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Karakol |
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After several days Chalpan-Ata, I made my way to the east side of Issyk-kul to the sleepy village of Karakol. There's not really a whole lot to do in Karakol itself; however, the place comes alive on Sundays at the animal bazaar – one of Central Asia's largest. The animal market is a bustling place where horses, pigs, sheep, cows, etc. all change hand.
The main reason for coming to Karakol though is not the town itself but to go trekking in the nearby Tian Shan mountains. Altyn Arashan (Golden Spa) is a hotspring located at an altitude of about 3,000 meters set conveniently in a picturesque valley with the backdrop of the snowcapped Pik Palatka mountain to compliment the scenery. Fortunately Victor, the owner of Yak Tours Hostel where I stayed in Karakol, also happened to have a yurt located right in Altyn Arashan which he offers to guests including transportation. I met up with a Frenchman who was admirably biking his way across Central Asia and we took Victor up on his offer and enjoyed a night in the yurt as well as some trekking and horse riding in the surrounding alpine valleys.
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Above left: Not sure who exactly this is a
statue of but I have a feeling it's Russian explorer Nikolai Przhevalsky.
AR: Not sure who this is either but it makes a nice door.
Below
left: Karakol's cozy Holy Trinity Cathedral. BR: The Jakshilik
Bazaar. |
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Photos of Karakol's Mal Bazari - or Animal Market -
held every Sunday. It's quite a nice place to go and soak up the
atmosphere.
Below: Neither this woman nor her pig were
very photogenic but the two of them together for some reason were worth the 50
cents she wound up charging me for this snap. |
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Above: tree stop while walking (ok, ok caught
a ride...) up to Altyn Arashan.
Below: Valentine (the
Ukrainian guy in the middle) is, as far as I know, the owner of Yak Tours
Hostel in Karakol. He also arranges treks and yurtstays in the surrounding
mountains. |
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Links:
E-mail me @:
glennaldo_sf@hotmail.com
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