Thanks for visiting my blog for what was certainly my most exciting, bizarre and most expensive trip of the year, and what has to be my favourite Wales away trip thus far (Montenegro is a very close second from 2024 – link). Apologies it has taken seven months to deliver!
When the draw for the 2026 World Cup qualifiers was made (during a work meeting in the previous December), going to this game – Kazakhstan vs Wales – was my top priority. I don’t think it was until March though once it was confirmed where the game would be played, either the capital Astana or the largest city Almaty.
Only in mid-June the flights and accommodation were nailed down. I looked at countless ways to get to Astana, including overnight stops in Bulgaria or Türkiye. I was extremely close to stopping off for a few days in Kuwait of all places, before finally settling on Bishkek in Kyrgyzstan, which shares a border with Kazakhstan.
The trials and tribulations of the trip will be included in the itinerary but a brief schedule of the trip was:
- Day 0 / 1 – Flights from Bristol to Antalya to Ankara
- Day 2 – Flight from Ankara to Bishkek and enjoy the city
- Day 3 – Bishkek and a day trip to the mountains
- Day 4 – Bishkek then flights to Almaty, then onto Astana
- Day 5 – Astana
- Day 6 – Astana and day of the match
- Day 7 – Astana then flight to Istanbul
- Day 8 – Flight to London, train to rush back Wales to watch Newport County (lose).
To give you an idea of how much bloody effort goes into such a trip, I’ve included my itinerary document below! I tend to do these for all trips and seldom refer to them on the trip itself, but this one was vital with 7 flights and 3 foreign currencies!
Costs
The seven aforementioned flights were the biggest cost coming in at £756. I was satisfied with this, as more direct flights for the match were coming in at £600+.
I could have saved a bit on hotels but given the travel I decided to go for something a bit more comfortable than I would do usually. In Bishkek I stayed at the Smart Hotel, and Hotel Akky in Astana, costing a combined £186 for 2 and 3 nights respectively.
Getting to grips with Yandex Go, the taxi app similar to your Uber and the like, that could be used in both countries, took some patience. But once working was a necessity and so cheap. Astana, for example, is a huge city and everywhere seemed to be 30+ minutes walk, but I can’t remember taking a taxi that cost more than £3. Using public transport seemed a non-starter… if there was any!
For both countries, food and drink was really reasonable. Even in the city centres the prices were slightly cheaper than in the UK. I only drank in Kazakhstan but recall high ABV cider being around £4, lager cheaper and a KFC meal roughly £6. I’ll include other prices in the itinerary, but worth noting that the match ticket was just SEVEN pounds!
Right, let’s get to it…
But not before I moan to you about the stress with flights before the trip! Just 2 weeks before I was due to leave, my Pegasus Airlines flight to Astana was cancelled for no reason. By chance, I looked at the website whilst hoping to check in early, as I didn’t even receive an email notification! I was also on holiday in Madrid at the time. The stress. Luckily, by the end of that day I was able to get the same flight to Antalya with Jet2 at a cheaper price.
It didn’t end there. Three days before departure my AJET flights from Bishkek to Almaty were also seemingly cancelled when trying to check-in. After contacting the airline via WhatsApp(!) and through a language fortress rather than a barrier, I was told that all is OK and that I would just need to check in at the airport. Hmmm…
Itinerary
Day One – Newport to Bishkek!
As prepared as I could possibly be, I departed Bristol at 2pm to catch a four-hour flight to Antalya. The flight arrived on time. All going to plan.
Now one wouldn’t think getting a connecting flight here should to be too much of an issue, yet the fact that I had to change terminal from international to domestic using a shuttle bus I struggled to locate, and being unable to connect to any mobile data, the trip got off to quite a frantic start. Two hours between flights was pushing it somewhat, thankfully I already checked in and had hand-luggage only!
Antalya to the capital of Turkey, Ankara, was only an hour flight, then I had a brief 90 minutes in Ankara airport before another four-hour flight to Bishkek! I am racking my brains and searching my deleted photos trying to think what Ankara airport looked like but I have not got the foggiest.
One really valuable addition to these flights was the extra legroom at around £15 each for the longer flights. With this leg costing £327 what was an extra few quid eh?
