A trip to Kyrgyzstan: mountains and lakes in their purest form

BishkekKyrgyzstan is wedged in Central Asia between the great mountain ranges and the countries that end with stan, literally the land of. Land of the Kyrgyz, a people who emerged from the alliance of forty tribes that settled in the territory and, over the years, formed a single cultural and linguistic identity. However, the mixture of origins is still visible in the physiognomy of the population's faces. Although the strong impact and imprint that belonging to the Russian Empire and the Soviet Union has left on current social and political life cannot be forgotten, there is a very strong Kyrgyz national sentiment, which can be summarized in the epic of Manas, a legendary hero venerated with giant statues. However, this identity is not based on their own language, which has not shaken off the label of secondary, nor on the three decades of being an independent countryRussian and Kyrgyz coexist in a textbook diglossia, allowing the media, schools, culture, and politics to operate in Russian, although in rural areas, Kyrgyz is the majority language.

Towards the end of May, when temperatures soften and the snow melts, families begin migrating from the villages to the high mountains. At 3,000 meters above sea level, herds of sheep, cattle, yaques, and horses recover from the harsh continental winter, and their owners rediscover a way of life they saw less than a century ago. Before the region became part of the Soviet Union, the Kyrgyz people were nomadic, and in many families, the stories told by grandparents or parents are still alive.

In this shared memory of recent history, the yurt, the quintessential home of nomadic peoples of Mongolian descent, holds a prominent place. Setting up this circular tent is part of a ritual that brings the whole family together, and even the hole it leaves in the roof, through which sunlight enters and smoke from the stove escapes, has become the national symbol affixed to the flag. The woven wooden structure is erected, the beams and the central ring, the entrance door, are installed, and finally the interior is lined with wool canvas. Some serve exclusively as bedrooms, while others serve as living rooms or dining rooms, depending on family budgets. With the arrival of tourism, yurts have become a popular place to stay and be closer to nature, by the lakes. Even in summer, when daytime temperatures are pleasant, the shelter of the tent and the warmth of the coal stoves are appreciated at night.

This semi-nomadic population holds another of the great Kyrgyz symbols, although it is much more earthly than the epic of Manas. kymyz It's fermented mare's milk offered to welcoming visitors. For urbanites, this is the best gift they can receive from the mountains, and they take it home with them in plastic bottles to reminisce about family memories of visiting their grandparents in the countryside.

A trip to Kyrgyzstan usually begins in Bishkek, the modern capital where the Soviet past is still very much present. It is a city of wide avenues, pleasant squares and parks, where many locals enjoy the hot summer. It is worth spending a day or two there, and even visiting the National Museum of History, an imposing building that was renovated for $30 million.

From the central Victory Square, crowned with a yurt, as the small bay recedes, the Kyrgyz Ala-Too appears in the background, an imposing mountain range over 4,000 meters high, even with thermometers touching 40 degrees. Perhaps because of postcards like this, but also because of the prevailing Eurocentrism, the country has been dubbed the Switzerland of Central Asia. More than 90% of Kyrgyzstan is mountainous, with an average altitude of over 2,700 meters above sea level (Gisclareny, for example, is at 1,345 meters). Jengish Chokusu, the highest peak, reaches 7,439 meters and is located on a border chain with China.

This particular geography makes the country attract mountaineering and trekking enthusiasts. trekking Here, at more affordable prices than elsewhere, you can enjoy magnificent scenery and relax in yurts and on the plains, spending the night in charming guesthouses run by private individuals who go out of their way to be kind. The two main attractions in this regard are located at the country's extremes: the Pamir Mountains in the southwest, which have the most advanced routes, and the Tian Shan Mountains in the northeast, with routes more suitable for beginners.

Rich gastronomy

Particularly worthy of mention are the tables filled with the country's typical culinary delights. It is a cuisine made up of meat and vegetable stews, colorful salads, and also plenty of pasta like beshbarmak, known as five fingers because it is a sacrilege not to eat it with your hands. Other dishes that are good food are the plove (a rice in the Kyrgyz casserole or pan), the stuffed bags called butter and, of course, the various shapes and flavors that bread comes in. Watermelon and apricots are two safe options at the markets during the summer.

The large presence of pasta is due to the fact that the caravans of the Silk Road, although there are no large vestiges like those of the mythical SamarkandIt is known that merchants would stop and sail around Lake Iessik, the second largest in the world. after Titicaca Thanks to its saline content, it's protected from the harsh ice. UNESCO has included it on its list of nature reserves for conservation, and today the lake is also a stopover for travelers and a local tourist destination due to the large number of hotels and resorts located nearby. The sea is more than a thousand kilometers away, and these waters are a good alternative. The reward of a good swim is easy because there's a road that runs along the lake.

In fact, Lake Iessik is the benchmark of the northern regions because, at 180 kilometers long, it's hard not to drive by it. Also nearby is the Burana Tower, an ancient minaret that can be visited and the site of a legend about kings fearing for the future of their daughters who met a tragic end, and the open-air museum containing the remains of the Cholpon Ata petroglyphs.

For those who prefer the reward of the lake to be the fruit of the effort of walking, Kyrgyzstan offers an endless array of landscapes in a single visit: Kul Lake, Kel Suu Lake, or Sary-Chelek Lake. Landscapes reminiscent of the Alps or the Pyrenees, where it's very common to come across herds of horses, the most revered animal by the Kyrgyz people, considered another symbol of their identity. It's probably an exaggeration nowadays, but urban Kyrgyz like to say that horses are the wings of the people.

In Karakol, you can go mountaineering, as helicopter flights even take off from there, dropping athletes at an altitude of around 4,000 meters, allowing them to continue their climb on foot. The city was established as an important military outpost when the country was a region of the Russian Empire, and the blue houses where the officers lived and the beautiful Russian Orthodox church date from that period. A short distance away, however, is the Dungan Mosque, built by a Muslim minority of Chinese origin, who dispensed with iron and limited themselves to wood for its construction. The building is small, but its unusual ornamentation and striking colors, seen in Chinese culture, stand out.

Desert landscapes

Aside from the alpine mountains, there is an arid Kyrgyzstan, equally impressive. Just a couple of spots to sample these desert landscapes to experience the full variety of the color palette: the Skazka Canyon, nicknamed the Fairy Canyon for the whimsical shapes of the rocks, and the Konorchek Canyon, which surprises visitors with its earthy walls. Both spots are located a few kilometers from the capital, making them spots where musical groups choose the effects of the changing light on the rocks as backdrops for filming music videos.

Kyrgyzstan has a great musical tradition, and Bishkek has a good selection of music suitable for all audiences, a Soviet legacy. In the wake of the Bolshevik Revolution, the country embarked on a path toward education; however, instruction is provided in Russian. Traditional compositions are played on specific instruments such as the kyl kyiak, a kind of vertical violin with two strings (made of horse hair) and a mouth weapon called temir komuz.

Two anecdotes can serve to conclude this trip through a still unknown country, which has some films about the mountains. On a road leading to the mountain valley of Barskoon, a mandatory stop is the rest area where two giant statues dedicated to the mountain have been planted.astronaut Yuri Gagarin, a true Soviet idol who claimed to have identified this area on his journey through space. Another curious detail is that the versatile artist Suimenkul Chokmorov is the face of the 5,000-somos banknote, the local currency. Perhaps the name means little to those without a film degree, but he is one of the members of the expedition accompanying the hunter Dersu Uzala in Kurosawa's 1975 film of the same name. If you ask younger generations, they might replace it with a sports celebrity like Olympian Aissulu Tinibekova.