Focus

ContentsThe Spektator Magazine

Going for Gold
Karakol-based journalist Sergey Vysot-
sky digs into his veritable trove of local
knowledge and expertise to give Spekta-
tor readers the word on Kyrgyzstan’s
16

largest international joint venture, gold-

Founder: Tom Wellings mining concern Kumtor.

18
Managing Editor: Chris Rickleton Romance on the Steppe
(editor@thespektator.co.uk) Eagle-mad Dennis Keen missions to a
village beyond the bleak Kazakh town of
Karaganda to find Central Asian falconry
pin up Makpal Abdrazakova.
Staff writers: Dennis Keen (den-
niskeen@thespektator.co.uk), Robert
Marks (r.marks@thespektator.co.uk),
Will Brown, Evan Harris,
Patrick Barrow, Pavel Kropotkin This Month
Anthony Butts (anthonybutts@
thespektator.co.uk), Sergey Vysotsky News and Views
Islamic undercurrents and those dastardly
4
WikiLeaks; it is a bad time to be an Ameri-
can diplomat in Central Asia.
Guest Contributor: Holly Myers

Design: Aleka Claire

Villain of the Year
Spektator readers had the opportunity to
6
elect their favourite bad guy in 2010, and
they voted overwhelmingly in favour of…
Advertising Manager: Irina Kasymova
(email: advertise@thespektator.co.uk) Out & About
Getting Ink Done
Tattoo, or not tattoo?:That is the question.
8
Will Brown answers in the affirmative.

Bookish Bishkek
Holly Myers takes a look at contemporary
10
literature in Kyrgyzstan, considering the
legacy of late literary hero Chingiz Aitma-
tov along the way.

The Guide
Restaurants, Bars, Clubs
All the best bars and clubs in town.
22

www.thespektator.co.uk
City Map
Don’t get lost.
25
Want to contribute as a freelance
writer? Please contact:
What’s On
The pick of the entertainment listings.
26
editor@thespektator.co.uk
ON THE COVER: “A very Metro Christmas”: Clipart taken
from Artbash.ru (Aleka Claire)
The Spektator Magazine is available at locations throughout Bishkek, including: (Travel Agencies) Adventure Seller, Ak-Sai Travel, Carlson Wagonlit, Celestial Mountains, Ecotour, Glavtour,Kyrgyz Concept,
Kyrgyz Travel, Muza, NoviNomad (Bars & Restaurants) Cowboy, Hollywood, Metro, New York Pizza, No1, 2x2, Boulevard, Coffeehouse, Doka, Fatboy’s, Four Seasons, Live Bar, Lounge Bar,
Meri, Navigator, Stary Edgar’s Veranda, Adriatico, Cyclone, Dolce Vita, Santa Maria, Golden Bull (Casinos) Europa, Golden Dragon, XO (Hotels) Dostuk, Hyatt, Golden Dragon, Holiday, Alpi-

Spektator
nist (Embassies and Organisations) The UN building, The American base, The German Embassy, The Dutch Consulate, CAMP Ala-too, NCCR, The Bishkek Opera & Ballet Society.
THE

.co.uk
The Spektator is now online at www.thespektator.co.uk
 4 This Month
Fledgling Islamic Charity Reflects Growing Role for Religion
BRUNO DE CORDIER
BISHKEK, December 8 (Eurasianet.org)
Kök Jar is one of several settlements around Kyr-
gyzstan’s capital, Bishkek, that are being slowly
swallowed up in the city’s urban sprawl. The vil-
lage, once a Soviet collective farm, has become
gradually surrounded by so-called novostroiki,
new constructions that feature mansions built by
Bishkek’s better-off, as well as the more modest
dwellings belonging to migrants from the prov-
ince.
Neighborhoods like Kök Jar reflect the so-
cial dynamics of present-day Kyrgyzstan. Along
a dusty access road stands a two-floor mosque
complex. The building, which, according to lo-
cals, was sponsored by a Kuwaiti association, was
built about 10 years ago but stood unused for a
while because of poor management and a lack of
attendance by locals. For the past five years, it has
served as the Abu Bakr Al-Sydyk madrassa.
Inside, two dozen young men receive reli-
gious instruction. “There is growing interest for
Islam in the country, also in the capital,” Ustad
Kurban, the madrassa’s director, explained as
he showed off the spartan, yet well-maintained
premises. “This is why we train future cadres. The
courses take three years and the curriculum is ap-
proved by the Muftiate [A state-sanctioned reli-
gious agency]. We only admit students from the
ninth class, after they attended regular school. In
the afternoon, when the regular schools are fin-
ished, people from the neighborhood can come
and attend courses about Islam, or they can use
the mosque at prayer times too.”
All of the madrassa’s students are boarders.
Most students and staffers come from southern
regions of Kyrgyzstan, a few are from Talas Prov-
ince. The languages of instruction are Kyrgyz and
Arabic. “All of our students here at the moment
are Kyrgyz,” Kurban explained. “Of course, all are
welcome here, regardless of ethnicity. But there is
a strong need for Islamic training among Kyrgyz.
Non-Kyrgyz tend to go to the few Russian-speak-
ing madrassas, or go abroad.”
The madrassa at Kök Jar is one of three on
the outskirts of Bishkek run by Adep Bashati, a
Kyrgyzstan-based foundation that is involved
into a wide range of social and charitable activi-
ties. Adep Bashati (meaning “source of morality”
in English) was founded in 2003 by a group of
Kyrgyz graduates of Al-Azhar University in Cairo.
The organization now has representatives and
volunteers in all of Kyrgyzstan’s provinces.
According to a study on Islamic social organi-
zations by the Social Research Centre in Bishkek,
Adep Bashati receives most of its funding via
contributions from sympathetic Muslims and lo-
cal businessmen. That stands in contrast to local
non-governmental organizations that work to
foster civil society, many of which are depend-
ent on international donors. “Some people think
that we’re awash with funds from Turkey or Arab
countries, but that is not so,” contended Mars
Ibraev, one of Adep Bashati’s founders who gave
an interview at the foundation’s office on the out-
skirts of Osh. “In fact, we do not work on foreign
funding. We think that it is up to the Muslims of
December 2010 The Spektator
Kyrgyzstan to show initiative and we would like
to keep a certain independence.”
While homegrown and locally funded Islamic
charities are a well-established phenomenon in
Arab and other ‘classical’ Muslim societies, it is
rather new in Kyrgyzstan. Together with the ap-
pearance of Islamic banking and halal cafés over
the last five years, they suggest that Islam’s influ-
ence in Kyrgyz society is spreading. Ibraev, who
studied at Al-Azhar on a Muftiate scholarship in
2000, was inspired by the Islamic foundations and
charities that operate in many Muslim countries.
One such charity supported Ibraev’s personal
Hajj, the pilgrimage to Mecca. Later, Ibraev did
doctoral research on the dynamics of Islam in
Kyrgyzstan.
“Despite the increasing interest in Islam and
the growing numbers of mosques, it is still too
much about rituals and traditions rather than
social responsibility and everyday life”, Ibraev ex-
plained. “That is why we set up the foundation.
It’s not always easy. We have to fight prejudice. ...
Parts of the political elite and the intelligentsia in
this country are still afraid of religion and do not
want to be associated with it. Sometimes they try
to discredit us.”
Adep Bashati has some 40 core personnel,
some of whom work in other professional spheres
besides their engagement with the foundation. It
also relies on hundreds of volunteers, many of
them entrepreneurs, teachers and students. As is
the case with many Islamic charities, education is
Adep Bashati’s focal point. Besides its madrassas
Kyrgyz teachers’ protest spreads north
December 13 (Centralasianewswire.com)
Hundreds of school teachers in northern regions
of Kyrgyzstan are rallying for higher pay and
other demands following striking teachers in the
south of the country.
Educators in the district of Jeti-Oguz in the
northeastern Issyk-Kul province announced
they would begin protest action on Monday, the
Bishkek-based 24.kg news agency reported.
Besides calling for higher pay, the Issyk-Kul
teachers want a revision in the way they are paid
and a 50 percent discount on utility bills.
The educators vow to begin a month-long
strike if educational authorities do not meet
their demands, they said.
In neighboring Naryn province, around 200
school teachers and their supporters took to
the main square of Naryn city Friday to demand
higher wages and cheaper electricity in solidar-
ity with their southern colleagues who have
been on strike since early December.
The teachers, who are paid from $30 to $40
a month, want their salaries increased to $200 to
$250 a month.
The Kyrgyz Ministry of Finance has said the
government does not have the budget to meet
the rising claims that are spreading nationwide.
The Naryn protestors have other claims
besides pay and electricity on their statement
and courses on Islam, it provides monthly sti-
pends and other material support to some 200
students attending regular universities and other
educational institutions in Osh and Bishkek. The
organization has also published a dozen of reli-
giously themed books and pamphlets.
The foundation also offers grants to help
believers undertake religious obligations, such
as the Hajj pilgrimage, and it provides assist-
ance for Kurban Ait, the annual feast of sacrifice.
“Last year, we slaughtered some 250 animals and
distributed the meat to poor families,” said Kara-
zak Kojayarov, another of Adep Bashati’s found-
ers and leaders. He added that the Muftiate this
year asked the foundation to help organize a pil-
grimage to Mecca for 50 individuals out of Kyr-
gyzstan’s overall quota of 4,500. “It’s the first time
they do this,” Kojayarov said.
After the riots that ravaged southern Kyr-
gyzstan in June, volunteers and supporters of
Adep Bashati operated a bakery that provided
bread for about three weeks to families displaced
by the violence. Victims also received financial
aid. “After the riots, there was an urgent need for
humanitarian aid, but of course it is no long-term
option,” Ibraev continued.
“The economy, which was always multi-ethnic
here in Osh, has suffered a lot with the riots,” Ibraev
noted. “In the current nationalist climate it won’t
be easy to restore this. But we have to try. We are
a multi-ethnic association, so are our supporters
and Islam in not bound to ethnicity. If we do small-
scale social work, it can maybe set an example.
of demands, addressed to President Roza Otun-
bayeva.
The protestors say local authorities should
also end the practice of rationing potable water
supplies and reduce the prices of foods.
The list also calls for the government to come
clean with details on the deals it is making with
foreign investors.
“The statement speaks about border lands
and areas where foreign companies work (Aksai
and Arpa). Protesters demand not to sell them,”
24.kg cited one of the coordinators of the protest
action, Erkin Asanaliev, as saying on Friday.
Asanaliev, who heads the Naryn Mission Coa-
lition for Democracy and Civil Society, charges lo-
cal officials of stealing $808,000 of public funds.
More than 500 people signed the protest let-
ter, he said.
Last week in the southern province of Ozgon,
around 500 secondary school teachers picketed
local government offices for increased pay and
lower utility bills.
Some 150 of their colleagues in neighboring
Bazar-Korgon district are participating in a strike
that began there at the turn of this month.
Kyrgyzstan ranked last in the Program for In-
ternational Student Assessment (PISA) education
survey that ranks school systems internationally,
it was announced on Friday.
www.thespektator.co.uk

