26 Aug 2008, Almaty, 6925km

Everything has changed after crossing the border in short distance. I hadn't experienced crossing border overland. It was interesting.
There are much fewer people in towns of Kazakhstan, much less restaurants and shops along the route till I got close to Almaty, which is the largest city in Kazakhstan.
No more Chinese. No more chopsticks. People no longer look at me from top to toe.
There are no longer obsessive honks on roads. There are no more tricycles, much fewer tracks or long distance buses.
Bicycles and motorbikes are very few. I saw rather more people on horses on the way. They look cool.
There are lots of German cars, Japanese cars, together with good old Travant-types. Cars all drive fast. I saw lots of dead bodies of animals hit by cars; dogs, cats, rabbits. I also saw tombstones or decorated flowers along the roads. Were those victims'? Roads are narrower with no bicycle lane. I have to ride carefully.

Speaking no Kazak or Russian hasn't caused me so much trouble yet. Of course it's very inconvenient that I cannot communicate at all in some occasions, but people didn't seem to mind about it so much. There are many races of people living in this country. They seem to be tolerant of tourists.
Prices are expensive after China! One meal costs about 2 euro in a cheap cafe or in a fast food restaurant. But the amount is so little, never enough for me. (How could big Russians stand it?) I always have to order something else or buy something else to eat right after the meal. The price of one meal actually goes double in my case.
I enjoy the style of city. It should be Russian, but it's like European to me. However, I'd better get visa of Uzbekhstan soon and leave this city for the sake of my wallet.