Culture Crash in Kazakhstan

Exotic cars, such as Lamborghini and Ferrari, increasingly are becoming noticeable. From a car lover's viewpoint, that is a good thing. The newer cars have advanced emissions controls. They are safer, more reliable.

But the good news stops there -- literally.

A not-so-funny thing happens when you mix a huge number of decrepit automobiles with an equally large number of newer cars. Nothing moves, usually because someone crashes into someone else, thereby strangling already congested traffic.

There were so many vehicle crashes in and around Almaty -- including a two-person fatality -- during the four days I spent in the region, I stopped counting them.

So with rampant tailpipe emissions and an unhealthy mix of barely mobile and high-performance vehicles, we come to Almaty traffic problem No. 3, which is that there appears to be no rule of law covering the roads in the city or in its outlying areas. For example, consider the act of passing on a highway of two opposing lanes. Everything goes. Drivers at the bottom of a hill seem to have no qualms about making an uphill pass, not knowing if a car or truck is about to crest the apex and wipe them out.

There is passing around blind curves. The driver of a limp-along Lada seems to have no second thoughts about trying to overtake a huge truck or a faster Russian Zil. Zoom, zoom, crash!

In the city, marked lanes and traffic signals are mere suggestions. A solid highway line means "pass" if there's the slightest chance you'll make it. A broken highway lane means you'd better pass, pull over, or get smashed from the rear. A left turn is a left turn only if there is no possible way, often at the last minute, to make a right turn. A yellow light means go. A green light means go faster. A red light means "Stop" if you have the brakes to do so.

It's sheer madness. And it's something, all of it -- tailpipe pollution, vehicle safety and poorly observed rules of the road -- that the people of Almaty will have to do something about if they really want to become a first-class tourist attraction.

I think they can do it. There is a lot of pride, ingenuity and ambition here. There is a willingness to gamble for a better tomorrow. In that regard, when it comes to the innate character of the Kazakh people, Sacha Baron Cohen doesn't know what he's talking about.