Unverified WikiLeak recalls a “dominant” Maxim Bakiev
CHOLPON NURLANOVA AND CATHERINE KLIMCHENKO
BISHKEK, December 10 (Kloop.kg)
Russian news blog Rooski Reporter published
two secret documents attributed to the U.S.
Embassy in Kyrgyzstan, offering descriptions of
Maxim Bakiev, son of former Kyrgyz President
Kurmanbek Bakiev. However, the accuracy of the
data has not yet been confirmed.
From these documents it is understood that
Maxim Bakiev was one of the originators of the
idea to maintain the Manas airbase and rename it
the “Transit Centre”. Bakiev and Charge d’Affaires
for the U.S. Embassy in Kyrgyzstan, Lee Litzen-
berger, reportedly discussed the base on the
evening of July 13, 2009.
Maxim Bakiev, who was not engaged in any
public office at the time, organized the air base’s
preservation via some “American Friends,” whose
names and titles were not disclosed in the docu-
ment.
“Maxim said that he agreed on the basis of
the new arrangement (“the name changes, the
operation stays”) with U.S. “friends” in Washing-
ton, before the arrival of the American negotiat-
ing team in April,” read the report which Litzen-
berger supposedly sent to Washington after a
meeting with Bakiev Jr.
“At one point, when the American side resist-
ed the Kyrgyz proposal to replace all references
to “military personnel” and instead use the term
“security personnel” Maxim called “friends” in
Washington to resolve the problem,” the report
continues.
The parties also discussed the possibility of
opening an additional training camp for the U.S.
military, despite the fact that Maxim Bakiev ac-
knowledged that Russia “is very unhappy” in this
regard.
“He said that the Russians were terribly angry
and tried to punish Kyrgyzstan, but they were
in a quandary, referring to [President Dmitri]
Medvedev’s statement that the future of the
Manas base was a personal decision for Kyr-
gyzstan,” the report stated.
Litzenberger also offered a fairly detailed
description of Maxim, who later went on to head
the Central Agency for Development, Investment
and Innovation (CADII). He described the behav-
ior of the son of the president as “quiet,” but “a lit-
tle spoiled,” and provided an unflattering physical
account of Bakiev Jr., noting that he was “a little
overweight” and “balding,” with a taste for expen-
sive Scotch whisky.
“[At intervals] Maxim would stop talking, and
wait for outsiders to clear the room,” said the re-
port of their private conversation.
Party at Issyk-Kul
In another document, also published on the
Rooski Reporter web site, there are details of an
event on June 20, 2009, held in celebration of the
opening of the hotel Vityaz. Vityaz was a luxury
hotel owned by Maxim Bakiev.
On the evening, according to Litzenberger
“some 200 other guests were invited,” including
the U.S Charge D’Affairs.
www.thespektator.co.uk
The report quoted the then director of the
State Agency of Physical Culture and Sports, Al-
exander Voinov, who said that he, in addition to
other senior officials, governors and MPs, had
attended the event, because it was “required” of
them.
“Voinov said that leading businessmen were
“invited” to buy tickets to the event for between
10 and 15 thousand dollars to finance the open-
ing. Voinov said that government officials and
businessmen refused to come on principle, but
that their work and business interests would
subsequently be threatened,” read Litzenberger’s
report.
The U.S. diplomat noted in the document
that although “Many businessmen seem to crave
to curry favor with Maxim,” they “made hypocriti-
cal comments” following his departure.
“In what country do we live if we all, including
poor Igor [Chudinov] have to wag our tail before
his son just to stay in business?” one of them was
quoted as saying.
The document stated that Maxim Bakiev was
watched by eight bodyguards at the party, and
added an explanation for such security measures.
“Voinov said that Maxim is greatly in need of
enhanced protection, given that he took over the
businesses of many people in the country,” wrote
Litzenberger.
The Russian Ambassador
The report also highlights the presence on that
evening of Russian Ambassador to Kyrgyzstan
Valentin Vlasov, and noted his addressing the
issue of the U.S. airbase Manas with one of the
parliamentary deputies, also a guest at the event.
“We received orders directly from the Ameri-
can president. Everything will be as it was [Manas
will stay open], but you should know that it’s all
about money,” are Vlasov’s comments to the MP,
as stated in the document.
Kyrgyz commission blames ethnic Uzbeks for June riots
December 13 (Centralasianewswire.com)
An independent Kyrgyz commission charged
with investigating the causes of the deadly ri-
ots that ripped through the Osh and Jalalabad
provinces in June released its findings on Mon-
day and blamed ethnic Uzbeks for the unrest.
“The local conflict took place in the south
of Kyrgyzstan that was initiated by ethnic Uz-
beks, the Ferghana.ru news agency quoted Kyr-
gyz Ombudsman Tursunbek Akun as announc-
ing on Monday.
“They started this conflict, financed and in-
stigated common Uzbek farmers to go against
Kyrgyzs,” he said.
He said the ethnic Uzbek population had
very clear goals in instigating the unrest.
“The goal of agent provocateurs was to
create autonomy and make Uzbek the official
This Month 5
Litzenberger noted that the Russian ambas-
sador was not surprised by this news, but that he
[Vlasov] “virulently” expressed the desire to know
“all the details about the money” mentioned by
the deputy.
At the end of the document the U.S. diplo-
mat concluded that, based on what he had seen,
“the dominant role of Maxim Bakiev in the Kyrgyz
economy,” was confirmed beyond doubt. Litzen-
berger noted that this causes discontent among
business leaders and officials who believe “that
[his] excesses in the end, will harm the family and
the country,”
The reliability of the Rooski Reporter WikiLe-
aks “is not confirmed”
In an interview with the Russian service of the
BBC, the Editor-in-Chief of Rooski Reporter
claimed that his “publication receives documents
from a journalist, working with Wikileaks.”
However, according to the BBC, Rooski Re-
porter is not among the resources that are noted
as official partners of WikiLeaks, all of whom have
access to at least part of the data archives.
In the article, the BBC notes that a guarantee
of the documents’ validity and their belonging to
the WikiLeaks archive is currently unavailable.
“However, it is not yet possible to reliably
verify all the materials,” says the BBC.
Meanwhile, several Pakistani newspapers
admitted that they published false dispatches,
claiming they belonged to U.S. embassies, in
which diplomats spoke about an alleged split in
the Indian Army and support in India for “groups
of religious fanatics.”
The BBC points out that this could be the
handiwork of Pakistani intelligence. Whatever
the forgery’s source, the admission marks the first
detection of false dispatches since the beginning
of the publication of American diplomats’ secret
correspondence.
language. They wanted to turn Osh and Jala-
labad oblasts into the autonomous region of
Uzbekistan. They were linked to Uzbek citi-
zens, rich Uzbek people that oppose [Uzbek
President Islam] Karimov. They wanted to
overthrow Karimov and put their own person
instead of him and govern entire Uzbekistan
with Osh and Jalalabad oblasts in it.”
Akun said the commission completed its
work two months ago and will soon present its
findings formally to the interim President Roza
Otunbayeva.
An international commission headed by
Finnish politician Kimmo Kiljunen is also in the
midst of investigating the causes of the ethnic
riots. The commission began its work in late
September and is expected to publish its re-
port in late February 2011.
December 2010 The Spektator
 6 This Month
Villain
of
Year
the
T
CHRIS RICKLETON
The results of our ‘Villain of the Year’ vote HE EVIL GENIUS of privatization
are in, Maxim Bakiev claiming victory in po-Kirgizski, erstwhile ‘Prince of Kyr-
gyzstan’ and an alleged accomplice in
a landslide that even his dad would have
the Zionist conspiracy to take over the
been proud of. Taking this opportunity to world, Maxim Bakiev is a special breed
get merry and sentimental, we would like of baddy. In lieu of these and other qualities,
to extend festive greetings to all our read-
you, readers of the Spektator, voted resound-
ingly to elect him as Kyrgyzstan’s ‘Villain of the
ers, and our sincere hope that 2011 will be
Year’ for 2010, a year from which a whole cast of
a happier, healthier, less turbulent year for
scoundrels emerged as potential competition.
Kyrgyzstan than 2010. Cheers! Beating off claims to the top spot from Osh
strongman Melis Myrzakmatov (2nd place), and
making his father Kurmanbek (3rd place) seem
relatively benign, ‘Max Baks’ topped a ten man
list that also included his uncle, an Uzbek drug
lord, and personal acquaintances of the readers
who voted. We have it on good information that
the former president’s son is a fan of the Spekta-
tor (we distributed the magazine in many of the
bars owned), and would therefore like to offer
him our heartfelt congratulations on receiving
this prize. Max, if you’re reading this in your Lon-
don pent house, know that it’s official: You really
are a son-of-a-bitch.
Not that we intend to slur Tatyana Bakieva,
the put upon former first lady of Kyrgyzstan. To
the contrary, in the aftermath of the events of
April 7, media sources speculated that Mama
Bakieva had actually held pleading sessions
with her husband, in a futile attempt to rein in
their progeny’s increasingly megalomaniac am-
bitions. However, as discovered by Josef Stalin’s
mother, her dying regret that her son didn’t join
the priesthood, a real villain never listens to his
Above Kurmanbek Bakiev’s son was always parents.
more comfortable taking money than giving
it away (archive) “He never missed a skirt”
Although little is known of Maxim’s childhood,
Right Maxim Bakiev enjoyed only the briefest we can only assume that one of his classmates
of stints as an official ‘investment tsar’ for the repeatedly stole his lunch money in order to
government, but certainly made the most of it turn him into such an avaricious and power
(archive) hungry jerk. Nevertheless, a blogger who has
December 2010 The Spektator
gone to the effort of compiling a mini-bio of
Baks junior paints the opposite picture of a sen-
sitive and refined young man, the fulcrum of a
tight-knit group of friends who graduated from
the same Business Administration class at the
Kyrgyz-Russian-Slavic University, going on to
hit up Bishkek’s evening hot spots together, the
indispensible core of a broader ‘elite’ entourage.
Comparing him to the hell raising, heavy-
drinking Aidar Akaev, son of Kyrgyzstan’s first
president Askar, the blogger notes that Maxim
“Never showed disrespect to nightclub staff...
He drank, but only little by little. He had a taste
for fine things; expensive drinks, Swiss watches,
Chivas Regal [cigarettes]...and women.”
If the account disappoints in its failure to de-
tect the key psychological deficiencies present
in all super-villains, then at least it notes a start-
ing point for young Bakiev’s career in woman-
izing. Max’s mixed Russian-Kyrgyz parentage
left him with an unusual face that both national
groups have been quick to disown, still, there
were clearly a sufficient number of women who
found his buggish, slanty blue eyes and accumu-
lating personality difficult to resist. Long before
his daddy ascended, almost by chance, to the
presidential hot seat, Maxim had already carved
out a niche for himself as a local playboy with all
the right connections. When the 2005 Tulip Rev-
olution allowed his family access to the impov-
erished country’s coffers he went international,
bedding beauties from Russia, Turkey, Israel and
the Baltic states, lavishing them with expensive
jewellery in sweet parting.
A Prince and his Princedom
In our tenth issue we made the statement that
“the Bakievs wanted fifty per cent of anything
with a pulse.” This was, of course, no exaggera-
tion, and the list of Maxim’s former assets in
Kyrgyzstan is mind-boggling. Take about half
of the listings in ‘The Guide’ (p 22) for starters.
www.thespektator.co.uk

