How a boring Soviet metropolis in Central Asia became the capital of “cool”

Several cities around the world have reinvented themselves in recent years, but none more successfully than Almaty.

Since the collapse of the USSR, Kazakhstan’s largest city (with a population of 2.2 million and growing) has evolved from a dull, jokeless Soviet metropolis into Central Asia’s urban superstar.

Along the way, the city developed one of the most beautiful subway systems in the world, transformed itself into a thriving banking and financial center, complemented its vintage bazaars with luxury boutiques and modern shopping malls, and reshaped its traditional cuisine into a nouvelle cuisine that is attracting food connoisseurs from around the world.

Almaty is also becoming the cultural and artistic center of Central Asia. It already has several world-class museums (including a “secret” underground collection that doesn’t even have a name) and a stunning new cultural center due to open early next year.

“It’s an incredibly livable city,” says Dennis Keen, a longtime American resident, historic preservation advocate and founder of Walking Almaty.

“Green and clean. There’s no need to have a car. Public transport here is fantastic. And it is the center of contemporary art and gastronomy in Central Asia.”

Keen adds that whenever he tells someone he lives in Kazakhstan, the movie “Borat” inevitably comes up. The film’s title character doesn’t paint a very flattering portrait of the Central Asian country. But these days we are tempted to think that if Borat were to visit Almaty now, he would say, “Very good!” (very well, in Portuguese).

A troubled story

Although people have lived in the region for thousands of years, most were nomads who roamed the vast steppes between China and Europe. An ancient city flourished nearby during medieval times – a way station on the Silk Road – but had disappeared by the time the Russian Empire conquered the region in the mid-19th century.

A fort established by tsarist troops to reinforce the Russian occupation, it evolved into a small town with a grid system of north-south and east-west streets and an abundance of trees. The Russians also built the Ascension Cathedral, with an onion-shaped dome, one of the city’s architectural icons. Furthermore, there are few relics from the tsarist era today.

A few years after independence from the Soviet Union, in 1991, the national capital was moved to Astana. The loss of this statute was a wake-up call for the city. Instead of sulking in the slight, Almaty’s leaders and residents found common ground to reinvent the city, if only to prove that it was still superior to Astana.

“It is now a city of entrepreneurs and artists,” says Jama Nurkalieva, director of the new Tselinny Center for Contemporary Culture. Jama Nurkalieva, director of the new Center for Contemporary Culture in Tselinny, believes that the relocation of the national capital has freed Almaty to do its own thing.

“This freedom brought here this unique spirit of creativity, of possibilities, of reflection, of debate. Therefore, it is no surprise that we have the largest artistic scene in the region and a megalopolis economy. So many companies big and small. This is the ideal place for many creative people, not just artists.”

Channel or inner nomad

The chefs also took on the challenge of creating something completely new with roots in Kazakhstan’s past. They call it neo-nomadic cuisine, a fusion of modern cooking and presentation techniques with traditional ingredients used by the nomadic people who continue to inhabit the grasslands around Almaty.

“We found inspiration in the traditional techniques of nomads, such as smoking or cooking meat over an open fire or burying meat and cooking it on hot stones,” says Sat Nurmash, general manager of the city’s upscale Auyl restaurant.

But that’s where the similarities end. Marinated with special herbs and spices and cooked slowly over low heat, it takes two days to prepare the meats served as main dishes. The portions are small and each dish is a small work of art.

Among the dishes on Auyl’s seven-course tasting menu are dungan noodles with spicy duck, horse meat samosas, beshbarmak with smoked brisket and lamb shank, cold chalop (sour horse’s milk) soup and lamb tongues with pomegranate.

Other purveyors of neo-nomadic cuisine include the Tör restaurant inside the Glass Cube in Esentai Square and the Tarih restaurant near the Dynamo Stadium. Meanwhile, Auyl is also receiving praise for its yurt-inspired design, chosen as one of 16 finalists in the “Prix Versailles World’s Most Beautiful Restaurants” competition.

But not everything is the 21st century. Founded in 1868, the colossal Zeleny Bazaar (Green Market) is packed with stalls selling delicious fresh fruit, kurt (sour cheese balls), shubat (camel milk) and other local delicacies. There’s a whole section for different types of horse meat, including surprisingly tasty sausages.

Those looking for a more in-depth nomadic experience can find it just outside Almaty.

In the snow-capped Tien Shan Mountains east of the city, Kolsai Lakes National Park offers yurt accommodation at private campsites near Lower Kolsai Lake and horseback riding with nomadic guides to remote Kaindy Lake and its eerie ghost forest.

