A PASSAGE TO INDIA: 184. CENTRAL ASIA

Comprising the 5 Stans of Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan and Tajikistan - collectively Central Asia...they were part of the Russian bloc of the great USSR. All are now independent republics with mixed fortunes - Kazakhstan the most successful, Uzbekistan's tourism sector is doing good,...with Kyrgyzstan working hard on theirs.

As I was writing this with the TV on, a documentary came on, on Kyrgyzstan been seduced with Chinese money into a debt trap. This region has a large Uyghur population and has seen a few hundred thousand coming over from nearby Xinjiang ...

Kyrgz is resource rich but don't seem to have the wherewithal to realise that - the Russians and Americans dragged their feet or didn't want to commit to 'working' with the Kyrgyzstani government - China saw the opportunity, for Central Asia is very much THE Silk Road. They've virtually taken over huge Kazakhstan next door...Kazakh, being wealthy, bargained for their citizens to be employed in Chinese projects, Kyrgz does not have that same bargaining power - or is unable to because of the large number of migrant Uyghurs

This image from a museum is reproduced in the follow-up post on Uzbekistan (post 183)...it spoke to me as I looked at it...

It's interesting to note that for a mighty long time, travel by traders has taken place between peoples of the Middle East, Central Asia and Asia - they 'walked' across, as the land mass is not separated by a huge body of water - picture amongst them, are pilgrims going into India and Tibet (Jesus - Isa - amongst them) so too the apostle Thomas, retraced the steps taken by Isa, and worked, lived and died in India). I've visited the St Thomas Cathedral in Chennai which has a small interesting museum.

He was interred here for quite a long while before the Vatican laid claim to the remains and carried that off to Rome declaring him a Saint. His gospel did not form part of the early bible even if he was an original disciple, perhaps due to his association with India and what he represents was not the official narrative. (read: manipulation)

Picture too, how the '3 Wise Men from the East' travelled across to welcome the evolved soul born into Isa...the 3 were not ordinary men - they were evolved Yogis, guided by a bright Light (a 'star'). Go figure for those who've done their digging and are able to see the big picture and connected the dots...

Kitaro's Caravansary on The Silk Road...as one gets transported on a camel over sand dunes, rocky paths, valleys and mountain passes

Flight was delayed more than once and it was way after midnight when the aircraft took off...mercifully it was a direct flight...I hate it when I get to look at the engine as I would hate it even more should I spot smoke or fire...

From Tashkent, Uzbek's capital city, a one hour flight took me to Bishkek, capital to Kyrgyzstan, where this fresh face sunny sonny boy greeted the group with these welcome snacks of bite-size bread dough eaten dipped in strawberry jam. They do not have this in Uzbek next door so they aren't exactly alike...perhaps the dough is presented differently...

...after several days on the road, we said our fond farewell with a good local champagne. He and others I've encountered in Kyrgz are still unspoilt...

Needs getting used to - balloons displayed this way! Neat!

Anywhere is a good place for an art installation - this is in a pitstop in the middle of nowhere. Public loos upcountry are few and far between. Toilets are holes in the ground.

a community hall going back a century, the upper floors added on are modern restaurants

This tall white adult's hat, the kalpak, is not seen anywhere next door in Uzbek...its a Kyrgyz thing

The kalpak is almost Mongolian...they are neighbours after all and were at one time under the same rulers...Genghis Khan & Co...those were days when they were no borders anywhere and it was one vast grassland, the Steppes...and Khan was powerful enough to have a large army to lord over this huge tract of land..

Framed by those arches, the lime whitewashing of trees take place every Spring to deter bugs

True to their nomadic Steppes roots - such yurts are shops and homes to farmers and shepherds. This one's a souvenir shop

The climate is so dry, the vegetation is chiefly scrubland that has adapted by being wiry, stiff, woody - grasses are mossy and spongy, not the succulent types - they're just coming out of Winter

true to their communist roots, grand statues are a big thing, exhorting the Motherland and the labour force...and armed forces...

Victory Square (Pobeda Sq) housed under a yurt structure, their traditional heritage home. This monument commemorates victory over Nazi Germany. This is in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan's capital city. A few short km out of the city limits it's just countryside...

