10TH ANNIVERSARY OF AVALON!

It's been exactly ten years since  “Avalon” Historico-Geographical Society was registered on July 22 in 2004. We are happy to congratulate our friends, colleagues, partners and associates on this memorable date. We can not say that at that time we already had an idea of what we would actually end up doing. We had no clue that our activities would turn out to be so manifold. We just wanted to have an active and interesting life, as well as to help others to have one, too.

What have we been doing in these past ten years? We spent them traveling, exploring, inventing, creating and discovering. We were engaged in ecotourism development, VeloKaraganda, expeditions in Kazakhstan and beyond, projects in the sphere of publishing  as well as many other things. We have certainly got something to remember and something to be proud of. Kyzylarai and Ulytau, Discovery Kazakhstan and Avalon Kazakhstan eBook, the Himalayas and the Tien Shan, Karaganda Velocity and VeloDariya, Nepal and Tajikistan – all these names and places (as well as many others) are now inseparably connected with the history of “Avalon”. Moreover one can not imagine “Avalon” without them.

Of course,  this would have never been possible if it wasn't for our trustworthy and time-honoured partners, such as Silk Road Media, ALTEL, Karaganda Ecological Museum, EcoObraz, US Department of State, Zeravshan Tourism Board, Pamir Eco-Cultural Tourism Association, Limpopo Outdoor, Maslennikov's bicycle shop, Bassar Electronics, NABU, GEF/UNDP Small grants programme, Nomadic Travel Kazakhstan, Veter stranstviy, Tourism branch of the department of entrepreneurship of Karaganda region, ASA, Pyatiy ugol, Industrialnaya Karaganda, VeloAlmaty and others. We'd like to express our gratitude to them!

We are also grateful to all members of “Avalon”, as well as our numerous volunteers! Due to them “Avalon” keeps growing and developing.

Have a great holiday, dear friends! And full speed ahead in the new decade!

Vitaliy Shuptar,
President of “Avalon” HGS PA and PF