Lack of internet but so much going on! The best I can do is try to summarize. I will post photos later, but it's more important just to get the words out.
We drove out of Issyk Kul, got lunch in Bishkek (where I discovered the magic that is okroshka. Just try it. Now.) and then headed over to the pastures near Talas. We had a crisis involving a CRAZY CRAZY driver who wanted to charge us 1000 som more to take us to the exact place we told him we wanted to go.
The passes were over 10,000 feet, which made me happy, and covered in snow despite it being early July.
We found a yurt with nomads happy to take us in, a mother, her daughter and her neice. The mother was pregnant with twins, yet insisted on doing all the work. We did try our best to take care of her.
Unfortunately, the cold weather and altitude struck Aijaan rather hard, so I was largely left to my own devices. Our hosts didn't speak a lick of English so I spent this time learning Kyrgyz! Within a few days, I had mastered some basics.
On our second day, there was a horse race festival for the local nomads. It featured wrestling, racing, and the local form of polo involving a dead, headless goat. Unfortunately, due to a lack of women, they did not take part in the one sport I wanted to see, Girl Chasing. During this sport, women get on horse back and men get on horseback. The women get a head start down a racetrack and the men must chase them down and give them a quick peck on the cheek. If the woman avoids being kissed, she earns the prize, If the man succeeds, he earns it. They joked that I should race, and had there been more women, I would have.
I was able to take part in some of the nomadic work. For example, I milked a mare. I also separated the cream from the milk to make Kaimak, one of the most delicious foods in the world, the thick, yoghurt consistency cream that is spread on bread. Yum!
After the horse race, a family gave us a ride into Talas. Talas was far smaller than expected which created some difficulties, specifically no ATM that would accept a mastercard debit card. We also had trouble finding a hotel. And unfortunately, all there was to see was the Manas Mausoleum and Museum, both of which were interesting, but not worth the overnight in Talas.
We went back to the pastures where I spent more time meeting the nomadic neighbors, drinking Komuz, eating Kaimak and learning basic Kyrgyz. It was by far my favorite part of the trip :)
We drove out of Issyk Kul, got lunch in Bishkek (where I discovered the magic that is okroshka. Just try it. Now.) and then headed over to the pastures near Talas. We had a crisis involving a CRAZY CRAZY driver who wanted to charge us 1000 som more to take us to the exact place we told him we wanted to go.
The passes were over 10,000 feet, which made me happy, and covered in snow despite it being early July.
We found a yurt with nomads happy to take us in, a mother, her daughter and her neice. The mother was pregnant with twins, yet insisted on doing all the work. We did try our best to take care of her.
Unfortunately, the cold weather and altitude struck Aijaan rather hard, so I was largely left to my own devices. Our hosts didn't speak a lick of English so I spent this time learning Kyrgyz! Within a few days, I had mastered some basics.
On our second day, there was a horse race festival for the local nomads. It featured wrestling, racing, and the local form of polo involving a dead, headless goat. Unfortunately, due to a lack of women, they did not take part in the one sport I wanted to see, Girl Chasing. During this sport, women get on horse back and men get on horseback. The women get a head start down a racetrack and the men must chase them down and give them a quick peck on the cheek. If the woman avoids being kissed, she earns the prize, If the man succeeds, he earns it. They joked that I should race, and had there been more women, I would have.
I was able to take part in some of the nomadic work. For example, I milked a mare. I also separated the cream from the milk to make Kaimak, one of the most delicious foods in the world, the thick, yoghurt consistency cream that is spread on bread. Yum!
After the horse race, a family gave us a ride into Talas. Talas was far smaller than expected which created some difficulties, specifically no ATM that would accept a mastercard debit card. We also had trouble finding a hotel. And unfortunately, all there was to see was the Manas Mausoleum and Museum, both of which were interesting, but not worth the overnight in Talas.
We went back to the pastures where I spent more time meeting the nomadic neighbors, drinking Komuz, eating Kaimak and learning basic Kyrgyz. It was by far my favorite part of the trip :)
No comments:
Post a Comment