This, however, was only the soft underbelly of the
Bakiev corporate empire, the meat and bones of
which was in “stealth wealth” – stakes in local tel-
ecommunications operators, back payments for
fuel contracts at the US base ‘Manas’, an offshore
interest in English football club Blackpool F.C, lo-
cal banks and, naturally, the state budget. Add to
this nauseous array of riches holding companies
accused of laundering money for the Italian Mafia
and a hand in the bullion smuggling business in
Russia, and it becomes clear why Max, alleged to
have enjoyed playing cards “with a deck of pure
gold” bears comparison to some of fictional spy
James Bond’s most celebrated nemeses. Dodgy
Russian accent when speaking English?: Check.
A quick read of Niccole Machiavelli’s infa-
mous political treatise ‘Il Principe’ will tell you that
any prince should reserve a certain amount of dis-
dain for his subjects. In the immediate aftermath
of the events of April 7, Bakiev junior was asked
by one journalist: “Maxim, what is waiting for you
back in Kyrgyzstan?” Mindful of the importance of
positive PR at such a delicate moment in his fam-
ily’s reign, Max quipped “5 million sheep!” If the
comment was intended as a self-portrayal in the
‘good shepherd’ mould, then it certainly failed, in-
stead reinforcing the ‘big bad wolf’ depiction that
was already common currency in Kyrgyzstan.
Almost six months before the coup in which
he was jettisoned from power, Kurmanbek Bakiev
appointed his son Maxim as head of the newly
created Central Agency for Development Invest-
ment and Innovation (CADII). This ominously-ti-
tled institution soon assumed all the appetites of
its new chief, and Max proved admirably innova-
tive in his investments, allegedly placing $30 mil-
lion of a $300 million dollar ‘soft’ loan from Russia
in a private bank account.
Still, there were signs that the wheels were
falling off the clan juggernaut. In March 2010,
Maxim’s main business partner, Latvian American
Yevgeny Gurevich, resigned as Director-General
www.thespektator.co.uk
of their shared holding group MGN after a war-
rant was issued for his arrest in connection with
over $2.7 billion worth of fraud. While on a busi-
ness trip in the US during the first week of April,
Maxim was supposedly called by an aide and ad-
vised not to return to Kyrgyzstan, as the political
situation in the country was “shaky”.
His post-revolutionary phase
When rebels unfurled banners outside the White
House the day after violent clashes between
government officials and protesters in Talas,
Maxim, more so than his father, was the target.
The Kyrgyz people had long harboured the sus-
picion that due to the contempt with which they
treated the common folk, the Bakievs could not
possibly be native Kyrgyz. Whilst Bakiev Sr. was
repeatedly denounced as a Dungan, his ren-
egade son was more loudly barracked as a ‘Dirty
Jew’, their apparent genetic disconnect of minor
importance to the growing lynch mob in central
Bishkek.
Max, as if conducting a master class in vil-
lainy, was rather far away when it all kicked off.
Regardless, this didn’t stop him plotting a path
back to power with Uncle Janysh in a phone call
which somehow found its way onto the inter-
net. “We need to find 500 bastards,” opined Max
at one point during the call. “Yes, 500 bastards,”
agreed Janysh approvingly. In the same week of
May 2010, the regional administration buildings
in Osh, Jalal-Abad and Batken were seized by a
group of, well, about 500 bastards.
Maxim Bakiev, for his part, strenuously denies
any involvement in the turmoil that afflicted Kyr-
gyzstan after April 7, and has said that he views
“events in his homeland with horror”. However,
whether or not this is true – and all good baddies
lie – the Spektator supports its readers’ choice of
him as ‘Villain of the Year’, because at minimum
he stole a frightening amount of loot, and most
crucially, he got away with it scot free.
This Month 7
Wicked Leaks
If you’re still unsure about where fact stops and
fiction starts in relation to Maxim Bakiev, the now
infamous ‘WikiLeaks’ concerning the former presi-
dent’s son are essential reading. Though some
leaks have yet to be tested for authenticity, Maxim
consistently emerges from them as incredibly “dec-
adent”, “over-confident” and prone to appropriat-
ing things that don’t technically belong to him.
Indeed, the ‘Prince of Kyrgyzstan’ even
showed up on his British counterpart’s radar,
when HRH Andrew Duke of York came to Bishkek
as part of a diplomatic mission to the region. Ac-
cording to a cable attributed to Tatiana Gfoeller,
US Ambassador to Kyrgyzstan, Prince Andrew
took up the subject of Maxim Bakiev “with gusto,”
when Western businessmen began complaining
about the president’s son demanding “his cut”
from various enterprises.
More recent tidbits have suggested that the
best leaks are yet to come. One that surfaced in
a Russian publication shows Maxim in his ele-
ment, the centre of attention at the opening of
his hotel in Issyk-Kul. The crowd at the gathering
were far from enamoured with Bakiev Jr., many of
them having been squeezed for $10-15,000 as a
“contribution” to the opening. The author of the
cable, embassy attaché Lee Litzenberger, notes:
“Maxim mingled among the guests with his of-
ficial wife Aijana (he is well known to have an-
other girlfriend) on one side and Prime Minister
Igor Chudinov on the other. Neither Aijana nor
Chudinov looked happy to be there.” Neverthe-
less, at least one other person was. Then Chairman
of AsiaUniversalBank, Mikhail Nadal, was in such
high spirits that he stripped off and leapt into the
freezing lake outside for a midnight dip. With all
those wealthy, powerful people that Maxim made
miserable, there was always going to be one per-
son he made truly happy.
December 2010 The Spektator
 8 Out & About
Getting
Ink
Done
From sweaty boxing gyms to rust-bucket
Soviet planes, Will Brown has experienced
his fair share of Bishkek’s ‘gnarly’ side. Next
up on the list is a needle-sharp glance at
the capital’s tattoo scene, only this time, he’s about getting it done, or whether she should even
taking a back seat.
Above Nikita works his own special brand of
magic (photo Will Brown)
Nikita’s Vizitka
Artistic Tattoo and Permanent Makeup
Tel.: 0-555-674-108
Email: nikich-neo@yandex.ru
Художественное тату и перманентный a clean work environment. Some of the precau-
макияж (татуаж)
сот.: 0-555-674-108 Nikita.
Nikich-neo@yandex.ru
December 2010 The Spektator
WILL BROWN
A
FEW WEEKS AGO I was talking with
an Italian friend of mine about tattoos.
She told me that she was interested in
getting something small on her foot,
but that she didn’t know how to go
entertain the idea in a country such as Kyrgyzstan.
I found the proposition extremely interesting be-
cause Bishkek - for reasons of health and hygiene
doesn’t particularly stand out as the safest place to
get a tattoo. As someone already inked up, I was
intrigued, and decided to turn the proposition into
a challenge. I began tracking down information on
the tattoo scene in the Kyrgyz capital.
I started by asking around to see if there
were any tattoo parlours in the city. Many peo-
ple I spoke with told me that there is a place in
the city “somewhere on some street,” but no one
knew exactly where. Eventually, it was suggested
that I look on the Diesel Forum (Diesel.kg) for in-
formation. Because very few businesses here in
Kyrgyzstan actually have their own websites, they
post their services and locations on the forum.
I had looked on the website a while ago when I
started looking for places and information about
skydiving, but my nascent Russian typing skills
were a serious obstacle in the search. Getting
over these teething troubles I have found it to be
an incredible resource.
I quickly came across a twenty-three-year-
old Russian artist named Nikita who was answer-
ing questions, offering advice and posting his
artwork for those that were interested. I looked
up his contact information and called him. We
agreed to meet on Wednesday at a hair salon
called ‘Vash Stil’: Your Style.
When we met up, I asked him about the ba-
sics: How he handled body substance isolation,
where he did his work, and how long he had
been working for. He explained to me the impor-
tance of new needles, gloves, clean hands, and
tions regarding safety had been taken on board
during a tattoo certification course he took a few
years ago, but he began his trade earlier still, as a
sixteen-year-old under the tutelage of a woman
from Moscow. When I asked about his studio he
told me that he either rented out salons like the
one we were meeting in, or brought his kit to cli-
ents’ houses. I talked to Nikita about the design
my friend wanted, and asked him how he pitched
his prices. We then decided to have him over to
our apartment on Saturday to ink her up.
Originally I had the impression that Russians
were the only ones who got tattoos here however,
after five minutes of talking to Nikita about his
business I was surprised to find out that the major-
ity of his clientele were actually Kyrgyz women. Al-
though very few Kyrgyz get body tattoos, there is
a solid market here for tattoo makeup or “Tatuazh”.
Other than creating products of his own ar-
tistic expertise, Nikita also finds himself playing
‘touch up’ - applying corrections to other artists’
work. I listened disturbed as he told me about
an artist in the city who sometimes works while
drunk, leading to disastrous results; scars and
blurred images. For Nikita, quality is a mantra. He
is constantly on the hunt for the best quality nee-
dles and inks, all to get the highest quality results.
That Saturday Nikita came over around 5:30
pm to start his work. He set up in my room since
it has a good open space with a large bed. He
showed her the design she had asked for and ap-
plied it to her foot. He then drew over a few areas
with a special pen and readied his kit. I turned on
some music and a few minutes later his needle
was vigilantly buzzing away, perforating the soft
of my friend’s ankle as she got “tatted” on the bed.
The whole process from setting up shop to
closing down lasted about two and a half hours, but
when the tattoo was finished it looked amazing,
comparing positively with most I had seen done
back home. It seems that most tattoos here are
inked in this fly-by manner; of the few actual tattoo
artists here, most of them are freelancers like Nikita.
To be sure, if you’re a foreigner in Bishkek and
you’re looking for a tattoo, Nik is your guy. He
may be a little busy though, since many more of
our friends have been lining up to get work done
with him. His biggest hope is that he can open
his own shop sometime next year, and finally do
what he loves all the time.
www.thespektator.co.uk
 10 Out & About
Bookish
Bishkek
Holly Myers, a doctoral student at the Uni-
versity of Virginia, is writing her dissertation
on contemporary literature in Kyrgyzstan
and Kazakhstan. More so than that of its
larger neighbour, Kyrgyzstan’s book market
is feeling the strains of post-Soviet transi-
tion and linguistic division. Nevertheless,
thanks to several leading lights in the local
literature community, help is at hand.
Above Tales about hard-working ants in Kyr-
gyzstan have gone bilingual, but not in the
way you might have expected (Holly Myers)
Above Right Raritet bookstores – the capital’s
market leader, are open from 9-6pm Monday
to Friday, 9-5pm on Saturdays and 9-3pm on
Sundays (Holly Myers)
Next Page Chingiz Aitmatov, peerless in con-
temporary Central Asian literature, died on
June 10, 2008 (archive)
December 2010 The Spektator
I
HOLLY MYERS
T WOULD BE INACCURATE to call Chingiz
Aitmatov a dissident writer. In fact, authori-
ties in Moscow often celebrated his literary
achievements as proof that the Soviet im-
pact on indigenous populations in the non-
Russian republics had been a rousing success.
Writing in both Russian and Kyrgyz, Aitmatov
won more than forty state prizes over the course
of his literary career, which spanned from the lit-
erary ‘thaw’ of the post-Stalin years, through the
long drag of the Brezhnev years and into over a
decade-and-a-half of Kyrgyz independence. Given
the union-wide acclaim with which his work was
received, Aitmatov’s writing, like that of other
Soviet-era authors, is vulnerable to accusations of
being mere Communist Party mouthpiece. This is
a common point of contention in the study of So-
viet literature, as many scholars automatically con-
demn works that fell in step with party dictates as
being compromised or contrived. Speaking in an
interview in 2005, Kyrgyzstan’s literary champion
had this to say in response to a question about ‘lip
service to the censor’:
“In every age and under every regime, and espe-
cially at times of totalitarianism in which art is sub-
jected to constant censorship, there is a possibility of
damage to the artist’s freedom, to his possibility of be-
ing frank and true to himself and to his feelings. But in
every era and under every regime, it is always the same
question with regard to the individual’s moral level.
Adaptation is the human being’s constant compan-
ion in the world, yet we must not forget that sincerity
and honesty are morality at its highest level. We must
ensure that they will continue to exist and to operate
in our world, despite the forces that are acting against
them and trying to suppress them.”
Though perhaps lacking the dissident creden-
tials of a Solzhenitsyn-type, Aitmatov was certainly
no Soviet stooge. His 1973 play The Ascent of Mt. Fuji
openly muses on the moral compromises necessi-
tated by harsh suppression of dissent under Stalin.
His first novel, The Day Lasts Longer Than a Hundred
Years (1980), tells the story of an elderly Kazakh
man trying to bury his dead friend according to
traditional Muslim customs – a contemporary sto-
ryline that blends folklore with a surprising science
fiction subplot. Though it was acclaimed by Soviet
critics, its ambiguous themes – common features
of Aitmatov’s writing – allowed for multiple read-
ings. An extra chapter, which Aitmatov said had
been cut by Soviet censors because it depicted the
interrogation, torture and death of a man arrested
during Stalin’s rule, was published in 1990. The
chapter may have had personal significance. While
Aitmatov’s father, Torokul, was one of the first Kyr-
gyz communists and a regional party secretary, he
was arrested in 1937 and liquidated on charges of
bourgeois nationalism. His body was found during
the excavation of a mass grave at Chon Tash, the re-
sult of a massacre during the height of Stalin’s ‘Great
Purge’ (see Secrets of the Dead; issue 8 of the Spekta-
tor). The briefest glance at this chapter dismisses any
notion that Aitmatov’s authorial intentions were to
tow the party line.
Aitmatov’s first successful work, Jamilya, was
published for the first time in 1958, in both Rus-
sian and Kyrgyz. Lacking the political edge of his
later works, this beautifully-written novella was
nonetheless a critical first step in gaining recogni-
tion for Kyrgyz literature. The eponymous heroine,
high-spirited, sharp-tongued and beautiful, strug-
gles against the confines of her small village life
and an unsatisfying marriage. Her new husband, a
soldier in the war, mentions Jamilya only briefly at
the conclusion of his letters from the front; “and give
regards to my wife.” In this, what the French writer
Louis Aragon has famously called the world’s most
beautiful love story, readers witness Jamilya’s awak-
ening sense of self and subsequent transformation
via her love of Daniyar, a recently demobilized and
wounded Kyrgyz-Kazakh youth, whose mastery of
song evokes the traditional art of akins.
Aitmatov was a national author from the
very outset, a fact which becomes apparent with
his heavy use of Kyrgyz folklore in almost every-
www.thespektator.co.uk

