This is a more complete view of the monument as it makes its way to the spire on the top of the mound. Our visit here brought up several interesting points of conversation that shed new light on our present host country.

Of course we know from looking around at the faces on the street that Kazakhstan is an ethnically diverse country, but we never made the connection between the Stalin work camps and this diversity. Whether it was the Germans, or Greeks, or Turks, or any number of other ethnicities that he at one time or another felt threatened by, Stalin sent many thousands of people to present day Kazakhstan.

Many present day citizens of Kazakhstan are descendants from these work camp survivors. Until the 1990's they were part of the Soviet Union, and since the break-up of the Soviet Union now find themselves in Kazakhstan. Many who live and/or were born here do not identify themselves as Kazak and in fact on a Kazakhstan passport there is a place to fill in your nationality. It makes sense, but it would never have occurred to me.