Temirtau means "Iron mountain" in Kazakh, and it is here where the steel and coal plants are. We visited this place two years ago with the church, and we stopped in a convent run by Mother Theresa nuns. What I had known about this place was the plants polluted it and depression and alcoholism run deep.
Sunday I saw a different side to Temirtau.
Temirtau is a town with a population of about 180,000, and my friend R. and her daughter A. used to live here. It is about a half hour drive from Karaganda, on the way back to Astana.
We stopped there on our way home from Karaganda, and we passed the smog-producing factory where R. used to work as a translator. She talked about how to make metal from rocks (melting them to get out the iron) as well as safety precautions (workers falling into +900 Celsius furnaces and melting) and how she once even got to go inside a mine (as a translator). The air near the factory smelled foul.
But the town itself was lovely (and had fresher air). Apartment buildings were right in the center; buses ran regularly and there was even a trolley. We stopped near the ice skating rink where A. used to go, in front of a new and fancy museum that was unfortunately closed that day. The kids played in front of the museum, by a statute of two giant metallurgists, where A. used to play when she was little.
Then we walked to the nearby man-made lake (made by Japanese prisoners). The sun shone brightly on us and small hills graced the other side of the lake. R. had been on boat rides on this lake, and so we went to the small boat dock where she asked about boat rides. The men seemed to think this was an odd request--Astana has boats, too, they said. But they also said that the boats were still under repair since the winter, and she should come back in May or June, and they gave her a number to call.
We returned to the car and drove home, making plans to one day spend a summer in Temirtau.
Wednesday, May 23, 2012
Karaganda - Driving Tour and Johnny Walker's
After the girls had played in the hotel for a while, R.'s sister's husband joined us and offered to drive us around Karaganda. We happily agreed. We headed for some outdoor park with interesting rocks, only to find out that it no longer existed, as a new and beautiful mosque had been built where it had been.
Nearby I saw the Catholic Cathedral that we had visited two years ago as it was being constructed. It's quite beautiful, and would fit in nicely in a town in Europe. However, it was still not complete, and so we did not go inside.
A park dedicated to the Afghan War was nearby, and so we stopped here. There was a large fountain with some children running around in it. Sophia and A. had started to whine again, but the water stopped this. We let them take off their shoes and socks, roll up their pants, and splash in the water. They loved this.
Then we returned to the hotel and said good-bye to A.'s aunt and uncle. We decided to walk down the main street to the Johnny Walker pub, which the Lonely Planet recommended and R. had been to numerous times.
The food was a bit expensive, but I ordered a pepper steak and it was absolutely delicious. I ordered a dark beer on draft (they make their own beer) and it was much better than most the beer I've had here. Even the side of bread we got was delicious, with a wide selection of fresh bread. Sophia's plain spaghetti with a side of Parmesan cheese was quite cheap.
We were too full to contemplate dessert and so we walked back home. It was getting close to midnight, but we'd had a great time--a very full and eventful day!
Nearby I saw the Catholic Cathedral that we had visited two years ago as it was being constructed. It's quite beautiful, and would fit in nicely in a town in Europe. However, it was still not complete, and so we did not go inside.
A park dedicated to the Afghan War was nearby, and so we stopped here. There was a large fountain with some children running around in it. Sophia and A. had started to whine again, but the water stopped this. We let them take off their shoes and socks, roll up their pants, and splash in the water. They loved this.
Then we returned to the hotel and said good-bye to A.'s aunt and uncle. We decided to walk down the main street to the Johnny Walker pub, which the Lonely Planet recommended and R. had been to numerous times.
The food was a bit expensive, but I ordered a pepper steak and it was absolutely delicious. I ordered a dark beer on draft (they make their own beer) and it was much better than most the beer I've had here. Even the side of bread we got was delicious, with a wide selection of fresh bread. Sophia's plain spaghetti with a side of Parmesan cheese was quite cheap.
We were too full to contemplate dessert and so we walked back home. It was getting close to midnight, but we'd had a great time--a very full and eventful day!
