# Almaty, Kazakhstan Prospers on Oil Money



## hkskyline (Sep 13, 2002)

*Oil Money Flows, and City Prospers *
9 December 2007
The New York Times

ON most Friday nights in Almaty, the Uzbek-themed night spot known as the Car Wash -- an ornately decorated rooftop restaurant with enviable mountain views -- is packed with well-heeled Kazakhs smoking water pipes, drinking, dancing and eating extravagantly. Sandwiched between a residential district scheduled for rapid development and Almaty's business district, the Car Wash is not the only center of hyperactive nocturnal activity. 

Infused with newly flowing oil money, Kazakhstan's largest city is flush with nightclubs and exotic restaurants. The city's main boulevards are lined with English-language signs; boutiques sell everything from Armani to gem-encrusted Vertu cellphones, and cafes serve the latest in overpriced coffee concoctions. 

Sacha Baron Cohen's comic Borat character may have imprinted in the minds of many people a sense of ridiculousness about Kazakhstan, but there is little that is ridiculous about this sprawling business hub. Half a dozen luxury hotels are planned or under construction, including an ambitious JW Marriott Hotel opening next summer. The country's flagship carrier, Air Astana, has added international flights to cities like Hanover, Germany; Dubai; and Bangkok. Wide-bodied Airbus and Boeing jets have joined its fleet. 

In short, Almaty is no longer a hardship outpost for the diplomats and the oil industry executives who still dominate the city's visitor logs. Although the overwhelming percentage of visitors continues to be businesspeople, some have begun extending their stays to spend a weekend skiing above the Medeo winter sports complex, to visit nearby nature preserves (among them, the Charyn Canyon, which in breadth and sheer drama compares favorably to the Grand Canyon), or just to explore the city of nearly two million people. ''Almaty feels raw, sketchy, and that can be fascinating,'' said Brooke Arnao, the online video director for Money-Media, a New York publishing company, who stayed for a weekend after a conference. 

But although the forested streets and urban parks create pleasant, verdant scenes in summer, the city has little of the Silk Road charm of neighboring cities like Samarkand and Bukhara in Uzbekistan. Much of Almaty's architecture dates from the 1960s and '70s, not a celebrated time in Soviet design. Still, there are several worthwhile city pilgrimages. The Russian Orthodox church in Panfilov Park, built entirely of wood -- including the nails -- sits across from the Artisan bathhouse, an opulent Soviet vision of the old take-to-the-waters remedy. The Almaty art museum has fine examples of contemporary Kazakh art, and the carpet sellers on the ground floor sell Kazakh rugs (a 4-by-10-foot carpet runs about 73,000 tenge, or $594, at 125 tenge to the dollar.) 

But Almaty's emergence as a tourist destination is just beginning. There are few ''official'' taxis. Some museums are dilapidated. Many local tour operators, like David Berghof of Stantours, focus on the city as the best gateway to a Silk Road tour. ''Almaty has become a convenient starting point,'' he said, ''with a well-functioning infrastructure.'' 

For those who do stick around, encounters with the city's polyglot population will bring them in contact with the legacy of the Soviet gulag -- many of Almaty's residents are the descendants of the sprawling prison system, a good part of which was built in Kazakhstan. Striving immigrants from other Central Asian countries work in cafes and stores, and the city's restaurants reflect its diverse population. Fragrant Uighur cuisine is informed in equal parts by Uighur's roots in western China and its ethnic connections to Turkey. Numerous restaurants offer excellent interpretations of ethnic Russian and Ukrainian cuisines, and a lamb and noodle dish called beshbarmak is a good introduction to the country's more regional nomadic kitchen. 

Meanwhile, the bulk of Kazakhstan's oil reserves have yet to be tapped. What will this incipiently wealthy country look like in 10 years' time -- the Dubai of Central Asia, perhaps?


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## maxxam80 (Apr 6, 2003)

thanks for the article

I bet the corruption stinks with the government


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## Libra (Jun 3, 2006)

I have a friend who went there to teach english a few months ago but I haven't heard from her lately, but I want to know what she thinks of the country after being there. I always had a strange fascination with this country.


