Kazakhstan, its real big

The sledge-hammer of a stamp falls, and in an emotionless Russian accent, “welcome to Kazakhstan” sound more like a prison sentence than true welcoming. This however could not be further from how we felt the entire stay. We were lucky to couchsurf with a fantstic duo, David and Ali. They both grew up in small towns out in the country side, but moved to Almaty (the former capital) to pursue their careers. They work in the fashion industry and to put it mildly, were much trendier than ourselves. We hit the town, which turns out to be extremely hip and easily the most modern city we had been in since leaving Amsterdam 4 months earlier. Almaty actually reminded me a lot of Portland, filled with green spaces, trees, and a laid-back atmosphere. Unfortunately, we arrived in Kazakhstan a bit later than anticipated so our visa only had about 2 weeks left, so we jumped on a train to head north and visit our friend Joe who we had met back in Azerbaijan.

Our wonderful host, David!

Our host served us wine and cheese, in bed! Talk about classy

Kazakhstan is the largest landlocked country in the world, and it became glaringly apparent after traveling the 24 hours from Almaty to Astana (the current capital). While still in Almaty, Ali told us it takes him 3 non-stop days by train to visit his hometown, and therefore only does so once a year. We stepped off the train around 7am and were rendered breathless due to the frigid, frigid cold of the steppe. We expected it to be colder, but this was truly a shock to the system as there is nothing to protect you from the Siberian winds. Our gracious and enthusiastic host met us and immediately after dropping off our bags, whisked us off into the frozen city for a morning tour.

Joe put up with our shenanigans, a feat in negative temperatures

The self-proclaimed President-For-Life of Kazakhstan was born in Astana, so naturally it was decided that the capital should no longer be Astana (the cultural and economic heart of the country) but should be this once village set thousands of kilometers from any other town in the far north. The president-For-Life then gave free-reign and boat loads of money for architects to design the buildings of their dreams. What has developed is a a conglomeration of futuristic, fantasy style structures, in the literal middle of nowhere.

The presidential palace and big gold shiny buildings

We accidentally got on the bus going the wrong direction and ended up on the edge of town, and that is exactly what it was, the edge. Suddenly the pavement stops and there are no more structures to be seen, nothing but endless steppe. We spent a couple of days marveling at the buildings, which included the world's largest tent: housing a 4 story mall complete with mono-rail, a beach and water-slides. A building that looked like a giant bird's nest, complete with golden egg, held several stories up by a white-lattice elevator shaft. You can ride the elevator to the top, where while gazing towards the Presidential Palace can place your hand in a mold of the President's. Buildings that looked like books splayed open, and a pyramid made of stain-glass windows, and when you catch the light just right, you can see the doves that have been etched into them. This was easily the weirdest and most baffling city I have ever visited – or seen pictures of for that matter. It does seem fitting though, doesn't it? I mean, Kazakhstan....

World's largest tent

The "golden egg," Kazakstan's national symbol

The top three floors is an atrium with plants growing out of the walls

We took a day trip out to a lake, a famous vacationing spot of the President. You would never have guessed though, as walking up and down the main drag, not a single store, cafe, or hotel was open. Night was quickly approaching, and the temperature beginning to drop, making us a bit nervous and unsure of our self-warming abilities if it came to sleeping under a stoop. We began knocking on doors, and buzzing doorbells in search of a homestay. Finally, we were welcomed in by a man that was visiting his mother (who we would stay with). She cooked us a nice meal and we slept well in her warm home, but even with her kindness decided to leave the next day – after a quick hike around the lake of course.

Our other side trip was on Halloween to a former gulag (soviet prison-camp). The Soviet Union decided that the wives and children of the men they had arrested as political prisoners were also threat, so this gulag was set up for their detainment. It gave us a very real understanding of what it would have been like to be a prisoner there, as we battled the Siberian winds just to make it into the building. Though we weren't able to celebrate Halloween in proper fashion, we were given a chilling experience, insert bad joke about the weather.

Kumus, the national drink - fermented mare's milk, its not good

Once again we traveled the long, long distance back to Almaty and boarded a bus bound for China, marking the end to our central Asian experience and the beginning of part two: Katie and Kim attempt to speak Chinese.