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We should be travelling from Bishkek to Semey both in Kazakhstan but have heard that the road is bad due to construction work, so we find another route north which adds extra kms but is going to be easier going. Our destination is Balkhash, about 400 miles.
The road is mainly boring desert stuff but we do encounter herds of cattle, goats, horses and camels, which appear to be wild.
On the way out of Almaty, John jumped a red light light and got stopped by the Police but luckily got off with a warning. Similarly, Steve and I went through a police checkpoint too quickly and got stopped. After about 20 minutes of looking at our documents, they too let us off with a warning. Phew, that was a relief as they kept asking for insurance which we didn't have.
Pavlodar was a bit of an industrial city with a nearby factory belching out black smoke from one chimney and white smoke from another, a hazy smog seemed to cover most of the sky, most of the time.
John, Chris, Steve and I got a taxi from our basic hotel to a restuarant in town. When we walked in there was a wedding reception and people dancing but we still managed to have a meal. Quite bizarre really.
We are all shattered, after our long ride today, so an early night for an early 6am start in the morning.
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