Ashgabat’s White City and the Problems Behind the FacadeCEFR A1
28 Feb 2026
Adapted from Areeha Tunio, Global Voices • CC BY 3.0
Photo by Nikolai Kolosov, Unsplash
- Ashgabat is a city of white marble.
- The buildings and gold statues look very shiny.
- The government built many large and grand monuments.
- The work cost a very large amount of money.
- Many areas of the city are empty.
- People have very little food in some places.
- Water is becoming scarce in rural areas.
- People face strict rules and arrests.
- The city often feels quiet and empty.
- People wait in lines for bread.
Difficult words
- marble — hard white rock used for building.
- statue — a figure of a person or animal.statues
- monument — a large structure to remember something.monuments
- scarce — not enough of something available.
- strict — shows strong rules and little freedom.
- arrest — to take someone to police custody.arrests
Tip: hover, focus or tap highlighted words in the article to see quick definitions while you read or listen.
Discussion questions
- Do you like cities with many monuments?
- Have you ever waited in a line for food or bread?
- Is water easy to find where you live?
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