thing he wrote. In Jamilya, for example, there are
references to the legendary figure of Manas. The
Legend of the Bird Donebai plays a central role
in The Day Lasts More Than a Hundred Years, and
the plot of The White Steamship revolves around
ancient Kyrgyz myths and folktales, including the
Mother-Olenikha legend. He paved the way for
the development of a modern national literature
in the small Soviet republic, creating works that
were distinctly Kyrgyz, stories that drew on Kyr-
gyz traditions and dealt with the issues of Soviet
Kirghizia in the twentieth century, while also mak-
ing comment on themes central to the greater
human condition; love, duty and suffering. That
he accomplished this while staying, for the most
part, within the confines of Soviet Realism, is no
tar on his achievement. Instead, it should serve as
a reminder of his unique ability to create works of
beauty in the face of ideological adversity.
A New Type of Censorship
Aitmatov, like many others, celebrated the new
freedom that writers have found since the collapse
of the Soviet Union, as a wide array of previously
taboo subjects and styles came to the fore over-
night. Forensic crime and welfare essays, religious
and mystical treatises, stories of erotic nature and
prose with conspicuous social commentary have
become increasingly common in Kyrgyzstan, rep-
resenting new avenues of exploration for post-
Soviet writers as well as the ever-expanding tastes
of readers. Broadening opportunities for a more
direct expression of self and uncensored research
have also led to the rise of memoirs and biographi-
cal literature. Indicative in this respect is the series
‘The Life of Remarkable People in Kyrgyzstan’, pub-
lished by the editorial board of the journal Literary
Kyrgyzstan, and Kulbyubyu Bekturganova’s series
‘Daughters of the Kyrgyz Land’, the third book of
which was published in Bishkek this year.
However, like many others, Aimatov was keen
to point to a fresh force in the brave new world of
post-independence literature, equally capable of
www.thespektator.co.uk
Out & About 11
constraining the freedom and creativity of writers: recognition in 2007, the Toktogul State Prize of
Kyrgyzstan in 2008, and has been translated into
“It is impossible to say that at this time it is a bet-
several different languages. Talip Ibraimov’s first
ter era only because there is freedom and the censor
book won the International Library Contest’s “Rus-
is not capering around you. This is not sufficient. Os-
sian Prize” in 2007, while Eva Alli’s 2009 novel The
tensibly, we have overcome this difficulty, but in the
Wild Asian Orchard is a bestseller in Bishkek.
meantime new difficulties have arisen, which are
Ilimkhan Lailiyeva, local author of several Rus-
sometimes even more complex. For example, the
sian-language novels, believes her own opinion
market economy that dictates everything. This today
about the future of Kyrgyzstan’s literature to be sit-
is the great tyrant, and it is more difficult to win your
uated somewhere between that of Koichuyev and
place as a writer and maintain it.”
Shapovalov. She disagrees that Russian-language
Vyacheslav Shapovalov, poet laureate of Kyr- literature in Kyrgyzstan does not exist, though she
gyzstan, a man in his sixties who veritably bristles admits that today’s market presents a challenge to
with energy, has a particularly pessimistic view of would-be professional writers and that what she
his country’s current literary trajectory. In an arti- calls the “boom” of new literature in Kyrgyzstan is
cle written in 2001, he made a dramatic conclu- more often written in Kyrgyz than Russian. For her
sion about the “dreary future” for literature in Kyr- own part, she hopes to make her work available to
gyzstan, an opinion that he still professes today: readers outside of her own country.
“In the lack of interest and any, let’s say, civilian A Shrinking Market Cut in Two
self-sacrifice in relation to today’s national literary
The linguistic factor reveals itself as increasingly
heritage…in the stagnant condition of overly politi-
important, since many fear that the country’s
cized and absent opportunities for publishing litera-
traditional Kyrgyz-Russian bilingualism is begin-
ture (both Kyrgyz and Russian-language literature),
ning to polarize, dividing an already small reading
I see a dreary future. In any case, Russian-language
population into two smaller groups predicated on
literature in Kyrgyzstan today does not actually exist,
language. It seems that few authors, or readers,
but its quick and gray death shows, first, that culture
have the ability or desire to function at a high level
can easily suffocate - it is necessary only to deprive it
in both Kyrgyz and Russian. Koichyev worries that,
of air - and, secondly, that monoculture is also not
from the point of view of Russian-language litera-
a viable organism. I think Kyrgyz literature will go
ture, this number is becoming even smaller:
through a painful state of hopelessness and dying
before it will be revived - but this will be in other gen- “Geopolitical, historical, and cultural processes
erations, in a different history, with another moral have significantly narrowed the scope of literature’s
experience.” operation and impact on the public consciousness.
Bakhtiyar Koichuyev, chair of the Department This applies particularly to the literature written in
of Literary History and Theory at the Kyrgyz-Rus- Russian. Changes in the ethnic composition of the
sian Slavic University in Bishkek, remains optimistic republic, the deteriorating degree of Russian profi-
about today’s situation, going so far as to proclaim ciency, particularly in rural areas, has inevitably led
it unparalleled in the literary history of Kyrgyzstan. to the loss of potential readers of Russian-language
For evidence of this, he points to the collected literature in Kyrgyzstan.”
works of Shapovalov, Svetlana Suslova, Aleksander These two groups of authors and read-
Nikitenko and his own recently published titles. ers, writing and reading in two different lan-
Kazat Akmatov’s novel Arhat won international guages, are often completely isolated,
December 2010 The Spektator
 12 Out & About
Books,Books...
and Books
Despite an apparent shortfall in demand, there
are still a number of choice locations for the
Bishkek-based bookworm to ogle titles, ranging
from musty libraries to hip ‘libra-cafes’.
Nuska Bookstore
56 Erkindik
M-F 9am-6pm, Sat 10am-5pm
Opened in 1988, this is the only state-owned
Kyrgyz-language bookstore in all of Kyrgyzstan.
Readers from as far away as China make trips to
this bookstore, says the manager, in order to stock
up on Kyrgyz-language books. Librarians also
frequent the store, searching for books to add
to their collections. Nuska is state subsidized, so
books are sold at lower prices than elsewhere.
Cafe Biblioteka
50 Akhunbaeva, tel: 51-52-53.
In this trendy two-room cafe-bar, you can find
European and Kyrgyz cuisine, espresso, tea, wine,
beer, free Wi-Fi and books. An entire wall of book-
cases holds both classic and contemporary litera-
ture, which customers peruse at their leisure. You
may take books home after signing up for a club
card, which also gives you a 10% discount on food
and drink. The club card is free on your birthday.
“Odissej” Bookstore
40 Manas (just below Kievskaya)
M-F 9am-6pm, Sat 10am-6pm, Sun 11am-5pm
In seven rooms you can find everything from text-
books and dictionaries to Russian and Western
classic and contemporary literature (in Russian) to
books on sports, psychology, beauty, housekeep-
ing, and medicine. In the main room, there is an
excellent selection of beautiful art books, next to
a large tank of colorful fish.
“Raritet” Bookstores
78 Pushkin and 271 Chui Prospekt
The best selection of English-language books
available for sale in Bishkek, as well as an excellent
range in both the country’s official languages.
Several books from Moscow intended for Rus-
sian-speakers studying English, but given that
there is some commentary and a glossary in Rus-
sian, they may be of interest to English speakers
studying Russian as well.
The “Silva” Centre
96 Chui Prospekt
M-Sat 7am-8pm, Sun 8am-7pm
Inside the main hall of the post office, a yurt stands
in the corner: This is the “Silva” Centre. Around the
yurt are tables and stands of books, with more
titles inside the yurt. There is Russian and Kyrgyz-
language literature for adults and children, as well
as a decent selection of Kyrgyz and Russian text-
books, grammar books, and dictionaries, includ-
ing a Kyrgyz-Mongolian dictionary.
In a temporary Bishkek Book Fair, local publish-
ing houses are selling new books on the small
square by Ala-Too Movie Theater, from 11:00am
to 3:00pm, every Saturday through December.
December 2010 The Spektator
functioning independently with extremely lim-
ited knowledge of the other’s efforts. This seg-
regation of tongues is vividly demonstrated by
the predominance of two literary journals in Kyr-
gyzstan. Russian-language writers have their own
literary journal, Literary Kyrgyzstan, and Kyrgyz-
language writers have theirs, The New Ala-Too.
This schism in Kyrgyzstan’s literature has obvious
connections to the deeper cultural and political
disconnect in a country that is, in many ways, di-
vided.
Internet to the Rescue?
Several of Ibraimov’s award-winning short sto-
ries, Alli’s complete novel, as well as works by
Shapovalov, Suslova, and Nikitenko are available
free of charge on the website “New Literature of
Kyrgyzstan” (http://literatura.kg). This impressive
internet resource may be displayed in either Rus-
sian or Kyrgyz. Founded in 2008 by Oleg Bond-
arenko, it is designed to support contemporary
authors of Kyrgyzstan. The project’s mission
statement begins:
“Kyrgyzstan is a rich country. Rich in talented
people, writers and artists, musicians and filmmak-
ers, who, alas, are often forced these days to work
without any support. The project’s object is to help
at least some of those who write, whose works are
considered contemporary national literature.”
Noting that it is becoming increasingly diffi-
cult to publish “the usual way,” this project pub-
lishes works on its site free of charge, with the
voluntary participation of authors, in the hopes
of reaching a wider audience base. Arguably, this
site – with its sizeable bank of author biographies
and contact information, as well as thousands of
freely-available stories, novels, verse, and literary
criticism – could be considered definitive proof of
the concerted efforts aiming to protect and sup-
port the development of Kyrgyzstan’s national
literature and culture.
Literature and Culture Working Together
Viktor Kadyrov, General Director of Raritet book-
stores and publishing house, and the prolific author
of nearly fifty works, has a firm grasp of the con-
nection between national literature and national
culture. About a year and a half ago, he opened a
chaikana, or tea house in Raritet’s main shop on 78
Pushkin street. One of the store’s inner rooms is dec-
orated like the inside of a yurt, with traditional Kyr-
gyz musical instruments, clothing, and decorations
hanging on the walls. There, sitting at a small round
table, Saltanat, the head consultant at the Raritet Tea
House, will proudly serve you tea and cookies while
explaining the ins and outs of traditional Kyrgyz life.
The sign on the door reads: “We welcome you
to the Tea House. Relax with aromatic tea, immersed
in national color.” Saltanat says that the Tea House
welcomes any guests who are interested in learn-
ing more about Kyrgyz culture, and that she regu-
larly hosts groups of local school children, as well as
tourists. Incredibly, this is all provided byezplatno,
and even impromptu visits are enthusiastically ac-
commodated.
Kadyrov has also converted one of the book-
store’s rooms into a museum devoted to historical
Kyrgyz artifacts, donated from a private collection,
in the belief that a people should know and pre-
serve their own history. There are ancient stone
tools from Issyk-Kul and traditional Kyrgyz, Kazakh,
and Uzbek ceremonial jewelery, or krasno-rechka
that date back to the ninth century, as well as Rus-
sian samovars, waffle-makers, and spinning wheels
with roots dating back to the early Russian settle-
ments in nineteenth century Central Asia.
Raritet published an award-winning book de-
tailing this growing collection, providing informa-
tion about the artifacts, and high-quality colour
photographs of the various items in the museum.
It is available in both English (600 som) and Russian
(480 som). The hours of the museum-room are the
same as those of the bookstore, and, like the chaika-
na down the hall, admission and a guided tour are
given to visitors free of charge.
www.thespektator.co.uk
 16 Focus
Going for
This month, Karakol-based journalist
Sergey Vysotsky looks at some of the
key facts relating to Canadian-Kyrgyz
gold mining operation Kumtor, a provid-
er of work to almost 2,500 locals in the
Issyk-Kul region.
Above Mining operation Kumtor glows under several investors, the government of the Kyrgyz Re-
a setting sun (all photos Sergey Vysotsky) public gave preference to an offer tabled by Canadi-
Above Right Karimzhan Khasanov with his Cameco and parastatal Kirgizaltyn signed a general
painting “The Spirit of Kumtor”
December 2010 The Spektator
SERGEY VYSOTSKY
Gold
H
IGH UP in the permafrost zone in the
eastern part of the Tien Shan mountain
range, the gold ore mill ‘Kumtor’ rep-
resents one of the highest processing
units of its kind in the world. Buried at
altitudes of over 4,000 meters, the precious metal
it extracts is of critical importance to Kyrgyzstan, a
country whose only other natural resource of note
is water.
Situated in the country’s eastern Issyk Kul re-
gion, around 350 km from Bishkek, the Kumtor
Operating Company (KOC) took its name from the
local Kumtor river, upstream from which Soviet-
era geologists stumbled on large gold deposits.
Despite the fact that geological surveys of the area
had been undertaken since 1920, the field itself was
only discovered later in 1978. By 1991, when the
Soviet Union was on the cusp of collapse, it was es-
timated that the field contained 716 tons of gold, of
which 316.5 tons lent themselves to open pit min-
ing methods.
The General Directorate of Precious Metals
and Diamonds had already conducted a feasibility
study aimed at high-altitude extraction by 1989.
Nevertheless, a ruling by the Council of Ministers
deemed proposals for a project too expensive. The
increasingly capital-strapped union simply couldn’t
come up with the approximately 995 million Soviet
roubles ($1.46 billion at the time) required to turn
the dream into a reality.
Upon independence three years later, the open
door policy advanced by the republic under First
President Askar Akaev allowed for fresh western
investment in the development of national mineral
deposits. After careful consideration of bids from
an outfit Cameco. On December 4, 1992 in Toronto,
agreement on the draft Kumtor Gold, creating KOC,
which would subsequently assume responsibility
for the entire production cycle from start to finish.
Thanks to massive investment in the project -
over $452 million in start-up - the facility was built
at breakneck speed, albeit only by the standards
of high altitude mining. Construction of the mine
began in 1994 and reached completion in 1997.
Today, the Kumtor gold field ranks as one of the
largest geologically certified deposits of the metal
in the world, 514 tons of which are thought to be
extractable.
For the national government in Bishkek, results
were pleasing. As part of a country where five-year
plans routinely failed to meet unreasonable tar-
gets, they were happy enough to now be part of a
project which was exceeding expectations.
In its first year of operation KOC oversaw the
production of 15.6 tonnes of gold, against the
12.8 tonnes planned. In 1998, 20 tons of gold were
moulded against the 17.5 tons stipulated in annual
projections, while the same year saw the operation
cross the ‘one million ounces’ threshold. Neverthe-
less, as Kumtor assumed an increasingly important
role in the local and national economy, concerns
were aired as to how to increase the longevity of
such a mutually profitable venture.
In 2009, due to the results of further exploration,
the life of the Kumtor mine was revised and ex-
tended until 2019. Under the auspices of President
Robert Vander, on board at the operating company
since February 2010, KOC has directed a record
$196.7 million to upgrade equipment, expand the
quarrying area and construct new underground
stations. Such investment is aimed at increasing
the long term prospects for the development of the
mine.
In 2004, the Kumtor Gold project was restruc-
tured, and the Kyrgyz government became the
second largest shareholder in the project after
Cameco. The government’s share in the project
www.thespektator.co.uk

