Hazrat Sultan is the largest mosque in Central Asia located in Astana – the capital city of Kazakhstan. Construction of the mosque began in June 2009. July 6, 2012, at 12:30, the mosque was opened.

The building was constructed in the classic Islamic style using traditional Kazakh ornaments. The mosque can accommodate up to 10,000 people. “Hazrat Sultan” has the largest dome in Kazakhstan (height – 51 meters, width – 28.1 meters). The height of the minarets is 77 meters. Photos by Petr Ushanov

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Tags: Astana city · mosques

Zaysan is a lake located in the East Kazakhstan region of the country, in the open high and flat valley between mountain ranges. The Chinese border is just 60 km from the eastern shore of the lake.

The lake is located at an altitude of 420 m, the length of the lake is 105 km, the width – 22-48 km, maximum depth – 15 m. Zaysan Lake on Google Maps. Photos by Ilia Afanasieff

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Tags: East Kazakhstan oblast

If you decide to travel by car and your route runs along the south of Kazakhstan, I recommend you to visit the following unique Kazakhstan monument of rock art – Tamgaly.

Petroglyphs (rock carvings) of the archaeological landscape Tamgaly are one of the oldest and most striking monuments of Semirechye (Seven Rivers) rock art, since 2004 it has the status of UNESCO World Heritage Site.

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Tags: Almaty oblast

Big Almaty Lake is a beautiful turquoise lake located about 15 km south of Almaty, at the height of 2510 meters. The lake is not only pleasing the eyes of tourists and residents of Almaty, but also gives the city clean water from the glaciers of the Tien Shan.

The lake appeared as a result of an earthquake. Big Almaty Lake has unusual for most lakes color that varies from light green to turquoise. The depth is about 40 meters, the length – 1.5 km, the width – 1 km. It is the part of the Ile-Alatau National Park. Big Almaty Lake location on Google Maps. Photos by Andrey Gavrikov

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Tags: Almaty oblast

Natural Reserve Kyzyl-Kent is located in the east of Kent Mountains, 250 km south-east of Karaganda.

Mountainous oasis Kent is of great interest due to the fact that these areas are not developed and do not attract a lot of tourists because of the lack of large bodies of water. The following nice photos of this place were captured in September 2012 by Ilia Afanasieff

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Tags: Karaganda oblast

1. Kazakhstan is home to about 120 ethnic groups and nationalities

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The following set of postcards and photographic reproductions of pretty decent quality create an image of the Soviet Alma-Ata (present Almaty) as a bright, modern city surrounded by white peaks of the mountains.

The city, which reached the one million mark in population in 1981, remains the cultural, economic, and financial capital of Kazakhstan. Since the late 1990s, it experienced investment and construction boom, the city changed significantly. So the pictures made in the 1980s become more and more historical. Photos by visualhistory

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Tags: Almaty city

Mountainous region called Dzungaria is located in the south-east of the Republic of Kazakhstan (Almaty province). Korinskoye gorge is called one of the most beautiful places in this area.

The valley is known for its stunning views and beautiful waterfall called Burhan-Bulak (three cascades with total height of 112 meters) – one of the places of eco-tourism in Kazakhstan.

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Tags: Almaty oblast · landscapes

Charуn Canyon stretches for 154 km along the river Charуn in Kazakhstan. It is located 195 km to the east from Almaty, near the border with China. Canyon is the part of Charyn National Park founded in 2004.

The canyon is a monument of nature consisting of sedimentary rocks formed about 12 million years ago. The height of the canyon walls is up to 150-300 meters. The place is also known for the variety of flora and fauna. More than 1500 species of plants grow here. Charyn Canyon on Google Maps. Photos by el-magico

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Tags: Almaty oblast · Charyn canyon

Karkaraly state national nature park is a national park in Kazakhstan, located in Karaganda region. It is one of the protected areas of Kazakhstan because of the exceptional diversity of central Kazakhstan landscapes presented. Karkaraly nature park on Google Maps. Photos by Constantine Kikvidze

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Tags: Karaganda oblast