00:02From snow camp peaks to ancient Silk Road cities, the Turkestan region is where Kazakhstan's nature, history and spirituality come
00:10together.
00:11Welcome to Kazakhstan! Welcome to Modern Nomads!
00:18Modern Nomads has already explored Turkestan in the Mausoleum of Hoca Ahmed Yasawi, a renowned 12th century Sufi poet and
00:26mystic.
00:26This time, we explore more of the Turkestan region, starting in Sayramugam National Park in the western Tianshan Mountains.
00:37Up here, the cool mountain air and alpine meadows offer a refreshing escape from the heat of southern Kazakhstan.
00:48These mountains attract climbers from around the world. Along the trails, commemorative plaques send us quiet reminders of the challenges
00:56these peaks can bring.
00:57Today, most visitors come to hike, camp and enjoy the spectacular scenery.
01:02It was really cool. We didn't make it up to the second lake, but the first lake we camped at
01:06for two nights. It was amazing.
01:07Beautiful. We saw some goats in the morning. Like a big group of 30 goats, I think.
01:14While marked trails make it easy to explore the park, rangers ask visitors to keep noise down to protect the
01:21park's rare wildlife.
01:22In our park, our supports are located. In our park, there are trees, and there's trees in our park.
01:48More than 71,000 visitors have explored the park this year.
01:53With accommodation available for even more, our next stop is the ancient city of Otrar,
01:59once one of the greatest cities along the Silk Road.
02:07These gates lead into the 200-hectare ruins of the medieval city of Otrar.
02:12Today all that's left are the wind, the sand and the remains of its streets.
02:17But with a little imagination, it's not hard to picture how this once thriving city coming back to life.
02:23Inside the citadel, the city's most heavily fortified district,
02:26we stepped into what was once a residential neighborhood.
02:30Here, reconstructed homes revealed the advanced technologies that existed centuries ago.
02:47Just beyond the houses stood the public bathhouse with its bathing pools.
02:52Within a short walk were the mosque, central square and the palace of Berzibekhan.
02:57As one of the Silk Road's busiest trading hubs,
03:00Otrar welcomed hundreds of merchants and travelers every day.
03:28Excavations are still underway, and archaeologists continue to uncover Otrar's past.
03:33Here, Mukhtar Koja and his team are excavating the remains of the oldest mosque discovered in the city so far,
03:40dating back to the late 13th and early 14th centuries.
04:02With a 2000-year history, Otrar was once a thriving Silk Road city before the Mongol invasion in the 13th
04:09century.
04:09Rebuilt and inhabited for centuries, its story can now be explored through the ruins and artifacts at the Otrar Museum.
04:20Another remarkable site nearby is the mausoleum of Arstambab, the 12th century spiritual teacher of Hoca Ahmed Yasawi.
04:28Today, it remains an important place of pilgrimage.
04:31The current structure is the fourth known reconstruction of the original mausoleum.
04:36These are two original 14th-century columns. The mausoleum once had six, but only these have stood the test of
04:44time.
04:44This year, the Turkestan region ranked among Kazakhstan's top five domestic tourism destinations for the first time,
04:51as more travelers discover its unique blend of history and nature.
