I enjoyed my short stay in Uzbekistan, despite abundant police checks on the way in through the fergana valley! At every bridge/tunnel/dam they had police/army posted along the road and sometimes big no photography signs.
I went to the big Chorsu Bazaar (started to seem like I was doing a bazaar tour- from Osh bazaar in Bishket, to the Jayma Bazaar in Osh, to the Chorsu Bazaar, Tashkent! ) The Chorsu was biggest probably, though it would be close between it and Jayma... Jayma bazaar had the coolest atmosphere! They had a staggering array of spices and nuts, and dried fruit... Of which I bought some to snack on for the plane to India!
I went to the Medressa and the relgious centre of the old town, and there saw a 7th century Koran , that belonged to Osman, made from deer skin, which was huge, and amazing to see. I didn't think I was going to be amazed that much, but I was! The Medressa gave me a taste of what the rest of Uzbekitan must be like, but it must be better too I think! The Art gallery also gave me a snapshot of Uzbek culture on my whirlwind tour :)!
I made sure to try Plov, which I've had all over but is the best in Uzbekistan, and it was delicious- it is like a rice dish with grated carrot and other stuff in it (depending) all cooked in a big wok... Uzbeks are crazy about it, and they even say it is an aphrodisac! I had one with raisons in it that was very nice!
One night I had dinner in a small home-restaurant in the 'old town' (not always that old!), quite a nice spicey soup with meat and dumplings in it, and the mandatory nan, which is like a cross between indian naan and turkish bread, and is at every single meal and in the bazaars you see so many of them (round flat nans) and just on the street you randonly see people carrying a tray of nan covered in a cloth, or riding a bicycle load of nan around, or pushing a pram full of nans (this is the most common form of nan transport I think!... it is one of the stongest impressions I have of Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan( a brief imprssion I admit) is the abundant presence of nans (which are very nicely decorated with patterns on top).
Anyway, got to the airport OK and had a smooth flight to Delhi, over amazing mountain ranges... I am only guessing but I think we crossed the Pamirs and the Hindu Kush... I don't think we were north enough for Karakorams.... It was so dry, the landscape, didn't look very inhabited or inhabitable, except for a few river valleys! We went over Tadjikistan, Afghanistan and Pakistan! more Stans that I haven't been to!
Now I'm in Delhi... seem to have lost my stalker too which is good! Yay!
xxooxx
Monday, September 1, 2008
Osh (Kyrgyzstan)
Osh was a pretty cool town, and I think the most 'authentic' 'silk road' feel I got in Central Asia (granted I did not go to Samarkand or Buchara so...). For one people seemed more Islamic oriented- the women colourful in their headscarves and many men wearing scull caps or Kyrgyz hats. The bazaar selling everything under the sun gave the town that cross roads of Asia feel- which I think Osh is in a way- between China, Tadjikistan, Uzbekistan and Kyrgystan. Osh is in Kyrgyzstan but the people are 40% Uzbek and only 10k to the border. I couldn't tell the difference between Uzbek and kyrgyz except for the mens hats!
I climbed 'Solomans Throne' a big craggy hill in the centre of town where Mohommad once prayed and is now a fairly major pilgrimage site... I was on top when the Minarette calls went outall across the city for midday prayers- Osh was the first and only place I heard prayer calls (at 4am it wasn't quite as romantic). In Tashkent, and perhaps all of Uzbekistan they are banned...
I ran into Flo, the guy I trekked with in Osh again, and we had dinner at this also very atmospheric street of chaikanas- each with a sizzling smoking shashlyk stand out the front and 'topchans' tea beds, to sit on/ laze on :), and blaring Arabic pop with flashing lights. It was very lively at night, and close to my guesthouse.
So yeah all in all I enjoyed Osh...it was also a crossraods for me, from there I left Kyrgyzstan for a couple of days in Tashkent on my transit visa!
