Kyrgyzstan Travel

What Switzerland is to Europe, Kyrgyzstan is to Asia. There is a reason why it is said that way. Tian Shan covers more than 80% of the country and the rest is made up of valleys and basins. This makes the country a homeland of mountains, valleys, steppes, meadows, forests and a little bit of deserts.

Kazakhstan, China, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan cover the four side of the country. It is far from the sea and all its rivers flow into closed drainage systems, which do not reach the sea. If you are a nature lover, it is a must see place. Because you will fall in love with the nature of this country tucked away in the most beautiful place in the world

The country has shown great developments in the field of tourism in recent years. Although it does not have a coastline, lake tourism is carried out in summer seasons, and because the country is covered with mountains, tourism related to winter sports is developing. After winter sports, nature trips and thermal tourism are made. Another feature of the country that attracts tourists is that it is the owner of many forests and Issyk Kul.

History

The Scythians were the first in the history of the land in present-day Kyrgyzstan. The Kyrgyz state reached its greatest expansion after defeating the Uyghur Khanate in 840 AD. From the 10th century, the Kyrgyz migrated as far as the Tian Shan range and maintained their dominance over this territory for about 200 years.

They became a part of the Mongol Empire in 1207. Kyrgyz tribes are overran by the Manchurian Qing dynasty in the mid-18th century and by the Uzbek Khanate of Kokand in the early 19th century. Then their land is conquered by Russians and became the part of Soviet Union until their independence.

Epic of Manas

The Manas epic is about the fight of the mythical Kyrgyz folk hero Manas and his companions and descendants in the 9th century against the Uyghurs and is the most important work of classical Kyrgyz literature as well as one of the most important works of the Turkic peoples.

The work comprises almost 500,000 verses, which is twenty times as long as Homer's Odyssey and Iliad put together. Passed on orally for many generations by minstrels, highly respected folk singers, in melodic oratory.

Today at least 65 different printed versions of the work or parts of it exist. A new translation of the complete works into English by Walter May was published in 1995 for the supposed thousandth anniversary of the birth of Manas and reprinted in two volumes in 2004.

Jusufu Mamai, sometimes referred to as living Homer, only combined various parts of the epic (Manas, Semetey and Seytek) into a single work in the 20th century, which has still not been completed. The Epic of Manas is divided into three books. The first is entitled "Manas" the second episode describes the deeds of his son Semetei, and the third of his grandson Seitek. Together with Semetei and Seitek, Manas was included in the 2013 Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO as the “Kyrgyz Epic Trilogy”.

There are also parallels to the Oghuz Kagan epic (also written down by Wilhelm Radloff in 1891 with the Kutadgu Bilig), Dede Korkut and Georogly. Often the characters and or certain actions are very similar. The central figure of the epic, rich in figures is Manas, a batyr (brave man), who excelled in the creation of a united state of the Kyrgyz people. Forty brave knights were under his leadership. Already at the age of nine Manas protected his people from Kalmyk invaders and defeated Kara-Kitais.

The hero Manas is said to be born in the Ala-Too Mountains in the Talas region in north-western Kyrgyzstan. A mausoleum a few kilometres east of the city of Talas is said to contain his remains and is a popular excursion and festival site, where impressive Kyrgyz equestrian games have been staged since 1995. However, one of the facade inscriptions states that the mausoleum is dedicated to "the most glorious of women, Kenizek-Khatun, the daughter of the Emir Abuka". Legend has it that Kanikey, the widow of Manas, ordered this inscription to mislead her husband's enemies and prevent the tomb from being desecrated. The building, known as "Manastin Khumbuzu" was probably built in 1334. Nearby is a museum dedicated to Manas and his legend.

Hunting with wild birds

Hunting with wild birds is an ancient tradition in Kyrgyzstan like many other nations in Central Asia. Kyrgyz nomads used eagles for hunting because they considered eagles more powerful and professional. However, in our days it is very rare to come across with eagle employing. Hawk and falcon employing is more usual in Kyrgyzstan now. Nevertheless, Kyrgyzstan still has a number of expert hunters that train and use golden eagles to this day who are determined to keep this ancient practice alive.

The man who training eagles and hunting with eagles is called Berkutchi. Berkutchi have to spend 3-4 years training golden eagle to make hunt successful. After training, golden eagles can be used for hunting more than a decade. Training golden eagles is not easy and requires much patience. Firstly, the eagle wears a leather hood during the day to increase its dependence on the trainer. The berkutchi will often talk and sing to the eagle to train it to listen only to his voice. He is also the only one that feeds it, creating a strong bond between the eagle and the berkutchi. The art of eagle training is often passed down orally from father to son.

By the time, Alexander the Great conquered Central Asia (in the 4th century BC), place was already a large, well-fortified city. By the way, it was here, near the city walls, that Alexander the Great was wounded for the first time. Then, by order of Alexander, due to frequent uprisings of the local population, the city was destroyed.

