the heights of the Tien Shan in the south, the exquisite lakes and valleys of the mystical Altai mountains in the northeast, and the archaeologically rich desert coast of the Caspian Sea in the west. With independence and the discovery of oil has come rapid modernization, and Kazakhstan today stands as Central Asia's most stable and forward-thinking nation. Author Biography: Dagmar Schreiber worked with the World Bank on living standards in Kazakhstan during the 1990s, then formed a small, Berlin-based tour agency in 2003, specializing in eco-trips designed to reveal Kazakhstan at its best. Jeremy Tredinnick is a Hong Kong-based writer, photographer, and editor.