now amounts to between $85 and 100 million.
Cameco, whose head quarters are in Toronto, Can-
ada, own 15.66% of Centerra Gold Inc, an outfit with
regional experience. In addition to the site at Kum-
tor, Centerra Gold is involved in exploration projects
in Mongolia and Russian province Tuva. In 2007, the
government in Bishkek once again increased their
share in the Centerra Gold franchise, and in 2009,
the Kyrgyz parliament simplified the tax regime for
the operation. Gross revenues are subject to a 14%
tax, one per cent of which goes to a fund for the de-
velopment of the Issyk- Kul region.
In addition to employing roughly 2,500 people,
95% of whom are citizens of the republic, Kum-
tor also makes voluntary contributions to schools
and healthcare facilities in the area. Gradually, the
number of foreign experts at the plant is beginning
to dwindle, as they are slowly replaced by locals that
have come up through the ranks. With its impressive
manpower, the production capacity of the plant is
now estimated to be as much as 16,000 tonnes of
ore per day, a figure even Soviet miner Alexei Sta-
khanov would have been proud of.
Techniques at the plant are cutting edge yet con-
ventional, following the standard practices of open
pit mining. Ore is delivered to the onsite crushing
facility and then ground down by an ISA mill, a new
innovation in processing which allows for ultra-fine
grinding. The ground ore is subjected to gold recov-
ery technology, employing a carbonizing solution,
and the near-finished product – cast gold ingots or
‘Dore bullion’ - is then sent for further refining.
If you have a large wodge of cash that you don’t
know what to do with, shares in Kumtor parent
Centerra Gold are available for purchase on the To-
ronto Stock Exchange (TSX) under the symbol CG.
Earlier this calendar year, local workers held a pro-
test threatening to strike if wages weren’t increased.
The dispute was quickly resolved and wages at the
plant were raised.
www.thespektator.co.uk
Through the Eyes of an Artist
While Kumtor generally enjoys popular sup-
port among its host community, not everyone
is thrilled about the joint venture’s existence and
its apparent impact on local ecology. When the
plant first began being constructed, ‘legends’
suddenly sprouted in the villages surrounding
the plant, each of them supposedly centuries old.
According to one of them, there is a ridge in
the mountains of Issyk-Kul, an ancient “bull”, which
took its place on the mountain face after death,
bearing the gold deposit on its back as a sacred
duty. The bull is not to be disturbed on pain of
death – if tampered with, he will cause irreparable
harm to the humanity in his local neighbourhood.
Based on this and other similar legends, Kyr-
gyzstani contemporary artist Karimzhan Khasanov
made a series of paintings devoted to this subject.
The series is on the theme of “Ecology
through the eyes of an artist” reflecting his pain
and anxiety regarding the harmful activities of
man against nature.
The painting “Argali” represents the spirit of
argali, an indigenous Central Asian mountain
sheep, who looks down from the skies in weak-
ness and horror as he observes man’s attempts
to destroy his descendents.
Another picture invokes Kumtor specifically.
It is of a burning mountain flower, which stands
firmly against the Canadian mining interest’s
boot, as it endeavours to stamp through the
mountains. In the background, more snow cov-
ered switchbacks rise up, displaying the indomi-
table spirit of nature itself.
The third in the series carries a more po-
etic message: Yellow poppies and white daisies
sprout on the side of a mountain; symbols of
love, life and the eternity of beauty in the world.
The flowers, steadfastly growing on the bare
Focus 17
slopes and flashing like stars to the sun, reflect
the hardiness of nature, and the ability of beauti-
ful creations to take root in hostile climates.
In a fourth, Khasanov’s rage comes to the
fore once more as he depicts “the most terrible
animal of this world” - a man pointing the barrel
of his shotgun at all that is in front of him, includ-
ing a snow leopard, destroying harmony and di-
versity in the natural world.
Perhaps the central piece in this series of
paintings is a work of art titled “The Spirit of Kum-
tor,” painted back in 2005. The picture has been
lodged in a decorative frame made of wood and
has pride of place in Khasanov’s living room. At
the foreground of the painting is a bulb-headed
old man, whose face reflects the wisdom of the
ancients. The work as a whole reflects the artist’s
broader concerns about the destruction of the
mountain ranges and the depletion of mineral
resources. At the hands of profiteers, toxic tears
ooze down off the mountain face, while rows of
gold bullion emerge out of the body of the an-
cient, who stares out in muted sadness.
On the steep rocky slopes of the mountain,
meanwhile, snow leopards look down in despair
at the chaos below, while the artist’s favourite
breed of sheep look imploringly towards the old
face for guidance.
Through his creativity, Karimzhan Khasanov
attempts to reach out to human consciousness
and explain the destruction caused to natural
harmony by man’s activities. The series concludes
with “The Lonely Grave of a Nomad.” In Khasanov’s
view, man is also non-renewable. Leaving devasta-
tion behind him as he goes into another world, an
earthen burial mound speaks of the tragic nature
of human life and its carnage, pitted, once more,
against the stoic eternity of the mountains.
December 2010 The Spektator
 18 Focus
Romance on the Steppe
The Spektator’s very own eagle fanatic
Dennis Keen wanted a life-sized stock-
ing filler this festive season. In search of
an adventure and the affections of the
region’s only female falconer, he took an
overnight train to the back of beyond.... and unappealing that it was the butt of jokes
Above The ‘hunk of blue Soviet steel’ that
brought Dennis one ‘steppe’ closer to Makpal
(all photos Dennis Keen)
Above Right Makpal Abdrazakova, the only
female eagle hunter in Kazakhstan, and pos-
sibly, the world
Next Page Translator Abay watches the steppe
blur out of the train window
December 2010 The Spektator
W
DENNIS KEEN
E WERE BARRELING across the
heart of Eurasia in a hunk of blue
Soviet steel, riding tracks through
barren steppe. Our destination
was Karaganda, a city so remote
throughout the USSR. It was known for gulags
and coal mines, but we were going for some-
thing much more appealing. I had read about a
female eagle hunter who lived in a village just
outside the town, the only woman berkutchi in
the whole of Kazakhstan. Her name was Mak-
pal Abdrazakova. When my Kyrgyz teacher
learned I liked eagle hunters, she brought in
a clipping of Makpal and I learned how to say
“beautiful girl.” She was stunning in braids and
a fur hat, strong with an eagle on her arm. I had
to find her. She was hundreds of miles away,
but I could use a train trip.
Our coupe mates were sleeping in the
bunks below. Talgat was a Kazakh businessman
who had shaken our hands, taken his pants
off, and immediately laid down to nap. Pavel
was one of those too-Russian Russians, with a
manly moustache and an army tattoo. He was
reading a science fiction book and talking to
Talgat, who was asleep and certainly not listen-
ing. Abay and I lay on our stomachs and gazed
out the window, watching the mountains of
Almaty recede into the horizon. The click-click
of the tracks and Talgat’s snores mixed with the
calls of ice cream ladies in the hallway. I found
train life strangely serene. I could stay on here
for days, I thought.
Walking from train car to train car, I passed
deaf girls selling pens and large men in un-
dershirts standing in line to get boiling water
for their tea. Pastoral landscapes flashed on
the windowpanes as shepherds pushed their
flocks up hills. In between cars I watched the
track blur by beneath my feet, and took a pic-
ture with my camera. A roving train cop took it
as an act of espionage and asked me a thou-
sand questions, bemused. I showed him some
pictures of eagles and got away with a finger
wag.
As the sun was setting, we had a com-
munal meal with our coupe mates. Bowls of
tea were borrowed from the train attendants
and apples were sliced up for sharing. Pavel
had a Tupperware of kholodets, or pork jelly. It
looked as appetizing as it sounds, but with a
dash of ogonyok, a kind of spicy tomato elixir,
it transformed into something edible. There
were a couple of small dead fish in the newspa-
per, which a conscious-again Talgat set about
deboning. This was a culture of sharing. I cut
up a little cake and passed a piece to Talgat, he
took a candy and put it in my hand. We were
strangers, but there was none of the enforced
distance that people put between themselves
in the West. We were crammed together in a
corner of a train and we might as well be kind
to one another.
The night was spent playing Gin Rummy,
cards passed from bed to bed. We kept the door
of the coupe open to scout for a cute young
Kazakh lady who kept passing our way. Every
www.thespektator.co.uk

