I am attending a conference in Almaty today and tomorrow, and tonight we were taken to a reception centre called “Dom Priyomov” a few blocks away from where the conference was being held.

The reception was being hosted by the Mayor of Almaty and was a catered dinner for about 300 people - but the quality of the food was nothing short of magnificent. It was the sort of dinner you’d expect in a top five-star restaurant – not something put on for conference delegates. The wines were superb too, but what was also impressive was the entertainment that accompanied the dinner – opera singers, traditional Kazakh music and pop singers – and all top names in Kazakhstan.


I liked the traditional music performances the best, performed by very talented musicians in traditional costumes. I read on a National Geographic website that “The preservation and promotion of traditional music is a highly visible part of Kazakhstan's effort to build a modern nation rooted in a sense of history and national identity.” I hope they succeed because the music is fabulous.