Soviet era large and loud structures, the bottom one is quite nice, perhaps because it's art deco, something I'm partial to!

they place importance on the female aspect - the divine feminine - the Mother/Motherland - the yin energy. International Women's Day is a public holiday here and the womenfolk in their lives are feted...

at this restaurant, cotton candy was given out to all ladies to honour International Women's Day and the wait staff put on a dance number. The place was crowded with men taking their womenfolk for a meal with flowers and gifts for each one - it's nice to see as they honour the old and young women in their families...everyone was beaming, some eyes were wet - it's clear they don't eat out as a matter of habit, when they come together in a restaurant, it's a celebration...

Anyone with energy and time may do this - advertise their patriotism or their products on the hillsides - its free!

badlands - impossible to cultivate the land

Never follow like sheep or you'll be led to the slaughterhouse! Will the human mammals be able to rise above those animal attributes and impulses? Nah! We aren't there yet. For a start they are terribly territorial, they mark their territory with bags, umbrellas and tissue packs - a Singaporean trait...

it's rugged mountainous terrain, impossible to cultivate, so animal farming is their main source of income. During the winter months they grow nothing. Jobs are scarce. So when China came a calling, 'they' grabbed the carrots but is that benefitting the local communities when the bulk of the jobs are filled by the Chinese bringing in their workforce and supplying all materials as Kyrgyzstan has nothing to offer.

They really are in a difficult position, too poor, scarce, much too weak...it's like the feudal system of old - the poor work for or are used by their feudal Masters. If China is a wise Master, she would do well to uplift the lot of the locals they've 'colonised' - not just building roads, for after all, the roads are to serve their purpose first and foremost...but bread and butter issues - jobs, housing, public transport - and than there's the business of the Uyghurs - a sticking point...

Something they do well - silver jewelery, designs are ethnic, tribal, work is fine

Lunches are in the cozy homes of local families. As with Uzbek, they want to expose visitors to their way of life and to home cooking, food was clean and wholesome. In turn, their people get exposed to foreign faces and habits. Let's hope the group left a good impression everywhere!

I cringe at times when I travel with a busload of 20 or more. At stops, I note, bus groups are from China or Singapore - I don't want to know what others elsewhere think of Singaporeans in a pack, but they do think well of its Government...

1 stop was totally unnecessary - the usual long bus ride to view a sunset over a lake, the Issyk Kul. Sunsets and sunrises have been viewed a zillion times before but to travel a vast distance when it could have been viewed from the city, from a hotel pool or its terrace or even a room window - this is 'filling in the blank' to prolong the tour another day as flights between SG and Tashkent are not daily...

The comfort I got is the thought that this package has helped the business of the handling agent, the driver and guide, the home cooks and their families, hotels and restaurants and small businesses. Their people are a decent lot and deserve better after long years of hardship...which unfortunately continues today for the TV documentary revealed the jobless state and the hopelessness felt by well educated young men

There are 2 stops in Kyrgyz I found memorable. The Burana Tower of an ancient lost civilisation in Balasagun...

The interior is narrow and dim. It's surrounding grounds are littered with stone idols, balbals

some artefacts in its museum from a dig site - it said no photography, but I'm such a recalcitrant

a second interesting site is littered with rocks...which tell stories of a nomadic people past through their etchings, petroglyphs.

as I look at this plain of natural rock formations I 'see' the Plain of Jars in Laos. An indigenous people chiseled the rocks into water receptacles that collect rain water. The more creative ones chiseled them into the shape of jars, others into bowl shapes - they could have been used for a multitude of things, fermenting food is one. No 'mystery' - the mystery is created by the Tourism body and its ad agencies with advertising and marketing to intrigue visitors to travel that distance and pay entrance charges.

The Americans bombed Laos almost to the point of wiping it off the face of the Earth but have done nothing much to clear those bomb remnants.

Laos is now unofficially in the hands of China

minerals produce their own art

after a whirlwind tour of their best known cultural sites in Kyrgyz, I take my leave to catch a domestic back to Tashkent

Samarkand and Bukhara were really nice and had all the sites Uzbek is best known for (pics in the next post on Uzbekistan)...after another whirlwind round, I boarded the fast train back to Tashkent - everything about this trip has been like I blew in and out of places like a typhoon ... with nary a chance to collect my thoughts...

And...an earthquake or tremour of sorts took place in Kazakhstan next door possibly hundreds of miles away. It happened in the night and woke me - the sensation was a ripple travelling across my back, unsure of what that was about, it left me wondering if there's a poltergeist in the room...I pulled the sheets over my head!