The City's History
by nepalgoods
To my great surprise I found, that Almaty area used to be part of Chinese territory but came under Russian control in the middle of the 19th century. Almaty was founded by Siberian Cossacks in 1854. Its first name was Vernyj.
In 1921, the name Alma-Ata ("father-apple") was created by the Bolsheviks. In a devastating earthquake in 1911, almost the only large building that remained standing was the Russian Orthodox cathedral. In the 1920s, after the completion of the Turkestan-Siberia Railway, Alma-Ata, as it was then known, became a major stopping point along the track. In 1929, Almaty became the capital of the Kazakh SSR.
In late 1991, Almaty became the capital of the Republic of Kazakhstan, a designation it kept until 1998, when the capital was moved to Astana. Almaty, however, remains the largest city in Kazakhstan and the country's major commercial center.
Take the cable car which runs...
by ianrmillard
Take the cable car which runs from behind the Hotel Kazakhstan area up to the TV tower which is a principal Almaty landmark. Takes about 10 mins. At the top you can sit at an open-air cafe and eat shashlik, drink beer and look at the view. I seem to recall that it may not run in winter, probably for safety reasons in the extreme cold...but then, you might not want to sit around at the top for long in temperatures of minus 20C. After enjoying the view you can return by cable car or walk back down the small road which goes off at an oblique angle (this is a good hour-long walk: keep on going-- you will eventually come out quite high up Lenina).Another place to go for a stroll is Almaty's Gorky Park, named of course after the Russian and Soviet writer Maxim Gorky, the author of 'Literary Portraits', 'My Universities' and other worksThe wires you can see strung up over several of my photos are the electrical supply for the trolleybuses (for which Gorky Park is one of the termini)
Svyato-Voznesensky Cathedral
by Klod5
A jewel of the 28 Panfilov Heroes’ Park is the Svyato-Voznesensky Cathedral. Another wooden creation of Zenkov, it is said to be built in 1904-1907 without a single nail . The building has survived the notorious 1911 earthquake graded 10 points under the Richter scale and all subsequent earthquakes.
Despite the long period that the Cathedral was not functional (1927-1995), it has kept its splendor and spirit. The Cathedral resumed daily services in 1996 after it had been returned to the Russian Orthodox Church.
Skiing or Snowboarding, climbing or mountain bikin
by Vea
Whilst in Almaty in Summer or Winter. Visit the Chimbulak Mountain Resort. Or Below Chimbulak there is an ex - USSR skating base called Medeo. A huge ice-ring with amazing views. OR hike up something like a 1000 steps from Medeo You can rent equipment on the mountain or bring yours.
Charin Valley
by mirko77
About four hours drving east of Almaty, alongside the Altau Range on your right, you can get to Kegen and the Karkara valley that marks the border with Kyrgyzstan.
North of Kegen it is possible to visit the Charin Canyon, (€10), which is a quite spectacular geological surprise, a canyon, similar to those of Nevada, in the middle of Central Asia!
We headed south towards the Kyrgyz border on our way to Karakol, but I know that many Amaty based companies organize tours to Charin.
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The Terrace
kurmanghazy
Zenkov Cathedral
The Cathedral
