Totally Touristy

This past weekend I ventured to Astana, Kazakhstan’s capital. I left my site on Friday night, travelled by train to Karaganda and then onto Astana by bus. I arriving in Astana mid-morning on Saturday, I found an apartment where I would sleep before hitting the town! I first went to Bayterek. I took to lift up to the top for 500 tenge and was able to put my hand in Nazerbyev’s hand print…cool huh?! From the top of Bayterek I could see many parts of Astana. I took lots of pictures like a crazy tourist and then went for a walk outside. It’s too bad it started to rain. To stay dry I waited under a building. Finally, when the rain let up I wandered to find the T.G.I.Friday’s I had heard about. I was SUPER nervous that it was going to be a lie, that there really wasn’t going to be a T.G.I.Fridays, but I was in luck, there REALLY one! It was totally INCREDIBLY tasty! I ordered a soda (coke light, of course). Followed by an appetizer, mozzarella sticks (I don’t even get appetizers in America). Then I had some sort of chicken meal – like cheesy chicken, I don’t remember it’s name, it came with mashed potatoes and was divine! This was followed by a Friday’s Sundae, which was out of this world! It was a small price to pay for a fabulous meal from a restaurant that I hadn’t been to in over a year! Although, while I was eating I couldn’t help but wonder, if I should be eating local foods out of a yurt or doing something cultural, but I guess I have a whole to do cultural things huh?

Sunday was Constitution Day and I was excited. I had heard there was going to be a parade and that other activities would be going on around town. Unfortunately, I never made it to the parade. But I did find the other activities. There was a concert in a park area where people were dressed in traditional Kazakhstani wear. There was singing and dancing and toasting and dombra playing. This was cause for a good time! My only regret is that I didn’t take as many pictures as I should have.

Late afternoon I boarded a bus to return to site. I would first go to Karaganda and then take a train back to site. I had 3 hours to wander the city of Karaganda and went on the hunt for more Constitution Day activities, I think they had passed by the time I went out looking for them. Instead, I went shopping and tried on things that I would most likely never buy. Then headed back to the train station to catch the train. This train was perhaps one of the greatest train rides I’ve had The people in my cart were exceptionally friendly. They shared their meal with me and we all played cards. Then we hit the bunks and I woke up as the train was stopping at my site.