Almaty, Almaty Province, Kazakhstan
I wasnt able to check in to my hotel till after 2pm so was going to spend time midday exploring more of the city. Walking from the hotel I was making my way to Republic Square.
Near the hotel is a cable car you can take up to an amusement area and city views but I opted to skip. A few blocks away was Republic Square.
I thought this was be a large paved square for gatherings but this was a city park. Making my way around the Presidential Palace I went to the State Museum.
I was able to pay the 500T ($1.50) entry on my visa card. I was on the last of my cash for the two days left and didnt want to withdraw more.
The museum was interesting but unfortunately the 'camera police' would not allow any pictures. I'm not sure why as there was no problem in the Astana museum.
I took a few anyway. There was folk dress, ceramics, and carvings.
Again was the Golden Man who seems to be in every single museum. I was going to visit his excavation site the day after next.
After leaving the museum I was going to explore the metro line. There is one line that was started in Soviet times but only recently opened. Entrance was 80T (.25 cents).
Soviet metros were known as 'Palaces of the People' with ornate decorations and chandeliers. They are also notoriously deep built as nuclear bomb shelters.
I remember my time and anxiety in Kiev and didnt know the depth of the tunnels. I always wait for others so I am not standing alone. Three young guys came by but ran down the escalators.
Abay station was incredibly deep which doesnt come across in the pictures. I was standing alone on the escalator and it came to an emergency stop a quarter way down. I started panicking and having an anxiety attack standing alone on the escalator this high up. I started to make my way walking down but it started moving again.
Freaked out by the ordeal I didnt want to spend too long. There is only one line so I was going to ride it end to end. The trains only run every 15 mins so I didnt have time to go out on platforms and take pictures as I had done in other Soviet metros.
I went to the 2nd last stop as I remember in St Petersburg the last stop exited me out and I had to pay to come back in. I decided to get off at Almaly station, one stop after my hotel so I could walk back and see the Opera House.
This one was also deep but not as bad as Abay station which I had come down. I've been to five Soviet metros now, St Petersburg, Minsk, Kiev, Tashkent, and Almaty.
After passing the Opera House and making my way back to the hotel I was looking for something to eat. Unlike Shymkent which had lots of local cuisine and roadside eateries Almaty was more European and had formal restaurants. I still wanted to pay by visa card to save cash currency so decided to try Burger King.
The combo was 1500T ($5). Coming back to the hotel I was now able to check in and go to my room. I was on the 19th floor and I was surprised by the mountain views.
The first thing you notice when you arrive in Almaty are the snow capped mountains. My room had a panorama view and seemed more like the Balkans with the mountainside homes.
I had a clear view of the Soviet era Tv tower. It was good I didnt take the cable car up as I had an even better permanent view from my room of both the tower and the city.
2025-05-22