Astana, Kazakhstan to Almaty, Kazakhstan (days 10, 11, & 12)

Day 10 - January 16, 2023

Driving through Astana in the daylight for the first time, on the way to breakfast at Koktem (a coffee shop), I observed a few things. The people in this country are a rugged people. They have to be in order to survive the cold winters here. The city was made the capital of Kazakhstan just 20 years ago. So in the area I stayed the night, things seem much more modern and new. Many of the buildings were built soon after Astana became the capital. The land is very flat here and the city sprawls out across the steppe. The natural landscape looks pretty barren, without many trees and plants because of the low amount of rainfall here. Because of the low precipitation, it does not snow a ton here either, most of the snow that falls sticks around for a long time in the winter because of the cold temperatures. The Ishim River cuts through the city, dividing the older area of the city (from before the city was the capital) from the newer area. The river does not have any easy access to major bodies of water, so most of the river traffic (when it isn't frozen over for the winter) is boat tours. 

There are lots of different monuments around the city, but not any explanation in languages other than Russian or Kazakh. 

Baiterek - a monument symbolizing post-independent Kazakhstan 

Astana Opera House - completed in 2013

Khan Shatyr Entertainment Center - a shopping mall

Interior of the mall (if you look closely at the top of the tree in the center, you can see a man taking down the Christmas ornaments)

Lover's Park

Palace of Peace and Reconciliation - completed in 2006
The building now serves as a non-denominational spiritual center 

A patch of home on the frozen steppe (US Embassy)

Islam is the main religion followed in Kazakhstan. Hazrat Sultan Mosque was completed in 2012. The color scheme seems to match the flag of Kazakhstan. Similar in style to the mosques in Istanbul, however, it lacks the history and years of wear. 

Met this man Yuri the security guard at the mosque. When I first arrived, there was a prayer going on, so I had to wait to be allowed to take pictures in the front worship area for 15 minutes. I walked around in the back part of the mosque for a bit, and then Yuri called me over to sit beside him at his little security desk :D He spoke a little English and we chatted a bit. After the prayer was finished he told me it was ok now to take pictures. After I was done, he asked me to get a picture of him :D He was pretty happy with the result :)

Tis the season (still)

Monument Kazakh Eli - a monument celebrating Kazakh independence

Monument Kazakh Eli

Monument Kazakh Eli

Monument Kazakh Eli

In the early evening, Brandon and I took an hour and a half flight south to the city of Almaty. On the flight there was a younger guy who spoke English sitting next to me. He works for the Kazakh government, buying supplies from other countries for things like government vehicles that need specific parts for repairs or for maintenance. He had lived in New York City for around eight months, but because of the price increases over the last few years due to inflation, moved back to his home in Kazakhstan.

From the airport in Almaty, we took a taxi and made it to our place of stay for the night (Namaste Shalle), up near the ski resort. It is a small gated area with a few buildings scattered throughout set in the middle of the mountains. Staff were super friendly, but didn't speak any English. Google Translate was our friend here :) The place has a very distinct environment that they set up. The reception room is also the dining room, with a large table in the center. It is a dimly lit room with candles and a fireplace, surrounded by couches, in one corner. They have all sorts of local tribal artwork and decorations scattered throughout the room. After the day's travel, we fell asleep pretty quickly.

Day 11 - January 17, 2023

People here in Kazakhstan usually start their mornings later, around 9 am. We took a taxi up to the ski area after breakfast around 9:30, the earliest the taxis would come. Shymbulak ski resort is the largest in central Asia. The ski slopes overlook the sprawling city of Almaty way off in the distance below. The city is pretty smoggy though, so it can be difficult to make out on some days. Snowboarding was a blast and by the end of the day we were pretty worn out. 

Namaste Shalle

View from Namaste Shalle looking towards the ski resort which was open for night skiing

Shymbulak

Shymbulak

Shymbulak

The Americans

On the way back from the slopes for the day, we met a couple and their young daughter in the shuttle down to Namaste. Turns out they were staying there as well. The husband's name was Nic, who flies cargo planes around the world as a pilot. Originally the couple comes from Ukraine, but have lived in Bali, Indonesia and most recently are living in Hong Kong.  

Day 12 - January 18, 2023

At breakfast we happened to sit down at the reception lodge at the same time that Nic and his family were. We had some more good conversations and ended up taking a taxi back up to the ski resort together with them. 

Not a lot of snow falls here, maybe around 7 feet, so snow makers are used from time to time.

Unfortunately, Nic ended up breaking his collar bone at some point while skiing. While Nic and his wife were at the hospital, their daughter was left in the care of the people at Namaste. She must have been only six or seven years old, but she helped translate for us from Russian to English with the staff. Super great little kid! :D

Ended the day driving down from Namaste into the city to another hotel, the Resident City Hotel. We got dinner at a Korean Steakhouse which was real good. Brandon nicely cooked up the food for me :)

More sore today after another day on the slopes, we should sleep real well tonight!