Karakol

We took advantage of Women's Day weekend to make the 6-hour trip from Bishkek to Karakol, hoping that we'd get a chance to hit the slopes of Karakol Ski Base before the Spring thaw. What we found in the budding traveler's paradise was a mix of rugged provinciality, first-class hospitality, and in early March, lots of mud. As we've come to regard as the norm in Kyrgyzstan, we traveled to Karkol via marshrutka. The journey--approximately 6 hours from Bishkek's eastern bus terminal to Karakol's central station--was surprisingly easy and unexpectedly scenic. The road stayed relatively flat…continue reading →

Talk to a few locals in Karakol and you’re bound to get asked: are you here to visit the animal market on Sunday? This is one of Kyrgyzstan’s largest and most typical livestock markets. It runs once a week, only on Sundays. If you're in Karakol it is not to be missed! The Kyrgyz name for this place is the "Mал Базар" (Mal Bazaar: мал = animal, livestock) and in Russian the "Скотный Рынок" (Skotniy Rynok). We got a ride from the guesthouse and the car pulled up as far as it could go before…continue reading →