Mountain Getaway: Tyopli Kluchi

At the very end of March, we had a few days off, and naturally, we were eager to take advantage of this time to go somewhere. First, we were hoping to trek to the village of Talas to the West to visit the parents of our friend, but avalanches in the mountain passes made us reconsider. Therefore, we simply spent two nights in the mountains about an hour out of the city at Tyopli Kluchi ("Hot Springs"). I'm not sure who enjoyed it more - the adults or the kids.

Here is our timed-shot of our whole group: Saule, Anara, Turat, Alihan, and the four of us.

Though Bishkek has warmed up quickly, the weather in the mountains is much cooler. Snow patches dot the landscape between budding trees and new grass. The warm sun feels wonderful in the crisp air. The mountains are still draped in white at their peaks, but the snow is already melting with gusto. Water trickles merrily down the the dirt roads, creating lots and lots of mud, and down the slanting sidewalks that lead up to the cabins, pooling muddily at the bottom of steps. I brought extra clothes for Sebby, which turned out to be a very good idea. His quick movements, lack of coordination, and the uneven terrain resulted in him flat-out belly-flopping into more puddles than I could count. He was on his third set of clothing within 40 minutes of arriving!

One activity we made sure not to miss out on was grilling shashlik. We brought plenty of beef and fat to chop up and marinate in onion, garlic, salt, and sour cream or kefir (plain liquid yogurt). Then we skewered the chunks of beef and fat and roasted them over a fire, enjoying the delicious scent riding on the breeze while they were cooking.

Josh and Turat headed up the grilling committee.

Cooking to perfection!

With my talented shashlik chef.

Digging in. Shashlik is best eaten with raw onion and vinegar - yum! 

Sebby was excited to taste it, too.

When darkness fell, we let the three little monkeys watch a cartoon while the adults played cards. Saule tried to teach us the secrets to Durak (which means "Fool"), the most popular card-game in Kyrgyzstan.

Our second day was perfect, a warm and sunny day with no wind. Misha and Sebby were eager to be outside, so Josh and I took them up the river valley on an amazing three-hour hike. Not only did they love it, but they didn't even run out of energy. Interesting rocks of all sizes, jutting branches, and long grasses inspired Sebby to climb as much as he could by himself. The sound of running water burbling along under the ice was pleasant to listen to. When the going got tougher, we helped Sebby out a bit, but Misha acted like an accomplished climber, jumping from rock to rock across the river. Eventually we left the river and scaled some huge boulders before turning back.

The snow got deeper as we ventured higher. Sometimes it came up to Misha's waist! Needless to say, his shoes were completely soaked by the time we got back to our cabin.

In addition to making more shashlik (and more and more), we also got the chance to swim in the hot-springs-heated indoor pool. The boys were so excited to swim again after so long.

The next morning dawned cool and misty, with mysterious fog shrouding the tops of the mountains. After breakfast and a dip in the pool, we returned to Bishkek relaxed and refreshed.