It’s the end of the month, and as a part of a new blogging and photography goal I’ve set for myself with BloggingAbroad, I’ve been taking photos based on prompts (and just from life in general), and I wanted to share a few with you!  Take a look, read about it, and click to enlarge if you want to see more closely.

#1 Oshski Samsa

Get in my belly, Oshski Samsa! Osh is famous for these massive sheep and onion-filled samosas prepared in a large clay oven. While technically called “tandoor samsa,” many people, including me, affectionately call them “Oshski Samsa.”  They’re traditionally so huge that you have no choice but to eat them with a knife and fork by cutting them open like this.

#2 Hashtag Something I Love

One of my favorite things about living in Osh is hearing the adzhan, or call to prayer, every day, five times a day.  For some people, it’s a big adjustment, but there’s something so beautiful about hearing these calls in the early morning, at midday, in the mid-afternoon, at sunset, and just before bed.  It almost works like a clock chime for me, both telling me what time it is, and, even though I’m not Muslim, reminding me to be kind and respectful to others.  This photo shows Suleiman Too to the far left, and is centered on a minaret in the traditionally Uzbek neighborhood to the immediate north of the mountain.  That neighborhood, by the way, has some of the most delicious Oshski Samsa in Osh!

#3 The World’s Sketchiest Bridge

This bridge crosses one of the rivers that runs down from the big waterfall in Arslanbob.  I took this photo pointing straight down from the bridge to the water, and scared the living daylights out of half of Facebook with it.

#4 The Big Waterfall

This is a view from the lookout point by the big waterfall in Arslanbob.  The waterfall is super tall, and from the lookout you can’t even see the bottom!  A truly unbelievable view.

#5 Football Field in Daroot-Korgon

Near the beginning of the month, I headed out to Daroot-Korgon with the American Corner Caravan, and got some incredible views of some incredibly open skies and mountains.  Read more about that trip here.  This shot shows what might be the world’s most picturesque football field at the school in this town, which is the hub of a rayon of 25,000 people.

#6 The Osh Welcome Arch

The highway from Bishkek to Osh and the highway from Osh to Alay, China, and Tajikistan both pass under this arch with its statue of Alimbek Datka, who was the ruler of this part of the world until his assassination in 1862, and whose wife, Kurmanjan Datka, successfully negotiated peace when it became a Russian colony.  The arch features a tündük at the top, a common symbol across Kyrgyzstan that is a representation of the crown piece of a traditional yurt.  It also appears on the flag.

#7 Teaching Seasons

The American Corner took a bunch of photos at a recent talking club that I held where we talked about the seasons and held a debate over which was the best and the worst season.  As you can see by the tallies to the far right of the whiteboard, there was very little consensus on which was the best and worst.  This is also here because I look really really ridiculously tan here.

#8 Switzerland and Kyrgyzstan on Suleiman Too

Some good friends from Harvard and Geneva came to visit me earlier this month, and so naturally we had to climb to the top of Suleiman Too to take a photo with the flags of Switzerland and Kyrgyzstan with Osh in the background!

#9 Toward Lenin Peak

Another shot from the Alay Valley, this time of a man on his donkey with a view of Peak Lenin’s 7134m peak in the background.  Lenin Peak is a popular destination for mountaineers, and as this view makes clear, one of the most spectacular places in the world.

#10 The Summit

This is at the summit of a recent weekend hike, another in my series of shots of me with the flag.

#11 Deserted Beach

This was the site of one of our morning swims on my recent weekend trip to Kaji-Sai on the South Shore of Issyk-Kul.  In the distance, you can see a massive statue on top of the mountain of a traditional Manaschi, the reciter of the epic oral poem of Manas.

#12 Beach Sunset

A sunset with the waves on the beach from the South Shore of Issyk-Kul.  One of the most beautiful and relaxing nights so far this year.

#13 Archer in Fairytale Canyon

We went hiking in Fairytale Canyon on the South Shore of Issyk-Kul, and I had a lot of fun running out and taking crazy yoga photos balancing in various places.  This was one of the best shots that turned out from all of that.  It really doesn’t fully capture the sheer size of these amazing rock formations.

#14 Victory Square

I’ve photographed Victory Square a lot from the ground, but I was lucky enough to get this spectacular view from our conference room at our recent Mid-Service Training.

#15 Ala-Too Square

The view from my favorite bench in Ala-Too Square in Bishkek on my recent trip there.  With the World Nomad Games coming up, Bishkek is as lively as can be!

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