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## Evertraveller (Nov 23, 2006)

Go Visit our Section!


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## Purple Dreams (Jan 31, 2007)

Libra said:


> I have a friend who went there to teach english a few months ago but I haven't heard from her lately, but I want to know what she thinks of the country after being there. *I always had a strange **fascination with this country*.


me too


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## AltinD (Jul 15, 2004)

^^ Yes, his sister too.


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## OWT-75 (Dec 26, 2007)

csb07 said:


> Borat is from there??


but he lives in London...


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## melbguy (Jan 23, 2007)

R.I.P. Borat


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## luv2bebrown (Nov 4, 2004)

AltinD said:


> ^^ Yes, his sister too.


his sister is no.2 prostitute there


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## TallBox (Sep 21, 2002)

I am greatest fan of Kazakhstan's national sport - Shurek - where dog is taken into a field and shot.


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## Major Deegan (Sep 24, 2005)

*Instant weekend: Almaty*

Lucy Kelaart
The Guardian, UK
October 21 2007

http://www.guardian.co.uk/travel/2007/oct/21/kazakhstan.shortbreaks










*Why go now?*

Kazakhstan may not be the first place that springs to mind when looking for a weekend break, but its former capital, Almaty, is about to become the ultimate destination for an edgy escape. New direct flights with BMI start this month and November sees the launch of a new guidebook, A Hedonist's Guide to ... Almaty and Astana, showing Almaty, nearly 2,000 miles south east of Moscow, to be the new cultural and party capital of Central Asia.

*Checking in*

If you want to be in the centre of old Almaty, head for the Grand Tien Shan Hotel in the neo-classical building of the former Ministry of Geology, which has beautiful mountain views (00 7 727 244 9600; ts-hotels.kz; doubles from £150). From mid-2008 you can stay at the JW Marriott Hotel Almaty (marriott.com) in the new 38-storey Esentai Park Tower on Al-Farabi Avenue, set to become the country's chicest address.










Esentai Park, the future site for the JW Marriott Hotel Almaty, under construction in December 2007

*(Additional highrise projects in Almaty: Visit Kazakhstan's Urban Section on SSC)*

*Hit the streets*

The Zelyonni (Green) Bazaar is the best place in town to experience 'Central Asia'. Opposite, at the bottom of Dostyk Avenue, there's an informal flea market where you can pick up Soviet-era household items and antiques for next to nothing. Almaty's Central Public Baths, the Arasan Banya, are a truly local haunt, and the perfect way to relax on a winter's day, when temperatures can fall as low as -15C. Choose between Russian, Finnish or Turkish baths, or a large steam room with wood-panelled walls, where you can beat yourself with birch branches.









Arasan Baths -sauna complex. 









Arasan Baths -sauna complex. 

*Coffee break*

Kazakhstan is a nation of tea drinkers, but the hottest place in town for a 'jumbo latte' is Coffeedelia (79 Kabanbai Batyr Street; 00 7 727 272 6409) - coffee shop by day and hangout for the children of the new elite at night. More sophisticated, and only a block away, is L'Affiche (83 Kabanbai Batyr Street; 00 7 727 272 1092) with its postcard-perfect views of the Opera and Ballet Theatre opposite. Our favourite is the homely 4A Coffee (81 Zhibek Zholy Street; 00 7 727 273 1181).

*Neighborhood watch*

Walk along the streets of Valikhanov, Tulebaev or Baisetov in Old Almaty after a snowfall for one of the most peaceful experiences the city has to offer. Plaques on the buildings commemorate well-known figures - artists, writers, politicians and scientists - who lived there during Soviet times. 