The flight to Ankara was overnight so I approached the capital of Kyrgyzstan during sunrise. Very nice. After dispensing some cash (called Kyrgyz Som) and obtaining a SIM card, I jumped in a ridiculously cheap Yandex Go (Uber equivalent) from the airport to my hotel to get my first look at Kyrgyzstan – £7 for a 50-minute drive!
Day Two – Bishkek on Independence Day!
It was around 10am once I arrived at the hotel, just the five hours before check-in. This was expected so I was ready to get some steps in, already deviating from my strict paper itinerary, which wouldn’t matter so much as I had plenty of free time to fit everything in. Loaded with some cheap juice and dangerously priced cigarettes it was time to explore.
The image above was my first point of interest on my walk near the hotel. The Kyrgyz state circus! Does the circus know I’m here? Probably not. With them ripping up the road in front it didn’t look like it had been open for a little while.
Just around the corner was Victory Square, a lot higher on the many places to see lists I researched. The Victory Monument is dedicated to the victory over Nazi Germany. It was created in 1985, on the occasion of the 40th anniversary of the end of the Second World War. The features include a woman waiting for her husband to return home from war, and eternal fire, and three pillars represent a tradition Kyrgyz housing structure called a yurt.
Enjoying the fresh air and the cool-not-cold weather, I did a bit of people watching drinking a coffee and a coke in a Turkish/Palestinian/Kyrgyz cafe and planned my route to the main square in Bishkek.
My walk, only around 30 minutes from Victory Square, took me past the National Opera and Ballet Theatre and a good stretch of well-kept park and recreational spaces.
Peeking out from the parks towards the main Ala-Too square, it was hard not to be impressed by the focal statue and HUMONGOUS flag and pole that dominated the vista.
Completed as recently as the mid-1980’s to celebrate sixty years of Soviet Socialist Republicanism, Ala-Too originally had a statue of Lenin in the square. Following Kyrgyzstan’s Independence from USSR in 1991, it wasn’t until 2003 the Lenin statue was removed (or moved nearby rather) and replaced by a ‘freedom statue’, only to be itself replaced by the current bloke and his horse installed.
Christory lesson: The bloke is in fact called Manas, a legendary national hero and cultural symbol. The airport is named after him too. The ‘Epic of Manas’ is a traditional poem that tells of his fight to unite the Kyrgyz tribes against enemies.
Whilst I was a bit miffed that a large stage spoiled the panoramic view of the square that included the National History Museum (will visit on day 4) and some lovely fountains, it soon became apparent that today, August 31st, is their national day to celebrate the aforementioned independence in 1991. How good bloody timing was that?
Knowing that I’d no doubt be re-visiting in the evening, I had a quick walk around the guarded flagpole base (didn’t hang around for the changing of the guard as it was only like 5 minutes past the hour) and the fountains.
I don’t have the watertight-est of bladders so a lap of the fountains soon made me desperate for a wee, hunting down a nearby café to use their facilities. Out of guilt I stayed and had a small lunch on the sidewalk, and bloody hell the stars aligned as it was delicious and for the cost of about £6 including a drink!
Keen to continue my exploration, I wandered in no obvious direction and ended up at a kind of open space amusement park called Panilov Park a few minutes from the square.
As soon as I set eyes on the ferris wheel I was obviously going to have a go, although my weight made the cycle a little uncomfortable even though I had a cabin to myself!
The views from the top of the wheel allowed a decent view of the Kyrgyzstan national stadium, which I cannot ever foresee Wales playing at as they try and qualify for tournaments through the Asia route, plus a lovely view of the square, the massive flag obviously, and the Ala-Too mountain range in the background.
Walking back to the hotel for a few hours rest before returning for the evening’s festivities, I passed the Lenin statue that once stood pride of place in the main square. It’s new location is actually very close, to the north of the square separated by the national history museum.
I didn’t stay at the hotel for too long either side of a use of its tiny swimming pool, so enjoyed a 30-minute walk through the parks back to the main square just as the sun was dropping for the day.
Now, countless market stalls had been erected selling everything from toys to clothes to souvenirs, and a heavy security presence and fencing surrounded the main square, yet it still all seemed very peaceful.
