As requested a little while back on this thread, I want to briefly report back on my trip to
Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan.
I think maybe the quick thing to say is this - don't bother. I have also come back with an appalling stomach bug and my wife isn't exactly 100 percent either. The food was almost always disgusting. When you say, 'I could eat a horse' . . . believe me, you will. We left home fit and healthy and we have come back wrecked. I have lost half a stone and I'm not someone with flesh to spare.
The distances are vast. We found the long bus trips fascinating if exhausting. The landscape was often dramatic if not quite wow factor. I loved the flat vastness of the steppe. Reminded me a bit of home in Norfolk, UK. Probably like Kansas, too.
Most of the time it seemed the collapse of the Soviet Union hadn't happened at all. Once a commie country, always a commie country. It's still there in the mindset of the people and the way the countries are governed. The old Soviet-style apartment blocks are everywhere.
I did enjoy the cities. Anyone with a taste in trophy modern architecture should head for Astana. It's trying hard to be Dubai. Almaty is the former Kazakh capital and has lots of atmosphere. We loved the Kyrgyz capital of Bishkek. Lots to see there, including a huge statue of V I Lenin looking at the parliament building. Whenever I find a statue of Lenin I say, 'You couldn't have been more wrong.'
As for the hotels, well . . . only two worth noting. The Ambassador in Bishkek was very pleasant, a classic European, boutique-style place with excellent contemporary rooms. In Almaty we stayed at the Intercontinental which is a genuine five-star and was a blessed relief from the terrible places we stayed out in the countryside.
Oh, as a special aside for
bhrubin, at our hotel in Astana, even with a window open and outside temperatures of 10c, we could never get our room temp down below 26c. They do that as winter approaches.
I'm pleased to have gone to these places. Like
Macmyday and his super-luxury disappointments, I feel good about doing all this research for you.
I think Uzbekistan is probably the 'stan to go for in terms of major sightseeing but even there it's pretty undeveloped.
