no concept of 'daughter-in-law's duty' here. Locals do not perceive me as a 'kelin' (daughter-in-law). However, I miss my homeland. Despite the shared faith, the differences are still palpable.
In Syria, there is no winter; vegetables and fruits grow year-round. At weddings, we traditionally slaughter livestock, while here they simply celebrate the wedding itself. Alcohol and drugs are taboo. Gossiping is not customary here, and after weddings, children live separately. At family gatherings, they read the Quran and discuss the wisdom of the prophets. No one interferes in personal lives. I have never heard anything bad about myself from my husband’s relatives,” she shared.
“People here know almost nothing about Kyrgyzstan. When I say I’m from Kyrgyzstan, many ask: 'Are you from Korea?' They still think that,” Adilia added.
She shared her plans for the future:
“Right now, I work through an online platform in Moscow. My husband runs a construction company, and in the future, I would like to write a book about my life and create my own clothing brand,” she concluded.
