Kazakhstan - Central Asia - page 79

Most of the main monuments can be
seen in a walk of about one and a half hours
starting from Sayram's central traffic lights.
Take the eastern (slightly uphill) street, Amir
Temur, and then the first (narrow) street on
the right after 300m. About 120m along, in
a fenced field on your right, is the circular,
brick-built Kydyra¨Minaret (Khyzyr Mu-
narasy), about 15m high and possibly dating
from the 10th century. You can climb up in-
side to view the Aksu-Zhabagyly Mountains
away to the east. Return to the central cross-
roads and continue straight ahead, passing
the bazaar on your left. Just after the bazaar,
on the right, is the 13th-century Karashash-
Ana¨Mausoleum , where Akhmed Yasaui's
mother lies beneath the central tombstone.
Continue 250m, passing the modern Friday¨
Mosque on your right, to the large Mirali¨
Bobo¨Mausoleum , where a leading 10th-
century Islamic scholar lies buried.
Now turn back towards the central
crossroads but turn into the first street on
the left, marked Botbay Ata Kesenesi. The
high bank on your right along here is part
of the old city¨walls . Fork right after 180m,
and the street ends at a larger street, Yusuf
Sayrami. To your right is a double-arched¨
gate erected in 1999 for Sayram's official
3000th birthday. Head left along the street
and in 90m you'll reach a green¨and¨yel-
low¨sign marking the spot where, according
to legend, Kozha Akhmed Yasaui's mentor
Aristan Bab handed him a sacred persim-
mon stone received by Aristan Bab from
the Prophet Mohammed (notwithstanding
the five-century gap between the lives of the
Prophet Mohammed and Akhmed Yasaui).
About 250m past this spot, turn left into a
cemetery to the three-domed Abdul-Aziz¨
Baba¨Mausoleum , whose occupant is be-
lieved to have been a leader of the Arabic
forces that brought Islam to the Sayram area
in AD 766. Pilgrims come here for help in
averting the 'evil eye'. From here return to
the central crossroads.
Several central chaikhanas (teahouses)
serve inexpensive shashlyk, tea, lavash
bread, soups and plov . Absurdly overcrowd-
ed marshrutkas to Sayram (80T, 40 minutes)
leave Shymkent's Ayna bus station about
every 15 minutes until around 7pm.

gyz and Uzbek borders, is the oldest (1926)
and one of the most enjoyable and easiest
visited of Kazakhstan's nature reserves. Sit-
ting at the west end of the Talassky Alatau
(the most northwesterly spur of the Tian
Shan), it stretches from the edge of the
steppe at about 1200m up to 4239m at Pik
Sayram. The main access point is the village
of Zhabagyly, 70km east of Shymkent as the
crow flies.
The diversity of life in this area where
mountains meet steppe is great for bota-
nists, birders and nature lovers in general.
Some of Kazakhstan's best nature guides are
based locally, making this also a good base
for visiting other regional attractions includ-
ing the Karatau mountains (rich in endemic
plants), steppe lakes, deserts and historical/
cultural sites like Turkistan and Otrar.
The famous, bright-red Greig's tulip is
one of over 1300 flowering plants in the
reserve. It dots the alpine meadows, and is
quite common even in villages, from mid-
April to early May. Wildlife you may see
includes ibex, argali sheep, red marmots,
paradise flycatchers, golden eagles and
Tien Shan brown bears (about 90 inhabit
the reserve; chances of sightings are best in
spring). About eight snow leopards are also
thought to be here. You can visit at any time,
but the best weather is from April to Sep-
tember. For birders and botanists, April and
May are favourite.
1 ¨Sights¨&¨Activities
From Zhabagyly village it's 6km southeast
to the nearest reserve entrance, then 6km
(about 1½ hours' walk) to Kshi-Kaindy , a
mountain refuge near a waterfall at 1700m,
then a further 6km to Ulken-Kaindy , a sec-
ond refuge. From Ulken-Kaindy it's 10km to
a group of some 2000 stones with petro-
glyphs up to 900 years old, below a glacier
descending from the 3800m peak Kaska-
bulak. A good way to visit these sites is by
horse, spending two nights at Ulken-Kaindy.
More demanding treks will take you over
3500m passes with nights spent in caves.
Another great spot is the 300m-deep Aksu¨
Canyon at the reserve's western extremity, a
25km drive from Zhabagyly village.
Obligatory daily fees for entering the
reserve are 2000T per person, plus 2000T
per group for an accompanying ranger. The
excellent local accommodation options will
deal with these for you and offer a range
of well-run trips in the reserve and further

Aksu - Zhabagyly Nature Reserve
This beautiful 1319-sq-km patch of green
valleys, rushing rivers, snowcapped peaks
and high-level glaciers, abutting the Kyr-