time she smiled at us and we smiled back, Abay
and I would conspire like schoolgirls; “Let’s ask
her if she wants to play cards!” At the next stop
she left, holding hands with her boyfriend.
It was warm on the train and even warmer
where I slept; up top where the heat had no-
where else to flee. I nodded off a few times, un-
satisfied. At one stop, Pavel came in with a fish
two feet long, bright pink and freshly flayed.
He smiled and pushed my nose into its stink. To
the timeless sound of clacking tracks I fell back
into a delirious sleep, punctured by shouts and
calls from stops in the night. Karaganda lay
ahead, pulling us forward, ever forward.
We woke to darkness. Winter in these
northern latitudes makes the morning sun
shy, so we ate our breakfast under fluorescent
lights. Our coupe mates would ride this train
further into the day – for us it was time to de-
part. Karaganda had snuck up outside our win-
dow, and was calling us into its streets.
The city smelled of industry and the cars
were all coated in dirt. We needed a bus to
Aksu-Ayuly, a small village where Central Asia’s
only woman eagle hunter resided. As if seven-
teen hours on the train were not enough, we
now had to spend two more driving back the
way we had come. Abay found us some tick-
ets and got us our bus, and we stood in line
in the cold. A woman was leaning out a win-
dow, announcing her hot pastries to every last
passerby. Her calls sounded like a lullaby to my
tired ears, “samsa, samsa,” over and over. The
sunlight still young, we filed onto the bus and
www.thespektator.co.uk
settled into our seats, sleep beckoning us back
into darkness.
I woke up, sweating. The heat was blasting
and my coat was still on. The bus was new and
tv-equipped, and my busmates craned their
necks to watch a bad Russian crime drama
showing at the front of our moving cinema.
I tried to tune out the gunshots and fall back
into slumber. Soon, though, Abay nudged my
shoulder and picked up his bags. We had ar-
‘Outside, there was not much
to greet us. The town square was
coated in mud. Men stood hud-
dled on its periphery, staring into
the fog that shrouded the steppe’
rived. Outside, there was not much to greet
us. The town square was coated in mud. Men
stood huddled on its periphery, staring into
the fog that shrouded the steppe. We called
Makpal and waited in a small cafeteria. There
was a mural of yurts on the wall, all billowing
smoke, all promising accommodation more
wholesome than the stone buildings and sta-
bles that had replaced them in this lifeless vil-
lage.
Two young women came through the door
and looked at us doubtfully. It was Makpal and
her sister-in-law, Saltanat. Makpal was done
up in makeup and braids and looked lovely,
Focus 19
younger than I expected. I didn’t recognize
her without the Kazakh costume she donned
in the photos I had seen. Now they were both
dressed in classy black, ready to impress their
new visitors. They showed us outside, where
we all piled into a car and drove through the
cold to her house, two blocks away.
Inside, it was warm. There was a big oven in
the kitchen that sent its heat through the wall
to the living room where we sat. Makpal’s fa-
ther Murat brought us a block of photo albums
to occupy our time as they cooked a meal to
welcome us to their country. They were like
your average family photos, group shots in
front of landmarks, but half of them had eagles
in them, perched like rotating family members.
In one, there was not only an eagle but an owl,
eyes big and alert. Murat said that they caught
the bird just for its feathers, which it shed in
large numbers at a special time every year. Ka-
zakhs before him had told me these feathers
were sacred. Some say it is because you can
read Koranic script in their markings.
Soon lunch was served. We quickly de-
voured our meat and potatoes, staples of
steppe cuisine. When we had washed it all
down with at least four bowls of tea, I pitched
some questions to Makpal and Abay inter-
preted. Wondrously, Abay would offer my
questions in Kyrgyz and Makpal would answer
in Kazakh. These two tongues were siblings,
made cousins by Soviet language policy in the
early years of Central Asia’s incorporation into
the union.
December 2010 The Spektator
 20 Focus
Most of the time, Makpal answered only
a few words and Saltanat stepped in to speak
for her shy sister. I started by telling her how
impressed I was with what she was doing. Ka-
zakh society was conservative and segregated,
yet Makpal’s passion for this tradition defied
all its time-honoured boundaries. Here was a
woman in the manliest of sports, all blood and
beasts and horseback hunts. She was a symbol
of a new Kazakh woman, I suggested, one who
could do anything. She just blushed: “Yeah,
maybe.”
It was hard to get much more out of her,
so in a break of silence they suggested we go
outside and take some photos. We wandered
out onto steppe. Makpal came out in her finest
falconry-ware, a traditional Kazakh robe and a
fur hat. She looked stunning. I paid her compli-
ments, but they never sound quite as sincere
in translation. With an eagle on her arm, I just
about fainted. The beautiful girl and the beau-
tiful bird had been partners for ten years. I was
jealous. Makpal petted her eagle gently and
maneuvered her into the jeep, which we rode
through the streets to the edge of town. We got
out atop a scenic hill, the wind even colder at a
height, chilling our bones. Makpal handed the
bird to her father and walked along the ridge,
and then called out. The eagle flew to her but
veered away, landing in the grass. Makpal stayed
ever calm, gently calling “Kel! Kel!” like a song. It
was the bird’s signal to come to her master. Sit-
ting stubbornly in the weeds, the eagle shook
it’s wings but went nowhere. Makpal persisted,
singing “Kel, Kel” into the wind. The call was so
alluring that it was a surprise that every eagle
December 2010 The Spektator
for miles didn’t swing around and head our way.
Her eagle was proud, though, and too full of
food to cooperate. Only after coming close did
the bird oblige, jumping up to Makpal’s waiting
wrist with a flap of its wings.
The icy wind had frozen us all to discom-
fort, so we sped back to the warmth of the
house. Makpal’s mom had started making be-
shparmak, the national dish of noodles and
mutton. On the kitchen table she rolled out
dough, spreading it thin in giant circles. These
she would slice into squares and we’d then eat
them with our hands.
For a while, we interviewed Murat. With
‘We were strangers, but there
was none of the enforced dis-
tance that people put between
themselves in the West. We were
crammed together in a corner of a
train and we might as well be kind
to one another’
all the attention on his daughter he seemed
a little left-out, but it was he who had taught
her all she knew. He told us about all the com-
plexities of the tradition he had brought Mak-
pal up with; how to properly feed an eagle, for
instance. The meat must be weighed exactly,
not with a scale but with a cupped palm, and
washed of all its blood. A bloody meal will ex-
cite the bird, and too much meat will stuff it to
complacency.
Soon, we too were complacently stuffed.
The beshparmak was served and devoured
without abandon. The meat was tender and
tasty, and the noodles were easy to handle in
the customary forkless fashion. I had two bowls
of fatty broth for dessert. There were two other
guests, recent immigrants from the Kazakh di-
aspora in western Mongolia. I told them I had
been to Bayan-Olgii and they were pleased.
We had feasted with our legs folded on the
ground, and now pillows were brought out to
further relax the well-fed. One Mongolian Ka-
zakh rested his head on the legs of the other,
and they picked their teeth in satisfaction.
We stayed up late playing a local card
game, a Karaganda favorite called “Byelka”,
or “Squirrel.” Abay and Saltanat were playing
matchmakers, so while they paired up, Makpal
was partnered with me. She sat across from me,
smiling, often our eyes meeting for the briefest
of moments. I adapt poorly to new card games,
and every time I sighed with frustration, Mak-
pal giggled. Abay and I had been joking all
week about how she was the woman of my
dreams, a beautiful girl with a bird who I would
sweep off her feet. Now, I felt strangely con-
nected to her, even though we hadn’t shared a
word in the same language. I had seen her pic-
ture in a Kyrgyz class magazine clipping, and I
had ventured out to find her in the middle of
nowhere. The strangeness of it all jumbled my
common sense, and I thought of staying here
forever, learning Kazakh, living with my beauti-
ful bride and her eagle, giving my heart to a
hunter in the heart of Eurasia.
www.thespektator.co.uk
 THE GUIDE
22

Bishkek life
Bars
Chuchuara Hoga (117, Chui) International
With this Chinese restaurant, a little out of the way
and and rarely visited by tourists, you really feel you 12 Chimneys (TeplIkluchy village)

restaurants are getting the real deal. Request a хого (your own
personal Chinese boiling-pot) and randomly select
Wooden cabin located by a rushing stream thirty min-
utes out of town. The overpriced food is more than
compensated for by the chilled atmosphere and wild
There’s a fine line between ‘bar’ and ‘restaurant’ in a variety of unusual Chinese delicacies to throw in.
surroundings. Hotel accommodation also available.
Bishkek. Places more suitable for drinking sessions Beware, the ‘spicy’ sauce, although delicious, may
leave delicate stomachs in some distress several Head south on Almatinskaya and keep going. $$$$
are marked with a star *
hours later - consider the ‘not-spicy’ sauce as a suit-
Price Guide (main course and a garnish) able alternative $$ Bacardi* (Togolok Moldo 17/1)
$ - Expect change from 150 som Elite lounge bar affair with separate rooms for din-
$$ - A little over 250 should do the trick Frunze ing, dancing and whiling the night away smoking
$$$ - Expect to pay in the region of 350 (Chui/Pravda) hukkah pipes. Urban grooves played at a reason-
$$$$ - A crisp 500 (or more) needed in this joint Free semechki is one of many reasons to check out able volume and a full menu that includes a range
this lively hangout, rammed with Chinese at lunch of tasty platters. $$$$
American and dinner time. The menu is encyclopediac in
terms of scope, but if you’re feeling bewildered, Barcode* (Toktogul/Sovietskaya, inside ‘Moto’)
Cowboy* (Toktogul/Orozbekova) just point to something tasty-looking on a neigh- A hip, clean interior, fast wi-fi and an affordable
Bishkek’s all-American restaurant-cum-dance bouring table like we did. $$ business lunch have made Barcode something of
club has now gone a little more up-market, but a hotspot since it opened in early 2010. The place
Peking Duck I & II comes to life at night when 3 DJs compete for your
wild nights are still to be had. Dig in to a kilo of
(Soviet/Druzhba & Chui/Tog. Mol.) affections with an array of banging tunes. $$
chicken wings and then hit the dance floor. $$$
Huge portions to feed even the biggest of glut-
tons and an English language menu that provides Blonder Pub* (Pravda/Kulatova)
Hollywood*(Druzhba/Sovietskaya)
plenty of amusing translations. $$ Blonder Pub is the new brewery-restaurant to try
As you would probably guess, decorated with
out. Cavernous yet cosy inside, there’s decent blues
movie posters, photos of cinema icons and a Shaolin (Zhibek Zholu/Prospect Mir)
every night, live Premiership Football, Eurogrub
bunch of American kitsch. Hollywood is popu- This tidy looking restaurant sticks out for its sheer
and a good selection of ales. In regard to the latter
lar with a younger crowd and is usually packed range of oriental dishes and its large, round tables
we recommend ‘Irish Red’. $$$$
from mid-evening onwards. A fun place for a few that make it ideal for extended gatherings. $$
drinks before heading off to the clubs. $$ Buddha Bar (Sovietskaya/Akhunbayeva)
New York Pizza (177, Kievskaya)
Dungan Buddha bar offers a taste of the East inside a tastefully
constructed zen log cabin. The sushi is excellent, and
Decorated with pictures of the Big Apple and Hui Min (Relocated to the Hotel Dostuk) for those on a budget, the stir-fry noodle dishes make
serving a fine selection of steaks and other A former favourite, we have been told that Hui Min an excellent lunch. Recommended! $$$$
American-themed dishes, NYP is sure to get New has now relocated to the Hotel Dostuk. Apparently
Yorkers thinking of home. For home delivery the menu has been revamped and the prices in- Captain Nemo’s (14, Togolok Moldo)
ring (0312) 909909. $$$ creased. The Spektator will be checking it out soon. Small nautically themed restaurant with a selection
We hope they still serve the special Dungan tea, as of evocatively named dishes including ‘Fish from the
Obama (Erkindik/Toktogul) ship’s boy’ and ‘Tongue from the boatswain’s wife’.
The owners claim that the inspiration for the title it’s rather good. Cosy wooden interior and porthole style windows
came from the first letters in each of their sur- create an underwater log cabin experience. Spirits,
names - pull the other one guys, the bloke is all Georgian cocktails and a good business lunch. $$$
over the walls. The pizza, like the presidency, has Mimino (27, Kievskaya)
Ceska* (115, Alamatinskaya)
certainly been over-hyped, but the chicken plat- Mimino is nice, cosy and serves up bowl-fulls of steam-
Cousin to Blonder Pub, this Bros Co. ‘theme bar’ is
ter and the cheese burgers are a treat. Big por- ing, hearty Georgian fare with pomegranate seeds
a-plenty. We recommend the kjadjapuri, khinkali and worth checking out for its fantastic tiramisu cake
tions. $$$ alone. Every third beer is free but don’t get too ex-
anything that’s served in a pot. Watch out for Uncle Joe
at the door. $$$$ cited - they come in 0.4l glasses. $$$
Armenian German Coffee House (9, Manas & Togolok Moldo/Ryskulova)
Treat yourself to some of the finest coffee and
Landau (Manas/Gorky) cakes Bishkek has to offer at the imaginatively
Fancy something a little different? If you can tol- Steinbrau* (5, Gerzena)
named ‘Coffee House’, a cosy boutique café with a
erate the arthritic service, Landau isn’t a bad spot Don your beer drinking trousers and head down
European flavour. Curl up and read a book, or just
for a pork steak or some other Armenian culinary to Bishkek’s take on a Bavarian-style beer hall. They
drop in for a caffeine hit and a chocolate fix. $$$
goodies. Also, treat yourself to some decent Arme- brew their own stuff - such a relief from the insipid
nian conjac whilst your here, you’ll never go near bilge that’s normally sold as lager. Compliment your Cosmo Bar* (Sovietska/Moskovskaya)
Bishkek conjac again. Ever. $$$ pint with a plate of German sausage with sauerkraut. Board the sweet smelling elevator, ascend to the
$$$ top-floor Cosmo Bar and splash the cash with your
fellow free-spending cosmonauts. Elegant interior,
Chinese Uighur plush sofas, fancy drinks and pretty waitresses.
Huzzah! $$$$
Ak-Bata (108, Ibraimova) Karavan (Almatinkskoya/Chui) Crostini (191, Abdrahmanova)
This place must serve up pretty authentic dishes Excellent little stolvya (canteen) full of the timeless Situated inside the Hyatt, this is a joint to be re-
as it’s always full of Chinese playing mah-jong and regional favourites. Being han Uighur restaurant its served for a business lunch or marriage proposal
waving their chopsticks about. Smoky and stuffy, gero lagman or lagman pa Uighurski particularly stand only. Chef Taner Erdemir serves up mouth-water-
but in a nice way. $ out. No smoking, sit, eat and leave. $ ing international cusine, but at a price. $$$$$

