She was born in 1988 in the city of Kant, and her parents are originally from Naryn.
“I received a degree in Chinese language and accounting. I worked a bit, but after getting married, I decided to focus on the home,” Gulnur shared.
Her husband, who lived in Europe since graduating from school, studied in France. Since she was unable to obtain a visa, he stayed in Kyrgyzstan and worked as a chief specialist at the State Commission on Religious Affairs. In 2018, he passed an interview, and the whole family traveled abroad for the first time, taking their two children with them. They spent two years traveling through Myanmar, Thailand, and Bangladesh, where Gulnur gave birth to their third daughter.
Now they have settled in Zanzibar, an island in Tanzania. “Everywhere we go, we meet families of Kyrgyz, Kazakhs, Russians, Turkmen, and Tajiks. We always communicate and often visit each other,” she shared.
Gulnur noted some features of African life:
“Here, people are very laid-back and don’t worry about trivial matters. If things are going well, that’s good; if not, it’s no big deal. They live for their own enjoyment. When you start to rush them, they say, ‘Relax, don’t stress, hakuna matata.’ People here are open and always ready to meet and talk,” she said.
“I like the local transport: tuk-tuks and rickshaws. They are available everywhere, and you can quickly get to where you need to go. We also attended local weddings, where they serve just one dish and water, without extravagance,” Gulnur added.
Africans, like Kyrgyz people, love meat. The island grows many spices, but they are mostly exported, and locals prepare food quite simply—with salt and pepper.
These lands were once colonies of the Portuguese, Arabs, and English, and Zanzibar used to be a place where people were taken into slavery. This stopped only about a hundred years ago, and now the island is actively developing, attracting tourists from Europe. 95% of the local population are Muslims, while Christians predominate in the capital.
Gulnur's family has seen many amazing places and wild animals. However, the biggest problem for them abroad remains healthcare. “Every year we go back to Kyrgyzstan for medical treatment. We have health insurance, but unfortunately, we have never been satisfied with the treatment here,” she said.
Gulnur also shared some amusing stories from her life in Africa:
“A lot of interesting things happened. In Thailand, I lost my daughter at the airport; there were so many tourists,” she recalled. “I learned that if you give money to an elephant, it takes it with its trunk and thanks you with a loud sound. One time, when we were in the car with the kids, an elephant stopped right next to us. I was very scared, thinking it would trample us,” Gulnur added.
When the children grow up and enter universities, she and her husband plan to return to Kyrgyzstan. “Right now, I’m focused on the home, and my husband works as a teacher in a school and knows seven languages,” concluded the Kyrgyz woman.
