Glossary
The encyclopedia of the tourist
I
Isfana. This town in the extreme South
West of the country is the site of an ancient settlement dating from
between the 14th and 15th centuries. Top
Issyk-Ata.: 77 kilometers from Bishkek,
nestled at a height of 1775 meters a. s. l. in the Issyk-Ata valley
which cuts into the Kyrgyz Range which runs south of the city. The
slopes of the mountains have numerous alpine meadows and in the vicinity
of the resort are fruit and decorative trees. The waters have attracted
visitors for many centuries and this used to be a place of pilgrimage
and in the nineteenth century villagers expressed their gratitude for
the healing properties of the water by smearing onto a large rock which
has an inscription on the Buddha on it which dates from the tenth century.
The Tibetan inscription is on the face of a boulder with an eagle sculpture
on top. Unfortunately, contemporary, modern, graffiti now joins it. Nearby,
it is said, was the home of an Uzbek shamaness, famous for her healing
powers, who led a hermit's life here until the 1950's, after her husband
and son were both killed as Basmachi rebels. Turkic nomads worshipped
the springs and early Russian colonists used to take the cure here - when
the only accommodation was local yurts.
The Soviets built the first permanent building here as
early as 1928. The upper reaches of the valley are covered in rich
vegetation and are home to herds of horses. Top
It-Agar. Deep in the mountains, between the
Talas - Suusamyr road and the Jalal-Abad border, is the site of the It Agar
petroglyphs.Top
