Rainbow on the steppes

Driving to China (ish) - Day 18

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May 18th 2015
Day 18 - Astana to Balkhash This was going to be a long day. We knew we had to register our visas with the migration police at an OVIR office within 5 days of entering the country, and we were running out of time. Registration is a throwback to the old days under communism, and exists now seemingly only through bureaucratic inertia. We had heard that it could take up to 2 days to complete t ... read more

Asia » Kazakhstan » Southern Kazakhstan

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Native Kazakhs, a mix of Turkic and Mongol nomadic tribes who migrated into the region in the 13th century, were rarely united as a single nation. The area was conquered by Russia in the 18th century and Kazakhstan became a Soviet Republic in 1936. D... ... read more