today’s #frifotos theme is Asia, and i thought i’d share some photos of Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, from my recent trip. as you can see, it still has a lot of holdovers (population- and culture-wise) from when it was part of the Soviet Union. the majority of people are ethnic Kyrgyz and Muslim, but pretty much everyone speaks Russian and is the language most people use while out and about.
Victory Monument. The shape alludes to a yurt; the woman underneath standing in front of the eternal flame awaits for her husband and sons to return from war.
The top of the monument is a wreath encircling a tunduk, the hole at the top yurt where the poles cross and sun shines through — it’s a symbol of unity, the inside connecting to outside, home, and country.
Inside the city’s Russian Orthodox church during a service
Ala-Too Square, the central square of Bishkek. The building to the far left is the State Historical Museum. Closer in under the flagpole stand guards that change every hour (I think), and the tall statue in the back is of national hero Manas on a horse.
A cleric prays in a room in the central mosque.
A theme park (more like a park with random edifices) on the outskirts of town. I don’t know the name of the park in English, but it’s Манас Айылы (may be called Flamingo Park in English)– built in honor of that guy, Manas.
GUESS WHO?! (If you said Manas, give yourself a gold star.) Statue of him outside the Philharmonia Concert Hall.
A picture of me and my tour guide at a cafe before she dropped me off at the airport. Good times and a great way to spend a day-long layover on the long way to Kazakhstan from Russia.
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