Tag: Taxis

The Secret To Kyrgyz Taxi Fares

Published on by Mark Jahnke

I’ve talked way too much on this blog about how much I prefer taking marshrutkas and buses to riding in taxis.  But, sometimes, you can’t get away from the fact that taxis are the only way that you’re going to get from point A to point B.  Confounding all of this is the fact that just about every city in the former USSR has a different approach to taxis.  Here’s a rough guide on navigating the major taxi systems of Kyrgyzstan (plus Almaty and Dushanbe). Continue reading “The Secret To Kyrgyz Taxi Fares” →

Hiking, Or The Time Two Angry Men Stalked Me To A Town Called Papan

Published on by Mark Jahnke

It’s Kyrgyzstan. The mountains are there, the trails are there, we have backpacks, jackets, sleeping bags, pads, and tents. Now all that remained was to climb one. Sounds pretty straightforward, right?

A little over a week ago, a bunch of us did a trek up a valley to an area called the Jiptik Pass, which is a spectacular valley that is great for first-time trekkers because there is a “road” that goes pretty much the entire way, so there’s not really any risk of becoming lost, and there’s plentiful water along the way. We set off midday after work on the Friday, and by about 7pm we had made a camp a few hours up the trail. Continue reading “Hiking, Or The Time Two Angry Men Stalked Me To A Town Called Papan” →