Almaty. A walk from the central park to Kok-Tobe 4K

Table of Contents

From A to B route

Within the framework of quick trip weekend format (I dedicated a separate video on this channel) I visited one of the greenest cities in Kazakhstan – Almaty. The city is just drowning in the greenery of a variety of trees, shrubs and plants, the number and variety of which will pleasantly surprise both the lover of flora and a simple traveler.

The walk included places that are significant and historical for both residents of the city and residents of the whole Kazakhstan.
I wrote descriptions about almost every such place (mostly taken from 2GIS site) in the timeline section.

Timeline

00:00 – Start from the Central Park of Culture and Recreation. The Central Park of Culture and Recreation was founded in 1856, originally called “Treasury Garden”. In 1868, seedlings and seeds from Tashkent, Nikitsky Botanical Garden, Penza Horticulture School were delivered to Verny (Almaty). In 1934 the park was reconstructed, on the banks of the deep water body were placed recreation centers for workers of Alma-Ata, equipped with amusement rides. A unique irrigation and ditch system covering the whole park was created. A zoo was created in the eastern part of the park on the former clover plots. In 1935 it was named “Park of Culture and Recreation named after A. M. Gorky”, in 1940 a monument to Gorky was erected. It is no exaggeration to say that for the children of several generations of Almaty citizens, who left home with their parents and made their way on Sundays and holidays to the Park of Culture and Recreation, it became the first thread that connected them forever with nature, with the beautiful. City parks are the place of invariable meetings of friends, lovers, the place of active rest, where you ride merry-go-rounds with the wind, leisurely walks along such familiar paths.
00:32 – Sculptures of the 12 signs of the zodiac
02:28 – Malaya Almatinka River
10:55 – Starlings everywhere
11:13 – The former city elementary real school of 1890. The monument is protected by the state.
12:15 – People of different ages related to the paratroopers by old tradition celebrate a professional holiday on August 2 (just on the day of shooting the video).
13:44 – Museum of folk musical instruments named after Ykhlas. The building of the officers’ meeting was built in 1908. The author of the project was architect A. P. Zenkov. The building is made in the Russian style – with the use of details of Old Russian wooden architecture in the decoration. The building is a terem. The windows are tall, three-paned, rectangular, abundantly framed with carved platbands; the facades are decorated with applied wooden carvings. The main entrance is emphasized by a high porch canopy resting on carved posts. Small square windows are used in the upper tier of the tower volume. During the 1979 reconstruction, Kazakh national patterns were added to the wooden carvings.
14:18 – Military History Museum of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Kazakhstan
15:03 – Eternal Flame
15:36 – Memorial of Glory. The memorial consists of three parts. The first part – high relief “Oath” (on the left side) – is dedicated to the young fighters for Soviet power in Kazakhstan. The central part of the triptych – “The Feat” – depicts the images of the heroes-Panfilov’s men who defended Moscow with their chests. To the right is the composition “Trumpeting Glory”, which gives the whole memorial an optimistic sound, its images embody the hymn of triumphant life. At the Eternal Flame there are massive cubes of labradorite, under which capsules with earth delivered from the hero-cities are buried.
It was built in 1975.
17:45 – Holy Ascension Cathedral. Orthodox church in Alma-Ata, on the territory of the park named after 28 Panfilov Guardsmen, one of the two cathedrals of the Astana and Almaty diocese of the Russian Orthodox Church. It was built in the Pushkin Park of the city of Verny, Semirechensk region in 1904-1907 as a cathedral of the Turkestan diocese. With the height of 41.4 or 54 meters in total it is one of the highest wooden churches in the world, an example of earthquake-resistant construction. It is included in the list of monuments of history and culture of Kazakhstan of republican importance.
30:05 – Square named after D.A.Kunayev in Almaty. One of the favorite places of rest of residents and guests of the southern capital in the central part of the city – near the house where Dinmukhamed Akhmedovich Kunayev himself lived. In the park, while D. A. Kunayev was still alive, in 1978, his bust-monument was installed. The height of the sculpture is 4 meters 59 centimeters. It was erected in 1978.
30:58 – Museum DA Kunaeva
31:53 – Memorial Apartment DA Kunayev
32:09 – Memorial plaques. House-museum Gabit Musrepov
32:26 – The sign “House of exemplary maintenance”. The legendary “House of exemplary maintenance” plaque was given to a house that met a number of criteria. This is the presence of the house council and the head of the house, good lighting inside and outside, well-maintained house in general, the integrity of the fence, etc. The condition of the house was assessed by a special commission. A special commission assessed the condition of the house. By the way, the status of exemplary was assigned to this or that address for a certain period of time. It was necessary to confirm the received title permanently. Sevastopol was the first city in which such signs began to appear on the houses. With the beginning of the 1960s, the tradition was supported by Moscow, Leningrad, Volgograd, Rostov-on-Don, and then the whole USSR. (Source : https://aif.by/dontknows/za_chto_v_sssr_prisvaivalos_pochetnoe_zvanie_dom_obrazcovogo_soderzhaniya)

