Introduction vi PART ONE GENERAL INFORMATION 1 Chapter 1 Background Information 3 Geography 3, Climate 4, Natural history and conservation 5, History 9, Government and politics 21, Economy 23, People 25, Language 29, Religion 30, Education 32, Culture 33 Chapter 2 Practical Information 49 When to visit 49, Highlights 50, Suggested itineraries 50, Tour operators 51, Red tape 56, Getting there and away 59, Health 62, Safety 65, Women travellers 66, Travellers with a disability 67, LGBT travellers 67, Travelling with a family 67, What to take 68, Money and banking 69, Budgeting 70, Getting around 70, Accommodation 73, Eating and drinking 75, Public holidays and festivals 77, Shopping 78, Arts and entertainment 79, Photography 79, Media and communications 80, Business 81, Cultural etiquette 82, Travelling positively 83 PART TWO THE GUIDE 85 Chapter 3 Bishkek 87 History 88, Getting there and away 89, Getting around 91, Safety 93, Tourist information 97, Where to stay 97, Where to eat and drink 101, Entertainment and nightlife 107, Shopping 108, Sports 110, Other practicalities 111, What to see and do 114 Chapter 4 Chui Province 123 Valleys south of Bishkek 123, Chui Valley 129, Chong- Kemin Valley 135, Boom Gorge 137, Kara-Balta 138, Suusamyr Valley 139 Chapter 5 Lake Issyk-Kul - North Shore 145 Lake Issyk-Kul 145, Balykchy 149, Tamchy 154, Cholpon- Ata 156, East of Cholpon-Ata 161, Karkara Valley 164 Chapter 6 Lake Issyk-Kul South and the Central Tien Shan 171 Karakol 171, Around Karakol 180, Trekking south of Karakol 187, Th e Central Tien Shan 189, Lake Issyk- Kul's southern shore 193, Barskoon 195, Tamga 198, Bokonbaevo 200, Th e southwest shore 205 Chapter 7 Talas Province 207 Talas 207, South of Talas 212, West of Talas 213, East of Talas 213 Chapter 8 Naryn Province 215 Kochkor 215, Excursions from Kochkor 219, West to the Suusamyr Valley 221, Lake Song-Koel 224, Naryn 226, East of Naryn 231, Naryn to the Torugart Pass 233, Th e Torugart Pass 238, Naryn to Kazarman 241 Chapter 9 Jalal-Abad Province 243 Jalal-Abad 243, Kazarman to Jalal-Abad 247, Kazarman 248, Saimaluu-Tash 249, Ortok 250, Arslanbob 251, Th e road to Bishkek 259, Western Jalal- Abad Province 261, Lake Sary-Chelek 263, Arkyt 265, West to the Chatkal Valley 266 Chapter 10 Southern Kyrgyzstan 269 Osh 269, Around Osh 277, OEzgoen 280, Th e Alay Valley 282, Th e Irkeshtam crossing to China 284, Th e road south to Tajikistan 286, Batken Province 288 Appendix 1 Language 291 Appendix 2 Glossary of Kyrgyz Terms 298 Appendix 3 Further Information 300 Index 305 Index of advertisers 312