Karaganda! Ice Skating & Museums
I had not been to Karaganda in two years. My first trip was to see churches, seminaries, and convents. The second time (see part 1 and part 2) was just a weekend trip for fun. So I was excited when my Kazakh friend R. proposed a quick weekend trip there. Her daughter, A, Sophia's best friend, was to be in an ice skating competition there.
We drove down after school on Friday evening. It's a 220 kilometer trip, and most of the road is in decent condition; however, it's a narrow, two-lane highway, so you still have to be cautious.
We arrived after dark and checked into our hotel, the same one my brother I had stayed in two years ago. It's 8000 Tenge for a small 2-room "suite", that's about $50. It's neither dirty nor clean--the rooms are cleaned daily, but they still have the appearance of needing a major scrub-down. But quite satisfactory for 2 kids and 2 adults who just need a place to sleep. The girls shared the pull-out couch and R. and I got separate beds in our tiny room.
The hotel is right in the middle of downtown. One of the things I love about Karaganda is its downtown. It's a decent-sized town (its population is a little under 500,000) and most of it seems to be concentrated on one rather long strip of road. So everything is easily walkable. You have dozens of shopping centers and restaurants on this road, plus a modern mall, plus a circus, and several museums either on this road or just off it, plus a really nice Central Park a block off this road. The sidewalks are extremely wide and not too crowded. The road is rather wide for a main street, but much narrower than most the roads in Astana, which are like insane freeways.
The ice skating competition was Saturday morning, and the ice skating rink was across the street from the hotel. We ate breakfast in the hotel's restaurant (blinies, which are like crepes, and fried eggs). Then we watched the competition. A.'s grandparents and uncle came, since they all live in or near Karaganda.
A. won first place in her division! She's been winning first place quite a lot lately, it's quite exciting.
After that we wandered to look for this Eco-Museum that the Lonely Planet thought was awesome. We wandered down the main street, asking people, some of whom thought we were crazy, some of whom had actually heard of it before. We finally found it, unlabeled. The door was locked and there was no sign. Peering in through the window, I did see an arrow with the words, "Eco-Museum" on it, so I do know we found the place. Maybe it's not open on weekends.
The sun was hot over our heads and we were sweating and the girls were whining. So we got ice cream from the place that sells the best soft-serve ice cream in the world, and then we took a bus to an art museum.
We came in talking, and then R. asked the cashier how much. As they were talking, I read the sign and couldn't help but notice that foreigners cost more. R. didn't see the sign and thought the women was crazy when she said I cost more. She's not foreign, she lives works here, R. tried to tell her. Well, she doesn't speak Russian, the lady said. To which R. replied, Do you speak Kazakh?
Finally she convinced the lady to let me in at local price.
The girls enjoyed the museum. There was some beadwork and glasswork, as well as a few paintings and sculptures.
Then we walked back to the City Mall, which is next to our hotel, and went inside to eat fast food. Sophia said the chicken nuggets rivaled McDonald's, and I wondered why this place (Mac & Dac, I think) isn't in Astana.
R.'s sister joined us and then we took a taxi to another museum.
This museum was AWESOME and Astana doesn't have a museum like this one. The first room was like a natural exhibit of the Karaganda region. It had a decent-sized collection of (dead) bugs, which the girls liked, plus various rocks from the region. Karaganda is known for its mining. There were also some fossils, including a mammoth bone.
Next, there was like a life-sized diorama of animals unique to the region, including a saiga, a kind of antelope.
The next exhibit was about the peoples who lived in the Karaganda region in pre-historic times, as well as artifacts from their time. It was interesting looking at the different tools--including a razor for shaving!
The rest of the rooms bored the girls but still fascinated me. It led us through the history of the region, showing yurts and traditional clothing, typewriters from the Soviet period, a room devoted to concentration camps, another to the space program. Every item had a label in English as well as Russian and Kazakh, although the longer explanations were all in English.
From the end of ice skating to the end of this museum, the girls spent most of this time whining. It was quite annoying, and finally I conceded--if we give you an hour at the hotel, will you quit your whining? We had driven so far and all they wanted to do was hang out at the hotel!