Nurly Tau, a 130-meter office complex, is designed to reflect on surrounding snowy pikes

*(More Almaty's Cityscape Photos)*

*Everyone's talking about*

Following Central Asia's first pavilion at the Venice Biennale in 2005, video art has emerged as the latest form of artistic expression. Artists such as Almagul Menlibaeva, Sasha Ugai and Said Atabekov follow in the tradition of Rustam Khalfin, the father of contemporary art in Kazakhstan, whose work is currently being exhibited at the White Space Gallery in London (until 10 November). See works at the Soros Centre (Block B, Sector 110, Alem 2, Dostyk Street; 00 7 727 320 1203) or Tengri Umai Gallery (103 Panfilov Street; 00 7 727 258 1152; tu.kz).

*Retail therapy*

The Sadu Concept Store (Samal 3/25 Mercur Town; 00 7 727 271 6865) on Al-Farabi is a great place to shop - check out fashions from Aida Kaumenova's trendy ready-to-wear collection, plus Aigul Kassymova's studio on the corner of Kabanbai Batyr and Pushkin Streets.

*Worked up an appetite*

Start the night with a shot of vodka or a long drink at Vogue Bar (11 Satpaev Street; 00 7 727 264 1699) or Posh (Samal 3/25 Mercur Town; 00 7 27 266 3996) before moving on to one of two new fusion restaurants: Boudoir (134 Bogenbai Batyr Street; 00 7 727 272 5555), whose head chef comes hot from Lotus One in Dubai, or Naoro (17 Abai Avenue; 00 7 727 291 1145), run by the former Maitre d' of Nobu in London. Zheti Kazyna's (58a Ablai Khan Avenue; 00 7 727 273 2587) has traditional Kazakh, Uzbek, Uighur and Dungan food. The Kazakh national dish of besparmak, made with horse meat and ribbons of pasta, is delicious, as are the samsa (dough parcels) with spinach, sorrel and cheese. PBC is a fun Soviet-style diner at 103 Furmanov.









Dancers in the Alasha Restaurant









Kishlak Restaurant serves traditional Kazakh food 









Lexus, Petroleum, and a Traditional Mural: A sign of changing times

*The big nigh out*

Serious clubbers head for Da Freak (40 Gogol Street; 00 7 727 273 1337; dafreakclub.com) in Panfilov Park which features local and international DJs. For decadence and glamour, follow the local elite to Euphoria (29/6 Satpaeva; 00 7 727 226 1808). Locals dance to live jazz, Latino, reggae and African drums late into the night at weekends at Bar Cuba (102 Bogenbai Batyr Street; 00 7 727 291 2932).









Two women relaxing against the wall at night club Tornado




























*(More Almaty night life photos)*

*Escape the city*

The mountain resort of Chimbulak (chimbulak.com ), just 25 minutes' drive south of Almaty, offers the best skiing in Kazakhstan. The Talgar Pass peaks at 3,163m, and there are magnificent views. You could also stop off at Medeo Ice Rink (00 7 727 271 6217) which claims to be one of the highest in the world, at 1,691m.









Medeu, world's highest ice rink(and one of the world's classiest for that matter) , is located just 15 minutes from the city boundaries in Tian-Shan mountain range 









Skier at ski hill Shymbulak 20 minutes outside of Almaty.




























*(More Shymbulak Photos)*


*Getting there*

Direct nine-hour flights to Almaty from Heathrow are available from 29 October with BMI (flybmi.com) and cost from £606 return, including taxes and charges. They are available three times a week, on Monday, Thursday and Saturday. Or fly from Heathrow via Frankfurt from £480 with Lufthansa (0870 837 7747; lufthansa.com).

· A Hedonist's Guide to... Almaty and Astana, by Lucy Kelaart and Summer Coish is published in November for £13.99. See hg2.com. To order a copy for £12.99 with free UK p&p, go to observer.co.uk/bookshop or call


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## Major Deegan (Sep 24, 2005)

Clicking the pictures will take you to bigger sizes hosted on Flickr.com


Almaty's Southern Skyline


Almaty's Southern Skyline









Almaty's 345m TV tower set on the top of Kok-Tobe mountain 










New Year's Day Celebration is met with colorful fireworks, huge parties on the city streets, and [lots of alcohol if you ask me]


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## urbanfan89 (May 30, 2007)

Those pictures remind me of Vancouver...only without the sea.


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