The Atameken Ethno-Memorial Complex comprises a monument to those who died in Soviet times as a result of political repression, and stands on a small hill at the river-end of Kabanbai Batyr. Behind this is a giant model map of Kazakhstan where the Caspian Sea has been reduced to the size of a small pond. The map highlights Kazakhstan’s architectural monuments in miniature as well as dedicating a somewhat disproportionately large area to a plan of Astana. It’s a good way of getting round a country five times the size of France in half an hour.