Category: Kazakhstan

Mausoleum of Khoja Ahmed Yasawi: Most Beautiful Place in Kazakhstan?; Abi King; Inside The Travel Lab

Photo: Inside The Travel Lab

The Mausoleum of Khoja Ahmed Yasawi in Turkistan is one of the most interesting UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Central Asia.

Source: Mausoleum of Khoja Ahmed Yasawi: Most Beautiful Place in Kazakhstan?

Cheap materials raise questions over Kazakhstan’s expensive new urban development; Paolo Sorbello; Global Voices

Photo: Ken and Nyetta, Wikimedia Commons, CC 2.0.

A crumbling wall in Turkistan’s new flagship construction project reveals the faults of fast-paced development in Kazakhstan’s holiest city.

Source: Cheap materials raise questions over Kazakhstan’s expensive new urban development

New Opportunities, Old Roads: Kazakhstan’s Silk Road; Assel Satubaldina; Astana Times

Twenty-three years ago in February, then Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev signed a state program into existence to revive the historical centers of the Silk Road, preserve and promote the cultural heritage of Turkic-speaking states, and build tourism infrastructure around the places once passed by the Great Silk Road.  Twenty-three years on, the goal still remains relevant for Kazakhstan both for economic and cultural purposes, as the country celebrates the 30th anniversary of its independence this year.

Source: New Opportunities, Old Roads: Kazakhstan’s Silk Road  – The Astana Times

Message from Mechtild Rössler, Director of UNESCO’s World Heritage Centre, for International Mountain Day; Unesco

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Kazakhstan -Western Tien-Shan

International Mountain Day, designated by the United Nations General Assembly in 2003 and celebrated on 11 December, highlights the importance of mountains to life on Earth. The theme for 2017, “Mountains under Pressure: climate, hunger, migration”, draws our attention to some of the most critical challenges that mountains and people living in mountain areas are currently facing. It also reiterates roles that the World Heritage Convention is fulfilling in order to safeguard mountain protected areas, as well as to strengthen resilience of mountain peoples to overcome these challenges.

In the face of impacts of climate change, the Outstanding Universal Value and integrity of World Heritage mountain sites are increasingly at risk. The IUCN World Heritage Outlook 2 highlights climate change as the fastest-growing threat to natural World Heritage. At least a quarter of all natural sites are already facing the consequences of climate change.

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Awesome rock carvings in the Kazakh region of Almaty; Euronews

Kazakhstan – Petroglyphs within the Archaeological Landscape of Tamgaly

Our postcard this week offers a glimpse into the distant past, with prehistoric images in the Kazakh region of Almaty.

Stunning rock carvings or petroglyphs can be found at Tanbaly (sometimes written as Tamgaly), about 170 kilometres northwest of Almaty city.

Euronews’ Seamus Kearney reported: “More than 5,000 different petroglyphs were discovered by an archaeological team in 1957.

“And in 2004 the entire site, including five different locations, was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List.”

Rinat Sharipov, a Tanbaly petroglyphs researcher, told Postcards: “Generally we can see petroglyphs with images of animals and people with heads that resemble the sun.

“A lot of the carvings date back to the Bronze Age, between the 14th and 12th centuries BC.”

The sacred images – together with altars, cult locations and burial grounds – are testament to the ancient way of life on the steppes of Central Asia.

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Korgalzhyn eco-tours provide authentic and affordable travel experience; ZHANNA SHAYAKHMETOVA; The Astana Times

Kazakhstan – Saryarka – Steppe and Lakes of Northern Kazakhstan

Korgalzhyn eco-tours provide authentic and affordable travel experience.

ASTANA – The Korgalzhyn Nature Reserve, one of Kazakhstan’s major attractions, occupies almost 550,000 hectares in two regions about 130 kilometres southwest of the capital. It is included in the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) World Heritage List.

The vast lands of the reserve provide the necessary living space for Asia’s largest population of water birds. The wildlife community consists of more than 60 rare species of plants and animals, including flamingos and the Shrenk wild tulip, listed in the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) Red Book. The pink birds come to this northernmost part of the world once a year and as a result, it has become a desirable tourist destination.

