Places aavalos Wants to Go

In all of the 29 years it was in operation, no prisoners ever escaped successfully... or so they claim.

Once a bustling fishing port, this semi-ghost town is now more than 90 miles away from the shore.

This 100-foot tall tombstone memorializes victims of 40 years of nuclear testing in Kazakhstan.

This was once the largest city in Kazakhstan, and a major stop on the Silk Road.

A modern tower, symbolizing the legend of a golden egg on top of the tree of life.

An entertainment center in a huge transparent tent.

The remains of a monument in the remote Kazakhstani desert dedicated to the only men to die in outer space, the crew of the Soyuz 11 rocket.

Iconic pyramid from famed British architect Norman Foster designed to represent all of the world's religious faiths.

World's oldest and largest space launch facility, once a secret missile testing site.

Rusting ships sit in a desert where a sea used to be.

The lovely lake that was naturally dammed, then naturally destroyed, then unnaturally saved.

This unique wooden mosque resembling a Chinese pagoda was said to be built without the use of nails.

A brilliant turquoise lake in the mountains.

Submerged trees jut ghost-like out of an idyllic turquoise mountain lake.

Nicknamed Kazakhstan's Grand Canyon, this natural wonder lies east of Almaty near the Chinese border.

The heartbeat of modern Uzbekistan’s thriving market culture.

The ruins of an ancient Zoroastrian Tower of Silence believed to be the earliest example of the traditional funerary practice.

Home to what was once considered the largest gate in central Asia.

Looking for a unifying history, Uzbekistan finds its answer in a 14th Century Turco-Mongol conqueror... despite the fact he wasn't Uzbek.

An 18-meter-long sarcophagus of a constantly growing dead prophet.

These "50 Fortresses" have been unearthed in the ancient oasis of Khwarezm.

Ancient barriers wrap around what was once an important stop along the Silk Road.

Light still pours into the ruins of this ancient Islamic observatory.

A battle between nature and architecture in the Cambodian jungle.