Clean Ponds is the lovely little pond that graces the Boulevard Ring at the ul Pokrovka intersection. The Boulevard Ring is always a prime location for strolling, but the quaint pond makes this a particularly desirable address. Paddle boats in summer and ice skating in winter are essential parts of the ambience. Buy a coffee, find a bench or sit on the grass, and watch the world go by.
Nearby on the boulevard, a little square with fountains and a monument to Kazakh poet Abay Kunanbayev became the unlikely venue of antigovernment protests in 2013. The little-known cultural figure became a protest icon, his face reproduced in graffiti art and on T-shirts.
