The Sound of Lonely Dombura
07 Feb 2011 4 Comments
in Almaty, Kazakhstan Tags: Almaty, Cenrtal Asia, December, dombura, Kazakhstan, lonely, music, people, travel, travel stories
On a cold December day she was sitting on a little plastic chair on the sidewalk of one of the main streets of Almaty.. She was silent.. Seeing her one would think she’s in deep meditation.. And I believe she was.. I was walking down the street when I heard the sounds of her dombura, a long-necked lute popular in Central Asian nations.. As if bewitched by the melody, I followed the sound until I saw her.. An old Kazakh lady with eyes sad, busking.. I sat in front of her.. Dombura was turning the sorrow of her heart into a melody.. She noticed me and turned her eyes away..
Central Mosque of Almaty
24 Jan 2011 4 Comments
in Almaty, Kazakhstan Tags: Almaty, axial symmetry, beard, Central Mosque, dome, hitchhiking, imam, Islamic art, Kazakhstan, minaret, mosque, Persian architecture, temple architecture, Timurid architecture, travel stories
On my way to China I made a stop in the city of Almaty, south of Kazakhstan where I applied for Chinese visa.. While waiting for the visa, I was wandering around Almaty, exploring its streets and architecture.. One morning I went to look for some mosques as it was my 4th day in Almaty and I didn’t see any mosques yet.. Asking people for directions I soon found myself standing in front of the Central Mosque of Almaty..
Immigration Police in Almaty
02 Oct 2010 Leave a Comment
in Almaty, Kazakhstan Tags: Almaty, government officials, hitchhiking, immigration, immigration police, Kazakhstan, registration
~Kazakh flag~
The first thing a foreigner must do once he arrives in Kazakhstan is within 5 days he must register himself in Immigration police.. Usually, they register you to the address of the locals you’re staying with, or the hotel..
On my 4th day in Kazakhstan (it was Friday) me and Mira Borisovna, my classmate’s mother (I was staying with them while waiting to get the Chinese visa in Almaty), went to immigration police of our district to register me.. We arrived there at 2 PM, but it turned out that the department is on afternoon break till 3 o’clock.. So we had to wait an hour, and when it was finally open, a policewoman in a very impolite and rude form told us that the citizens of Armenia can be registered only in the main department of immigration police.. And that’s where our problems began.. Because when we arrived to the main department, we found that they accept documents only till 12 noon.. We were more than just late..
On my 4th day in Kazakhstan (it was Friday) me and Mira Borisovna, my classmate’s mother (I was staying with them while waiting to get the Chinese visa in Almaty), went to immigration police of our district to register me.. We arrived there at 2 PM, but it turned out that the department is on afternoon break till 3 o’clock.. So we had to wait an hour, and when it was finally open, a policewoman in a very impolite and rude form told us that the citizens of Armenia can be registered only in the main department of immigration police.. And that’s where our problems began.. Because when we arrived to the main department, we found that they accept documents only till 12 noon.. We were more than just late..
