How a drab Soviet metropolis became Central Asia’s capital of cool
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Several cities around the globe have reinvented themselves in recent years, but none more successfully than Almaty.
Since the collapse of the USSR, Kazakhstan’s largest city (population 2.2 million and growing) has evolved from a drab, run-of-the-mill Soviet metropolis into the urban star of Central Asia.
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Along the way, the city has developed one of the world’s most beautiful metro systems, grown into a thriving banking and finance center, complemented its vintage bazaars with luxury boutiques and modern shopping malls and reshaped its traditional gastronomy into a nouvelle cuisine that’s drawing raves from foodies around the world.
Almaty is also evolving into the cultural and artistic hub of Central Asia. It’s already got several world-class museums (including a “secret” underground collection that doesn’t even have a name) and a dazzling new cultural center slated to open early next year.
“It’s an incredibly livable city,” says long-time American resident Dennis Keen, a historic preservation advocate and founder of Walking Almaty.
“Green and clean. You don’t need a car. The public transit here is fantastic. And it’s very much the center of contemporary art and dining in Central Asia.”
Keen adds that whenever he tells someone back home that he lives in Kazakhstan, “Borat” inevitably comes up. The movie’s title character doesn’t paint a very flattering portrait of the Central Asian nation. But nowadays one is tempted to think that if Borat visited Almaty now, he would say, “Very nice!”
