WHAT ARE INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT KAZAKHSTAN?

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If you are planning a trip to Kazakhstan, or simply intrigued about the country, here are some interesting facts:

1. It has the longest border in the world: Kazakhstan is one of the top 10 largest countries in the entire world. It is known for its architectural marvels, the Caspian Sea, and the wild horses. Spanning more than 7,500 kilometres, Kazakhstan’s border with Russia is the longest continual border in the world. Moreover, it’s the second longest by total length trailing after the Canada-United States border coming in at 8,891 kilometres. to put that into perspective from Paris to Petra is just a smidge over 4,500 kilometres.
2. Kazakhstan has incredible natural wealth. 99 elements mentioned in the Mendeleev Periodic Table are found in the country. Not all have been exploited so far. Kazakhstan has the world's second-largest reserves of lead, zinc, chromium, and uranium. It also ranks in the top ten in the world for coal, iron, copper, manganese, and gold. Kazakhstan also has an abundance of petroleum and natural gas, the 11th largest proven reserve globally.
3. The wild apple tree from where the modern-day cultivated apples were derived, originated in Central Asia. Kazakhstan still has forests where wild apple trees, the Malus sieversii, grow. Bears who eat the fruit of these trees are responsible for their dispersal through their droppings.
4. Kazakhstan is the largest landlocked country in the world: This may not seem like a huge deal, but when you consider the sheer size of Kazakhstan, it is. Kazakhstan is the 9th largest country in the world and the largest country in the world without access to ocean. The main water resources for the nation are sourced from glaciers, lakes and reservoirs.
5. The name “Kazakhstan” is significant: The name Kazakh translates to wanderer or independent. This speaks to the nation’s ancient history as nomads and the deep-rooted spirit of independence in Kazakh culture. When directly translated, Kazakhstan literally means Land of Wanderers.
6. It’s home to one of the largest lakes in the world: Lake Balkhash holds the title for the 15th largest lake in the world and one of the largest in all of Asia. Sprawling across 16,400 square kilometres, it’s sheer size is breathtaking. However, what really makes it unique is its natural phenomenon within the waters. In the west, the lake is fresh water, and in the east, saltwater.
7. It boasts five UNESCO sites: For a country the size of Kazakhstan, it has a surprisingly low number of UNESCO sites. However, the ones that it does have are simply breathtaking. Among the five are three cultural and two natural sites. From the Petroglyphs of Tamgaly to the pristine lakes of Saryarka, the diversity between cultural and natural UNESCO sites speak to the abundance of landscape and historical beauty across the country.
8. Hospitality, as it has always been a main character trait of Kazakh people. Even if you have just a minute to pop in to a Kazakh house, an owner will still ask you to sit down and offer a fragrant tea with sweets.
9. Traditionally, meal is served at a low round table, called dastarkhan.
10. The majestic and elusive snow leopard, a threatened species, is found in Kazakhstan. The Aksu-Zhabagly Nature Reserve in the country hosts a small population of these big cats. Around 100 to 120 snow leopards occupy an area of about 50,000 square km in the country. The official seal of Almaty bears the snow leopard symbol.
11. Landlocked But With A Navy - Although Kazakhstan is a landlocked nation, it still has a navy. The Kazakh Naval Forces operate on the Caspian Sea, a massive inland sea that is technically a lake as it is not connected to the ocean. The KNF is around 3,000 personnel strong and operates using around 14 inshore patrol crafts.
12. The Baikonur Cosmodrome in southern Kazakhstan is a spaceport leased to Russia. It is located in the desert steppe landscape of Baikonur near the Aral Sea. The Soviet Union built this spaceport in the 1950s as the base for the Soviet space program operations. Both Vostok 1, the first human spaceflight, and Sputnik 1, the first artificial satellite, were launched from this site.

kazakh cuisine Traditional Kazakh food is nomadic food. For centuries, Kazakhs were herders who raised horses, sheep, cows, and Bactrian camels. They relied on these animals for transportation, clothing, and food, developing cooking techniques and methods of preservation that facilitated their nomadic lifestyle.

Interesting facts about Kazakh cuisine:

- Main ingredients in traditional Kazakh cuisine are meat, flour and milk products, though nowadays many other ingredients are common in the cuisine.
- Kazakhstan’s national drink is horse milk: Kumis, a fermented horse milk, is native to Kazakhstan and is the national drink. It’s considered to have a light body with a slighty sour alcohol taste. It is typically enjoyed as both food and a drink as well.
- Kazakhs are believed to be among the top countries in tea consumption, almost every meal is followed by tea in Kazakh families. Here, to be objective, we should say that tea never grew on the territory of Kazakhstan, it was introduced to the Steppe of Kazakhstan from the outside, but despite this, tea quickly gained popularity among the local population. And today, in fact, it is one of the main drinks in Kazakh society.
- Kazakh cuisine is usually not spicy.
- There are many high calorie dishes in the traditional Kazakh cuisine. - In order to quench thirst of the guest a hostess would treat him with a bowl of yogurt drink. This can be "kumys" - a drink based on fermented mare's milk - or shubat the main ingredient of which is camel milk. Then, table will be filled with baursaks - balls of dough, pre-fried in boiling oil (Asian analogue of donuts), samsa - triangular pastries with meat, kausyrma - a kind of thin pastries or fried doughs filled with meat and onions, raisins, kurt (small, salted cheese balls).
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