I enjoyed probably half a dozen cultural song-and-dance displays on stage. However, I couldn’t shake the obvious scripting of everything. It did feel like everything was pre-recorded, even the host I think was miming! It was a shame to see performers appear so restricted to keep everything in line with what was pre-agreed with the rule makers.
Feeling grateful that I can openly share a difference of opinion of the people in power back home, I walked away from the square to – ironically – the nearby Kyrgyz Parliament building. I can’t decide whether I love or loathe the soviet-era architecture but the fountains, gardens and sunset certainly helped!
Another walk around Panfilov Park to try and get a good view of the stadium was not a massive success, together with an early start in the morning, I grabbed some fast food but decided to walk it off rather than taxi it back to the hotel.
It was only the first proper day of the trip but I knew that the week was going to be such a good experience.
Day Three – Ala Archa National Park day trip
I wouldn’t usually book a day trip when visiting an area for 2.5 days, but in this case I didn’t find too many things to visit in the city and whilst Bishkek was hardly the hustle and bustle of your London or New York, it was nice to get out of the city for a few hours, even if it meant skipping breakfast and having to be at the main train station at 7:45am.
A couple of months before the day I had actually booked a longer trip to Burana Tower and the very interesting Konorcheck Canyons (Viator link here). A combination of the £135 cost (£80 each if 2+ people books… boo) and a much longer excursion made me change my mind and book a shorter, closer visit to explore Ala Archa National Park, to the south of the city and on the cusp of the Ala-Too mountain range we seen from the ferris wheel. The cost of this was just £32 and would get me back after lunch. This is the booking on Viator.
By the time the couple from Vietnam, the Chinese lady living in New York and I jumped in our tour guide Beki’s car, we headed out of the city and to the entrance of the park, paid a small entry fee included in the booking and caught a shuttle bus that would take us 10 minutes up the road to the start of the walking trails.
In total we probably spent two hours initially walking alongside the cascading river on a small incline, taking in the fresh air. I do love a walk or hike in nature but hadn’t recently done something similar for many months.
Once the path opened up into a wide flat area the challenge was to visit “Broken Heart rock” which was a moderate climb.
The visit to the rock will be a little easier in future as a cable car is rapidly being constructed from nearby the start of the trails. We were able to share the zig-zag path up the hill with huge steel beam transporting lorries. So much for the peace and tranquillity of nature huh…
Nevertheless, once arriving at the rock, with personally a little difficulty as I was so unfit, it was of course worthwhile. The rock gets its name as it used to resemble a heart shape but since broken into two. Bless.
*Starts singing Jason Donovan’s “Too many broken hearts in the world”, which is arguably a banger…*
As nice as it was, there wasn’t too much spectacle. It was simply an enjoyable long walk on a late summer morning. We headed back into the city and said our goodbyes. After another long walk (looking at the photo above I obviously didn’t wear my fitbit – what a waste!!) I had a kebab lunch at the Palestinian place I visited yesterday near the hotel.
Having to check out early tomorrow and needing a few more things to see/do, I had a good few hours rest in my hotel room, probably a nap, until I headed nearby to a recommended steak restaurant called Torro Grill & Bar.
I’m not a huge lover of steak so the tomahawk was a bit wasted on me. Asking for such a large piece of meat medium rare was also a learning curve as I’m sure the middle of it was still moo-ing.
I’m not moaning at paying £30 for the meal, it would be a bargain back home, but for Kyrgyzstan this must have been super expensive. Still, a day’s decent exercise and a live band belting out a few well known tunes was all very worthwhile.
Day Four – More Bishkek then to Astana (Kyrgyzstan to Kazakhstan!)
I was looking forward to my first breakfast of the whole trip this morning. After some sensible cornflakes I didn’t know how I felt about having something resembling my Chinese takeaway order at 7am, but hey-ho I’m on holiday and it was nice.
… and a moment for the view from the outside seating area of the breakfast room.
My flight today was not until 7:25pm but if you remember, this was the flight my airline pal on WhatsApp told me to just rock up to the airport. So I think I got to the airport around 3pm.