The Pana (Shelter) Guest House in Korgalzhyn village has operated since 2007.

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Top 10 things to see and do in Kazakhstan; Mark Lumley; Travel Magazine

Kazakhstan – Mausoleum of Khoja Ahmed Yasawi

The size of Western Europe, but with scarcely a person in sight, the extensive wildernesses and cultural sites of Kazakhstan demand thorough exploration.

The size of Western Europe, but with scarcely a person in sight, the extensive wildernesses and quirky cultural sites of Kazakhstan demand thorough exploration.

Kazakhstan, a former Soviet Republic, is a vast and rarely explored expanse on the map, south of Russia and to the west of China. Many of us have only even heard of the country thanks to Borat, but the view that film created was incomplete and highly controversial. There’s far more to Kazakhstan than you might expect.

The southeast of Kazakhstan is the country’s tourism sweet spot, with the Altyn Emel National Park, Charyn Canyon, Shymbulak, and Kaindy Lake all surrounding the former capital of Almaty.

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UNESCO World Heritage Sites In Kazakhstan; WorldAtlas.com

Kazakhstan – Mausoleum of Khoja Ahmed Yasawi

Steppes, lakes, mountains, the ancient Silk Route, Timurid Empire sites, and rock carvings are all part of the heritage of the nation of Kazakhstan.

Kazakhstan, officially known as the Republic of Kazakhstan, is the largest landlocked country in the world situated in eastern part of Europe and Central Asia. It covers an area of approximately 1.1 million square miles making it the ninth largest country in the world with a population of 18 million. Kazakhstan is endowed with a number of cultural and natural wonders which, over the years, have been designated by the UNESCO as World Heritage Sites. The list of such sites is provided below:

UNESCO World Heritage Sites In Kazakhstan

Chang’an-Tianshan Corridor Of The Silk Road Routes

The Chang’an-Tianshan Corridor is approximately 3106 miles long and spans through three countries China, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan.

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Medieval settlement of Talgar not to be withdrawn from UNESCO World Heritage List; KazInform

ASTANA. KAZINFORM Deputy Prime Minister of Kazakhstan Imangali Tasmagambetov met with Director General of the UNESCO Irina Bokova in Paris for discussing priority areas of Kazakhstan-UNESCO interaction.     At the meeting, Tasmagambetov expressed gratitude to the UNESCO for constant support of Kazakhstan in implementation of its initiatives outlined within the UNESCO and the UN as a whole.

He reminded about the visit of Kazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbayev to the UNESCO Headquarters during the 38th session of the Organization’s General Conference. In his speech, the Head of State initiated to establish Category II International Center for Cultures Rapprochement under the UN aegis.  The Center could provide significant support in implementation of the projects during the International Decade for the Rapprochement of Cultures.

 

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Korgalzhyn; Unesco

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Kazakhstan – Saryarka – Steppe and Lakes of Northern Kazakhstan

Korgalzhyn, is Kazakhstan’s first biosphere reserve. Situated in the north central part of Kazakhstan, the site is a complex of freshwater and saline lakes embedded in the dry steppe zone of Eurasia. Environmental degradation caused by previously unsustainable management practices are now being addressed with a number of pilot projects.

Declaration date: 2012
Administrative authorities: Korgalzhyn State Nature Reserve
Surface area: 1,603,171 ha
Core area(s): 543, 171 ha
Buffer zone(s): 90,000 ha
Transition area(s): 970,000 ha

Location:
Latitude: 49°54’N – 50°59’N
Longitude: 67°53’E – 71°01’E
Central point: 50º05’41″N – 69º12’09″E

Ecological Characteristics

The territory is characterized by elevated plains, hills, lake depressions and marked by an extreme-continental climate.

Korgalzhyn Biosphere Reserve is a natural complex of fresh and saline waters with coastal territories which include unique landscapes characteristics of the dry steppe zone of Eurasia. This makes it an important wetland site for migratory water birds. Potential fodder reserves of only one Tengiz lake are able to provide food for 15 million birds. The most Northern nesting population of Flamingo is located here; its population in some years may reach 50,000-60,000 birds.

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