Known during Soviet times as Alma-Ata, Almaty sits on the edge of the Tien Shan Mountains that straddle Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, and China’s Xinjiang province. Although the origins of the city’s name are disputed, most believe it comes from the Kazakh word for apple: алма (alma), and the region is known for its ecologically diverse groves packed with different apple varieties. As Kazakhstan’s largest and most scenic city (grassy steppe covers much of the rest of the country), Almaty is a hotspot for expats and travelers, not to mention in close proximity to all the “must-see” sights you can find online. Eager to check out the city that so many of my students raved about, I booked overnight tickets for the 11-hour high-speed train to Almaty (the old Soviet train takes 14 hours).
Since I was unwilling to share a 4-person bunk cabin with three strangers or shell out the big bucks to buy one out, I passed a mildly unpleasant night shifting and squirming in my seat. What I suspect would have been a stunning train ride in the daylight ended up being a ride through featureless darkness and I took the opportunity to make some progress on Гарри Поттер before it got too late. The compartment, more than half empty upon 7:45 PM departure from Shymkent, filled up with each subsequent stop. By the time we got to the 2,000 year old Silk Road city of Taraz, around midnight, every seat was taken. I fell asleep in bursts of 10 minutes at a time and wandered off the train into the chilly Almaty morning around 7 AM feeling groggy. Catching sight of the mountains outside of the attractive Almaty II Station perked me right up, however.
Almaty II train station
I caught a taxi to the apartment of a fellow ETA, slept for a few hours, and woke up with just one thing on the to-do list for my 36 hours in Almaty: go to the mountains.
Almaty sprawls upwards and outwards from its congested center to suburban villages to the higher elevations. On our taxi ride up, the houses grew larger and more expensive as we got above the haze that sits on the city, especially in winter. Only twenty minutes into the ride, we started to see snow on the ground and patches of forest replaced sidewalks and tin fences. The ever-present mountains towered over us from all sides. Then we passed giant supports built to protect Almaty from landslides, which helpfully invited me to imagine being crushed by a wall of snow and rock and pulverized tree. Not long after, we arrived at the outdoor speed-skating rink Medeu and stepped out into a winter wonderland.
Iconic Medeu Olympic-sized speed skating rink sign
Built 1951 for the USSR national team, Medeu sits 5547 feet above sea level and was a popular tourist destination during Soviet times. More recently, the complex hosted the 2011 Asian Winter Games, and is open for recreational skiing at the end of November (sadly, it wasn’t open when we visited). From Medeu, we took a nearly three mile gondola up to the equally famous downhill skiing area, Shymbulak. The views from the gondola were very beautiful, though most of the city below was obscured by its pollution. Alternatively, you can hike the whole way to the skiing area up a thousand-odd steps.
Coming back down the gondola
Featured in “100 Slopes of a Lifetime,” Shymbulak was the first downhill route in the Soviet Union and the site of the USSR’s Olympic ski training center. Despite all the hype, I was not expecting it to be so bougie; it was like a tiny Telluride, complete with a resort, rooftop cafes, and several restaurants. It was a gorgeous day with snow on the mountains and bright blue skies. We walked around taking photos then decided to buy tickets to ride horses. Unfortunately, we weren’t sure where to actually find the horses and resorted to asking passersby until we found two friendly software engineers to help us. Both briefly worked in the U.S. and became very excited about three sentences into our conversation when they realized we were Americans. Three sentences is pretty much how long I can sustain the illusion of being a native Russian speaker–after that, the jig is up.
Shymbulak
About that time, we spotted the horses returning from the last tour, and all of us together–me and the other ETA freezing our hands off since the sun had gone down by then but determined to get our money’s worth–got in a quick, chatty ride. When the horse I was riding tried to bolt (me still on his back) our guide informed us cheerfully, “Серый чут-чут горячий.”–literally, “The grey one is a bit hot (feisty).” After the ride ended, we said thank you and good-bye to our new friends, snagged hot drinks from one of the cafes, and got on the gondola just before it closed for the evening. From Medeu, we caught a taxi back to Almaty. Our taxi driver, upon learning we were Americans, played only Beyoncé on the drive, and dropped us at an excellent ramen place for a warm dinner.
Despite the cold, it was unbelievably nice to escape into nature for a while and I was glad to check these two iconic sights–Medeu and Shymbulak–off the list! I’ll be back with an Almaty, part II post. See the video below for the whole view!
Boss.
Love seeing and hearing about all of your adventures Maddy! Thank you for sharing!