Kazakhstan is a country with a rich historical and cultural past, to which everyone wants to return. It is not only endless steppes, magnificent nature and diverse cuisine. We have prepared a small selection of interesting information to remind about the peculiarities of the country.
The country is called the cradle of Turkic civilization, which is located in Europe and Asia at the same time. At the meantime it does not have its own access to the ocean. Regularly tourists from all over the world come here to admire the natural beauty of the region and numerous attractions of major cities of Kazakhstan.
1. Kazakhstan has two time zones. And the steppes of Kazakhstan have been added to the list of specially protected areas by the UN Committee on Education, Science and Culture.
2. Kazakhstan is among the top 10 countries where tea is drunk the most. It is second only to water in popularity among beverages.
3. In Almaty there is a famous Ascension Cathedral, which is located on the territory of the park named after 28 Panfilov Guardsmen. Its uniqueness is that it was built without a single nail.
4. Kazakhstan is the northernmost place in the world, where pink flamingos fly to the Kurgaldzhinsky reserve. The number of birds reaches 36 thousand. The reserve is included in the UNESCO list.
5. The TV tower on Kok-Tobe Mountain in Almaty, built in the early 80s, is considered the tallest TV tower in the world, if, of course, its height from sea level is taken into account.
6. “Medeu” – the world’s largest high-mountain skating rink for winter sports with the largest area of artificial ice field – 10.5 thousand m².
7. Another interesting fact. Horses were first domesticated on the territory of modern Kazakhstan. In addition, wild camels and horses can be found on the undeveloped expanses of the Kazakh steppes.
8. In Kazakhstan there is a unique lake Balkhash, half of the water in which is fresh and the other half is salty. Scientists have not yet been able to explain this phenomenon.
9. The chimney of Ekibastuz GRES-2 is considered to be the highest in the world, it is even a quarter higher than the Eiffel Tower in the French capital.
10. It has already been scientifically proven that the historical homeland of apples and tulips is Kazakhstan. It was from the foothills of the Zailiyskiy Alatau that these beautiful plants spread to all countries. Today there are more than 3 thousand varieties of these flowers in the world, and most of them are “descendants” of local tulips. Also our country is the keeper of the ancestor of all apple trees on the planet – Sivers apple tree.
11. Another attraction is the elephant from the Karaganda Zoo. He lived there even before the collapse of the USSR. Many considered it “talking”, and the name of the Indian elephant was Batyr. Local people claimed that the animal was able to imitate the sounds of the surrounding world, namely – the speech of people, barking dogs and other sounds. According to the zoo staff themselves, the elephant even pronounced its name and could ask for water. Thanks to such abilities, he became a real star not only in the Soviet Union, but also abroad.
12. The Russian word “money” came from the Turkic word “tenge” – the name of the modern currency of Kazakhstan.