A SECOND NIGHT IN TASHKENT AND ONWARDS (EVENTUALLY!) TO ALMATY, KAZAKHSTAN


And back in Tashkent for one more night, not leaving until tomorrow afternoon.  We're staying in a different part of the city, near to the marvellously-named Arch of Hope and Good Aspirations which marks the entrance to the Independence Square (at the back is the main monument of Independence Square, a high pedestal with a golden globe) 


Presidential Palace (sadly undergoing works)

and National Museum


A big old place 



- looks even bigger inside (and not a handrail in sight!)


but some cracking exhbits







As ever, one man has no hat!  Clearly, it's mandatory...


 And back to the Arch, as the dusk approaches






and closer to the golden globe
 
 

 
The Monument of Independence, a statue of a seated mother with a babe in arms, was erected in 1992, representing the revival of Uzbekistan as a free independent state.  Opposite her is a mourning mother looking down sadly onto an eternal flame in memory of her children who fell when defending the country, to commemorate the fallen unidentified soldiers in the past World Wars.


The streets outside our hotel were lit in celebration



Next morning, good views over Tashkent from the breakfast room...
 

 

And back down into the metro, this time, we're at the very impressve Mustaqillik Maydoni

  




Off at Timur



to see another statue of the great man






At Tashkent airport for our hour-and-a-half hop across the border to Kazakhstan.but there's no plane for the 14.20 to Almaty.   
 


Eventually, we get the bad news: ‘KC128: please report to info desk’.  Long story short, it's a long old afternoon-into-evening-into-night, in the company of new friends, Nicola and Mia.  Boarding finally starts at 04.45...  Everyone else zonks out and doesn't remember much of the beautiful mountains and golden dawn over Almaty. Luckily, one of us was awake to see our landing into the city of Almaty within its bowl of Zailyiski Alatau mountains...
 

 And yippee, here we are


Border formalities are a breeze and the four of us head straight to Mia's cheery, broad-shouldered driver - no problem for 4 passengers.  Mia's here on business so our Team Made-it-through-the-night shot has the Intercontinental backdrop (just realised I'm not part of the striped top brigade!)


Off to our more modest hotel, leaving behind the glitzy silver business district, surrounded by snow-capped mountains.



We stop by the Dawn of Freedom statue, snow leopard (winged, of course!), honouring those killed and injured on Respublika Alany in December 1986 during the Zheltoksan (December) protests.



 
We make it to our hotel at 10.10, to the unexpected but happy news that breakfast is open until 10.30!  Refreshed, it's off towards



local metro, also called Abay
 



which is on a grand scale.  Metro tokens set us back 80 tenge each (less than 20p) and we go down the enormous corridors and escalator to admire the platform cavern. 

 


Alight two stops along at Zhibek Zholy.





to head



to Panfilov Park (Park of the 28 Guardsman) to see brightly decorated Zentov Cathedral.




While S looks inside...


...D finds the war memorial and eternal flame.





Last night is catching up so crash early at our Iris Hotel 

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