Travelling in Kyrgyzstan – Part 2

The Chon-Aksuu Canyon

We drove off the main paved road and onto a dirt road that wound its way up to the mountains, and we soon arrived to the narrow Chon-Aksuu Canyon with a fast-flowing, crystal-clear river running along the road and surrounded by a coniferous forest.

Various locals were selling natural products, such as honey and mushrooms, by the river. One could also notice the beginnings of Kyrgyz tourism – these are yurts that serve as accommodation, but you can also simply stop for some horse milk or lunch in one of the yurts. The locals also offer horseback riding. Occasionally, a man with a falcon would also appear by the yurts, and he’s willing to let you take a photo with the falcon for a few som (Kyrgyz currency). That pretty much sums up the peak of the tourist service in Kyrgyzstan. Of course, I also took a photo with the falcon, drank horse milk and went horseback riding on the dusty dirt road and through the canyon. The path went on from the canyon and high up into the mountains but, since I wasn’t ready for mountain climbing, the driver and I agreed to head back to Issyk-Kul Lake. I spent a few more days at the lake and then went back to Bishkek, as that was the only place I could fly with the local low-cost airline Air Manas all the way to the ancient city of Osh in the south for about 30 euros.

The city of Osh

The city of Osh is located in the southern part of the country at the border with Uzbekistan, which is where I planned on continuing my journey. It’s a small city with Soviet block of flats and decaying infrastructure, which is evident when you cross the concrete bridge across the river. You have to be careful not to fall into the water through a hole. Therefore, I advise you to watch where you’re going in cities like this, as you can fall into a hole even on a pavement and asphalt or trip over a protruding piece of iron.

I found the only hostel in the city and I was surprised to have found out there even was a hostel in such a small city. And behold, it really was a two-storey building and the family that ran the place showed me to my room. Since there were no tourists, I had the four-bed room all to myself. Here, too, one must take their shoes off and leave them outside by the Kyrgyz and Muslim tradition.

After a short walk through the city, you can see the remnants of socialism, as every small park has even up to ten workers watering the lawn, planting flowers, sweeping the park and emptying waste containers. The parks are also adorned by Lenin stretching his arm out, showing the way to socialism.

Lunch time was nearing and I found a traditional restaurant by the road, in which they were making some kind of ćevapi and served stir fried rice with meat – plov or pilau. The taste of the meat wasn’t the same as in Europe because special spices were added, which give the meat a specific taste.

I continued towards the centre which, again, was adorned by a relatively large park full of playground equipment for children and a stream trickling between trees that offered shade and coolness. The benches were full of people and there were children playing. The workers were making a mosaic on a wall where the park started. And at the park’s end was another, this time a slightly larger, Lenin that was happily pointing the way with his outstretched arm. His statue is also present in the city centre and is the largest of them all. It’s located in outside the municipal buildings and it makes one ask themselves whether they’re by any chance still in the former Soviet Union.

Not far from the centre, after approximately 500 metres on foot, I stumbled upon another Soviet monument dedicated to the firemen who helped put out the fire in Chernobyl, losing their lives in the process. 800 of them were from Kyrgyzstan, 102 of which were from the city of Osh.

After a few days of relaxed life in the rural Osh, it was time to head to a new country – Uzbekistan. But more about that in the next issues of Globetrotter.