Berkutchi wears a heavy leather glove not to be injured by sharp nails of the eagle and will not take the hood off unless eagle sees an animal running across a meadow. When he removes the hood, the eagle quickly leaps from its master's arm and attacks its prey. Prey can be anything such as rabbit, fox and even young wolf. Eagle is trained to wait for its master; the eagle will not begin eating until the berkutchi comes. The eagle only eats a portion of the hunt. Master uses the rest of the meat and the animal pelt.

During the years of Arab rule, Islamic architectural structures of portal-domed structures appeared - mosques, madrasahs, mausoleums, minarets. The rapid development of Istaravshan is associated with the reign of the Samanid dynasty (9-10 centuries). The representatives of this dynasty were the first ethnic people who are now the progenitor of modern Tajiks.

Hunting has always been and remains one of the favourite hobbies of tourists. Tours are available that include visits to local hunters who can explain more of the intricacies of training and hunting with these magnificent birds of prey. It is a fantastic way for travellers interested in learning more about traditional Kyrgyz bird hunting.

Horseback riding

Kyrgyzstan, 90% of the country is covered in mountains with smatterings of clear alpine lakes either relaxing on high mountaintops or encompassed by them. Taking a trip to Kyrgyzstan means stepping into one of the most glorious, pristine mountain settings in Asia. There are more than 2,000 lakes in Kyrgyzstan, but 16 of them are substantial. Kyrgyzstan is not only the country of mountains and lakes but also of horses. According to Kyrgyz proverb, it is said ‘horses are the wings of Kyrgyz people’. Horses are significant part of Kyrgyz nomadic culture.

Horseback riding is the best way to explore the virgin beauty of the landscape that is largely untouched by civilization and the entire country is a remarkable sight, not just a series of beautiful places with lacklustre stretches in between.

Kyrgyz horses are sure-footed, strong, and known for their endurance and used to traipsing through the mountains of Kyrgyzstan. Whether you are an expert or novice, a horseback riding holiday is Kyrgyzstan is secure. Just grab a camera and choose where you would like to go. Horseback excursions can be arranged for as little as a couple hours to a couple weeks. Do not miss your chance to explore this beautiful, mountainous paradise.

Territory & Nature

The mountainous landlocked Republic of Kyrgyzstan has a land area of 199,951 km² and around 6.5 million inhabitants. The country borders in the southeast with China, in the north with Kazakhstan, in the southwest with Tajikistan and in the northwest with Uzbekistan. The Kyrgyz territory includes four Uzbek enclaves as well as two Tajik enclaves.

Kyrgyzstan is located in the high mountains of the Tianshan and reaches the highest altitude with the 7439 m high Jengish Chokusu. Over 90% of the territory is above 1500 meters above sea level, 94% of the land area is mountainous, and farming is only possible on 20% of the area. Geologically, the Tianshan is a young mountain range (Cenozoic), which is why the mountains in Kyrgyzstan rise dominantly and ruggedly and deeply cut into valleys. The southern end of the country is formed by the Alai mountain range, where it merges into the Pamir Mountains.

Up to an altitude of 1500 m, the land consists of steppe, which, however, has been made arable through extensive irrigation systems. From 1500 m, alpine meadows and pastures dominate, which reach up to the snowfields and glaciers. The forests are located at altitudes of 1500 to 4000 m above sea level and are home to around 120 species of trees and shrubs. With only 4% forest area, Kyrgyzstan is one of the least forested countries in Asia, but the Jalalabat region has the largest walnut forest in the world.

Kyrgyzstan’s climate is ranging from dry continental to polar in high the Tien Shan Mountains to subtropical in the southwest to temperate in northern foothill zone. There are sharp local variations between mountain valleys and flatlands. Precipitation also varies greatly from western mountains to north-central region.

Hot and cold have great extremes on a daily and yearly basis. It is cold as Siberia in the winter and quite hot in the summer. In the mountains, daytime and night time temperature can be differ 50 degrees in °C. That is why Kyrgyzstan is “the land of the fan and the fur”. These temperature extremes are common in Central Asia. Kyrgyzstan is also very windy and foggy.

In winter, Siberian winds can send the temperature plummeting to - 30 degrees °C in the high elevations. The winter is harsh in the mountains but tolerable in Bishkek and the Lake Issyk-Kul area. Much of country is under the snow carpet. The snow on the ground tends to be icy and crusty. In the mountains, snow can accumulate to great depths.

The summer is hot and characterized by great extremes during the night and day time. Temperatures often rises above 32 degrees °C or even 37 degrees °C during the afternoon and then sometimes drop into the 40s at night. Spring and autumn are pleasant and the best time to visit. Spring can be rainy, muddy and windy. Temperatures and weather conditions are also greatly influenced by elevations. The mountains and highlands obviously are colder than the lowlands.