STAN
CRADLE OF CIVILIZATIONS : TURKISTAN
According to the official data , the history of the city of Turkistan dates back more than 2000 years . The city has been called with its current name Turkistan for at least 500 years . One of its previous names was Yessi , an old Turkic name meaning “ nervous , disorganized ”. The great Sufi Hodja Ahmad Yasawi ’ s name also comes from the city , meaning Ahmed from the city of Yessi . Unfortunately , the history of the city before Hodja Ahmed is now missing , thus all that is known about the city begins in relation to the life of Hodja Ahmed , in 11th and 12th century .
Located 850 km away from Almaty and 150 km away from Shymkent , Turkistan is a great place to discover the authentic and lively culture of Central Asia with its beautiful architectural complexes , noisy bazaars and expansive steppes . Serving as a natural border between the desert and the city , Karatau Mountains are located near here as they defend the city and its surroundings from the fatal breath of the desert .