"There was a sea, so why did it suddenly disappear?" - The sea cannot disappear?!  We ran to the edge.

    But anyone who hasn't seen the Aral's disappear with their own eyes still can't believe it.  After all, decades ago, tickets for the Aral Sea resort were sold out, and many teenagers spent their vacations at the Rohat pioneer camp, which we called "Artegimiz".  Reputable organizations and agencies of the republic began to divide the coastal lands and build marble and concrete buildings.

    The Aral Sea became a favorite haunt of former Uzbek leaders.  But as the sea began to flee, as the ships sank in the sand like rats, so did the rulers.

    From the book "How the Aral dried up" by Urozboy Abdurakhmanov.