Photos - Central Asia 2009
In 2009 it was time to tour the Central Asian countries Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan. It was our wish to also include Tajikistan in the programme but limited time made this impossible, so we will need to go there another time. We spend a whole month in Central Asia with many highlights and unforgettable experiences. Also see the photo pages for the four countries with more photos from this beautiful part of the world.
We started in the Kazakh capital Astana from where we drove to Semipalatinsk-16, the test side were the first Soviet atom bomb was detonated. From the test side we drove to Karkaralinsk trough the steppes and then Karaganda the centre of the Karlag, the Kazakh part of the Gulag. We ended the journey trough Kazakhstan in Almaty the former capital of the country. From Almaty we took a taxi to Bishkek the capital of Kyrgyzstan, were we already had a hotel room booked. After two days in Bishkek we drove to Ala Archa National Park the Tian Shan mountains, from were we hiked in the beautiful nature. We ended our stay in Kyrgyzstan on Lake Issyk-Kul were we spend a couple of day’s in a beach resort to have some relax time. We would spend most time of our Central Asia tour in Uzbekistan, were we stayed in Tashkent, Khiva, Bukhara and Samarkand. Highlight in Uzbekistan was a camp trip to the shores of the Aral Sea. The final country we visited was Turkmenistan, were we visited Ashgabat and Merv after driving trough the Karakum desert. Our holiday in Central Asia was an unforgettable experience that we can recommend to everybody!
Dusseldorf - KD Avia B-737
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Germany
Dusseldorf
02-Jul-2009
Boarding the KD Avia Boeing 737 to Astana via Kaliningrad
Astana - Presidential palace
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Kazakhstan
Astana
02-Jul-2009
Ak Orda Presidential Palace home of President Nazarbayev
Astana - Bayterek tower
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Kazakhstan
Astana
02-Jul-2009
Bayterek Tower, the symbol of Astana the new Kazakh capital
Astana - Astana city centre
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Kazakhstan
Astana
02-Jul-2009
Bayterek Tower in the centre of newly build area of Astana
Astana - Astana city centre
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Kazakhstan
Astana
02-Jul-2009
Office and government buildings on Astana’s new Main Square
Astana - Astana city centre
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Kazakhstan
Astana
02-Jul-2009
Brand new apartment buildings on Astana’s new main square
Astana - Astana city centre
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Kazakhstan
Astana
02-Jul-2009
Astana’s The golden twin towers called The ministries houses
Astana - Pyramid of peace
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Kazakhstan
Astana
02-Jul-2009
The Pyramid of Peace by famous British architect Norman Foster
Astana - Triumph of Astana
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Kazakhstan
Astana
02-Jul-2009
The Stalinist style Triumph of Astana apartment building
Astana - Khan Shatyry
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Kazakhstan
Astana
02-Jul-2009
Sketch of what the Khan Shatyry wall look like when finished
Astana - Khan Shatyry
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Kazakhstan
Astana
02-Jul-2009
Construction side of Norman Foster’s Khan Shatyry pyramid
Astana - Central mosque
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Kazakhstan
Astana
02-Jul-2009
Worshippers around Astana’s Central Mosque build in 2008
Alzhir - Alzhir Prison Camp Memorial
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Kazakhstan
Alzhir
02-Jul-2009
Alzhir Prison Camp for Wives memorial in central Kazakhstan
Alzhir - Alzhir prison camp memorial
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Kazakhstan
Alzhir
02-Jul-2009
Names of people that have died in the Kazakh prison camps
Leninsk - UAZ-452
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Kazakhstan
Leninsk
02-Jul-2009
Our Kazakh guide Vitali who was friendly and knowledgeable
Related articles
In 2009 we raced trough the Kazakhstan steppes with a UAZ 4x4 car visiting Astana, Kurchatov, Karkaralinsk, Karaganda and Almaty
In 2010 Kyrgyzstan made the news with violence and riots, during our visit in 2009 it was still a peaceful country with beautiful nature
Photos of our 2009 visit of Turkmenistan, the land with stunning deserts, ancient Muslim monuments and golden statues
We spend two weeks of our 2009 Central Asia tour in Uzbekistan visiting places like Samarkand, Khiva, Buhkara and the Aral Sea
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