December 2010 The Spektator www.thespektator.co.uk

 Bars, Restaurants & Clubs 23
Dillinger* (Gorky/Tynystanova) Navigator (103, Moskovskaya) Cyclone (136, Chui)
Glamorous VIP complex including a restaurant, bar A pricy, but pleasant place to while away an after- Smart Italian restaurant with plush interior, efficient,
and casino. A decedantly decorated and perculiarly noon. Sit in the bar area over a beer or lounge in the polite serving staff and a warm atmosphere to al-
endearing homage to the notorious bank robber - airy non-smoking conservatory. Attentive service leviate Bishkek’s winter chills. Pasta dishes stand out
we’re sure he would appreciate it. $$$$ among a menu of traditional Italian favourites. $$$
and a refreshing selection of salads, a good place
Fatboy’s* (Chui/Tynystanova) for a light, healthy lunch when fat and grease are Dolce Vita (116a, Akhunbaeva)
Civilized, friendly cafe bang in the middle of town and getting you down. $$$$ Cosy Italian restaurant with smiling waitresses serv-
a popular ex-pat meeting point. Sensible spot for con- ing excellent pizza. Also serves salads and European
versation, but if you’re alone there’s a mini-library to pe- Stary Edgar’s* (15, Panfilova) cuisine. Small terrace outside for summertime din-
ruse (although literary classics are thin on the ground). The concrete monstrosity of the Russian Theatre con- ing. $$
Check out the American pancakes for breakfast, top ceals one of Bishkek’s finest attempts at a cosy base-
marks. $$$ ment bar. Friendly staff, a decent menu and a collection Japanese
of old bits and bobs decorating the walls make Edgar’s
Four Seasons (116a, Tynystanova) an attractive alternative to the city’s mainstream cafés.
One of the poshest places to eat out in Bishkek. El- A blues band plays most nights and a pianist adds a ro- Aoyama (93, Toktogula)
egant, yet modern interior and polite service. Great Elegant sushi joint frequented by serious looking
mantic ambience on some Sunday evenings. $$$ suited-types concluding their latest dodgy deals.
place to splash out on a special occasion or just for
the hell of it. $$$$ The food’s excellent though - if you can scrape to-
U Mazaya (Behind ‘Zaks’ on Sovietskaya) gether enough soms. $$$$
Foyer (27, Erkindik ) Possibly Central Asia’s only rabbit themed restaurant.
Watari (Shevchenko, Frunze)
Foyer is an excellent place to enjoy an evening cock- Descend into this underground warren and tuck in. A small Japanese-owned restaurant that serves su-
tail or check your inbox with a cup of coffee. Free Also check out the fairy-light adorned flagship sister- shi as well as dishes with a more indian flavour. The
Wi-Fi, good deserts and blues on Tuesdays. $$$ rabbit-restaurant in Asenbai micro region. $$$
refined atmosphere makes it ideal for a business
meeting or just a sophisticated night out $$$
Griffon (Microregion 7) Vavilon (Microregion 7)
A cosy log-cabin affair with a large meat-roasting Finely presented dishes, reasonably priced beer (60
central fireplace. On one disturbing occasion the som) genuinely friendly and attentive service and live Korean
waiting staff were about as plesant as a bunch of music from 8-ish on most evenings. Definitely worth
chavs, but hopefully that was a passing phase. $$$ Petel (52, Zhykeeva Pudovkin)
the trek out to the suburbs ( tell your taxi driver to turn
Operating in the back room of a Korean family’s
left at the yuzhniy vorota and head towards Asenbai house, this is Korean style home-cooking at its most
Jam* (179, Toktogula)
An underground oasis of cool. Jam is a cafe with a for about 1.5km) $$$ personal. Closed on Sunday. Ring: 0543 922539 $$
full menu, kalians (shisha pipes) and a lounge bar Vis-a-Vis (26, Logvinenko)
atmosphere, open till 3am . $$$$ Look for the yellow awning between Kiev and Chui. Santa Maria (217, Chui)
This place is a new honey pot for ex pats. Steak is Plush Korean restaurant offering Eastern favourites,
Jumanji (Behind the circus) including exciting Korean barbecues where you get
always advisable when eating at an appendix to a
It’s strange. This place is decorated with fake jungle to cook your own dinner, plus an extensive Euro-
foliage and is based on a crap kids’ film yet still sort butcher’s, and the sirloin here is exceptional. Also, en-
pean menu. $$$
of works. You also get to roll a pair of Jumanji dice joy English breakfasts, chips that aren’t cold and local
before you order for the chance to win a special se- dark ale Chuiski on tap. Recommended! $$$
Lebanese
cret prize - we like this. $$$

Live Bar* (Kulatova/Pravda)

Twenty-four hour sports bar with live music at
weekends. Plenty of leather couches provide the
ideal place to sip cocktails whilst watching the
Champions league at three in the morning. $$$$
Lounge Bar* (338a, Frunze)
One of our favourite places to drink in the Summer-
time, when we can afford it. Outdoor balcony-cum-
terrace high above the street with slouch-couches
and fine views of the circus - which you can some-
times smell in hot weather. Nice. $$$
Metro* (133, Chui)
In the impressive location of a former theatre, Metro
remains the première drinking hole for ex-pats. A
high ceiling, a long bar and friendly staff compli-
ment a good Tex-Mex menu and a wide selection
of drinks. Metro is one of the best bets for catch-
ing sporting events on TV, although thanks to the
hideously late kickoff times for Champions League
football matches, don’t count on the staff waiting up
unless it’s a big one. $$$
Indian Beirut (Shevchenko/Frunze)
Now in a new location, Beirut continues to serve en-
The Host (Sovietskaya, opposite the Hyatt) ticing Lebanese goodies including falaffle, humus,
A varied and interesting menu including fine Indian and tasty little meat pie things. $$$
food make this place a real treat. On midweek days
there are also several excellent business lunch deals
offering a soup, salad, main course and dessert for Moldovan
250-350 som. A real stand out and a Spektator fa-
vourite! $$$$ Moldova Restaurant (Kievskaya/Turusbekova)
If it’s been a while since you last went out for a
Italian Moldovan, this wooden paneled, sturdy-tabled ea-
tery may be the answer to your prayers. Also, the
Adriatico (219, Chui) Moldovan Embassy is next door should you care
Reportedly suffering following the departure of to learn more about the world’s favourite budget-
its Italian chef, Walter, although we have been told wine exporting country. $$$
that the soup is still excellent. $$$$
Regional/Central Asian
Bella Italia (Kievskaya/K.Akiev)
Adriatico’s former Italian chef, Walter, has moved Arabica* (Mederova/Tynastanova)
homes and is now serving a practically identical range This formerly sophisticated laid back shisha pipe)
of dishes at this spot just behind October cinema. bar has moved to a new location and, by the looks
Enjoy the best pizza in town, gnocci and other typi- of the bath in the toilets, may still be under devel-
cal Italian numbers, tasty business lunches from 200 opment. Three floors, VIP rooms, kaliyans aplenty.
soms. $$$$ $$$

Spektator
THE

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www.thespektator.co.uk December 2010 The Spektator

 24 Bars, Restaurants & Clubs
Arzu-II (Sovietskaya/Lev Tolstoy bridge) Zaporyzhia (9, Prospect Mira) Apple (28, Manas)
Twenty-four hour joint that’s a godsend for those Recently opened, Zaporyzhia is a cossack fla- Fat, old, lecherous foreigners not welcome, this
who get cravings for lagman or manti at four in voured restauraunt in a varnish-scented log cab- place is for a younger cooler crowd. Multiple bars,
the morning. Sometimes smoking isn’t allowed, in. Hearty rustic dishes and a homely atmosphere. large dance floor, friendly atmosphere. Thursday
sometimes it is, however the food and prices are The medovukha is recommended! $$$ usually a big night. (Entrance charge 100-300 som)
constantly pretty good. Comfy booth style seats to
dig yourself into after a heavy night. $$ Turkish Arbat (9, Karl Marks)
Ajar (On Erkindik between Moskovskaya, Toktogula) Tel. 512094; 512087
Arzu-I (Togolok Moldo, next to the stadium) Smart ‘elite’ club popular with a slightly older
Offers a hearty selection of Kyrgyz and European Technically an ‘Azerbaijanian’, but don’t let this fact crowd. Strip bar and restaurant in same building.
dishes and a homely atmosphere. There’s also a ruin the best value kebabs in town. The menu is (Entrance charge 200/350 som midweek, 350/450
great outdoor terrace and national favorouit Arpa limited and if your Russian is too, just say ‘kebab’ and som Fri/Sat. Strip bar 700 som)
on draught. $$ something cheap and tasty will arrive. $
City Club (85/1, Zhukeyeva-Pudovkina)
Derevyashka* (Ryskulova, behind Dvorets Sporta) Carlson (166, Sovietskaya) Tel. 511513; 510581
Atmospheric drinking cabin that serves a range A good outdoor terrace and some hearty food, but So exclusive it makes the Spektator crowd feel like
of Central Asian and Russian cuisine, as well as an the Karaoke style crooners who provide evening cheap scum bags, City Club is one of the posh-
impressive array of pivo. Well worth it on football entertainment are an acquired taste. $$ est clubs in town. Get past the ‘face control’ (ugly
nights, when the locals are rather rowdy. $ people beware) and spend your evening with gang-
Huzur (Kievskaya/Togoluk Moldo,)
Faiza (Jibek Jolu/Prospect Mira) Convivial proprietor Ali claims to have Steven Ger- ster types, lecherous diplomats, Kazakh business-
Possibly the best place to munch traditional grub rard’s 2005 Champion’s League winning Liverpool men and a posse of young rich kids who all seem to
in town. Their fried pelmeni and manti are so good shirt. If you don’t believe that, belive in free lipyosh- have studied in London. (Entrance charge: girls 200/
that they have often run out by supper-time. Save ka and good, affordable Turkish cuisine. $$ boys 300, Fri/Sat girls 300/boys 500
an appetite and go early. $$ Golden Bull (Chui/Togolok Moldo)
Konak (Sovietskaya/Gorkova)
Forel (Vorentsovka village) This Turkish joint used to be ‘Restaurant Camelot’ Tel. 620131
Twenty minutes outside of Bishkek, Forel is a fish- hence the incongruous suits of armour in the back A Bishkek institution. Full of ex-pats and tourists liter-
based ‘relaxation centre’ set amongst babbling room, and the rather crappy castle facade. However, ally every night of the week. Long bar, friendly staff,
streams and offering fine veiws of the mountains. Fish the food is often great, the salads are large and fresh, cheapish beer, everyone’s happy. (Entrance charge
your own trout out of a pool and have it deep fat fried and the staff are always pleasant. Recommended! [girls/boys] free/400 midweek, 150/400 Fri/Sat. ‘For-
for your pleasure. Only salads, bread, tea and juice are (And now open 24 hours a day) $$ eigners’ free.)
sold on site but you are welcome to bring any booze
Retro Metro (24, Mira)
or garnish you desire, it’s also possible to rent a BBQ.
To get there take a taxi to Vorentsovka village and, if Night www.retrometro.kg

