To Bishkek

Oct. 29, 2023-To Bishkek What a start to the day. The woman who is constantly late and scattered hurt her knee while asleep. Her knee replacement slipped and she’s really in pain. They carried her down the steps on a chair and to the van. They brought breakfast and lunch to her in the van and she didn’t get off until late afternoon when we arrived at the hotel. They had a wheelchair waiting and she’s confined to her room. She doesn’t want to go to a hospital. At day’s end her knee was feeling somewhat improved. In the interest of fairness, I must tell you I learned that her food particularity stems from radiation treatment for thyroid cancer. Her taste buds were compromised. We had a long day, but not a lot of driving. Our first stop was an outdoor museum of petroglyphs. Boulders carved by nomads were strewn over the landscape. The art was translatable to what we’ve seen in the American southwest, France, Bulgaria, etc. Art, the universal language. There were what looked like miniature Easter Island statues called bal bal that were tombstones. They were used later than other graves that were marked solely by a pile of rocks. On a modern note, China is perpetrating a quiet neo-colonial takeover of the world. As of now 120 countries have been sucked in. Here’s the deal: China lends money for infrastructure with an unrealistic repayment schedule and terms. When a country is unable to meet those terms, China takes over mineral rights, power production, etc. as compensation. It can be seen as far away as Italy, Cuba, Sri Lanka where they’ve built modern ports they now own. Their goal is to build up political influence and edge out Russia. Back in time, in 751 AD, Chinese and Arab armies clashed in Central Asia. Muslims won. Is China trying to get it back now? Lunch was in a home set up to cater to tourists. The food rewarded the expectations built up by Yura. There were dishes we’d eaten before and a new dessert; pieces of fried dough sprinkled with honey and cream. Luckily it wasn’t made from a favorite nomadic drink: horse milk. It comes in regular and fermented. The visual of milking a horse is now stuck in my brain. Put me on a plane for home. My reason for coming here was to see the horseback competition typical of the area and I just did. But first we saw demonstrations of two lesser games. One was horsemen riding at top speed trying to grab a rock from the ground. The second was two men on horseback “wrestling” each other and trying to unseat each other. Kok-Boru started as a rite of passage for young men. They teamed up and rode their horses until one team grabbed a live wolf by hand. The game has evolved to Ulak Tartysh which is what we watched today. The translation is “pulling the goat.” We called it goat polo. Yes folks, a goat was sacrificed today according to halal law. Its head and feet were removed and its body was fought over. The game was frenzied and aggressive as each team tried to grab the goat from the ground and race to a cauldron/goal. There are rules, but it’s hard to discern them with such fast action. Two horses and riders fell with no injury. One rider’s tactic was to have his horse rear close to another horse and try to destabilize the other rider. By the end of the competition, the goat is well tenderized and the winning team eats it for dinner. There are professional competitions with prizes worth the battle: Mercedes and cash. An archaeological find in the area is a UNESCO site waiting for excavation. Bakun Tower is the most visible remains. It was the minaret of the mosque of a prosperous former capital of the area during the 10th to 12th centuries. It was a natural destination for Chinese coming down from the mountains on their journey along the Silk Road. We walked around the staged collection of bal bals and headed to tonight’s destination, the Ramada Hotel. Yura took us on a familiarization walk around our hotel neighborhood. He pointed out restaurants, drugstores, groceries, etc. And then there was Nathan’s Hot Dogs. It’s a natural fit here. Nathan’s is kosher in the US. It’s halal here. We all caved and ate there. It was a pleasant change from “stan” food. Tomorrow, we have a city tour of Bishkek. Toby