Aral Sea Stories—Text by Peter Cusack

story 13: ice bells

In normal winters, temperatures drop below -10°C and stay that way for several months. Recently though, because of global climate changes, they are much more erratic. In 2015—the year I visited—they even went above zero for a few days causing the snow to melt and refreeze as very thin layers of ice on all the plants. The sound is made by ice-covered small branches and twigs knocking into each other in strong winds. Without the melting and refreezing, it would not occur. The ice-coated plants refract bright sunlight and pinpoints of white, yellow, orange, even red, flash and sparkle across the snowy landscape.


Story 11: Ship’s Graveyard

Originally, there were 12 boats here. Over the years, they have been broken up and sold as scrap. Now one remains. Nobody knows who painted this wonderful series of fishermen at work. One rumor is that it was travelling Polish graffiti artists. In the last years, the paint has started to fade and more of the metal has been removed together with the graffiti.