Blogs from Almaty, East Kazakhstan, Kazakhstan, Asia

Prave jsme v oblasti okolo mesta Almaty. Cesta pres Petropavlovsk, Astanu do Almaty nas vedla zajimavou stepi, skalnimi utvary, kolem jezera a poslednich zhruba 700km od jezera Balkas uz byla jen rovna step. Kazakhstan je 9ta nejvetsi zeme sveta a osidleni prakticky zadne. Hlavni mesto Astana je moderni metropole, ktera vsak postrada historii. Spousta modernich budov, vkusna architektura, ale to ja tak asi vse. Almaty je oproti tomu hezke zelene mesto plne zivota na upati vecne zasnezenych hor. Zde je videt, ze mesto zije, spousta obchudku, bazaru, trhu, lide ziji na ulici. Cestou jsme se vykoupali v jezeru Balchas, v nemz je v casti voda sladka, a v druhe casti slana. Lide jsou zde prijemni, ale s ruskou pohostinosti se to neda srovnat. V rusku i cizi clovek byl vic nez pratelsky, zde je uz videt ... read more

As the plane landed I felt genuine trepidation. “Why the hell am I in Kazakhstan?!”. This question with the subject changing from time to time to another “stan” was to become a recurring theme of this trip. As I stepped through the plane doors, away from the safety of the BMI flight, I was confronted with sight of what can only be described as a “North Korea-esque” soldier. I felt like getting right back on the plane. Alas this culture shock was short lived. The streets of Almaty are paved with petro-dollars. Once a Soviet backwater, pre-Borat Kazakhstan was best known as Stalin’s destination of choice for troublesome minorities from Germans to Koreans. A gas fuelled boom has transformed the country. I was arriving at an ungodly hour so I booked accommodation and a transfer from ... read more

This is a story of the peril of potholes and the immense kindness of Kazakh people. Although it is also the tale of my holiday adventures with Joan and Nikki it is the people we met and who helped us that are most important. The stupid cinema stereotypes that have maligned Kazakhstan and its people bear no resemblance to the openness, intelligence, generosity and kindness of Kazakhs in their home country. Almaty to Turkestan by train At last it was time for me to have a short break from work as Nikki and Joan, friends from the UK, came over to join me in Kazakhstan. When they finally woke from their 3am arrival, I took them into Almaty for a breakfast of coffee and pancakes. We were looking forward to exploring some of southern Kazakhstan including ... read more

Hicran Çiğdem Yorgancıoğlu ‘nun Kazakhstan Devr-i Alem Hicri Alem Hicran Çiğdem Seyahatnamesi’nden ..seyahat notlarından alıntılardır . Her hakkı saklıdır .. / Eserin tüm telif hakları H.Çiğdem Yorgancıoğlu’na aittir . Eserin izinsiz kopyalanması çoğaltımı ,yayını ,dağıtımı halinde 5846 sayılı Fikir ve Sanat Eserleri Kanunun hükümleri geçerli olacaktır. Hicran Çiğdem Yorgancıoğlu ‘nun Kazakhstan Devr-i Alem Hicri Alem Hicran Çiğdem Seyahatnamesi’nden ..seyahat notlarından alıntılardır . Her hakkı saklıdır .. / Eserin tüm telif hakları H.Çiğdem Yorgancıoğlu’na aittir . Eserin izinsiz kopyalanması çoğaltımı ,yayını ,dağıtımı halinde 5846 sayılı Fikir ve Sanat Eserleri Kanunun hükümleri geçerli olacaktır. Hicran Çiğdem Yorgancıoğlu ‘nun Kazakhstan Devr-i Alem Hicri Alem Hicran Çiğdem Seyahatnames... read more

Hmmmm.... where to start? I guess our first point of entry into Central Asia would be good. Kazakhstan- After 7 days awaiting a visa, an overnight in a border town and 5 hours at immigration, we were granted permission to leave China. Getting into Kazakhstan was easy in comparison, a smile, a salam and a stamp. Another couple of bus rides later and we arrived in Almaty. Oh Almaty, so lovely and gridded and not overcrowded. In between doing silly bureaucratic stuff, such as registering with the local police and obtaining visas for continued travel, we strolled the streets and well manicured parks and ate doner kebab and fries daily. Our first stop in Central Asia was a great one, the people very helpful, the food tasty, the city lay out easy to navigate and the ... read more

I had no plan about tour in Almaty at all. The only reason I’m here is to apply my Uzbeki and Kyrgyz visas. I reserved 5 workings days for it. Out of my expectation, I got both on a day, through an annoying, inefficient, chaotic, and suspicious corrupt procedure. The remaining days were full of upset. I lived in a typical old-fashion Russian hotel full of moisture and oldness. Only few lodgers lived here, at nightfall, the silent hallway under the dim lamp is somewhat creepy. As well as Russian style, the rooms are like cells, and here is a gloomy jail. I can’t speak Russian, stayed in a place nobody talk with is depressed. I got in an outdoor restaurant in a Commercial strip and pointed to the picture above to indicate what I ... read more