President of Turkmenistan to build ice chateau in the desert

Saparmurat Niyazov, the President of Turkmenistan, said in his appearance on a local television channel that he would build an ice chateau in the mountains near the capital of Ashkhabad. The capital is situated in an oasis in the Kara Kum desert. Niyazov, who is also known as Turkmenbashi, stated that the ice chateau would become the new face of Turkmenistan.

The Turkmen president believes that the spacious and beautiful chateau will house up to 1,000 people. The building will be connected with Ashkhabad with a cable-way. "There will be cafes and restaurants there, our children will learn to skate there," Niyazov said.

It is noteworthy that the idea of building cold sites in the lands of never-ending summer heat becomes more popular in southern states. The ice chateau project in Turkmenistan is a brand new idea, although the construction of a winter sports complex is in full swing in Dubai (United Arab Emirates). Seven ski tracks and a 400-meter slide in the complex will be covered with artificial snow and ice.