Underground art

Crowned by a Louvre-like glass pyramid, the eclectic Abilkhan Kasteev State Art Museum is the nation’s premier showcase for Kazakh creations, from paintings and sculptures to decorative arts like carpets, jewelry and woodwork.

Other good collections include the Ihlas Museum of Popular Musical Instruments (in a Russian-style wooden mansion built in 1908) and the ethnographic artifacts at the Almaty Museum.

The city’s most intriguing collection is a “secret museum” that doesn’t even have a formal name. Adding to its mystique is the fact that it is underground, both literally and figuratively – located in the basement of the French House, a luxurious shopping arcade on Furmanov Avenue, where there is a replica of the Eiffel Tower.

The owner of the private collection is also a mystery, but he is said to be a local oligarch who is both an avid collector and very proud of his hometown. Entry is free, but reservations are mandatory. And to get a ticket, you need to know someone who has the phone number or email address to make that reservation. A local guide (who also wants to remain anonymous) calls it “Kazakhstan’s most important collection of native art and artifacts.”

Dozens of rooms display a bewildering array of items, from ancient torture devices, medieval (men’s) chastity belts, and nomadic fashions to early radios and televisions, Soviet-era posters, and cosmonaut memorabilia. There are also rooms with Muslim, Christian, Jewish and Buddhist artifacts originating from Kazakhstan. The museum caretaker follows you at all times, making sure you don’t take photos or touch anything.

The Tselinny Center for Contemporary Culture, which will open soon, is also funded by a local businessman and entrepreneur who doesn’t mind his name being public knowledge (Kairat Boranbayev) and wants everyone to visit an institution he considers to be the best of the genus in Central Asia.

Housed in the restored Soviet-era Tselinny Cinema, a glass-fronted postmodern structure built in 1964, the center will host a wide range of contemporary music, dance, film, fine arts and theater, as well as research, education and publishing projects. .

“Our artistic strategy is based on the symbiosis between two motifs that we call Here and Now”, says Jama Nurkalieva.

“Aqui is a physical space where various formats or events are taking place. Agora builds on research projects taking place now and continually in the future to create an intellectual space reinforced by engagements with artists, theorists and intellectuals from various disciplinary, cultural, social and ideological perspectives. Agora serves as a tool for carrying out Aqui’s programming.”

The city’s public spaces also house a wide range of art. The Almaty Metro is known for its elaborately decorated stations, in particular Zhibek Zholy with its Wonders of the Ancient World mosaic, the stained-glass apple tree in Almaly and the traditional Kazakh wedding scene in Auezov.

Keen, an American resident, has devoted much of the last decade to discovering and preserving much of the Soviet-era public art that has been neglected — and in many cases painted over or plastered over — since independence.

One of its walking tours features masterpieces of socialist modernist architecture, such as the Arasan bathhouse, spa and wellness center, as well as the reliefs and murals of the Hotel Otrar and the mosaics and stained glass windows of the Academy of Sciences .

“Some of this architecture and art is off the beaten track,” says Keen, “in a city that many people already consider off the beaten track. But it’s one of the things that makes Almaty special.”

Get there

Turkish Airlines flies nonstop two to three times a day between Almaty and Istanbul, with connections to several European, African and Middle Eastern cities.

Air Astana offers domestic services to several cities in Kazakhstan, as well as daily flights to Beijing, Seoul, New Delhi and Bangkok.

Where to sleep

Situated on the upper floors of a 30-story skyscraper in the Esentai shopping mall, the Ritz-Carlton Almaty offers modern luxury and stunning city views.

Within walking distance of Ascension Cathedral, Green Market and Arasan Hot Springs, Renion Park Hotel offers mid-range comfort and services at economical prices.

Or take a trip back in time to Soviet days at Hotel Otrar, located in the city center, with its vintage architecture and mural-covered dining room.

Where to eat

Recognized for its avant-garde neo-nomadic cuisine, the Auyl restaurant, in Vale do Medeu, south of the city, is also a feast for the eyes, with a sophisticated design.

The seven branches of Lanzhou, a noodle house, and the upscale Sandyq Restaurant next to Novotel City Center are popular spots for traditional Kazakh cuisine.

Almaty also offers dishes from across the former Soviet empire, like Georgian kachapuri at Darejani restaurant or borscht, beef cheeks and other Russian delicacies at Mar’ina Roshcha, both near the southwest corner of the Ascension Cathedral park.