33:46 – State literary and memorial museum complex of S. Mukanov and G. Musrepov. Mukanov and G. Musrepov. The S. Mukanov Literary Memorial Museum was opened in 1978 on the initiative of Hakim Bekishev, a friend of the family. Under his leadership in 1976, the exposition of the museum was started, which was created by the creative group of artist-restorer Shamil Kozhakhanov. The works lasted two years, and on November 21, 1978 the opening ceremony of the house-museum of the writer took place. In the same year, a memorial plaque by sculptor Toktagazy Dzhanyzbekbekov was installed on the house where Sabit Mukanov lived.
35:10 – Monument to Viktor Tsoy. Viktor Robertovich Tsoi (1962-1990) was a Soviet rock musician, songwriter and artist. He was the founder and leader of the rock band Kino, in which he sang, played guitar, wrote music and poetry. He starred in several movies. The monument was installed in June 21, 2018.
38:26 – Monument to M.O. Auezov. The sculpture of the writer is made in the form of a bust. The monument was installed in 1967. Sculptor – T. S. Dosmagambetov, architect – M. Mendikulov. It is cast from cast iron, the pedestal is made of gray granite of rectangular shape. There is a stepped stylobate.
39:03 – Kazakh National Opera and Ballet Theater named after Abay. The building of the Kazakh State Academic Theater named after Abay – GATOB is one of the most famous sights of the city of Almaty. GATOB is one of the largest theaters of the Eurasian space. The capacity of the concert hall is 793 seats. The building of the theater is in the style of Stalin Empire combined with Italian classicism and national Kazakh elements.
39:35 – Photo session of newlyweds.)
40:24 – Monument to Zhambyl Zhabayev. Bust height of 2.3 m is made in one piece with a pedestal of gray granite. Installed in 1971. Sculptor: H.I. Naurzbayev; architect: M.M. Mendikulov.
45:47 – Park in a golden square
47:39 – Memorial to the figure skater Denis Ten, who tragically died on July 19, 2018. The height of the figure is two meters and forty centimeters. It is mounted on a low granite pedestal, in which a copy of a bronze Olympic medal is embedded. Near the monument there are two granite walls about half a meter high. On the near wall the athlete’s name, years of his life, quotes and a list of awards are embossed. The second wall transitions into a bench. Opened June 22, 2019 Sculptor M. Makushkin.
50:21 – Drama Theater named after M. Lermontov. M. Lermontov.
51:06 – Central State Archive of scientific and technical documentation.
52:21 – Going out on Abay Avenue towards Kok-Tobe.
54:19 – Wall with water cooling in hot weather for visitors to the coffee shop.
57:18 – Monument to M.T. Tulebayev. The bronze monument to M.T. Tulebaev was erected in 2002 on the street named after the composer at its intersection with Abay Avenue. Installed in 2002. Sculptor: E. Rakhmadiev; architect: K. Zharylgapov.
57:49 – Abaya metro station
1:03:42 – Hotel Kazakhstan. The hotel was built in 1975-1977. The building was recognized as a monument of architecture and entered in the register of republican importance in 1979. It has 26 floors and 102 meters in height. From 1977 to 2008 the hotel was the highest building in Alma-Ata. According to the hotel’s website, the hotel is “the most earthquake-resistant high-rise building of the Southern Capital”.
1:04:37 – Monument to A. Kunanbayev. Monument to Abai Kunanbaev is a monument erected on Abai Square in Almaty in 1961. Authors: sculptor H. I. Nauryzbaev, architect I. I. Belotserkovsky. The total height of the monument is 13 meters. The sculpture is cast from bronze. The form of the pedestal is trapezoidal, made of red granite. Abay’s figure is in motion. In his left bent hand he holds a book, and with his right hand he holds the hollow of the chapan thrown over his shoulders. The head of the thinker is volumetrically executed. The face is given an expression of thoughtfulness, the gaze is directed into the future. The monumentality of the figure and the integrity of the plastic solution of the monument emphasize the philosophical mood of the poet and the uncommon character of his personality.
1:04:52 – Palace of the Republic. It was one of the demonstration sites of the Eurasia Film Festival. Together with the fountains on Abai Square in front of the Palace and the monument to Kazakh poet Abai Kunanbaev, the Palace of the Republic is one of the landmarks of Alma-Ata since the leadership of Dinmukhamed Kunayev. The Palace of the Republic is located at the intersection of Dostyk Avenue and Abay Avenue. It is a monument of town-planning and architecture, included in the register of monuments of history and culture by the resolution of the Council of Ministers of the Kazakh SSR from January 26, 1982 № 38.
1:06:56 – Station of the Kok-Tobe ropeway.
1:08:13 – Boarding the cabin of the cable car. I have it all to myself! The ascent has begun!
1:09:26 – View of the Kok-Tobe recreation park on the mountain and the Koktobe TV tower.
1:14:11 – View of the mountain and the Koktobe TV tower.
1:15:13 – Disembarkation at Kok-Tobe station (TV tower)
1:15:28 – “House upside down” attraction.
1:15:35 – Ferris wheel.

