Kazakhstan

The ninth largest country in the world is nestled smack dab in the middle of the Asian continent. Recently made famous by the film "Borat". It is quite as the film depicts. Actually, Kazakhstan would be more at place in Eastern Europe. From economic, social and cultural points of view, it has very little in common with it's 'Stan brethren. It's cities are more modern, and it can be a challenge to find people speaking Kazakh. Still, if in the area, it has a few things worth checking out.

The former capital of Kazakhstan, Almaty, is still the country's largest city. I arrived here in $8 shared taxi from Bishkek in Kyrgyzstan. I met up with a couchsurfer with who I had pre-arranged to stay with. After dropping off my bags, and exchanging nice-ities, I headed off for a bit of touristing before sunset. First on the list was the central Panfilov Park. Easily one of the best things to see in the city. It's everything a park should be, playing children, teens eating each others faces, adults getting drunk on cheap vodka and old men engaged in battles of chess. And all of this surrounds an old orthodox church, distantly related to St. Basil's in Moscow. It's totally worth trying to catch a service here, although photos aren't allowed.


Other than that, there isn't really much touristy stuff to see and do in Almaty. I went to the Arasan Banya (bath house) just out side the park. It's terribly overrated and overpriced. From there I headed to the centre of town where there's a cable car up to Kok Tobe, where you can overlook the city. I suggest cable car up ($7) and bus down ($2). Once back into the city it was a short walk to Republic Square to view a statue of the "Golden Man", the unofficial symbol of Kazakhstan. Just around the corner was the Central State Museum. Remarkably well organized and displayed. There are excellent exhibits from prehistoric times to present day flora and fauna. The one catch though, there isn't much English. But it's still worth the admission. So after a quick trip to the Turkmenistan Consulate to start processing of my transit visa, I hopped on a train northbound.

The 21-hour train, on which I took the cheapest class, finally arrived in the new Kazakh capital of Astana. While there has always been a city there, it was the president's surprise decision about 10 years ago to move the capital here, that has led to an architectural explosion in the city. Everything is brand new in more ways than one. Not only is it all recently built, but the buildings are cutting edge architecture, lending a 21st century feel to the place. So after meeting up with another couchsurfer, I went to check it out. At the centre of it all is the Bayterek Tower. The story goes a giant bird presented an egg, full of the hopes and dreams of all mankind, but placed the egg just out reach in a nest perched in a tree. Although, nowadays you can just take an elevator ride up to the top for great views over the city. It's not so expensive, and I'd recommend it.



Truth be told, I visited the city a couple of years too early. The majority of the newest and coolest building are still under construction. There are a few to check out, but the city doesn't quite live up to the hype yet. But while I was there I checked out the UFO like circus with nearby tacky golden statue of a performer.









There are a couple of other cool, completed, buildings to check out. There's a new modern mosque with a great asto-trippy ceiling. A copy of one of Stalin's skyscrappers which you can see in Moscow (and there's one in Warsaw). And of course there's the parliament.









That being said, my favourite thing in Astana is, by far, the aquarium. That's right, an aquarium a bigillion kilometres from the nearest sea. Not only is it cool for it's lack of proximity to the sea, but it is actually very well designed and the underwater walkway has all the locals, including the adults, squealing with giddiness.
It came time to leave Astana and head back to the south. With a long journey ahead, I met up with yet another couchsurfer in the city of Karanganda. It was a nice enough city, but not worth stopping to see. The next morning I tried to get transport through the centre of Kazakhstan to Kyzlorda. Turns out there was no direct bus or train so a combination was in order. Whatever!! An overnight bus to some city in the middle led to an effortless connection to Kyzlorda. The scenery was boring as .... well... something that's really boring. Steppe certainly is not the most exciting of geographical features. Once in Kyzlorda, some 24+ hours later, I again connected to my actual destination of Aralsk.

Aralsk is the centre of the greatest ecological disaster ever perpetuated by man. A Soviet era scheme to irrigate the steppe to cultivate cotton required the damming of several crucial rivers which fed the Aral Sea. Without a lifeblood of water, the sea quickly dried up causing a destruction of a thriving fishing industry, leading to life-threatening local health problems and creating a new, and very extreme, micro climate with hotter summers and colder winters. And after a day and a half of continuous travelling I was surprisingly not welcomed with a big hug. I arrived at some ungodly hour. As I couldn't arrange a homestay at that time, I was forced to stay in the only hotel in town. I bargained them down to about half of the original $30 asking price, retired to my simple room and passed out on my bed that sagged like an old beaten mule.