your taxi driver doesn’t know the exact location, ask a
friendly villager. Trout is 800som/kilo $$$
Jalalabad (Togolok Moldo/Kievskaya)
Basically the cheapest food (that won’t give you gut
rot) in the centre of town. While it should stand out
for its fresh lagman, Jalalabad is sometimes over-
looked. Probably at its best in summer, when the
shashlyk masters flanking the entrance offer their
creations straight to guests sitting at Eastern-style
tables – cross your legs and see how long you can
last before cramp sets in. $
Advertise with
the Spektator
Rates from 2000 som per page.
Email:
advertise@thespektator.co.uk
Russian/Ukrainian
Pirogoff-Vodkin (Kievskaya/Togolok Moldo)
Classy restaurant with a turn of the 20th century
atmosphere serving Russian specialities. Have your
tea in a giant samovar. $$$
Khutoryanka (Sovietskaya/Lev Tolstoy bridge)
Unassuming, to put it mildly, on the outside, this
place is a revelation on the inside. Delicious food,
reasonable service, Ukrainian brass band music
on the cd player. We love it! $$$
Platinum (East side of the Philharmonia)
Taras Bulba (Near the Yuzhniy Vorota on Sovietskaya)
Like all the Ukrainian restaurants we’ve tried in Take a seat at the snazzy 360 degree bar and do (Entrance charge 100-150 som)
Bishkek, Taras Bulba serves great food. We liked the battle with some of Kyrgyzstan’s most convivial
potato pancakes with caviar, the delicious soups ‘elite’ for gold-digging temptresses. (Entrance Live music also common at Stary Edgar’s, Beatles
and fresh salads. $$$ charge 400-500 som)
Clubs
Bright, happy, 80’s kitsch bar, the DJ spins his rec-
ords from inside the front of a VW camper van. One
of the most popular places for post-2am partying.
(Entrance charge: 200/300 som midweek, 350/450
There are some Bishkek old-hands who say that som Fri/Sat. Reserve for 200 som)
things aren’t what they used to be when it comes to
nightlife in Bishkek. They talk of legendary nights of Live Music
carnage, vomit, and debauchery - delights that con-
temporary Bishkek struggles to offer. Promzona (16, Cholpon-Atinskaya)
Not so, we say. Take your pick from the list below and www.promzona.kg
we’re sure there’s still enough carnage, vomit and Promzona’s far-flung location sadly means a taxi
debauchery in town to keep everyone happy. ride or a long walk home are in order at the end
of a night. Nevertheless, this trendy live music
Diskoklubs venue has a lot going for it: good bands, an exten-
sive menu, and a hip industrial interior featuring,
Heaven (Frunze/Pravda - in the Hotel Dostuk) strangely, a wind tunnel fan, make this one of the
As Heaven is found inside a hotel it is surprisingly best nights out in Bishkek. Tuesday is Jazz night.
unseedy. In fact it stands out for being a bastion of Rock or blues bands normally play at the week-
the well-dressed (if one is generous). Turn up in tatty ends. (Music charge 200-350 som)
jeans and a t-shirt and you may feel a little out of
place; then again, you may not give a shit. Tables by Tequila Blues (Turesbekova/Engels)
the dancefloor cost 1000 som but include drinks up A possible misnomer, the tequila is just fine but
to this value. (Entrance charge 200-400 som) the blues is non-existent. Russian studenty types
mosh away the nights to Rock bands in an at-
Fire & Ice (Tynystanova/Erkindik) mospheric underground bunker. (Music charge
A slightly grittier version of Golden Bull. Again, for- 150 som)
eigners can often get in for free. Popular throughout
Sweet Sixties (Molodaya Gvardia/Kievskaya)
the week. (Entrance ‘foreigners’ free)
Live cover bands most nights. Full menu, popular
with a younger crowd. $$
Gvozd (Western side of the Philharmonia)
Foreigners for free, urban grooves and acceptable
Zeppelin (43, Chui)
prices at the bar. ‘Gvozd’ means ‘nail’ in Russian, but
Zeppelin is in the same vein as the old Tequila
you’ve probably got a better chance at the Golden
Blues but not quite so spit and sawdust. On the
Bull. Its almost like the crowd from Pharaoh have mi-
nights we’ve visited, there’s been a line up of young
grated. (Entrance ‘foreigners’ free)
rock or punk bands strutting their stuff, heavier
beats seem to go down best with the young Rus-
sian crowd. Full restaurant menu.
Bar, Foyer and Blonder Pub (see ‘restaurants’)

December 2010 The Spektator www.thespektator.co.uk

 Map 25
vardia a Gvardia
Mol o d aya G Moloday

Jibek
Jo lu
Kievskaya
THE MOUNTAINS

Chui
Engelsa
Lva Tolstogo

Toktogula
1 2 13
23 ve.
Manas a
ve.
Manas a4 5

Ryskulova

Jumabe
ve.
Manas a

Kievskaya
Moskovskaya

Isanova

k
6 11

T. Abdymom
Isanova 8 Koenkozo
va
Isanova 7
12 Dvorets
Sporta
9 10

unov stadium
oldo
Togolok M

Jibe
Michael Frunze
Spartak

k Jo
Chui
Toktogula

k o 14
Logvinen
Moskovskaya

va
Orozbeko
15

Juma

Baeto
16
Lva Tolstog

va
Orozbeko a
Razzakov
Bokonbaeva

bek

va
18 a
Razzakov
17 Erkind
Abdym

Erkindik
Tugolbay

Michae
omuno
o

19 21
l Frunze

a ova
Fatianov Tynystan
va

ova
Tynystan 20 AYA
SOVETSK
AYA
Circus

26 27 SOVETSK
Chui

AYA
Kievskaya

SOVETSK aeva 24
22
Shopoko
va
A. Usenb
Toktogula

25
Lva

va
Shopoko
Pravda
a
Elebaev
Tol

Pravda
sto

lya
Gogo
Ogonbae
Moskov
go

North
Bokonb

lya
Gogo
va

www.thespektator.co.uk December 2010 The Spektator

 26 What’s On
Metro Festive Calendar TUK Dates for 2011 Entertainment Directory
24th December 2nd-5th January The Puppet Theatre
Christmas Eve Shindig Snowshoes trip in Issyk Kul region Sovietskaya/Michurina
Let the good times roll at your favourite ex-pat Cross country and snowshoes trip in the Ak- Performances on Sundays at 11:00am.
drinking hole, the Metro. A great opportunity Sayy gorge area. Visit local sights. Cost per
to see Christmas in with the people you love, head for a group of 17 people is 3950 soms. Russian Drama Theatre
rather than your grandparents. Price includes consultation, accommodation, Tynystanova, 122 (Situated in Oak Park)
food, cross country ski instructor and equip- Tel.: 662032, 621571
25th December ment! Hours: Mon-Sun, 10:00-18:00
Christmas Lunch + and an Evening of Rock Tickets 30-100 som
Order turkey and all the rest with lashings of January 9th Local and international plays in Russian.
beer before going home, bloated, and returning Trekking in Ala Archa gorge.
in the evening to watch four of Bishkek’s hottest One day trip to the Ala Archa gorge. Hike to The Conservatory
live acts. Pay on the door. the Ak Say waterfall and visit the International Jantosheva, 115
Memorial to Kyrgyz Alpinists. Walk in the pano- Tel: 479542
31st December rama of Peak Korona. The trip covers different Concerts by students and professors.
Down and Dirty New Year’s Knees up levels of intensity, and is suitable for most be-
Simply the social event of the season - live music ginners. Overall distance: 12km. Kyrgyz State Philharmonic
and a retro disco to bop into the night, bang in
Chui Prospect, 253
the place where everybody knows your name January 15th
Tel: 212262, 212235
(even if you can’t remember theirs). There’s no Alpine skiing at Too-Ashuy ski base.
sugar-coating this - it gets wild. Hours: 17:00-19:00 in summer
Transport and organization fees including con-
Tickets: 70-100 som (sometimes much more for
sultation and guide are as follows:
Vis a Vis Festive Calendar For a group of 7 tourists - 600 som (base fare), special performances)
570 som (TUK members) There are two concert halls featuring classical,
24th, 25th December Equipment hire rates not included. traditional Kyrgyz, and pop concerts and a variety
Weinachten, Christmas of shows.
We hear Christmas eve is the big one for Ger- January 16th
mans, but regardless of your nationality, David Alpine ski at the Orlovka ski base. Opera Ballet Theatre
Hutton and his team are ready to whip up two Transport and organization fares including Sovietskaya/Abdymununova
days worth of prawn cocktail/ham and pineap- consultation and guide are: Tel: 66 15 48
ple salads, a choice of roasts (turkey, pork or For a group of 7 tourists 450 som (base fare), Hours: 17:00-19:00
beef ) with stuffing, and a choice of puddings 430 som (TUK); Tickets: 150-600 som
(cheesecake, profiteroles, fruit salad). A glass Tickets for performances sell out very quickly and
of champagne or wine is also thrown in for a January 16th it is necessary to book a seat in advance.
bargain price of 980 soms per head. Normal One day trek in the Alamedin gorge.
menu also available. Walk in the panorama of the Black Finger and
Aman-Too peaks. Hike to a local waterfall and
31st December picnic in the open air. Visit a local spring. Suit- Live updates
New Year’s Eve bash able for all ages and abilities. Distance: 12 km.
Hot stews, cold cuts, salads, deserts, cham- Same day return to Bishkek. For all the Bishkek opera, ballet and concert listings,
pagne and party poppers, a stone’s throw from check our frequently updated What’s On listings at:
the White House where the city’s best firework January 23rd www.thespektator.co.uk
display will be in full flow. 1,250 soms per Snowshoes trek in the Takir Tor gorge
head. Reservation essential, call David Hutton One day trek around the Takir Tor gorge. Hike
on (0775) 582369 to a marine lake. Suitable for all ages and abili- Spektral Travel
ties. Distance: 18km
New Year Evenings Truly shagged out from New Year’s exertions, you might
January 29th want to just lie on the couch and watch classic Soviet
23rd-30th December Alpine ski at the Orlovka ski base. films repeated ten times a day over the festive period.
Groove away at Dillinger (Soviet/Gorkova) Transport and organization fares including Then again, that might blow. We recommend the first
The lights are low and the dance floor is open. consultation and guide are: date on the TUK calendar (left) or a jaunt to Altyn Arashan
Get on down to Dillinger club for a series of am- For a group of 7 tourists - 450 som (base fare), where you can combine skiing and hot spring dipping in
the same day. Contact Yak Tours (03922) 56901 for details.
bient evenings to warm you up for New Year. 430 som (TUK)

Trekking Union of Kyrgyzstan

Kyrgyz Republic, Bishkek, Chui av. 4A, Office A4
Tel.: +996 (312) 90 61 15, 90 61 39
e-mail: trek@elcat.kg,
website: www.trek-kyrgyzstan.com, www.tuk.kg

Map: Location guide 7. Beta Stores Supermarket 14. New York Pizza 21. Stary Edgars
1. Tequila Blues 8. Derevyashka 15. Cowboy 22. TSUM Department Store
2. Metro Bar (American Pub) 9. Cyclone 16. National Museum 23. Jam
3. Watari 10. Coffee House (II) 17. Navigator 24. Mimino
4. Zaporyzhian Nights 11. Adriatico 18. Sky Bar 25. Arabica
5. Coffe House (I) 12. Santa Maria 19. Foyer 26. Konak
6. 2x2 Bar 13. Faiza 20. Fatboy’s 27. VEFA shopping Centre

December 2010 The Spektator www.thespektator.co.uk