Osh-Arslanbob-Osh

Saturday the 18th, we took a ten hour taxi ride to Osh, in the southwest. It's an entirely diffent culture down here, heavily influenced and populated by Uzbeks, the border is only 10 km away. Osh is a nice city, the second largest in KGZ but much smaller than Bishkek. The main attraction is Solomon's Throne, a mass of rock rising up directly west of town. It is a popular poilgramage site for Uzbek Muslims, and we were told it was up there with Mecca and Medina on the 'holy scale'. I have yet to confirm this. Ther is also a bazaar, one of the oldest in Central Asia. I've found that asking to take people's pictures is a great way to engage them and strike up a 'converstaion', which consits of them aking where I from, I say America, they say something, I tell them I don't understand, some nervous laughter, a hand shake, thank you and good-bye. It's fun and about as close to a genuine interaction I can get, since most other interactions involve taxi fares and bickering about a few cents.
A couple days in Osh is about all you need, so we set off for Arslanbob, which we thought was nearby, but is actually about 2.5 hours by taxi. It's a good idea to read the ENTIRE description of the 'Getting There" section in your guidebook, before trying to bargain with taxi drivers. I told Devin it should be about 40 som (42 som = $1) per person, at which the cabbies scoffed. They wanted 1000 som for the trip from Jalal-Abad to Aslanbob. Devin drives a hard bargain, but he couldn't get them below 700. I then realized that 40 som was the price for the first stretch, which wasn't even a third of the way. All of a sudden 700 som was a good price for all of us.
Arslanbob is a large village, 13,00 people, but feels much smaller. It is set high up in the foothills of the Babash -Ata range, at about 2,000m. We got into town and were immediatly shown the Community Based Tourism office.
Let me talk about CBT for a moment. It is an organization started around 2000-2003 with the help of Helvetas, the Swiss Association for international Cooperation. CBT helps families open thier homes for homestays and serves as a central information source for tourists. There are over 17 regional centers around Kyrgyzstan and they can help set up horse treks, yurt stays, falcon hunting, and all the other things tourists want to do and see while there in Kyrgyzstan. The great thing about CBt is that it is truly based in the community, with most profits going to the families, guides, etc, and 15% or so going towards funding the organization. This is a great resource for independant travellers and a responsible way to travel, as opposed to booking through a large tourist company in Bishkek or Kazakstan, where little of the money is actually going to the communities of the areas you will be exploring.
The CBT coordinator in Arslanbob, Hyat, is very motivated to expand the CBT in Arslanbob and is really trying to encourage winter tourism in the area. It looks like a great place for ski touring!
We stayed with a German teacher named Ibrahim, House #6, who speak English and German and takes very good care of his guests. If you're in the area, check him out.
Arlslanbob is surrounded by an ancient walnut forest, pre-dating the 11th century. Much of the local ecomony comes from the walnut harvest in the Fall, as well as other agriculture sucha s potatos. Yet, we were told, there is about a 75-80% unemployment rate for the area, which makes tourism such an important industry for the area.
It truly feels like you've taken a step back in time here... sort of. Many of the houses are simple constuctions of poplar logs and cob bricks. Most houses have a cob oven out back. It is funny how cob constuctions are becoming popular again in the States, though it often seems like a novelty or hobby, not necessity, as it is here. And right next to the cob oven and the three sided cellar that serves and a 'cow-garage' is a big old satalite dish and the owner talking loudly on thier cell phones. Old Soviet cars conserve gas by not starting their engines as they roll down the hills towards the town center.
Speaking of cell phones, how is it that everyone here gets service, even in the mountains, and I can't get service anywhere I live in the States?
Walking around town, we are constantly gretted by childen yelling "Hello, Goodbye! Watisyurnaym?!" We are a spectacle here and for some reason it feels more comfortable thanbeing in the city, where people don't take as much notice.
Oh yeah, Arslanbob is a fully Uzbek community. So, the little Russian I picked up in Bishkek was of no help, and had I picked up any Kyrgyz, it wouldn't have helped either. We were reduced to drawing numbers on car windows and "Hello!" "Bye-bye" "Mynaymeez...".
This has been my favorite city/ village in Kyrgyzstan so far and it is worth the travel to get here if you ever come to the area.
Alas, we could only spent one full day in Arslanbob. We went for a horseback ride around the town to see the Big Waterfall, the walnut forest, and the Panorama view. This seems like the standard tour. Devin and Sara have a strong horse riding background, so I was the only novice. I was nervous, but I figured I would just trust the horse (which was wheezing a lot, that was slightly worrying) and act like I knew what I was doing. Well my faith was misplaced, as my horse tripped and I, not knowing what to do, jupmed out of the stir-ups and off the horse, landing with a slap on my right side. It was pretty embarassing, especially since I would have been fine if I had just stayed on the damn thing. But, I got back in the saddle, as they say, and continued my ride, watching every move my beast made.
We Sunday morning, Devin and Sara had a bud to Kashgar, China to catch and I... I didn't really know what I was doing. We parted ways last night as they continue on through China, Nepal, Tibet, and India. Part of me wishes I could keep traveling with them, it's been a fun few weeks.
I sit now in Osh, awaiting a plane that will take me back to Bishkek, where I'll do a few hikes, hang out around the Alpine Fund, and catch my flight home on the 27th.
I need to vent breifly about USBank/ Visa. First of all, don't use traveler's checks here, there are nearly immpossible to cash. Secondly, make sure your debit card works before you actually need it. According to USBank, by card is active, etc., but it hasn't worked at any of the 10 ATM's around town I've tried. I'm going out on a limb here, but I think the issue is with the card, not the ATMs. So, bye-bye UsBank! That was the last straw, fuckers! (We've had previous issues).
On a positive note, I'm excited to be headed back to the States soon and get my knee fixed.


That is all

Dan