Beforehand, I had to check out of the hotel and had a few hours left to explore. I was really keen to visit the natural history museum back at the main Ala Too square, again pleased that I walked 20 minutes instead of grabbing a lift.
Entry to the museum was an incredible £2.13. It was clean and very modern and one could easily spend half a day here.
Funnily enough, I walked around the first floor for 20 minutes and, thinking that was that, intended to leave. It was only using the loo that I thought “hang on… what about all the Soviet stuff” did I realise that there were another two or three floors that made up the museum! Silly me.
It was really interesting to learn bout the history of Kyrgyzstan way before, before and during being a Soviet state. I’m a bit disappointed, writing this section four months after the visit, I don’t have a lot of interesting chat from the museum itself, but I do have a fun fact and the all important Christory / Geograchrissy lesson:
Kyrgyzstan, official named the Kyrgyz Republic is located in central Asia, bordered by Kazakhstan to the north then from clockwise; China, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. It has a population of 7 million people. 78% of the population are ethnic Kyrgyz followed by minorities mainly made up of Russians and Uzbeks.
Kyrgyzstan became part of the Russian Empire in 1876 and then the Kirghiz Soviet Socialist Republic in 1936. As we’ve learned, this ended on 31st August 1991 when it became independent as it remains today.
Fun fact: The flag of Kyrgystan, albeit with some different opinions or variations, features a circular yurt roof in a sun with 40 rays, each representing an ancient tribe that Manas (bloke on horse statue outside) brought together.
In terms of more recent history and especially the build up to independence that was celebrated two days prior on 31st August, the below photo from the museum provides a good overview.
Again, a really interesting 90 minutes at the museum and as I’ve just been checking everything is correct I have come across another outstandingly fun…
Fun Fact: Kyrgyzstan is farther from the sea than any other individual country.
Incredible stuff.
Whilst you regain consciousness, let me tell you that next I visited Osh Bazaar, which I believe to be the largest market area in the city. The photo’s here are from rare open spaces, but walking through the narrow streets it was BUSY.
The Bazaar was included on many ‘things to do’ lists I looked at and whilst I didn’t have anything better in mind, I did question why I have been to so many of these market types. What am I going to buy? What do I need to buy? How am I going to get a very reasonably priced ironing board back home?
It was however, lunchtime. I must have browsed a good 20 outlets but with the whole place really lacking in any English signage or conversation, chose a burger/kebab van on the outskirts with a seating area. I tried my utmost to ask for no garlic sauce on my kebab wrap (contentious request I know) but it transpired there is no such translation in Kyrgyz and it was dripping so much I still have the stain on my shorts to this day!
From here it was a long, like 40 minutes, taxi back to the north-east-ish of the city centre and past my hotel for my final stop.
The Bishkek Central Mosque was very impressive. Indeed it is one of the largest in central Asia and if you’re ready for another fun fact: It has the capacity to accommodate 30,000 worshipers! Wikipedia provided that ‘fact’ but I’m questioning it. 30,000 is a LOT of people…
I cannot fully remember why I didn’t go inside but almost certain it was because I was wearing shorts. And the massive f***ing garlic sauce stain from lunch would not have helped my case.
A walk back to the hotel to grab my bag and a Yandex Go to the airport, I had a nervy two hour wait until check-in opened and made sure I was first in the queue. Ultimately, I was on the flight list, I checked in, and settled down for tea… a meat and bread option with no garlic sauce in sight for just £4. In an airport.
Not sure how I bagged another window seat for the short flight from Bishkek to Almaty but I wasn’t complaining.
So, although a direct flight from A to B takes around 150 minutes, I also had three hours to wait in Almaty airport.
Christory lesson alert! Almaty is actually the largest city in Kazakhstan with two million residents and lies close to the border with Kyrgyzstan. It was the capital city until 1991 when Kazakhstan also gained independence from the USSR and made what is now Astana its capital. New regime, new me, hun.
The wait gave me enough time to have my first beer of the trip! (and second, and third…) Costing £2 for a 500ml bottle of lager really was irresistible and I don’t even drink lager at home. Less importantly, it was also a good time to pick up some Kazakhstani Tenge cash and another SIM card (still beggars belief why my relatively new phone cannot use an eSim).
