Postcard from Bishkek

The other day I came across an interesting article (in Russian but with some fascinating photos) about the fortification of Gulcha in Southern Kyrgyzstan, towards the end of the nineteenth century. Apart from the fascinating photographs, (and  … it was well worth clicking on the link, even though it was in Russian and not exactly an easy […]

In recent weeks, the region known as the Ferghana Valley has been much in the news. For the record: The fertile Feghana Valley is about 300 kilmeters long and 170 kilometers wide and is divided between three neighbouring Central Asian states, (Uzbekistan, Tadjikistan and Kyrgyzstan), and comprises the flood plain of the Syr Darya River, […]

Back in 1972, on 24th November, the Osh oblast was created. Osh is in the Southern part of Kyrgyzstan, bordering China, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan as well as the Kyrgyz oblasts of Batken, Djalal Abad and Naryn. Possibly because we are based in Bishkek, in the North of the country, most of the requests we receive […]

The “Road to … ” films were seven comedies starring Bing Crosby, Bob Hope, and Dorothy Lamour, often simply as  the “Road” pictures.  The seven included:  The Road to Singapore (in 1940);  Zanzibar (1941); Morocco (1942); Utopia (1946); Rio (1947); Bali (1952) and Hong Kong (1962). They were a combination of adventure, comedy, romance, and music where they played the role of […]

Sometimes you see references to Kyrgyzstan as a Muslim country but, technically, according to the constitution, it is a secular state and it is probably better to describe the country as “predominantly Muslim”. The majority of the population – possibly as much as 80% – probably consider themselves as Muslim but for many people it […]

Tomorrow, October 5th, is Dehn Goroda in Osh. Osh is the second largest city in Kyrgyzstan – at the head of the Ferghana valley – and is often referred to as the Southern capital of Kyrgyzstan. It is reputedly 3000 years old.  Archaeologists have found artefacts dating back to about the fifth century B.C. One claim […]

Kyrgyzstan is rich in caves and grottos, (=”Unkur” in Kyrgyz), which are scattered throughout the Republic and they attract a number of “speliologists” – “pot-holers”, or cavers.  Although many of them are easily accessible, they have not been developed as tourist attractions as in other parts of the world. Many of the caves provide evidence […]

I have mentioned in a previous postcard the phenomenon of #TTOT – Travel Talk on Twitter. The organisers decide on a subject for the week and then on Tuesday, (at 9:30 – am and pm, in order to cover all the world’s time zones), they pose a series of questions on that theme, inviting others to submit answers, and thus they […]

Irkeshtam is approached from Osh, the second city of Kyrgyzstan, in the South of the country. The road travels south along the valley of the Taldyk and Gulcho river gorges to the village of Sary Tash (“Yellow Stone” in Kyrgyz), which sits on a cross roads. To the West lies the road to Dushanbe in […]

To help preserve the priceless, pristine, virgin, natural resources that it possesses, Kyrgyzstan has a total of 83 Specially Protected Natural Territories, (SPNT), with a total area of about 800,000 hectares, which is 4% of Kyrgyzstan’s total land area. Perhaps, the most famous of these specially protected regions is Ala Archa – just outside Bishkek. […]