Gallivanting Grandma

Saturday, November 1, 2014     Sunny 45 to 54 degrees F

Today was the first day of my second tour with Road Scholars which began in Almaty, Kazakhstan. During the previous tour, I traveled through the countries of the Caucasus Mountains: Armenia, Georgia and Azerbaijan. The scope of this tour included the countries to the east of the Caspian Sea along The Silk Road, across the five ‘Stans: Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan. China is located just 100 kilometers east of Almaty, Kazakhstan.
Our first order of business was to assemble in a conference room to meet our group leader, Batir Shamakhsudov, who reviewed general information and gave us a broad view of the tour. He was kind, friendly and helpful.

Then all 25 of us boarded a large comfortable coach to our first destination: The State Central Museum. Photography was allowed in the great lobby but not in the galleries.

Ancient Kazakh Costumes

Golden Prince Warrior 3/4 Century BC

The local guide was a pleasant patient woman who told about the regions of Kazakhstan and the history of the country. We visited two galleries: one depicting the nomadic life of Kazakhs and the other was a collection of ancient gold artifacts. The ceiling of the lobby was built to remind visitors of the interior of a yurt which were still used in many parts of Kazakhstan.

Entrance Gallery of the State Museum

Then we visited the 3800 foot hill outside Almaty called Kok Tobe to see the Tien Chen Mountain Range. We were lucky to see the magnificent snow covered peaks south of the city. It was a clear day and the tall white mountains looked like clouds in the distance. There seemed to be perpetual smog in the Almaty valley.

Tien Chen Mountains Beyond the City of Almaty

Modern City of Almaty

Large Private Houses in the City

Tien Chen Mountains

We had a tasty Kazakh lunch in a local restaurant named Assorti:

Panfilov Park was next on the agenda with its candy-colored Russian Orthodox Zenkov Cathedral. Construction was completed in 1907 and is the second tallest wooden building in the world.

Zenkov Cathedral

State Building with Bridal Parties

Soviet Statue

We continued walking through the park to the Museum of Musical Instruments. We learned about Kazakh music and especially about the ‘dombra’ – a very popular instrument.

Museum of Musical Instruments

Our last stop for the day, before returning to the hotel, was the Green Market. It was similar to covered markets in this part of the world: spices, fruits, vegetables, meats, nuts, household goods, clothing, etc. The Market was very clean and well organized and had good signs. Unfortunately, photography was not allowed inside the building.

The Green Market

Busy Entrance to the Green Market

The Official Seal of Almaty, Kazakhstan

Historically, the snow leopard has symbolic meaning for the Turkic people of Central Asia and is widely used in heraldry and as an emblem for cities and groups of people.

Friday, October 31, 2014
28 degrees F in AM – 43 F & sunny later
My room was cold last night so I requested assistance. A tall, very young handsome Asian man brought a tiny electric heater to my room. It made the room toasty and I slept soundly from seven at night to eight thirty in the morning.

Dining Room with Buffet Breakfast

I got ready and went down to breakfast in the hotel dining room for their generous buffet. Smartly dressed Asian men and women in business suits were bustling about. The ubiquitous tomatoes, cucumbers, and cheeses, which are common breakfast food in this part of the world, were offered. However, there were many other items which I did not recognize. I chose to have a blini with sour cream & jam and sliced bananas with chocolate syrup and decent coffee.

Fortified with courage, I went back to try a few other interesting looking items. The square cake on the lower left was labeled ‘cottage cheese’ and was delicious.

Eclectic Breakfast

The Road Scholar Tour was supposed to begin the next day; today was my free day. I was curious about the neighborhood around the hotel so I went out to explore. First I walked along a wide boulevard with much traffic. I stayed to the main roads so I wouldn’t get lost.

Soviet-Style Apartment Buildings

The temperature was chilly and few people walked along the avenue wearing winter coats. There were buses rolling along and a bright yellow trolley car on a wide cross-street.

Wish I Knew How to Negotiate Public Transportation

Wide Avenue With Underground Crosswalk

Soviet-Style Apartment Building

I found the money exchange office across the street and bought 9000 Kazakhstani Tenges. On my way out, I noticed a young man wearing a leather jacket, standing next to the door with a small black machine gun under his right arm. I decided against taking a photo of the exchange office and moved on.
Below are some photos I took as I walked along. Many signs were in Russian as well as Kazakh. Fewer English signs here than in Georgia and Armenia. There were few very small street signs on the corners of some buildings.

Banana Split – Cherry Cheesecake – Pies

Selling Books on the Street

I think the red letters on the sign below spell ‘Internet’ in Russian.

About 12:30 I noticed a line at a small booth on the sidewalk. Closer examination revealed a tiny bakery with a woman heating and serving baked goods. I asked a young woman standing in front if me what was good and she helped me buy a “sampsah” which turned out to be meat & potatoes in a pastry shell similar to a Cornish pastie. Not a bad lunch for 290 Tenges – about $1.59.

I also bought a couple of bottles of water in a little market near the hotel and a banana for dessert.

Mini-Market

Here are some photos of the outside of the Kazzhol Hotel:

Entrance to Kazzhol Hotel

Kazzhol Hotel

New Wing of Kazzhol Hotel

I spent the rest of the day resting up, blogging, getting organized, and watching Kazakh television. After I spoke to Jeff on FaceTime, I went down to dinner. I had one of the national dishes: Sorpa – a meat soup. I didn’t ask what kind of ‘meat’ because I didn’t want to ruin my dinner. I know they eat horse meat here and drink mare’s milk. The Sorpa was delicious and had chili pepper flakes which gave it a little kick.

Then I had “Lagman Guiru”. The waiter told me this was a national dish of the Uyghur people of western China. Lagman was also very tasty; a bit sweet and sour mixed vegetables and meat.

All in all, I had a good restful day all to myself in Almaty, Kazakhstan. I was looking forward to tomorrow when I would meet the other travelers for our journey on The Silk Road.