In the morning I tried to find some sort of transport that could take me the 70+Km to the new shore of the Sea and its nearby "ship graveyard". The tourist centre in town was asking $100. Exploration of the market found there was no local transport and the drivers there were asking similar prices for jeeps. As a single, budget traveller, it was just TOO much. So I decided to explore the former harbour located just outside the hotel. This led to a canal which was built as a last ditch effort to reach the sea. And to my delight i found plenty of old rusting ships to satisfy my morbid curiosity. Plus I didn't have to shell out the $100, yeah me!!

With all the death and carnage adequately photographed, it was off to the train station to try to get out of town. No trains! Luckily, all the overnight buses also leave from the train station. So i hopped on the first one heading to my next destination, Turkistan.

The city of Turkistan is blessed with Kazakhstan's greatest architectural wonder, the mausoleum of Khoja Ahmed Yasawi. It is similar to those seen in Samarkand or Bukhara in Uzbekistan, just not nearly as ornate. Opting for a little luxury, I checked into the nicest hotel in town, which was only $30. IT HAD A TV!! It was also near the mausoleum, so I was quick to check it out. The guide book said something about admission price, but I found no such thing. Free! Yeah, me!!There are a couple of small buildings to check out on the site, including a small medressa (school), a partially underground mosque, and camels. But that's about it. Oh, and there's a small market near the bus station, which is a great place to grab munchies and fast-food-type snacky things. Ummm... yeah that's it.

On my way back to Almaty to pick up my Turkmen visa (remember the visa?) I stopped in the cities of Shymknet and Taraz. While both cities were modern enough with most major amenities, they had absolutely nothing to offer the average traveller. Not recommended!

Once back in Almaty, I met up with yet another couchsurfer. Hopes of having my visa finished on time were unrealistic. However, the consul was nice enough to finish it on Saturday, which is normally not a working day. Hmmm... Turkmen politicians are nice, who knew? So with the last visa my current passport will see (it's full and i need a new one). I said goodbye to Kazakhstan and headed off to Uzbekistan. But that's another story...

TIPS - Long distances + expensive hotels + boring scenery = Night travel. Trains have quite comfortable sleeping cars. There are 3 classes to suit personal comfort and privacy needs. Buses are cheaper and faster but not nearly as comfortable.

Don't bother stocking up on food before a train ride. There are lengthy stop every few hours where local women ambush the train selling typical Central Asian food.

When exchanging money, don't take anything bigger than 2,000 Tenge. The large bills are a pain to change.

That being said don't underestimate the value of coins. The 100 Tenge coin is almost $1. That's worth more than the largest bill in Uzbekistan.

Bargain at any hotel that doesn't have it's price list immediately visible (especially Aralsk).

My View - As Kazakhstan continues to distance itself from its Central Asian neighbours, it also loses it's cultural distinctiveness. While Kazakh is the main language in the south, in the cities and in the north Russian is taking over as lingua franca. It is rare to see any traditional dress in the cities. It is westernizing at an exponential rate.

While traditions are still visible during ceremonies like wedding, the average tourist is unlikely to see this. And the nomadic life, the defining characteristic of the Kazakh people, is now just a tourist attraction.

However, for the quality of life of Kazakh people this is all good. Even with a "dictator" like president, they have freedoms, both financial and expression, that put the other 'Stans to shame. It is clear that the future of Kazakhstan is bright. Having some of the largest oil and gas reserves in the world doesn't hurt!

In general, I find Kazakhstan lacks any significant attractions. The mountains in the South-west (not visited on this trip) pale in comparison to the other ranges in the area. An underground mosque in the west not visited) offers a chance at hard-core travelling. If you're in the area, have lots of extra time and money, Kazakhstan's worth the visit, if nothing more than to use as a contrast to surrounding countries. But if you're at all limited by time or finances, you much better off focusing on ANY other neighbouring country.