Bishkek City Tour

Oct. 30, 2023- Bishkek City Tour Miracles happen. Our gimpy group member is much better. It was a knee sprain and not dislocation. Yura wouldn’t let her join us today as there was a lot of walking. Not taking chances. Perhaps the miracle was inspired by the reading material and directional aid in the nightstands. Clearly, the Gideons haven’t been here. The city tour started with a stroll through several lovely parks. We took photos of old Soviet office buildings still in use and monuments. When I look at the pictures, I won’t remember which is which. Yura told us to send him our photos and he’ll ID them for us. He will also download pictures of what we’ve seen and of us as we traveled. Such a nice service. The overall impression is that Bishkek is an historically young city with lots of young people. It’s vibrant, clean, and safe. It is a planned city with boulevards, floral plantings and shaded parks. A sweet custom is that when you double park your car, you leave a note with your phone number under the windshield wipers of the car you blocked. We vanned over to the outskirts to American University of Central Asia. The Soros Foundation is the largest donor with minor ones listed, like the USA in third place. Bard College is a partner. AUCA is a liberal arts university attracting international students. The entrance exam includes English proficiency as 80% of classes are taught in English. The 1200 students share the one building housing classes, library, gym, cafeteria, auditoriums, etc. Tuition is $7000/year and housing is $140/month. Grants are available. Students graduate with an American and local diploma in BA and MA programs. Most Americans come to study Central Asian culture and Russian. Our guide was from here. He has a BA in law and is studying remotely in English for a MA in international law from a university in Italy. He wore a sweatshirt saying “Way of Wade.” He was well aware of the link to LeBron and Akron. I asked him about any LGBTQ+ organizations on campus. He was a bit flustered and said it was uncomfortable to talk about. I told him why I was interested, and he opened up a bit. Homosexuality is severely frowned upon and coming out is dangerous. There are “underground” groups but nothing official. There’s no jail penalty, but physical safety is compromised. After he explained, I said, “Now that wasn’t so hard, was it?” He smiled. Recently, Indian medical students have been attracted to Bishkek attending the public university. It costs less for them to study here than in the US. Then they can move to the US and become our doctors. Their presence has added welcome options for Indian cuisine. All I can say about lunch is lava cake. We walked from our hotel to a new multi-level mall. Wow! It was crowded with families on this Monday afternoon. It’s really stunning with all the designer shops you know and some you don’t. Babies were in snow suits. We were in t-shirts and sweltering. We didn’t stay long. We snagged chilled Pepsi Zeros at a convenience store and returned to our heated hotel room. The window is wide open and we’re peeled down to our skivvies. Our farewell dinner was in a yurt. I thought we’d never get there. Rush hour is gridlock. It took 1 1/2 hours to get to the restaurant and 32 minutes to return to the hotel. Yes, we timed it. The food was a glorious gourmet rendition of the Kyrgyz fare we’ve been eating. The entertainment was a group of professional traditional musicians who play with the philharmonic here. One of the men recited a chapter of the Manas. Manas is a mythical figure much like a Superman. The poem is a 600,000 line detailed epic history of culture, dress, food, rites, rituals, and battles. The epic is a compilation of oral histories from nomadic people that was compiled and finally written down in Soviet times. After the collapse of the USSR, it was used as a roadmap for reconnection to their past. Last night we listened to Mayim Bialek’s talk on Facebook. I’m sure it’s on You Tube. It’s scary, poignant, and her message is emotional. After listening, I asked David if we should change our return ticket and go to Israel. I’d feel safer there even now. I won’t give you details because I want you to hear it. Tomorrow, we go to new heights. Then it’s time to prepare for our flights home. Toby