Shymkent travel
Shymkent is the capital city of South Kazakhstan Province, the most populated region in Kazakhstan. It is the third most populous city in Kazakhstan behind Almaty and Astana with a population of 561,200, (as of 1 July 2008) [1], with one of the largest greater-metropolitan-area populations in Kazakhstan. It is a major railroad junction on the Turkestan-Siberia Railway and a notable cultural center and has also an international airport. It is situated 690 km west of Almaty and 120 km to the north of Tashkent, Uzbekistan.