I climbed 'Solomans Throne' a big craggy hill in the centre of town where Mohommad once prayed and is now a fairly major pilgrimage site... I was on top when the Minarette calls went outall across the city for midday prayers- Osh was the first and only place I heard prayer calls (at 4am it wasn't quite as romantic). In Tashkent, and perhaps all of Uzbekistan they are banned...
I ran into Flo, the guy I trekked with in Osh again, and we had dinner at this also very atmospheric street of chaikanas- each with a sizzling smoking shashlyk stand out the front and 'topchans' tea beds, to sit on/ laze on :), and blaring Arabic pop with flashing lights. It was very lively at night, and close to my guesthouse.
So yeah all in all I enjoyed Osh...it was also a crossraods for me, from there I left Kyrgyzstan for a couple of days in Tashkent on my transit visa!
Trekking around Karakol
I wrote this in my diary on 24/8/08... it makes reasonable sense as is (often they don't!) so I'm just going to transcribe it!
"
Writing the date I think I realise that the Olympics have been and gone- who knew they would come and go with such little impact (on me!)! After all these years of build up!
I am at a campsite between Altyn Arashan and Ala Kol lake... just over the Ala Kol pass. Today's walk, day 2 of the trek, was arduos- uphill nearly all the way and over at 3860m pass. At the moment it's 5:30pm and 12 degrees, the daily max/ min so far has been 31/6... 6 being at the top of the pass! (Florian had temp recording device).
I am rather exhausted! And getting ready for another cold night! The lake was amazing, a blue aqua colour you don't seem to see in Australia, it is glacial so maybe that has something to do with it? We had lunch there and afterwards the weather started to look bad- banks of clouds on the mountains and thunder rumbles, but we did not get rained on and now the tent's up it's OK if it rains a little. (which it did :) )
I was lucky to find Flo to walk with, we were sitting around outside at Yak House and we was saying how he wanted to go hiking but needed a tent, and I said I have a tent and I need a friend! and voila! We also walked with these two Czech guys (for the first two days) who are really nice.
"
Altyn Arashan was really nice, an alpine valley with forest, mountain views and stream. The walk there was easy after the previous two days! There are a few hot spring sanatoium places there, and I had a hot bath in a wooden chack by the stream. It was very good after three days of walking and not changing clothes(too cold at the times of day when it is convenient to change :)) to get clean!
As I wanted to get back to Bishkek, I took a 4wd back to Karakol rather than walk down the final valley, it was the only part of the trek accessable by road, the only short cut possible to take! :)
The days spent in Bishkek were enjoyable, and after I got my Uzbek visa I took a share-taxi to Osh, an impressive 10 hour drive that goes over two mountain passes.
"
Writing the date I think I realise that the Olympics have been and gone- who knew they would come and go with such little impact (on me!)! After all these years of build up!
I am at a campsite between Altyn Arashan and Ala Kol lake... just over the Ala Kol pass. Today's walk, day 2 of the trek, was arduos- uphill nearly all the way and over at 3860m pass. At the moment it's 5:30pm and 12 degrees, the daily max/ min so far has been 31/6... 6 being at the top of the pass! (Florian had temp recording device).
I am rather exhausted! And getting ready for another cold night! The lake was amazing, a blue aqua colour you don't seem to see in Australia, it is glacial so maybe that has something to do with it? We had lunch there and afterwards the weather started to look bad- banks of clouds on the mountains and thunder rumbles, but we did not get rained on and now the tent's up it's OK if it rains a little. (which it did :) )
I was lucky to find Flo to walk with, we were sitting around outside at Yak House and we was saying how he wanted to go hiking but needed a tent, and I said I have a tent and I need a friend! and voila! We also walked with these two Czech guys (for the first two days) who are really nice.
"
Altyn Arashan was really nice, an alpine valley with forest, mountain views and stream. The walk there was easy after the previous two days! There are a few hot spring sanatoium places there, and I had a hot bath in a wooden chack by the stream. It was very good after three days of walking and not changing clothes(too cold at the times of day when it is convenient to change :)) to get clean!