1:17:41 – Monument to the British rock band the Beatles. The sculpture is a bench with the figure of John Lennon sitting on it with a guitar and the figures of three standing behind the legendary “Beatles” – Paul McCartney, George Harrison, Ringo Starr. The bronze “Beatles” are exact copies of the originals and fully correspond to the style, mood and spirit of the famous Liverpool four. Installed on May 15, 2007. Sculptor: E. Kazarian. Kazarian.
1:19:04 – Viewing platform on Koktobe
1:20:08 – Mini zoo.
1:24:36 – Koktobe TV Tower. The tower is one of the most earthquake resistant and tallest structures in the world. It is the 2nd tallest structure in Kazakhstan and the 32nd in the world (at the time of commissioning it was the 4th in the world). The tower is located below the top of Kok-Tobe Mountain, to the south-east of the city center. Tower height: 371,5 m, antenna height: 114 m, tower height above sea level: 1452 m (together with Mt. Koktobe), weight of the structure: 7 thousand tons, seismic resistance: 10 points. The tower is based on a reinforced concrete foundation in the form of a three-story sectional basement. The tower consists of a “trunk” and an antenna tower 124 meters high. The trunk of the tower is a metal stepped hexagon clad with profiled aluminum panels. It is 18.5 meters in diameter at the base, 13 meters and 9 meters in diameter at the locations of maintenance services and observation decks at heights of 146 meters and 252 meters. The tower trunk houses two elevators with a capacity of 1000 kg each. A manual elevator with a lifting capacity of 250 kg is installed in the antenna floor. On the second floor of the building to reduce the amplitudes of resonant oscillations of the tower are installed four developed in the Central Research Institute of Resonant Vibration Control named after Melnikov two-mass dynamic vibration dampers, weighing 10 tons each. Opened on June 1, 1984.
1:25:15 – Panoramic view of the mountains and the city of Almaty.