There is so much to do in Almaty, especially if you love the outdoors and nature. Maybe also if you like to party, but we didn’t explore that side. We had landed on Saturday evening and barely had enough time to grab dinner at a local buffet – one where you pay for what you pick from a pre-cooked display and freshly made doners. Then we took a 2-day glamping trip to Charyn, Kolsai, and Kaindy lakes. We got back to check into the same hotels we had started with, a small but pleasant Renion Park hotel, well located next to the Ascention Cathedral in downtown. It was also next to the Arasan baths – more on that later.

We had been on the move for 3 days in a row, so it was decided to start it slow on day 4. People woke up at leisure and had their breakfast. I loved the hotel and the room, but the breakfast seemed a little miserly. It wasn’t bad, but just not too many options. We started with a walk around the cathedral next door. It was in the middle of a large park and surrounded by a lot of activity. There was a war memorial on one side, and a museum of musical instruments next to it. Just on the side of the cathedral was an open area to feed pigeons and to drive rented tricycles. Street vendors and a lot of familes added to the charm. The area got busier as the morning turned to afternoon. We saw the cathedral, the museum and walked around the garden. There were kids feeding the pigeons, people sitting and enjoying the sun and groups of people walking around or passong by – there was so much activity. We did the Cathedral – its typically ornate and quite wonderful from the inside. The museum of musical instruments had a large collection and some of the phalic ones are interesting.

We walked over to the Green Bazaar – a large meat and produce farmer’s market with some restaurants tucked in. We ended up at a Korean place where the owner went meat shopping at the market after we placed the order. The food was very fresh, just not very flavorful. We took a bit of rest at the hotel, a time I used to go to the Arasan Bath – the massage side of it to get a good massage. Nothing local about the massage though, it was very western.

In the evening we took cabs and then a ropeway to the Kok Tobe recreation park set atop a hill with some mind-blowing views. The starting point of the cable car is a short cab ride away and this was the first time we missed having local SIMs, hard to book cabs without it. The cable car ride is stunning but the recreation park itself was a little underwhelming. There is a pretty scary looking roller coaster, which I didn’t do but other than that there is just some pretty docile stuff. The upside-down house was quite boring and the ferris wheel isn’t really large, though the view from the top is cool. There was a childrens rope course – that was fun and some other typical amusement park rides. The food stalls where just pizzas and hot dogs and a quick bite later, we clicked a lot of pics and headed back to the cable car ride back.

Once back at the hotel, we headed out to dinner. There was a lot of discussion, and we ended up at a Georgian place about 10 10-minute walk away. It was fabulous enough to start a conversation about a trip to Georgia.

The next two days were a bit unexpected – things we didn’t expect to work, worked. All research seemed to indicate that the Big Almaty Lake was not reachable as the road was blocked for tourists 17km before it. The only way to get there was to hike and we weren’t prepared for that long a walk. One travel agent on Viator was selling a tour that would drive you all the way – we tried. They drove us in a mini-bus to the visitor center – 17 km away. Then they got some locals to come pick us in their trucks – we were rolling. Tourist vehicles were stopped, locals were obviously not.

The vehicles dropped us about 500 meters uphill from the lake, the closest approach point with stunning views. You can walk down quite a bit, but not all the way down to the bank. The walk down is steep but not tough, the view remains spectacular. The lake was probably one of the prettiest I have ever seen. It changes color by season between brown, blue to green. We were lucky enough to see it at its prettiest.

We spent quite some time at the lake just enjoying the view and clicking pics. We headed back to the visitor center in the same trucks. Once there we had some time to eat and then go for a hike to a nearby waterfall. The food was the same as what we had seen at the Charyn Canyon – the same menu and same brand restaurant. We had some salad and bread balls and then headed out for the 30-minute hike to the small waterfall right behind the visitor center. It was an easy walk till the last 5 minutes when it got interesting, with some slippery stones and a watery walk. The waterfall was small but the walk and the beautiful green surrounding made it worth the time. A small stream of drinkable clean water flowing on the side brought back memories of high altitude hikes.

We got back to the hotel in time to have the evening free. A stroll in the main market area, just 15 minutes away from our hotel got us to a wine-tasting bar with local wines. This was hard to resist! I paid up (it wasn’t expensive) and sat on a luxurious couch, six sparkling wine glasses were on the table in front. I had picked 3 whites and 3 reds from a list of about 15 wines. The excitement lasted only till the wines were served. They were not the best wines I had. I couldn’t take a second sip of most – thats all I will say.

The street became more vibrant as the Sun went down. Street musicians appeared out of nowhere, some fountains started up and there were large groups of locals all around enjoying the evenings. We hung around and stayed to have dinner in a shawarma place. It was a nice walk back to the hotel, a quick drink in the bar, and siesta.