By the time I landed in Astana and arranged a long cab to the hotel, it was creeping into the early hours of day 5. Yep… day 5 and I’ve only just arrived at the destination the game will be played? Classing this one as a football away trip blog may be a stretch…
Day 5 – Astana
After a good sleep in my hotel room, which was larger than my whole house back home plus an extra bathroom, the weather remained perfectly sunny, clear and cool. Perfect for exploring the city for most of the day.
Sadly, after a made to order breakfast that consisted of pretty much toast and ham due to the language barrier, I also struggled to communicate with the hotel staff to ask whether I bring my laundry out or leave it in the room, or what the craic with the swimming pool was.
Together with these small issues, I couldn’t get my Yandex Go taxi app to work as it kept conflicting with my two SIM cards. This I knew would be a lifeline over the next few days looking at how spaced out the city is.
After an hour being rather miserable in my hotel room, I decided to get out and just walk in the general direction of where I wanted to go and go from there.
My hotel was just north of the Ishim river and it was a delight to walk alongside and over a few bridges. Yet, I couldn’t stop feeling really miserable, and to be honest, a little lonely. The frustration of the language barrier at the hotel was minor, but I was continuing and failing to try and get the taxi app to work. Perhaps the worst thing though was that it was 9am here but 4am back home. The fact that I could quickly pick up the phone and just have a little rant to either my wife or my mother was probably the worst part. Strange, as I had really enjoyed my own company up to this point.
Then, somewhat out of the blue whilst I was sat on a swinging bench overlooking the river, a few friends from North Wales messaged about meeting for drinks later in the day. Shortly after a combination of reinstalling the app / adding a different bank card / praying to Joe Allen / headbutting my phone seemed to work and I swiftly obtained a ride towards downtown and the main boulevard.
Now that my whinging is over… Kazakhstan and Astana info, with a plethora of fun facts:
Kazakhstan is the 9th largest country in the world and the largest that is landlocked, although it does have a coastline along the Caspian Sea. I’m not sure if that means therefore it isn’t landlocked? I dunno. It borders Russia, China, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan. Apparently, a small portion of the country falls into ‘eastern Europe’ which is why they play in the European competitions rather than the Asian equivalents. Bear in mind that Syria, Iraq and Jordan are all further west and are definitely considered Asian?!
As I have mentioned, Astana is the second largest city in the country with a population of 1.6 million. Astana literally translates to “capital city” in Kazakh, and was briefly called “Nur-sultan” between 2019 and 2022 in honour of the first president of Kazakhstan. Since becoming the capital, it has seen rapid growth, a planned, transforming city which is renowned for its futuristic architecture and modern landmarks. I’m reading that there is a metro being constructed to link areas of the city. This is very much needed as the area is for want of a better term; f***ing massive.
I exited the taxi near the Presidential palace on the eastern point of the central Nurzhol boulevard. Due to construction I couldn’t get a decent view / picture until a bit later on. At this time of the morning, around 9am I recall, the straight was peacefully quiet.
After a short walk towards the tower I stopped for a coffee by a ‘singing fountain’ that was understandably tame for this time of day. Whilst the tower was in view it took a lot longer than expected to finally reach the base.
But I got there eventually! After purchasing my tickets for 2000 Tenge (£3.12) and a quick security check, there was a short queue for the lift near a café, souvenir stall and restrooms at the base.
A bit of background on the tower… but not quite another Christory lesson… The word “Baiterek” means “Tree of Life” and the tower was commissioned in 1996 by the First President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Nursultan Nazarbayev. It was completed in 2002, as a symbol of the transfer of the capital from Almaty to Astana in 1997.
The structure is 105 metres tall, cradling a gold mirrored sphere of 22 metre diameter. The observation area (the gold sphere) is 97m up and has two floors.
The views from the globe were absolutely outstanding a gave a sense of how spread out the city is. In the picture above you can see the presidential palace where I walked from, in the middle of two gold towers known by locals as the beer cans. This is probably the favourite image of the whole trip.
On the top level of the observation deck rests a wooden sculpture with a globe and 16 spires, commemorating the Congress of Leaders of World and Traditional Religions, held several times in Astana.