As I wanted to get back to Bishkek, I took a 4wd back to Karakol rather than walk down the final valley, it was the only part of the trek accessable by road, the only short cut possible to take! :)
The days spent in Bishkek were enjoyable, and after I got my Uzbek visa I took a share-taxi to Osh, an impressive 10 hour drive that goes over two mountain passes.
Lake Song-Kol
OK, so it is hard to keep up with this blog, but I have been making traditional ol' diary notes along the way... haven't had a huge amount of internet time and when I do a certain person tends to hog it :). Now I am in Delhi, and this day seems like a good day to relax, not do much, and wait until Mum and Dad arrive this evening! I have crossed two country borders in last three days and there hasn't been much down time!
Anyways.... Kyrgyzstan, which I have finally learnt to spell, was really really cool!
I went to this Lake called Lake Song-Kol which is up in a big 'jailoo'- summer herding pasture... I know why they only stay for summer, it is at an altitude of 3000m and in August it was pretty chilly there!
It was very beautiful- big blue lake in a yellow valley...There were yurtas all around the lake which was huge- takes three days to ride a horse around apparently, and we stayed in a family yurt-stay organised by Community Based Tourism. I was with two Italians and one Spanish, all avid photographers! They took much nicer photos that me, which I consider slightly unfair as we went to the same place! :)
We saw edelweiss growing in abundance, horses being milked!, and loads of seagulls though we were as far as any sea as you could get probably!
The Yurt-stay family made us fish from the lake, which was a nice change! They also had fantastic ultra fresh bread- which they call nan and it is a it like naan, and the most delicious apricot jam!
I tried Kymys, fermented horse milk, which I thought would be like airag- the fermented horse milk in Mongolia, but it was totally different! Airag is clear and has been distilled, so it is more like vodka... well not really but Baga, our horseman at the 8 lakes Ger-crawl called it Mongol vodka! I could drink a few cups most of the times, it wasn't strong in alcohol, though the flavour varied...
Kymys on the other hand, is a full bodied milky drink... and has a VERY POWERFUL flavour! It is hard to convey how strong the taste is (not alcholically but... cheese-ily). I could only drink the tiniest sip and definitly not finish the cup! Horse milk is very sour, I guess there's a reason we drink cow-dairy products!
The people at Song-Kol are semi-nomadic, meaning they move basically from summer to winter... using the high pastures in summer and low in winter... I think that's what it means anyway!
Anyways.... Kyrgyzstan, which I have finally learnt to spell, was really really cool!
I went to this Lake called Lake Song-Kol which is up in a big 'jailoo'- summer herding pasture... I know why they only stay for summer, it is at an altitude of 3000m and in August it was pretty chilly there!
It was very beautiful- big blue lake in a yellow valley...There were yurtas all around the lake which was huge- takes three days to ride a horse around apparently, and we stayed in a family yurt-stay organised by Community Based Tourism. I was with two Italians and one Spanish, all avid photographers! They took much nicer photos that me, which I consider slightly unfair as we went to the same place! :)
We saw edelweiss growing in abundance, horses being milked!, and loads of seagulls though we were as far as any sea as you could get probably!
The Yurt-stay family made us fish from the lake, which was a nice change! They also had fantastic ultra fresh bread- which they call nan and it is a it like naan, and the most delicious apricot jam!
I tried Kymys, fermented horse milk, which I thought would be like airag- the fermented horse milk in Mongolia, but it was totally different! Airag is clear and has been distilled, so it is more like vodka... well not really but Baga, our horseman at the 8 lakes Ger-crawl called it Mongol vodka! I could drink a few cups most of the times, it wasn't strong in alcohol, though the flavour varied...
Kymys on the other hand, is a full bodied milky drink... and has a VERY POWERFUL flavour! It is hard to convey how strong the taste is (not alcholically but... cheese-ily). I could only drink the tiniest sip and definitly not finish the cup! Horse milk is very sour, I guess there's a reason we drink cow-dairy products!
The people at Song-Kol are semi-nomadic, meaning they move basically from summer to winter... using the high pastures in summer and low in winter... I think that's what it means anyway!
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