During Soviet times the volume of production of salt in Kyzylorda oblast of Kazakhstan reached 600,000 tons annually, ensuring the needs of all 15 republics of the USSR.

Today the region produces about 250,000 tons of salt that is used only for the needs of domestic market. Salt reserves in this area are about 11 million tons, enough to continue production for the next 40-50 years. Photos by voxpopuli.kz

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Tags: Aralsk city · Kzyl-Orda oblast · salt

The Palace of Peace and Accord because of its characteristic form is simply called the Pyramid. It is one of the most recognizable, interesting and controversial buildings of Astana – the new capital city of Kazakhstan.

The pyramid was built in 2006 (architect Sir Norman Foster). The dimensions of the palace: length – 62 meters, width – 62 meters, height – 62 meters. The concept of the palace is tolerance and unity of different religions. Photos by Pavel Kremnev.

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Tags: Astana city · pyramid

Kazakhstan is known for incredible diversity of natural landscapes that can be found on its vast territory.

The following beautiful photos were taken during trips to Karaganda and East Kazakhstan regions of the country at different times of the year by photographer Constantine Kikvidze for voxpopuli.kz

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Tags: East Kazakhstan oblast · Karaganda oblast · landscapes

Akorda is the residence of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan located on the left bank of the River Ishim in Astana – the capital city of the country. Official presentation of the new palace of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan was held December 24, 2004.

Next to the residence the Parliament, the Government, the Supreme Court, and the House of the Ministries of Kazakhstan are located. The residence is depicted on the banknote of 10,000 tenge. Photos by Karla Nur for voxpopuli.kz

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Tags: Akorda · Astana city

The tradition of hunting with tame hawks and falcons appeared very long ago. Today it is preserved only in a few countries including Kazakhstan. February 12, near the village of Nura (Almaty oblast), the 4th hunting tournament of the Republic of Kazakhstan was held.

There were competitions in several disciplines, starting with grades for the appearance and quality of equipment of a hunter, checking out how well the bird was trained, and finally the main event – hunting for hares and foxes. The winner was determined by the results of this last contest. Photos by Svyatoslav Antonov.

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Tags: Almaty oblast · falcons · hawks · hunt

Almaty, the ex-capital of Kazakhstan, is situated in the southeastern part of Kazakhstan at the foot of Zailiski Ala-Tau mountain system at an elevation of 2,300-3,000 feet (700-900 meters).

Almaty is called a garden city. It has about 80 square meters of green plantations for each of its million-odd residents. Photos by Maksim Zolotukhin from voxpopuli.kz

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Tags: Almaty city · bird's eye views

Pavlodar is a city located in the northeastern part of Kazakhstan, 450 km northeast from Astana and 405 km southeast from Omsk (Russia). The climate of the region is sharply continental, the winters are very cold and the summers are hot.

The following beautiful photos of the city were taken by Legostin Vyacheslav this month when the weather was really cold (about minus 40 degrees Celsius).

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Tags: frost · Pavlodar city

In the city of Almaty on Thursday, December 1, the first branch of the subway was opened. The opening ceremony was attended by Kazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbayev.

The city authorities suggest that the subway will significantly improve the ecological situation in Almaty reducing the traffic on the streets. The first branch of Almaty subway has a length of eight and a half kilometers with seven stations.

The construction began in 1988. The main problems were the lack of funding and difficult geological situation. Almaty subway is the first in Kazakhstan and second in Central Asia. Photos by Vyacheslav Legostin.

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Tags: Almaty city · metro · subway

Almaty (Russian spelling Alma-Ata), formerly (1855-1921) Verny, the ex-capital of Kazakhstan, is situated in the southeastern part of Kazakhstan (Almaty oblast) at the foot of Zailiski Ala-Tau mountain system at an elevation of 2,300-3,000 feet (700-900 m). Almaty is called a garden city having 80 sq.m. of green plantations for each of its million-odd residents.

The following photos of the city were taken from the seventeenth floor of one of the tallest buildings of Almaty by Ispanec.

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Tags: Almaty city

Not so long ago Kazakhstan commemorated the 20th anniversary of closure of the Semipalatinsk nuclear test site. It is located on the border of East Kazakhstan, Pavlodar and Karaganda oblasts, about 130 km northwest of Semey city.

The main attraction of the area is “atomic” lake, which is located at the test site “Balapan”. It was formed in the explosion of a thermonuclear warhead of 140 kilotons of power in 1965.

The diameter of the lake is 500 meters; depth from the surface to the bottom is about 80 meters. In a similar way the Soviet strategists planned to build water reservoirs in arid regions of the Soviet Union. Photos by Grigory Bedenko for voxpopuli.kz

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Tags: East Kazakhstan oblast · Karaganda oblast · Pavlodar oblast · Semipalatinsk nuclear test site