The Five Stans Tour - Kazakhstan

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5-9-16 Our flight from Guangzhou crossed most of China before changing planes in Urumqi to arrive at Almaty in Kazakhstan at 8.30pm. Officially called the republic of Kazakhstan, it is the world's largest land locked country, with a land area larger than Western Europe. Our hotel the Rixos was more luxurious than we expected and we enjoyed a late supper in the beautiful lounge chatting with one of our fellow travellers.

6-9-16 in the morning we discovered Almaty has a great views of the Tian Shan Mountains, our guide told us Almaty is known as the cultural and commercial hub of Kazakhstan. Literally meaning 'rich with apples' the former capital is known as the 'Garden City' for its large parks and the alpine vistas of the Tian Shan Mountains that surround it.

Our first stop was the Ascension Cathedral, completed in 1907 and built completely without nails. The cathedral survived the 1911 earthquake which some bishops attributed to divine invention, but the credit should of been given to the advanced anti earthquake design invented and used by the architect.

With a warm Autumn day we enjoyed walking around Panfilov park to explore the sculptures dedicated to the soldiers from Almalty who died fighting to protect Moscow from the Nazis. At the nearby musical instrument museum three musicians provided a private concert for our group, they played traditional instruments including the Dombra, a two stringed lute. Late moring we drove up into the Medeu Valley where we took the cable car up the the Shymbulak ski resort, we enjoyed lunch sitting outside in the sunshine, we certainly hadn't expected to be visiting a ski resort in Almaty.

Kazakhstan we learnt was the last of the Soviet republics to declare independence following the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991. Since independence, the Kazakh government has allowed foreign investment and the development of significant oil and gas reserves have subsequently brought a large amount of wealth, making Kazakhstan a middle-income country. As a result of this we are told it is the most economically advanced of the "Stans"

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