Quick Update

I was looking at some older posts, and in the Cinnabon post, I mentioned the possibility of Hardee's opening here in Almaty. I'm very glad to announce that Hardee's opened on Thursday, and I went there for lunch with the folks from the Commerce office.

So good. I actually thought that my trips to Bangkok may not have to be organized around visits to Burger King.

A representative from Hardee's was there at the opening, and I took the chance to talk to him about branding. Several years ago, Hardee's was purchased by Carl's Jr., which I was familiar with from living in California. The Hardee's here in Almaty is called Hardee's but features burgers with names from Carl's Jr -- the Famous Star and the Super Star. (If I'm wrong about this, and Hardee's does offer burgers with these names, I'd be curious to know.) However, they had curly fries but not the fried zucchini that I love from Carl's Jr.

The Hardee's guy told me that fried zucchini is actually an unprofitable product for the chain, but they continue to offer it in the US because so many people know that Carl's Jr. has it. I was sad to learn that Hardee's does not offer fried zucchini at all internationally. I told him that I'd stock up when I visit the US.

Visit to Astana

For the past two months, I've taken a temporary assignment with the US Foreign Commercial Service office in Almaty. Their job is to promote US exports to countries overseas, and I thought that was the natural extension of my AID job of promoting economic growth.

One of my tasks as part of the assignment was to organize a roundtable discussion for local business people, Commerce staff, and representatives from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD).

The EBRD was formed to assist economic growth in developing countries by providing loans with low interest rates or equity investment in promising businesses. The organization was having its annual meeting in Astana, so it was an opportune time to put local businesses together with bankers from the EBRD. For me, it was also a good excuse to get a trip to Astana and see some friends from language class who are working there.

In this picture, you can see the Kazakh "White House" in the middle, with two government buildings on each side. The white house was a good distance away, so it's hard to understand how big that building really is. I talked to my friends about whether the White House in DC was the same size if you took into consideration all the below-ground stuff.

Opposite from the view in this photo is the Bayterek monument shown in a picture below, and further in the same direction is the yurt mall with the indoor beach. As I was walking through this area, I was struck by the similar layout to the Mall in Washington DC. On the Mall, at one end, you have the Capitol and the Lincoln Memorial at the other. I'm pretty sure that the yurt mall doesn't have the same significance in Kazakhstan as the Lincoln Memorial does in the US.

Much further behind the white house are a couple of other distinctive buildings, one is shaped like a pyramid, and the other can only be described by the local nickname for it -- the dog bowl. I went to a meeting that was held at the very top of the pyramid, and until that time, I had never been in an elevator that moved sideways as well as up. It was a very cool site for the meeting.

Indoor Beach

Not long after I arrived in Kazakhstan, I heard about the giant yurt in Astana that would open soon with a bunch of stores, amusement park, and -- the best part -- an indoor beach.

When we would talk about this, the comparison to the over-the-top opulence of Dubai and its indoor skiing was a natural. Of course, any visit to Astana could not be complete without a visit to this wonder of human achievement, so I went with a friend of mine to see what an indoor beach looked like.

As the picture shows, I was not disappointed, and I appreciated the fact that what we found was much more reasonable than I expected. The beach is part of a spa complex in the mall where you can buy a day pass (for a reasonable price, I thought) and just hang out in the pool, get some drinks and food at the bar, and escape the bitter cold in winter. If I had been assigned to Astana, I'm sure I would be at this place every weekend during the winter.

Bayterek Monument

My Lonely Planet guide to Central Asia says that this tower represents a legend about a bird that lays a golden egg, containing all the secrets of human desire and happiness.

It's a rather impressive structure, and the golden sphere at the top offers a panoramic view of Astana.

Near Total Recall

This picture is from the ball at the top of the Bayterek monument. The views of Astana are quite spectacular from there. It's about 300 feet up, and you can see virtually all of the new construction that's taken place since the capital was moved to Astana several years ago.

What I was told was that visitors can place their hand into the form at the center of the viewing deck, and music comes on and a light shines down, giving the visitor an amazing experience.

Of course the first thing I thought of was the scene at the end of Total Recall where Arnie puts his hand into the handprint, and the Martian machines that create breathable air start up. If someone had told me that placing your hand into the print would have turned up the heat in Astana, I would have gladly done it.