There is also a handprint of the First President, Nursultan Nazarbayev if you’re keeping up, that welcomes visitors to place a hand in the imprint and make a wish. I did so, but the photo looks like I’m on a Year 4 school trip and my little man-bag did me no favours.
Update: Found it….
After picking up a fridge magnet for Mum, I headed west along the main strip to collect my ticket from the designated hotel. What seemed like a 5 minute walk from the top of the tower actually took me over half a bloody hour!
Although I was very much looking forward to meeting friends and a beer, I was sensible enough to grab some lunch at McDonalds. Well, I say McDonalds, it was everything but the name…
Fun Fact: Maccies in Kazakhstan is actually called “I’M”, since 2003 I think. Why? McDonald’s is franchised in KZ and the food supply is owned by Russians. With the war in Ukraine, sanctions meant they couldn’t keep the McDonald’s brand name so were forced to change it.
Let that fun fact ooze through your veins as I taxi back to the hotel, drop off my ticket, then straight back out TO THE PUB.
The pub was called “Bochonok” which is impossible to find on Google Maps, but only a few minutes walk from the tower. After missing both human interaction and beer for a good few days, I was delighted to combine both together as I met up with friends from north Wales and drank 7% cider all night.
And I meant all night. Nothing confirms a good night out than the last photo of the evening (above) was taken at 5pm. Thankfully everywhere looked and was, to my knowledge, very safe so I didn’t worry about a good few beers before a taxi back to the hotel at no idea o’clock.
Day 6 – Matchday in Astana!
This is where the trip kinda unravels a bit, so if you’re getting bored don’t worry there’s not long left.
Basically, I woke up late morning skipping breakfast, had a wash and booked a taxi straight to the pub from yesterday!
And that was pretty much it until 5pm until the pub emptied to catch the complimentary busses to the stadium.
Astana Arena is the biggest of its kind in Kazakhstan holding 30,000 fans. There was doubt whether the match would be played in Astana due to roof damage from the snow a year or so back, so I was grateful to visit (the stadium in Almaty looked dreadful).
I cannot actually remember whether there was beer on sale or if I had a few pints, which goes to show how much I NEEDED the three hot-dogs consumed during the match, each costing around £2.
As much as I enjoyed a drink during the day I remember the game really well. We started off OK, not great, and I thought once Kieffer Moore scrambled the ball over the line to make it 1-0 after 24 minutes we’d go on to win easy against a team ranked 114th in the world.
Not the case. For periods of the second half Kazakhstan battered us, hitting the woodwork twice, the latter being the last kick of the game! As results would prove over the next 2 months, it was a vital three points and I left the stadium
After the game, many exchanged pleasantries with the locals (in a nice way) and before long, the buses took as back to Baiterek Tower in the centre.
I was delighted to bump into my pals on the bus, so we toasted the three points in a couple of bars nearby. It is worth noting that Wales rarely win away from home. This was the first win in this set of qualifiers at the third attempt and the first I had witnessed since Montenegro the same time last year in 2024.
I recall going to this hipster bar with some live music and drinking cider that was flatter and certainly stronger than required for that time of night.
The pinch moment arrived around 1am when I contemplated going back to the hotel, only to take a diversion into another café bar with a young lad delivering some classic britpop bangers. I think the photo below sums it up, from what I remember!
Day 7 – Hungover in Astana and the long journey home
Getting in at 4am or thereabouts is not something I do regularly any more, and boy did it hit me for six! I woke up a few minutes AFTER check out time and still had to pack and have a wash – I was not in any rush!
Unbeknown at the time I would look back on that morning with distain as there were several things I wanted to see, but couldn’t, due to pubbing early on day 5 and energy-less today. Nevertheless, here is what I would have done if I were sensible (hopefully there will be a next time…)
- Roam around the Presidential Palace and Palace of Peace gardens, on the eastern edge of the main boulevard
- Botanical gardens near the stadium
- Astana Grand Mosque – I drove past here on the way to the airport. Looked incredible from the air (Google Maps) and again demonstrates how spread out everything is in the City
- Future Energy Museum – Astana hosted the international EXPO in 2017 and created a set of buildings to host the occasion. Fun Fact – The Atomnium in Brussels and the Olympic Stadium in Barcelona were also built as part as hosted EXPO. This fascinated me the most, even though it is no longer open to the public and from 2024 houses commercial offices. In the middle of a few blocks is a large spherical building, which claimed to be the largest spherical building in the world. HOWEVER, the Avicii Arena – which I had visited on a trip to Stockholm (link) – is a significant 25 meters wider.
