A realtively straight forward border crossing from Krygystan to Kazakstan - in fact you could see the petrol station and cafe in Kazakstan from the Krygy side - there was an almost non-existant no-mans land.
So, onto the road - and bliss - smooth tarmac, speed limit signs, and good driving - just like being in Europe. In fact over the 200km journey from the border to Almaty, I could count the number of Lada's on one hand, and certainly no ex-soviet rust buckets. The vast majority of cars on the roads are similar to what you would see anywhere in western Europe - I guess the black gold has been good to Kazakstan. Although similar black gold is available to the Turkemistan people, I guess that gold was converted into communist white marble and gold extravagance.
The ride through Kazakstan (although only about 50km in a parallel from the ride from Bishkek to Issy Kul) was totally different to the Bishkek to Issy Kul, the Krygy side was green and full of villages, the Kazak side of the mountain range was brown and deserted;
Fewer police checks and no hidden speed checks in Kazakstan (hoorah), although I did manage to get a warning from a police road check as I'd been caught in the radar trap at 33kph in a 20kph limit - you try riding at 20kph; I almost needed outriggers to keep the bike upright!!
Approaching Almaty, the now familiar snow capped mountains loom over the city.
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