Song Kol

            From all accounts, Kyrgyzstan can be considered as the emerald of Central Asia. It possesses that mesmerising combination of glistening expanses of water and tumbling rivers under a sky opening up to a vista of snowy and rocky mountains and green hills either forested or segmented into grassy jailoos. Song [...]

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Osh – Arslanabob

            Whilst Osh is nothing special, Arslanabob seems to project itself out of the stuff of legend. I travelled to Osh with three other foreigners by share taxi – Remi, a Belgian, Karol, a Slovakian, and David, a Canadian. It was a long squirmish ride, although a share taxi ride in [...]

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Karakol – Karakol Valley – Alajkol – Altyn Arashan – Karakol – Tamga – Bishkek

            I had never seen roses like the ones I saw in Sergei’s yard in the Yak Tours guesthouse in Karakol. Brilliant velvet red blooms and pale roses with petals edged in pink cascaded over doorways and roofs, filling garden beds and exuding the most delicate relaxing odour. I had pitched my tent late, and [...]

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Bishkek

            There was Little Old Laos, and now there’s Beautiful Bishkek. For some Bishkek was the hell that Urumqi became for me. But Bishkek was bliss for my soul after the nightmare and intensity of China, and I contend a much lesser hell than being stuck on the other side of the border.
            The [...]

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