Postcard from Bishkek

During October the range of topics covered in the postcards included:

• places in Kyrgyzstan: Arslan Bob, the Dunlarov bridge across the River Chui, Dubovniy Park in Bishkek, caves in Kyrgyzstan
• food and drink:  vegetarian cuisine, syrniki, Sugar
• history: what was going on in Kyrgyzstan a thousand years ago,
• days in the calendar: World Suicide Prevention Day, Teachers’ Day, Civil Aviation Day, World Day Against the Death Penalty, World Mental Health Day, World Handwashing Day
• people such as:  Semen Chuikov, Yuri Dunlarov, Olga Manuilova, Shabdan Baatyr
• fauna and flora: cranes
• traditional culture: earings
• issues of life in contemporary Kyrgyzstan such as: Kyrgyz cinema, civil aviation education, hand washing, mental health, nationalities, numismatics – coins, suicide and health care, the Russian military presence in Kyrgyzstan, the frustrating tendency of calling meetings with the miniimum of notice;
• tourism: choosing a destination to visit, Discussion club
• personal events: dealing with an intruder

and not forgetting

• the regular weekly postcards giving a personal review of the week’s news from here in Kyrgyzstan:

• V is for … vegetarian - likewise, World Vegetarian Day seemed an appropriate moment to take a look at that old canard that it it can be difficult to travel in Central Asia, (and hence in Kyrgyzstan), “if you are not a passionate meat eater”. 01/10/12
• Bridge on the River Chui - Once a month I take a trip up to visit our Guest House in Naryn and the road takes us past the Y. Danlarov Bridge just outside Tokmok, and I have often wondered … “Who was Yunus Danlarov?”  02/10/12
• Dubovniy Park – Oak Park - A look at one of the city centre parks in Bishkek 03/10/12
• Any man’s death diminishes me … a rather belated post about World Suicide Prevention Day (which was on September 10th), prompted by some news about suicide rates both here and abroad. 04/10/12
• Where have all the teachers gone? Friday was Teacher’s Day, but there’s a shortage of teachers in Kyrgyzstan’s schools. 05/10/12
• Bellerophon - the Weekly postcard … a personal review of the week’s news from here in Kyrgyzstan 06/10/12
• Civil Aviation  – Sunday was the Day of Civil Aviation here in Kyrgyzstan 07/10/12
• Why I have never been to … - An  unusual blog post got me thinking about the reasons people choose NOT to travel to particular destinations 08/10/12
• One passport or two … - News that some countries are clamping down on dual nationality, I take a look at the situation and attitudes here in Kyrgyzstan 09/10/12
• World Day Against the Death Penalty - On the day dedicated to opposing capital punishment around the globe, I took a look at the policy debate that erupted here in Kyrgyzstan four years ago 10/10/12
• WMHDAY - As well as being the World Day Against the Death Penalty, Thursday was also World Mental Health Day, so I took a brief look at the state of provision of Mental Health services in the country 11/10/12
• Oscar Hopeful - News broke during the week that the Kyrgyz Film “Pustoi Dom” is up for an Oscar in the Foreign Language category 12/10/12
• A Day That Never Was - the Weekly postcard … a personal review of the week’s news from here in Kyrgyzstan 13/10/12
• Meanwhile … elsewhere … - trying to put history into a wider context … what was going on in Kyrgyzstan whilst the Battle of Hastings was being fought on England’s southern coast on 14th October, 1066. 14/10/12
• Handwashing Day - October 15th was Global Handwashing Day and whilst the BBC was asking, “why are the British so bad at handwashing?“, I took a brief look at the habit here in Kyrgyzstan. 15/10/12
• Syrniki - Tasty little cheesecakes similar to “fat pancakes” brought to Central Asia from Russia or the Ukraine and adopted as a standard dish which is often served up. 16/10/12
• Arslan Bob - One of the small villages often visited by tourists … to see its walnut forests and trek in the nearby mountains. 17/10/12
• Cranes - these majestic birds grace the skies over Kyrgyzstan on their migrations: north in the spring and south again in the autumn. 18/10/12
• Numismatics - coins in the Kyrgyz Republic: when I first came here some seventeen years ago, Kyrgyzstan didn’t have any … but since then there has been a dazzling array of commemorative coins issued as well as those in everyday circulation. 19/10/12. 
• Explorations - the Weekly postcard … a personal review of the week’s news from here in Kyrgyzstan 20/10/12
• Hello Sailor! - Trafalgar Day may be a peculiarly British celebration – but what better day to take a look at the presence of the Russian Navy here in Kyrgyzstan? 21/10/12
• Sweet tooth - a brief look at sugar production here in Kyrgyzstan; 22/10/12
• Dealing with an intruder … - on this occasion it was not a human trying to rob the office, but a feline intruder trapped and unable to find an exit … but just as much a threat; 23/10/12
• Caves - Speliologists or “pot holers” may find lots of places to interest them here in Kyrgyzstan; 24/10/12
• Discussion Club -  invited to attend a session at a university, I am somewhat confused about the format; 25/10/12
• Where’s the fire? - why is there a tendency here to call important meetings at the drop of a hat … and does this hide a “hidden agenda”" – and if so … just what is it. 26/10/12
• Two apartments and an old car! - the Weekly postcard … a personal review of the week’s news from here in Kyrgyzstan 27/10/12
• Earrings - A look at these distinctive adornments from nomadic times; 28/10/12
• Shabdan Baatyr - the first of a series of anniversaries this week, on Ahabdan Baatyr’s brthday we take a look at this patriarch from Northern Kyrgyzstan. 29/10/12
• Chuikov – Record Breaking Artist -on the occasion of what would have been his 110th birthday, I took a brief look at the life of Kyrgyzstan’s highest selling artist 30/10/12
• Olga Manuilova - on what would have been her 119th birthday, I look at the life of Olga Manuilova – a Russian sculptress who was responsible for many of the Soviet statues which grace the streets of Bishkek. 31/10/12

 

 

 

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