Here are a few more photos from Kazakhstan …
Kazakhstan is the world’s 9th biggest country. Most of it is made up of ‘steppes’ like this.
…
So when you see a guy like this on the road … you stop to chat.
He sells fish he caught in a small lake nearby. He has also smoked the fish.
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Kazakhstan’s two big cities stand in strong contrast. Astana is the brand-new glitsy capital (we didn’t get to) and Almaty is the bigger economic hub (above).
These two cities get all the oil money …
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There are a lot of ‘gated communities’ living in the south of Almaty, like this …
… and this …
But most folk live like this …
… and this …
And all over there is evidence of industry.
We find this park in the town of Semey. It has a curious collection of 15 communist statues, mostly Lenins.
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Look at the backdrop of an apartment block.
Look at ‘wee’ Harry at Lenin’s foot!
We stay in some ‘crazy’ places. Here, in the town of Usharal, we stay in the only hotel. It overlooks this …
… and Harry promptly ‘collapses’ on the ‘unmade’ bed in our room! We ended up sleeping on the floor rather than on this crippled bed.
In Almaty, just outside our window, madams peddle their girls till the sun comes up!
Here we also have our first pizza in 4 months. THIS is a huge disappointment. It weighs about 3 kg and is all stodge!
In Semey we experience our first of many typical Soviet-era hotels. They have changed little since …
Pre-‘perestroika and glasnost’ surly ladies manage the reception. We are too terrified to take a photo of them.
Each floor is managed by a ‘floor’ lady. We are also too terrified to take a photo of them. They check your room before you are allowed to leave.
Here is the passageway to the rooms.
… and another …
The furniture is always old but the rooms are always clean.
We get this meal from a hotel canteen when we arrive late one evening. It is buckwheat and a mince patty with mayonnaise on top. It helps if you are hungry …
Sometimes all ablutions (showers and toilets for all rooms) are in the basement.
This is a shower cubicle.
A building method employed by Soviets was to put up concrete framework first and then to fill it in with bricks. This left many incomplete … like our balcony here …
Harry is at the room end of our incomplete balcony (there is no door, we climb through the window).
I’m at the far end of the incomplete balcony.
And look at (somebody else’s) mess on the incomplete balcony between us! The used condoms even have their opened packets.
And every night I make sure that Harry doesn’t slip away under cover of darkness.
I hope that you brought your shower shoes!
May be put up with a little more care, but these blocks look very much like the post war ‘wyke’ put up in The Netherlands. Pluto Straat 30, where linda and Stella were born was on the 2nd floor of a 4 floors high block.
The climate there is more forgiving than that of the places you visited, but in the end it is the people living there that make it livable. Jan and Gail
Judging form the look of those Communist era apartments, we are not doing that badly at Walmer Link. But hey you give a whole new meaning to slumming it. You brave people. I think you both desreve a luxury holiday after this.
Hi Harold & Linda hope you enjoying your trip your photos are amazing. Happy 50th Birthday today Harold hope
hope you have a good one. Love Colin & Debbie
Very nice to be travelling with you guys, were are we going next? :-)
Ok, I see my message did go through as “anonymous” … :-)
Back to (some sort) of civilisation. Amazing how big Lenin / Stalin still feature in these part of the world. And o ja – Happy birthday Harry! Hope you find some equavalent of “Crackling Auto Harvest” to celebrate. Rgds , Nod’s
eish – some of these places look very serious, like you don’t want to end up in trouble in this part of the world!
I can see from these large towns why you rather stay out in the rural areas.
Your trip must make unexpected turns every day. Glad your bikes are holding together nicely now. Enjoy.
Very Nice!!!
What a strange strange world we are living in! globe of contrast!