Journey of a Lifetime

08/09/2026

We left Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan and drove several hours into the mountains and attended an activity of the Kyrgyzstan national sport: Kok Buro. They have 2 teams of horsemen who basically fight to pick up a dead sheep from the ground while riding and put the sheep in a large container. They use their horses and hands to stop the other team from getting to the sheep or to help their team get the sheep in the container. Very physical for the horses and horsemen. We then drove on to the 2nd largest nautral lake in the world: Lake Issyk Kul, still in Kyrgyzstan 🇰🇬. The name means Warm Water. It has some thermal features that keep the water warmer and never freezes in the winter. There is no outlet so the water is salty. Some fish can be eaten and some fish are toxic if not properly prepared.
We spent the night in a brand new hotel that had only opened 5 days before. Beautiful hotel on the shore on the lake. But lots of problems to work out. They shut the water off on me just as I put shampoo on my hair 🤦🏼‍♂️. Bottled water saved the day.
We took a ride on the lake and went swimming. They have not discovered wake boarding or water skiing here yet. We did see one jet ski.
We met a man and his son who had Eagles. We had a nice demonstration and got to hold an Eagle.
The following are pictures from today:

08/09/2026

We left Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan and drove several hours into the mountains and attended an activity of the Kyrgyzstan national sport: Kok Buro. They have 2 teams of horsemen who basically fight to pick up a dead sheep from the ground while riding and put the sheep in a large container. They use their horses and hands to stop the other team from getting to the sheep or to help their team get the sheep in the container. Very physical for the horses and horsemen. We then drove on to the 2nd largest nautral lake in the world: Lake Issyk Kul, still in Kyrgyzstan 🇰🇬. The name means Warm Water. It has some thermal features that keep the water warmer and never freezes in the winter. There is no outlet so the water is salty. Some fish can be eaten and some fish are toxic if not properly prepared.
We spent the night in a brand new hotel that had only opened 5 days before. Beautiful hotel on the shore on the lake. But lots of problems to work out. They shut the water off on me just as I put shampoo on my hair 🤦🏼‍♂️. Bottled water saved the day.
We took a ride on the lake and went swimming. They have not discovered wake boarding or water skiing here yet. We did see one jet ski.
We met a man and his son who had Eagles. We had a nice demonstration and got to hold an Eagle.
The following are pictures from today:

08/08/2026

We flew to Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan 🇰🇬. Kyrgyzstan is a clean country trying to move on from the tight control of the Soviet Union. They have established a democracy government electing a President every 4 years. But they have struggled with a few different revolutions over the years. But they are trying, making their economic progress slow. Predominantly Muslim, but the Muslims do not control the government and are very liberal - giving women full equal rights, etc.
The region was once dominant by Mongolia so the people have the slanted eyes like the Mongol's and Chinese.
Nothing remarkable here. They do have gold but not the technology to properly mine it. Mostly an agricultural economy. But horse meat is the thing here. Beef is hard to find. I tried horse meat, it was actually tasty. But i am not switching from beef.
We did go to the Pakistan Embassy here. Again they could not help me with a visa.
The following pictures are from Bishkek:

08/08/2026

We flew to Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan 🇰🇬. Kyrgyzstan is a clean country trying to move on from the tight control of the Soviet Union. They have established a democracy government electing a President every 4 years. But they have struggled with a few different revolutions over the years. But they are trying, making their economic progress slow. Predominantly Muslim, but the Muslims do not control the government and are very liberal - giving women full equal rights, etc.
The region was once dominant by Mongolia so the people have the slanted eyes like the Mongol's and Chinese.
Nothing remarkable here. They do have gold but not the technology to properly mine it. Mostly an agricultural economy. But horse meat is the thing here. Beef is hard to find. I tried horse meat, it was actually tasty. But i am not switching from beef.
We did go to the Pakistan Embassy here. Again they could not help me with a visa.
The following pictures are from Bishkek:

08/06/2026

08/06/2026

We flew from Tashkent, Uzbekistan to Khiva, Uzbekistan. Khiva is a very large walled city from the 11th century that has been in continuous use to this day. Khiva was a way-station on the Silk Road. Major oriental influence. It was home to the Asian Renaissance in the 14th century with artists, scientists, doctors, astronomers, etc. equal to the European Renaissance that we are more familiar with. It was interesting to learn its history and past. We also watched a tight rope performance within the walled city.
The following are pictures taken at Khiva:

08/06/2026

We spent a few days in Tashkent, Uzbekistan 🇺🇿 touring around. We even went to the Pakistan Embassy to see about my visa - still lo luck.
We visited the Soviet era SUN refinery where they used sun light reflected by mirrors to heat metals and materials.
We visited their new history museum which was very amazing and interesting. At their local markets we ate on the street with the locals. Buy nothing really remarkable here. They were conquered by the Mongols, Persians, and Russians. You can see a blend of all that in their culture and looks.
Here are some pictures around Tashkent, capital of Uzbekistan 🇺🇿: