Kyrgyzstan – Country page

Map of Kyrgyzstan

This is Google Map’s version of the country. Zoom in and out, and click where you like. The blue line indicates my road trip from the single journey I’ve had to Kyrgyzstan.

Highlights of Kyrgyzstan

This is the To-do list from Wikitravel (pretty cool):

1. Wander around Osh Bazaar – Traditional Eastern market in Bishkek selling everything from spices to dishwashers
2. Buy cheap Chinese goods in Dordoi Bazaar – The largest market in Central Asia, situated 20 minutes north of Bishkek
3. Swim, sail and sunbathe in Issyk Kul – The world’s second biggest high altitude mountain lake
4. Stay in a yurt near Tash Rabat – Ruins of a Caravansarai in Naryn Oblast
5. Live like a nomad in Son Kul – High altitude mountain lake less visited than Issyk Kul. Ideal for seeing traditional semi-nomadic Kyrgyz life in action
6. Hike or climb in Altyn Arashan – a secluded valley a 2 hour jeep ride from Karakol
7. Expedition to the peak Lenine, 7134m – south of Osh city.
8. Horseback riding near the Toktogul – 3 days of adventure on horse
9. Motorbike Tours in to the mountains, rentals – 1-14 days tours or long term rentals of Yamaha XT 600 E
10. Hiking from Karakal camp – 12 of hiking from Karakal camp.

World heritage sites

Kyrgyzstan has three UNESCO World Heritage Sites, two cultural and one natural. The links below lead to UNESCO’s website. Sandalsand has been to the Sulaiman-Too mountain; find the article further down this page.

Cultural sites (2):

• Silk Roads: the Routes Network of Chang’an-Tianshan Corridor (2014)
• Sulaiman-Too Sacred Mountain (2009)

Natural sites (1)

• Western Tien-Shan (2016)

Pictures from Kyrgyzstan

This is a collection of Sandalsand’s pictures from Kyrgyzstan, the result of a trip in 2014 around the country and the capital.

Fact Sheet

This is a moderated excerpt from Wikipedia’s article on Kyrgyzstan.

Background

Kyrgyzstan is a landlocked country with mountainous terrain. It is bordered by Kazakhstan to the north, Uzbekistan to the west and southwest, Tajikistan to the southwest and China to the east. Its capital and largest city is Bishkek.

Kyrgyzstan’s recorded history spans over 2,000 years, encompassing a variety of cultures and empires. Although geographically isolated by its highly mountainous terrain, which has helped preserve its ancient culture, Kyrgyzstan has been at the crossroads of several great civilizations as part of the Silk Road and other commercial and cultural routes. Though long inhabited by a succession of independent tribes and clans, Kyrgyzstan has periodically fallen under foreign domination and attained sovereignty as a nation-state only after the breakup of the Soviet Union in 1991.

Since independence, Kyrgyzstan has officially been a unitary parliamentary republic, although it continues to endure ethnic conflicts, revolts, economic troubles, transitional governments and political conflict. Kyrgyzstan is a member of the Commonwealth of Independent States, the Eurasian Economic Union, the Collective Security Treaty Organization, the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, the Turkic Council, the Türksoy community and the United Nations.

Ethnic Kyrgyz make up the majority of the country’s 6 million people, followed by significant minorities of Uzbeks and Russians. Kyrgyz is closely related to other Turkic languages, although Russian remains widely spoken and is an official language, a legacy of a century of Russification. The majority of the population are non-denominational Muslims. In addition to its Turkic origins, Kyrgyz culture bears elements of Persian, Mongolian, and Russian influence.

Hard facts

• Capital and largest city: Bishkek
• Official languages: Kyrgyz, Russian
• Ethnic groups (2018): 73.3% Kyrgyz, 14.6% Uzbek, 5.6% Russian, 1.1% Dungan, 5.4% Other
• Religion: Islam, Christianity
• Government: Unitary parliamentary republic
• Independence declared: 31 August 1991
• Area: 199,951 km²
• Population 2016 estimate: 6,019,480
• Gini (2015) 29.5

The above was copied on 2018-06-22, from Wikipedia and quoted on a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.