| There are a number of beautiful valleys in the Kungey Ala-Too Mountains (The "Sunny" Ala-Too Mountains) on the Northern side of Lake Issyk Kul. The largest and best known of these are Grigorievka and Semyenovka - some 30 kilometers further on from Chalpon Ata as you travel from Bishkek The area is criss-crossed by trekking routes - some of which pass over the mountains towards the city of Almaty in Kazakhstan.
An asphalt road leads some 15 kilometers into the mountains from the village of Semyenovka, (named after the Russian explorer, Pyotr Semyenov "Tianshansky"), following the valley of the Chong Ak-Suu ("Big White Water"), past the Kyrchyn tourbaza which used to have a 240-bed hotel, and other facilities. The road leads to a jailoo (mountain pasture) at 2010 metres above sea level and the connurbation with the Kichi Ak-Suu ("Little White Water") river. The river flows some 34 kilometers from the glaciers in the mountain peaks down into Lake Issyk Kul, through three small lakes. The jailoo was historically used as a meeting place for congresses of Kyrgyz elders.
Here, from the end of June until the end of September there is a collection of yurts which offer a wide range of services. The "yurt village" is marketed as an ethnological experience. Half of the twenty yurts are reserved for guests - and in the other half live several local families which provide the services, entertainment, etc. - so guests have a chance to experience authentic, traditional, elements of the Kyrgyz nomadic lifestyle. The yurts are all traditional - not like most of the yurt inns in Kyrgyzstan - for example, here you will end up sleeping on the floor under adiella - a sort of "duvet" - not in beds.
Unfortunately, this also means that things like toitels, washing facilities and so on are also traditional. The of lack in modern conveniences, however, is more than made up for by the thoughtful programme - which explores the history, culture, crafts, food and games of the Kyrgyz people. It is possible to walk or take horses into the surrounding countryside; encounter half-wild yaks; watch demonstrations of crafts and horsemanship by masters; listen to traditional music; listen to a "manaschi" recite excerpts from the epic poem "Manas"; eat traditional foods; drink khoumis and even participate in putting up a yurt - an all round, authentic, Kyrgyz experience.
It is possible to visit for a day, (for example, if you are staying at the Avrora, or one of the other sanatoria on the lake shore); or for several days - perhaps as the base for some trekking in the region. It is just the right distance for a "long-weekend break" from Bishkek, and would make a ideal component in a longer tour which incorporates other aspects and regions of this relatively undiscovered land of "celestial mountains".
Another piece of history - on the shores of Lake Issyk Kul, not far from the village of Semyenovka, is the dacha built in the 1960"s especially for the visit of Leonid Brezhnev - and used just the once. A rather modest building, set at the edge of marshland, a short walk from the beach, it is now unfortunately in a sad state of disuse and disrepair, although apparently there are plans to renovate and restore it. |
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