Author: Novastan 
Novastan
Written articles:
The boy and the mosaic
A boy rides his bicycle past the mosaic facade of a multi-family home on Abuali Ibn Sino Avenue in Dushanbe. This mosaic, designed by Sadukov & Lukovtsev in 1971, celebrates… [...]
Khiuaz Qayrqyzy Dospanova, Kazakh heroine of Soviet aviation
A monumental fresco depicting Khiuaz Qayrqyzy Dospanova, a heroine of Soviet aviation, on a building in Aktau, Kazakhstan, celebrating her courage as the first Kazakh woman pilot of… [...]
Fortresses of Khwarazm: Ayaz-Kala
The Khwarazm region, in the lower valley of the Amu Darya, was known in ancient times as the ‘oasis of fifty fortresses’. Of these fortresses, built over a… [...]
Between tradition and modernity
A view over the Khan Shatyr entertainment center of Astana. This emblematic 150m-high structure designed by Norman Foster combines the shape of a traditional kazakh yurt with the… [...]
First steps
In visible proximity, this young resident of Sary-Mogol ventures his first steps outside the protective warmth of home. The village sits close to the border with Tajikistan at… [...]
The Tolkuchka market
The Tolkuchka market in Ashgabat is located in a vast modern area and is organised in the style of the large Central Asian bazaars. It sells just about everything:… [...]
Train life
A mother and her son sit in the half-empty third class (known as platzkart) of the Kazakh Astrakhan–Atyrau train. Due to airfares often too high, the train… [...]
A powerful symbol
A MIG-23, a Soviet-era fighter plane, stands at the entrance to Tokmok. Well known to tourists for its proximity to the Burana Tower, Tokmok is also a… [...]
Lunch at the summit
A family is having a lunch break on the Kamchik Pass, at 2268m. Despite the snow and the cold, they eat sitting on the ground on a traditional tablecloth. [...]
Where there are no trees …
… the Tajik village of Karakul is dotted with a forest of pylons. Located in the spectacular high mountain landscape of the Pamir, not far from the Kyrgyz… [...]