So we returned to the hotel, where they played hide and seek while we rested.
We drove down after school on Friday evening. It's a 220 kilometer trip, and most of the road is in decent condition; however, it's a narrow, two-lane highway, so you still have to be cautious.
We arrived after dark and checked into our hotel, the same one my brother I had stayed in two years ago. It's 8000 Tenge for a small 2-room "suite", that's about $50. It's neither dirty nor clean--the rooms are cleaned daily, but they still have the appearance of needing a major scrub-down. But quite satisfactory for 2 kids and 2 adults who just need a place to sleep. The girls shared the pull-out couch and R. and I got separate beds in our tiny room.
The hotel is right in the middle of downtown. One of the things I love about Karaganda is its downtown. It's a decent-sized town (its population is a little under 500,000) and most of it seems to be concentrated on one rather long strip of road. So everything is easily walkable. You have dozens of shopping centers and restaurants on this road, plus a modern mall, plus a circus, and several museums either on this road or just off it, plus a really nice Central Park a block off this road. The sidewalks are extremely wide and not too crowded. The road is rather wide for a main street, but much narrower than most the roads in Astana, which are like insane freeways.
The ice skating competition was Saturday morning, and the ice skating rink was across the street from the hotel. We ate breakfast in the hotel's restaurant (blinies, which are like crepes, and fried eggs). Then we watched the competition. A.'s grandparents and uncle came, since they all live in or near Karaganda.
A. won first place in her division! She's been winning first place quite a lot lately, it's quite exciting.
After that we wandered to look for this Eco-Museum that the Lonely Planet thought was awesome. We wandered down the main street, asking people, some of whom thought we were crazy, some of whom had actually heard of it before. We finally found it, unlabeled. The door was locked and there was no sign. Peering in through the window, I did see an arrow with the words, "Eco-Museum" on it, so I do know we found the place. Maybe it's not open on weekends.
The sun was hot over our heads and we were sweating and the girls were whining. So we got ice cream from the place that sells the best soft-serve ice cream in the world, and then we took a bus to an art museum.
We came in talking, and then R. asked the cashier how much. As they were talking, I read the sign and couldn't help but notice that foreigners cost more. R. didn't see the sign and thought the women was crazy when she said I cost more. She's not foreign, she lives works here, R. tried to tell her. Well, she doesn't speak Russian, the lady said. To which R. replied, Do you speak Kazakh?
Finally she convinced the lady to let me in at local price.
The girls enjoyed the museum. There was some beadwork and glasswork, as well as a few paintings and sculptures.
Then we walked back to the City Mall, which is next to our hotel, and went inside to eat fast food. Sophia said the chicken nuggets rivaled McDonald's, and I wondered why this place (Mac & Dac, I think) isn't in Astana.
R.'s sister joined us and then we took a taxi to another museum.
This museum was AWESOME and Astana doesn't have a museum like this one. The first room was like a natural exhibit of the Karaganda region. It had a decent-sized collection of (dead) bugs, which the girls liked, plus various rocks from the region. Karaganda is known for its mining. There were also some fossils, including a mammoth bone.
Next, there was like a life-sized diorama of animals unique to the region, including a saiga, a kind of antelope.
The next exhibit was about the peoples who lived in the Karaganda region in pre-historic times, as well as artifacts from their time. It was interesting looking at the different tools--including a razor for shaving!
The rest of the rooms bored the girls but still fascinated me. It led us through the history of the region, showing yurts and traditional clothing, typewriters from the Soviet period, a room devoted to concentration camps, another to the space program. Every item had a label in English as well as Russian and Kazakh, although the longer explanations were all in English.
From the end of ice skating to the end of this museum, the girls spent most of this time whining. It was quite annoying, and finally I conceded--if we give you an hour at the hotel, will you quit your whining? We had driven so far and all they wanted to do was hang out at the hotel!
So we returned to the hotel, where they played hide and seek while we rested.
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