Kazakhstan? What is that?

In the summer of 2012 I saw a program about the rapid post Soviet-era development going on in Kazakhstan and was fascinated by the unique architecture of the structures in the capital of Astana. My thought was to check it out soon. For months I kept thinking about Kazakhstan (and other Central Asian nations) and decided to make the journey rather than returning to Abu Dhabi in March as planned.

I saw airfare to Almaty (old capital of Kazakhstan) was rather inexpensive as compared to months previously. I spoke to Pat about going and he was more than willing so after checking schedules, our tickets were purchased at $1182 on KLM. We could have spent a bit less but the routing offered was much better and has a 6.5 hour layover in Amsterdam.

 When asked to where will my next trip be, I said "Kazakhstan." Some knew where it is and a majority had no clue and others asked "What is that?" Is geography not taught in school?