Post Communist Bishkek

The following day we had a wander around the city and found it rather appealing. My over riding memory is of dour Russian apartment blocks propping one another up like babushkas complaining about their varicose veins. The buildings turn their backs on the might of the neighbouring mountain range, huddling to conserve scant warmth and facing the onset of a harsh winter.
Change has arrived however; amongst the skirts of these crumbling monoliths one can glimpse the flickering neon of internet cafes, air brushed women advertising mobile phones and a myriad of entrepreneurs rabidly keen on turning a quick profit. At certain key locations in the city it is even possible to come across the lesser spotted US Peace Corps volunteer, easily identified by its drawling twang, self righteous strut and bright plumage (ethnic scarves for both sexes and dangly jewellery for the females) – they are found in large groups, propagating an industry of coffee shops and home cooked comfort food wherever they land.

Kyrgyzstan is very proud of its nomadic tradition and never fully succumbed to the yoke of communism. For this reason there is a lightness in the air you don’t feel in Almaty – almost a holiday atmosphere, and the people seem much more relaxed and content. Give them a yurt, some fermented mare’s milk and a song about a man & his horse and they’re satisfied….who wouldn’t be? There is more evidence of art and music in this city too, giving the impression that the people have the luxury to indulge in more cultural activities – even if they do remain in the shadow of the opium trade.

The parks in Bishkek were a highlight of our explorations, full of random sculptures – some better than others – like an explosion of post communist creativity. You could imagine a whole city of frustrated creatives, suddenly finding themselves independent from the USSR and undergoing a form of post-Soviet group therapy; the result of this psychiatric experiment being hundreds of tons of emotional outpourings, in the form of stone and concrete. Not knowing quite what to do with this cataract of sentiment, the Great and the Good obviously decided to scatter them around the parks – and them just let the grass grow. A very pragmatic solution.

We also found a local fair in the park, full of outdoor karaoke and very rickety children’s rides and games. Near by was the Parliament building which is based on the White House and is the former HQ of the Communist Party’s Central Committee. By 11am on Saturday morning salesmen were already outside and selling beer for 10 cents a bottle, surrounded by mobile Karaoke stands. One square back is a large statue of Lenin (obviously more connected to the old HQ), arm outflung, who looks about to begin a momentous speech, staring out beyond the city. During the recent revolution the people did their revolutionary bit by moving Lenin away from his old position directly in front of the Parliament. But it must have been a relatively conservative revolution as he was only moved one square back….maybe they wanted to be sure they weren’t going to change their minds?

We had a good old wander around, at one point looking a bit lost and getting stopped by a lovely Scottish woman who happened to be the wife of the local international pastor and was very useful. We found the war memorial (in the shape of a yurt – naturally) with a few disconsolate men loitering around the eternal flame and then meandered our way to the TSUM department store. Although this is housed in a large modern building it feels as though they have taken the façade of a western department store and then moved the bazaar inside. Instead of boutiques or discrete sections are innumerable stalls – many of them competing directly with one another and cornering the market in dodgy Chinese imports. If I ever want to dress as a Russian hooker – this is where I’ll go! Not only were the clothes terrifying – but the souvenirs on the top floor were equally disturbing. The apex of these was a locally designed rug depicting not flowers and horses as usual – but the events of September the 11th in full colour embroidery - not even The Aussie was tempted by that and this is from a girl who saw nothing wrong in inflatable Yasser Arafats in the Israel!

There was a tangible feeling of breaking away from Russification in Bishkek and even a lack of evidence of Russian ancestry in the local physiognomy. The people had a more Asiatic association, but without the closed, inscrutable countenances of the stereotypical Chinese. Here their faces sport rosy cheeks and they have a ready laugh and twinkling eyes – in fact they all look incredibly healthy and as if they have a glow from a morning’s exertion. That probably comes from living at distinct altitude and drinking some of the cleanest water in the world from the glacial run offs. Mineral tests have concluded that there are very high concentrations of various base elements in the water and that seems to correlate to increased life expectancy up in the mountains.

We spent the next night propping up the bar in Navigator too, this time with David the Aussie who decided to come with us to Karakol. Were glad of our decision not to go clubbing in Bishkek when the Yank turned up with his sidekicks having tried to have a night on the town and been very intimidated by the local lads’ behaviour towards them – properly threatening. Bishkek definitely takes on a different persona at night.

The next day we began our trip out East to Karakol with the intention of getting some mountain action. Getting anywhere in Kyrgyzstan is a bit of a mission. Roads have to snake up steep valleys, cross passes of 3,000 metre (9,000 feet) altitude and more, and are subject to frequent mud slides and avalanches. Winter travel is close to impossible in many of the more remote and high-altitude regions. There are additional problems due to the fact that many roads and railway lines built during theSoviet period are today intersected by international boundaries, requiring time-consuming border formalities to cross, where they are not completely closed. The horse is still a much used transport option, especially in rural and inaccessible areas, as it does not depend on imported fuel.

Interestingly – China has been paying a lot of attention to the transport stresses of the Kyrgyz – surely only in an altruistic way? With support from the Asian Development Bank, a major road linking the north and southwest from Bishkek to Osh has recently been completed. This considerably eases communication between the two major population centres of the country - the Chui Valley in the north and the Fergana Valley in the South. An offshoot of this road branches across a 3,500 meterpass into the Talas Valley in the northwest. Plans are now being formulated to build a major road from Osh into China.

It is not uncommon to come across gloomy looking Chinese workers along the road side and to see signs announcing the work China is undertaking for the Kyrgyz benefit encroaching on the country - signs that a new Great Game is being waged between Russia and China for strategic influence in this area.

In an echo of the worries that keep many Western leaders awake at night, 18th century economist Adam Smith remarked that China had remained stagnant for a long time:
“China has been long one of the richest, that is, one of the most fertile, best cultivated, most industrious, and most populous countries in the world. It seems, however, to have been long stationary. Marco Polo, who visited it more than five hundred years ago, describes its cultivation, industry, and populousness, almost in the same terms in which they are described by travellers in the present times. It had perhaps, even long before his time, acquired that full complement of riches which the nature of its laws and institutions permits it to acquire.”
(The Wealth of Nations; 1776)
Maybe this time we really are witnessing the awakening of the Chinese dragon?