A CULTURE CRUISE IN KYRGYZSTAN

From watching dead goat polo to savouring boorsok to learning eagle hunting, SANTOSH OJHA experiences authentic Kyrgyz traditions on a 1,500-kilometre drive.

- SANTOSH OJHA

KATYA HAD COVERED THE dastarqon with goodies—an assortment of breads, preserves, fruits, cookies, juices, and Kyrgyz snacks. With her forehead covered by a jooluk (scarf), the frail and diminutive Kyrgyz hostess was waiting with her husband Murat at the gate of her guesthouse. We had driven around 200 kilometres from Bishkek, the capital of Kyrgyzstan, on the first day of our 1,500-kilometre self-drive trip across the country. We had crossed the Too Ashuu pass, the semi-frozen River Kekemeren, and entered Kyzyl-Oi village. Katya’s guesthouse was our halt for the night. We were to occupy three tiny rooms, some of us taking up cots and others sprawled on mattresses on the floor. We would share the space with a massive dining table, a toilet, and a coal-fired oven, which would keep us warm even when the temperature outside touched –4°C.

Our team of 14 was led by a taciturn local guide, Azamat Chiketaev, and the two partners of Wander Beyond Boundaries, Nidhi Salgame—a steely 40-year-old woman who was the first Indian to drive solo to the ‘Pole of Cold’ (the coldest inhabited place on Earth in Siberia)—and the affable Colonel (retd.) Satty Malik.

LOCAL GAMES