The rare day off, Part I

Airport after airport, driver after driver, presentation after presentation, and life can turn into a complete blur.  Add the dozens of time zones you’re zipping back and forth across, and even day and night get confusing.

But once in a great while comes the rare day off.  A complete disconnect from work, and a chance to dive into self-serving exploration.  One memorable day off led to some great memories and a new friend.

Flying into Almaty, Kazakhstan on a Sunday prior to Tuesday work on an IESC international development project (to save a few tenge!), I had the great good fortune to visit Medeu and Chimbulak in the mountains overlooking Almaty.  Since it was the occasion of the first snowfall of the season, the mountains were a veritable fairyland.   

 

An eerie sunrise in the mountains above Almaty, Kazakhstan

 With Dima, my local and extremely knowledgeable guide, we headed carefully up the snow-covered roads, and in no time found ourselves overlooking the Madeu outdoor ice rink.  At over 5,500 feet, it’s the highest rink in the world and has seen many world records.

Looking down on Medeu

Continuing up, we reached the ski area of Chimbulak.  Now at over 7,200 feet, you could definitely tell the air was thinner…and colder!  But the views made the journey well worth the while.  We passed on taking the lifts to the Talgar pass which sits at almost 10,500 feet, and settled instead for a hot coffee at the lodge.

Chairlift from Chimbulak.  Going up?

Heading back down the mountain to reality, Dima pointed out the history and cultural aspects of the area, a definite perk of the job, ending back in Almaty at the Independence Monument on the Republic Square. You can see a nifty panoramic view at bit.ly/1gujQdl.

Many thanks to my guide Dima for a great day.  Now (sigh) back to work.