Today we leave our homestay and the feisty little boy who has captured our hearts.
I say goodbye to the beautiful blossoming apple trees.
And the grandmother who has welcomed us into her home.
We drive along Lake Issyk Kul on a road under construction.
A resort across the road from the lake.
Stones prevent vehicles from driving over the unfinished surface.
We pass several projects that were abandoned before completion. This hotel was begun during the Soviet period.
This project that appears to have been intended as some kind of theme park featuring the epic of Manas. It is now deteriorating. The developer did not fare well in the last revolution and abandoned the project.
Petrol trucks pass us. one after another.
Our guide Nur needs to lift up this barrier so we can get by.
We stop at a place called Barskoon Gorge for a short hike to a waterfall.
The area includes a tourist resort and a couple of yurts,
Yuri Gagarin, the first human to go into outer space, spent time here and is honored with a couple of statues.
It’s easy to understand why Gagarin liked to spend time here. It is a peaceful and beautiful place.
