World Traveller: 7 Continents, 90 Countries, 871 Days Overseas
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Monday 15 May 2023
Highlights: Border crossing, Exploring Kolsay Lakes National Park
Today we left Kyrgyzstan for the next stop in the tour, a short visit to Kazakhstan. From Karakol it took us a few hours to reach the border with a several stops in between. Border control was very strict, I had my passport checked for powder and with a literal microscope.
While I eventually got though one of our drivers was held up for almost an hour but eventually we got into Kazakhstan.
Sunday 14 May 2023
Highlights: Hiking Jeti-Oguz Gorge, Hiking Karakol National Park
Today we set off to hike Jeti-Oguz Gorge which was about 30 minute drive on semi-rough and bumpy road. We started with a stop at Heartbreak Ridge, the natural landscape of Kyrgyzstan is a treasure of the world.
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Saturday 13 May 2023
Highlights: Exploring landscape at Barskoon, Learning how Yurts are constructed, Cultural music, The beautiful Russian Holy Trinity Orthodox Church, Prejevalskiy Museum
After a good night’s sleep, an enjoyable breakfast and some time with very young kittens we were off to bring exploring again. First up was a visit to the sanatorium that Yuri Gagarin stayed at to recover after the world’s first manned space flight in 1961. The sanatorium has seen better days and is undergoing repairs, but we still learned about the strong Soviet Space program link in this area.
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Friday 12 May 2023
Highlights: Holding an Eagle, Hiking in Song Kul, Exploring Fairy Tale Valley
After a nice and comfortable sleep in a Yurt it was time to start with a nice breakfast in the main Yurt, sitting was again on the floor which is a good way to test your legs. No showers before our exploring today.
A local guide joined us to lead us on another mountain hike this time to get panoramic views of the massive Issyk-Kul Lake. After a 40 minute ride on rough roads we arrived at our starting point and were met by locals training eagles for hunting.
Thursday 11 May 2023.
Highlights: Mountain hiking in Chong-Kemin, Learning about Felt making, exploring Yurt camp, visiting Issyk-Kul Lake.
Today we started with a 2 hour 20 minute hike in the mountains surrounding our accommodation. The local dog shepherded us for the entire time and got some cattle off our hiking trail.
The views were stunning and breathtaking.
Wednesday 10 May 2023
Highlights: Bishkek Bazaar, Victory Square, Changing of the Guard, Imam Sarahsi Bishkek Central Mosque, Dungan homemade lunch, Burana Tower, the Beautiful Mountain Ranges.
The first full day of this new tour and our CEO IIyas Zamanov had us leaving at 8 am to allow us time to visit the Bishkek Bazaar before exploring the city further. The Bazaar sells almost everything you can imagine that a local can make (i.e. not many imports) this includes horse meat, various breads, cheeses, and tobacco based products. An interesting place that I imagine gets busy during the day.
Tuesday 09 May 2023
Highlights: Arriving safely in Kyrgyzstan, Victory Day celebrations in Ala-Too Square, Exploring Bishkek
My flight (review here) from Istanbul safely arrived 5.23 am and after a lengthy Border Control delay I was reunited with my bag, the happiness on seeing your bag in a foreign country is very pure 🙂 The booked transport was interesting as the drive dropped me off half way to the hotel and put me in another car, my booked transfers never go simple.
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Turkish Airlines
Date: Monday 08 May 2023
Gate: F8A
Seat: 14A (Exit Row Window Economy Class Seat)
Plane: Airbus A321neo
Boarded: 20:52
Pushback: 21:16 (Scheduled 20:40)
Arrived: 05:23 (Scheduled 04:45)
Duration: 5 hour 7 minutes
Distance: 3,736 kms
This flight was from Istanbul Airport to Manas International Airport (Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan)
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Monday 08 May 2023
Highlights: Egyptian Spice Bazaar, The New Mosque (1665)
Tonight I had a plane to catch to get to Kyrgyzstan and begin my Five Stans of the Silk Road tour but that still left a little time for more exploring of Istanbul.
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Tour Title: Best of Turkey
Tour Company: G Adventures
Tour Leader: Isik
Cities Visited: Istanbul, Gallipoli, Çanakkale, Ayvalık, Selçuk, Pamukkale
Countries Visited: Türkiye
Dates: 30 April 2023 to 07 May 2023 (Duration 8 days)
Tour Type: Classic – Tour Itinerary (PDF)
Journal Entries
