Glossary
The encyclopedia of the tourist
I
Irkeshtam pass, (2841). Irkeshtam begins
in Osh city in the South of Kyrgyzstan. The road goes to the South along the
rivers Taldyk and Gulcho as far as the village “Sary-Tash” (Yeallow Rock).
The road to Dushanbe, Tajikistan goes to the West through the valley Kyzyl-Suu,
and the road to the Mountain - Badakshanskiy region of Tajikistan and Murgaba
goes to the south through the Kyzyl Art pass, and the road to the Chinese
border goes to the east.
The road is in bad condition, but it attracts much interest as it is the
shortest way from Fergan valley to China.
The frontier post is called in the honor of the Russian office that perished
during the rebellion of basmachei on 1931.
The pass is 238 kilometers from Osh and 250 kilometers from Kashgar.
For many years the pass was open only for commercial purposes and it was
open for the passengers only in 2002. In 2003 the two governments made a
visa’s regime for the citizens of two states to have appropriate documents
for crossing the border.
Currently the pass is actively used for caring loads from China to Kyrgyzstan.
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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
