Astana is the capital of Kazakhstan and a modern city that is attractive for tourists and comfortable for residents and guests of the capital of Kazakhstan, with a favorable environment.
Astana became the capital of the new Kazakhstan in 1998 for a number of reasons. By the end of the XX century, the former capital of the country – Almaty-faced a lot of problems that hinder the further development of the city: the problem of overpopulation (over 1.5 million inhabitants); transport congestion of highways; deteriorating environmental conditions. In addition, the dense development of the "Southern Capital" in practice did not leave opportunities for modern development of the city.
The choice in favor of Astana was made due to a number of decisive advantages: a large urban area, a good geographical location – proximity to the main economic centers of the country, a significant demographic potential, a well-developed transport infrastructure and a relatively favorable environment.
The city is divided into two parts by the Ishim or Yesil River, as it is called in Kazakhstan: the right bank - the " old " city and the left bank - the "new" one. You need to see the whole city to appreciate the scale of changes that have taken place over the past twenty years. The impetus for these global transformations was given by the transfer of the capital from Almaty to Astana in 1997, as the city was then called. The city began to grow at a tremendous pace, and a new part of the capital was built from scratch: instead of the steppe, wide avenues were built up with mirrored skyscrapers of state services, foreign embassies, business centers, national companies and high-class hotels. Unique futuristic buildings of famous architects have changed the appearance of the city, and residents of the "old" city are happy to move into new residential complexes with developed infrastructure.
Currently, the territory of Astana exceeds 722 square kilometers, the population is more than 1 million people. The city consists of four districts – "Almaty", "Saryarka", "Yesil"and " Baikonur". Astana is located in the center of Kazakhstan in the dry steppe zone (a subzone of dry tipchak-feather grass steppes). The city's territory consists of low floodplain terraces. The Yesil River is the main waterway of the capital. The climate is sharply continental – cold and long winters and hot, moderately dry summers. Its convenient location in the center of the Eurasian continent makes Astana an economically profitable transport, communication and logistics center, a kind of transit bridge between Europe and Asia.
The endless steppes of Akmola have long been a place where different civilizations and cultures met and intertwined. The" father of history " Herodotus in his writings mentioned the route through the Great Steppe (later known as the Great Silk Road), along which caravans passed in these places. The development of handicrafts and handicrafts, as well as the flourishing of trade in cities that were previously traditionally occupied exclusively with animal husbandry and agriculture, were promoted by caravan routes through the Great Steppe.
Five kilometers from modern Astana, the medieval settlement of Bozok was discovered, which can rightly be called the millennial predecessor of the capital of Kazakhstan.
Almost two hundred years ago, in the 30s of the XIX century, the city of Akmolinsk appeared in these steppes on the site of the village of Akmola, which served as a military, commercial and economic center.
With the development of virgin lands in the 60s of the last century, the city of Akmolinsk was renamed Tselinograd. In 1992, the historical name of Akmola was returned to the city.
With the acquisition of the status of the capital of Kazakhstan on May 6, 1998, the city receives the name Astana, which means "Capital". Thus, the ancient city of skilled craftsmen, skilled merchants and hardworking grain growers became the center of state, social and cultural life of the new, democratic sovereign Kazakhstan.
On March 23, 2019, the new President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev signed a decree renaming Astana in honor of the first president of the country, Nursultan Nazarbayev, and the city was named Astana. The spelling was made using a hyphen, and the new name translates as "light of power, light ruler" (the word "nur "in Kazakh means" light", and" sultan " - "power, ruler").
Today, Astana is not only a major administrative center of Kazakhstan, located at the intersection of the main development networks of the country. It is a leading city that sets the tone for Kazakhstan's innovative development. A city that acts as a locomotive of transformation in Kazakhstan of the new millennium. A tourist gem in the steppes.
The main symbol of the new capital, its unique "business card" was the Baiterek complex.
Other unique architectural structures include:
* The Palace of Peace and Harmony, designed by the famous British architect Norman Foster and made in the form of a pyramid;
* Khan Shatyr Shopping and Entertainment Center – the tallest tent structure in the world;
• The most remote oceanarium of the CSO "Ailand"from the sea;
* Astana Opera and Ballet Theatre;
* Hazret Sultan Mosque, the largest mosque in Central Asia;
* Cathedral of the Dormition of the Most Holy Theotokos;
* Roman Catholic Cathedral of the Archdiocese of the Blessed Virgin Mary;
* Beit Rachel Chabad Lubavitch Synagogue;
* Central Concert Hall "Kazakhstan";
* Kazakh Eli Monument;
* The Museum of Modern Art and the Presidential Cultural Center.
The construction of the tallest 88-storey skyscraper in Kazakhstan and Central Asia, Abu Dhabi Plaza, is planned for 2021. Among the new sports facilities of Astana are the indoor stadium "Astana-Arena" for 30 thousand spectators, the unique bicycle track "Sary-Arka" for 10 thousand seats, recognized in 2011 as the best in the world. Another important sports complex is the Alau Ice Palace, which meets the highest international standards.