Apologies to fans of the blog for missing these. I think pinching photos from Google is kinda’ cheating. The blog is aimed at NOT doing things as I do them, remember.
Anyway, back to what I did do that sunny Friday morning. And yet another impressive structure, this time at the western side of the main strip.
Khan Shatyr is a shopping and entertainment centre, and is the largest tented building in the world being 150 high and an area of 127,000 square metres.
In addition to the expected retail shops, food outlets and cinema, what drew me to this place was the fact that it also houses a beach resort, sand included on the top floor! Even when temperatures outside can dop into the minuses, the area is a ‘tropical oasis’ with the water heated to 29°C year round.
Fun fact: The sand used for the beach areas is imported directly from the Maldives! So many questions about why and transportation logistics…
I fully intended to spend a few hours here, just to take a few photos to hopefully capture what a weird concept it seems. Ultimately, I ran out of time / was out drinking too long / too hungover to tick this off the list. If you wish to visit yourself, like I will defiantly do if I visit again, the entrance fee is around £19.
Out of all he offerings for lunch available I ended up with a KFC amongst several visits to the loo. Now still a bit worse for wear any my luggage with me, I decided to call it a day and head to the airport nice and early. The taxi from Khan Shatyr to the airport did take me past the Grand Mosque and Future Energy Museum, making me feel guilty of the wasted opportunities. Looking back though, I experienced more than I imagined throughout the week whilst having an appetite to visit again.
Starting my extensive travel home could not have got off to be a better start, with an empty middle seat and extra leg room for a six hour flight to Istanbul. Probably the most comfortable I have ever been on a plane and I fondly remember enjoying the Tom Hanks film “A man called Otto” among the media offerings.
After this flight though, things got a little bit shit.
Day 8 – The final stretch home to watch the County!
I’m not a fan of Istanbul airport since accidentally paying over £20 for a McDonalds earlier in the year, but that seemed a mild inconvenience compared to this time.
Arriving in Turkey at 22:10, my flight back to the UK was not until 04:45 the next day. I did intend on forking out $50 or so for the lounge, but I never got the chance. Although I had no hand-luggage I had to check in at the WizzAir desks for my boarding pass, which meant I was sat around waiting, trying to stay awake for hours and hours. When the check-in did open and I eventually joined the queue, I must have been 50th in line and everyone in front of me seemed to have a trolley full of suitcases.
The process took so long, by the time I checked in and cleared the lengthy security (another reason I hate the airport) I actually had to jog – IN MY STATE – to the gate. No duty free tobacco this time. Surely some people missed the flight who were still at the check in guest – but not my problem, I was nearly home.
By the time that I landed in the UK and found out that I missed my FlixBus by FOUR fucking minutes I think I was done feeling sorry for myself. There was always going to be a slight risk that the timing would be too tight and I only lost out on £12. In preparation, I also had a look at the trains whilst clearing passport control and was delighted that Uber were offering the journey for around £45, and I would get to Newport a little earlier than the bus.
Extending my journey itinerary further, I caught the next available train from Gatwick to ummm… can’t remember the London station, then the tube to London Paddington.
Only once the train departed for south Wales was I confident there would be no other obstacles, so decided to celebrate with a can of cider at 10am, as is customary on a football matchday in the UK.
My wife gratefully joined me at Newport station to offload my luggage, then it was straight to Rodney Parade for the early kick off verse local rivals Bristol Rovers.
Three thousand miles and a significant extra few quid to ensure I got back for kickoff. A not so fun fact was that I left the game early after we went 3-0 down, only to miss 2 of our goals walking to the pub.
After a few more pints everything was catching up with me to the extent I finished the day no later than 8pm with a bloody soft drink. How I wish I did the same after the match in Kazakhstan!
Thanks for reading.
How Not 2 Life 