The Buzz in Kyrgyzstan (Part 1): Bishkek, Check It Out!

- December 18-19, 2025, Thursday to Friday.

- Beyond the southern frontier of Kazakhstan lies a country hat is home to one of the world's longest epics: Kyrgyzstan! The Epic of Manas, whose narrative mirrors real-life historical events of the Kyrgyz people, is honored across the country; the country's main airport is even called Manas International Airport.

About to leave Kazakhstan, bought this Kazakhstan chocolate that people keep talking about. It was fine, but didn't taste any different from other chocolates.

First time to board a plane out in the snow.

- For Filipinos, an e-visa is required and can be easily accomplished online. If staying for 5 days or less, one can apply for a transit visa, which can be less complicated than a regular tourist visa, now called the Sapar visa (also applicable for business visits and visits for private matters). The Sapar visa requires more documents, and may also require an invitation letter (can be accomplished by a travel agency or hotel) even though it formally should not. However, there are many people in online fora who have shared that their visas were denied because they lacked the (supposedly not required anymore) invitation letter. Else, a visa-on-arrival is also possible, but an accomplished e-visa may give one more peace of mind. 

- Upon arriving in Bishkek, the country's capital, we rode a Yandex car to our hotel, Navat Hotel. It's one of the coolest hotels I've stayed in because it was made to really feel "Kyrgyz". The hotel describes itself as an "ethno-boutique" hotel. My family also had a late dinner at a nearby restaurant called Mubarak.

Lagman (noodle dish) and kompot (some kind of fruit-infused juice popular in Central Asia; derived from the French "compote").

A photo of our hotel. I also took a photo of this in daylight the day after, but you know, since we're on the topic. Hahahaha.

- The following day, we explored the city. One thing about Bishkek is that most of its major attractions are located near each other (except for the Osh Bazaar that we didn't get to visit). There are no metro systems in Bishkek, unlike Almaty or Tashkent, so public transportation or hailing Yandex cars would be the way to go around. Fortunately, our hotel was located in the heart of the city so we just walked around.

- We first went to Ala-Too Square, built in 1984 and is the main square of Bishkek. The square has a few landmarks, including the Manas Statue, the flagpole with the Kyrgyzstan flag, and the Kyrgyz State Historical Museum. On the way to the museum, we were fortunate to witness the changing of guards!

Ala-Too Square.

Kyrgyzstan flag.

Changing of guards (and the State Museum at the back.)

Behind the museum is the statue of Vladimir Lenin. This used to be placed in front of the Ala-Too Square, and the square was named Lenin Square. In 2003 the government removed the statue and replaced by the Manas statue that represented Kyrgyz sovereignty and identity.  

- The Kyrgyz State Historical Museum is the premier museum in the country, opened first in 1927. The current building, however, was only built in 1984. The museum presents a historical narrative of Kyrgystan, with matching artifacts from the dawn of man until today.

Some of the earliest caps and tools in Kyrgyzstan.

A Buddha statue. Remember that Buddhism was one of the religions that was spread through the Silk Road.

Hindu and Buddhist artifacts.

A Kyrgyz yurt.

Horses and thick coats worn by various Kyrgyz groups in the mountains.

My kind of artifacts.

Costumes worn by prominent thespians in Kyrgyzstan.

Museum interior.

- I later had a brief visit to the Victory Monument, created in 1985. The monument shows a woman under what looks like a yurt; an eternal fire burns in front of her. A loser look reveals that the yurt's opening has a funeral wreath. The whole monument is a memorial for families who are waiting for members who went and fought in World War II.

Independence Monument.

- For lunch and the early afternoon, my family visited two malls right across each other: Gum Chynar and Tsum Aichurok. Gum Chynar appears to be a regular local mall, while Tsum Aichurok is a department store. Tsum Aichurok has a souvenir center at the top floor, so my family decided that we didn't need to visit Osh Bazaar anymore since we'd be looking for souvenirs there too (and Osh Bazaar was very out of the way.) 

Tsum Aichurok.

Gum Chynar.

This is the souvenir center at the top floor of Tsum Aichurok.

- We took the rest of the afternoon off to rest, just so we can pace ourselves for the long journey ahead. We hadn't rested much since Kazakhstan, so it was great to have a bit of down time as well. Our hotel was cozy anyway and it's nice to spend a bit of time there too. 

- Bishkek was convenient to see because it was so compact, so we were able to save so much time. I'm sure there are more interesting things to see in Bishkek, but because there was a lot of renovation works going on across the city, maybe the city will be better after its facelift. Still, I'm happy to have seen what the city has to offer!