Astana to Urgench
Published :
Dec 11, 2013 12:30
IST
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The first leg of the expedition was through Kazakhstan. Almost the entire journey closely followed the fabled Silk Route.
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A road in Astana. The Kazakh capital is built with all the lavishness that oil wealth can afford.
Photo: Picasa
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At the entrance of the Dungan Mosque in Zharkent. Dungans are Muslims of Chinese origin.
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A church in Zharkent.
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A road through the wilderness of Kazakhstan. The country has vast stretches of steppes unfit for human habitation. ▲
A view from the top of Kok-Tobe Hill, the highest point in Almaty, Kazakhstan's largest city and old capital.
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Mountain ranges in Xinjiang, China, as seen from the Kazakh border.
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A herd of sheep opposite a casino on the outskirts of Almaty.
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Kazakh women. Kazakhs consider themselves Eurasian, emphasising their proximity to Europe, particulalry Russia.
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Students dance to Bollywood numbers at Al Farabhi National University in Almaty.
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Members of the expedition at the friendship memorial on the Kazakh-China border.
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Office of the ArcelorMittal steel plant in Temirtau.
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At the border check post in Khorgos on the Kazakh-China border.
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Construction in full swing at Khorgos on the Chinese side.
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A worker welding an oil pipe on the banks of Lake Balkash.
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Donkey carts share road space with automobiles in Kazakhstan.
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A casino in Khabshiga, the Las Vegas of Kazakhstan.
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Men in Taldykorgan. People here look less Kazakh and more Asian.
Photo: Picasa
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