Иссык-Куль - Бостери

On Friday July 27, Aleks, Adilet, and I left for the north side of Issyk-Kul; in particular, the ‘resort’ sanitaria in Бостери (‘Bosteri’). The marshrutka ride there was smooth save for the tired Kyrgyz guy napping on Aleks’ shoulder. We arrived in the evening and found a decent place through one of Adilet’s friends. Four beds in a room – not a big deal. We would only be going there to sleep anyway. Friday night we went to a bar and hung around the dance floor or at the table drinking some beer. It was a relatively quiet night and we retired early.

Saturday was a beach day. We spent the day in the shade of a beach umbrella, swimming, drinking some beer, talking to strangers, and strangers talking to us. Being a Western English-speaking man is enough of a reason for people in Central Asia to speak to you; at Issyk-Kul, you’re a superstar. We met new friends, the deputy chief air controller of Dushanbe airport and his brother – allegedly the champion wrestler of Tajikistan – and other interesting folks on the beach. Saturday evening we reconnoitered the bars before meeting up with some folks we had met during the day. It was a fun night and one that you would expect of twenty-somethings at a foreign resort.

Sunday was another beach day. Only this day, a girl introduced herself to me as Aleks and Adi went swimming. I had on my OEF (Operation Enduring Freedom) USA-Afghan hat which was grandfathered to me by another Canadian who studied in Bishkek. Turns out she spent two years as a hairdresser in Kandahar and thought I was a vacationing American soldier. While that wasn’t true, it was nice chatting with her and her friend who was also departing for Afghanistan on August 1 to work as a hair dresser for two years in Kandahar.

At night, the five of us jumped in a marshrutka back to Bishkek and had a good ride home. We were tired but relaxed and relieved to have such a good weekend following the previous weekend of hard work and hiking in the mountains.

The next week and weekend Aleks and I would be in Kazakhstan..

The highway to Issyk-Kul.

The beach.

A perfect shot.... a picturesque sky, a seadoo in a Central Asian oasis between two mountain chains... and a babushka.

Hard day for these kids..

Yes, that is a tree branch supporting our satellite.

Heading to Afghanistan to cut hair in three days.

 We loved their lagman; they loved us for having dinner here three nights in a row.