Almaty: The biggest apple

Although I still believe that Taldykorgan is the best city in Kazakhstan, I must admit that during this past week I have become fond of Almaty. Almaty is about 50 kilometers from my small town of Ecik. It is the largest city in Kazakhstan but not the capital (it was switched to Astana). Nevertheless, Almaty is still the main banking and financial center of the country and serves as the main transportation hub for air and rail for people who travel within the country. Chances are that if you are traveling somewhere in country, you'll go through Almaty first.

Almaty (translated from Kazakh, means "grandfather of the apple") is very beautiful all year around, and it can be argued that there is more to do in this city than in any other in Kazakhstan. My personal favorite things to do include shopping for strawberries at the Green Bazaar, admiring all of the amazing statues and the Orthodox Church in Panfilov Park, and hiking in the mountains outside of the city. There are lots of plays and concerts to attend for the culturally minded, and just as many cafes for the culinary minded, and twice as many bars and pubs for the socially minded.

The Orthodox Church in Panfiov Park, Almaty.

The statues in Almaty and Kazakhstan are usually big, badass and very intense. This is the monument to veterans that served in World War II, and my favorite monument in Kazakhstan, Located in Panfilov Park.

For all the fun and cultural things that one can do in Almaty, it comes with a price. Literally. Almaty holds the distinction of being the 44th most expensive city in the world according to Mercer's Cost of Living Index of 2009. This doesn't sound like a big deal, until you consider that according to this list, it is more expensive to live in Almaty than Chicago or Miami. And those cities aren't cheap either. This is one reason that it is rare for a Peace Corps volunteer to be assigned to Almaty, and the main reason why I avoid spending too much time there. It is a money sucking pit of fun and good food.

While the city is amazing, the expensiveness of Almaty can be harmful to the account of a volunteer that is not disciplined with their money, because we don't get a lot of it! However, after going several months without fresh brewed coffee and American style food, volunteers who go to Almaty can't help to spurge at Pizza Hut or Gloria Jeans Coffee, or running inside the supermarket called Ramstore for some type of American food that is hard to find in Kazakhstan (and expensive) like peanut butter or Pop Tarts. And this doesn't include getting a beer at one of the many ex-pat bars in town to catch up with other volunteers who are also passing through.

Between hanging out with the Kaz 21s, who must come to the city to do their medical exams this month, stopping in for a day to help out with an English summer camp, and charting hiking routes for this awesome project, I spent about 5 days and around 10 000 tenge in Almaty this past week. Converted to dollars, it is close to 75. It may not seem like much, but on average what I spent in Almaty in one week equals I spend on food in a month.

But I'm not complaining, because having the opportunity to get a white mocha coffee and blueberry scone for breakfast, a vegetarian pizza for lunch, burritos with salsa for dinner, and a pint of Belgium white beer was totally worth it.




Only this week, though.