Kyrgyzstan Field Trip - Burana Tower

Continuing the "Fall Break" theme, and trying to get out and see a bit of this lovely country before real winter hits and we're "in the city," we drove east today and visited the Burana Tower.

Here is a quick "Wikipedia" article that gives some of the background of the Burana Tower - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burana_Tower

This was one of the signs we saw as we were walking up to the tower.

The path to the tower.

The "map" of the area.

Our first view of the Burana Tower.

The yurt "gift shop" at the site.

There was another school group there today.

The view of the southern mountains from the tower.

So, we climbed up the tower, and these were the steps, as we were going back down.

View of the mountain range from the top of the tower.

Using my zoom lens.

From the top of the tower the kids noticed that the structures on the ground were the Greek letter "omega." Cool, huh?!

The gift shop and the museum view from the top of the tower.

The earthworks view from the top of the tower.

The kids, at the top. Yes, you might notice that Sissi is still a bit teary-eyed. It was a bit dramatic going up and down those stairs....they were steep!

Sissi, going down the steps. We had Uncle Scott in front, then the boys, then Jeff, then Sissi, and then me. All the adults had our "flashlight" apps going on our phones so that the stairwell was lit. Still, I'll be honest, it was dark, steep, and a tight fit. I cannot imagine during high tourist season when there are people going up AND down these stairs at the same time.

At the bottom, looking up. Can you see Magevney waving?

We walked over to the earthworks next. This is the view of the tower and the mountains from the top of the earthworks, where it is supposed that a citadel once stood.

A view down the valley and mountain range.

The kids, jumping on the top of the earthworks.

Walking over to some of the excavation areas.

Not much flora left after the snow.

One other neat "note" from today...as we drove east, to the city of Tokmok, we drove through Kazakhstan for about 1 minute. It seems that the river is the natural border between the two countries, but the road crosses the river in two places, and so for a brief moment, we went into Kazakhstan!

First Kyrgyz Field Trip - Ala Archa National Park

This week is "Fall Break" for most of the schools here in Bishkek, so we took some time on Saturday to head out of the city a little ways and enjoy the mountains!

We hope you enjoy the lovely pictures and God's amazing beauty that abounds here in Kyrgyzstan.

Our view of the mountains from the park.

As we walked in to find a "campsite" and set up for our picnic.

One of the local birds.

Sissi, posing on some rocks.

The guys, starting the fire for our lunch.

Our kids! I got some great shots of them all around the camp site.

Another cute picture of the kids.

And another one.

Krypto really loves having a little one around.

The kids, and their picnic lunch.

My boy, Gwangi.

A cute family shot that our friends took for us.

Our camp fire, cooking shashlik/kebabs.

Another amazing view.

Sissi, down by the river.

My sweet girl. She found a great spot to take more pictures.

My oldest, Krypto.

Family shot!

As we left the park, this is what we saw...it looks like a painting!

The name of the park, Ala Archa, means multi-colored trees in Kyrgyz (specifically a juniper tree, but there are obviously LOTS of trees in the park)...yep, they got that one right, especially in the fall!

I really loved the teal and burgundy colored house tops with all the fall colors. Awesome!

Maybe we should move to this valley ;)!? Seems so peaceful here!

Another view of the valley.

The entrance to the park!

The other side of the entrance to the park.