Saw this poster yesterday about the Spanish Film Week in Kyrgyzstan, 24-27 May 2011.
Location is at the House of Film (Дом Кино), 13 Logvinenko Street. It’s opposite the Yusa Restaurant, south of Bokonbaeva Street.
Each day, the first film starts at 5:30PM & the second film starts at 7:30PM.
Free entry!
Posted in Events |
I’m not a biker, but know that many cyclists come through Kyrgyzstan on their Silk Road journey. Here are some useful information from www.bike.net.kg/en_hire.htm. Stores selling outdoor gear & specifically bicycles & spares.
Free Bike
Address: ул. Кулатова 18 (in English: Kulatova)
Tel: 0 996 312 59-17-12, 0 996 312 54-55-54, 0 996 555 97-50-47
e-mail: freebike@mail.ru or it_expert@inbox.ru
Mountain Project
Bishkek, 216/3, Toktogula str., Tel.: + 996 312 31 76 44
Web: http://www.mountainpro.kg
Selling: Clothing for alpinists and tourist, clothing for skiers and snowboarders.
Equipment: sleeping bags, camps, bags, mats, mountain bikes, lights, gas and gas cartridge and etc.
Tourism: Adventure tours, Mountaineering, Heli-Skiing, Auto-Safari.
Red Fox
Bishkek, 65, Sovetskaya str., Tel.: + 996 312 59 17 55
Web: http://www.redfox.ru
Selling and rent: Clothing: for alpinism, hiking, skiing and snowboarding, boots.
Equipment: camps, sleeping bags, bags, skis, snowboards, mountain bikes, mats, gas and gas cartridge.
Alpik
Bishkek, 80, Mira av., Tel.: + 996 312 56 13 84
Web: http://www.alpik.kg
Selling: Outdoor equipment and clothing.
Gergert Sport
Bishkek, 119, Gorkogo str., Tel.: + 996 312 54 16 11
Selling and rent: skis, snowboards, sport equipment, mountain bikes.
Clothing: for sport, skiing and snowboarding.
Yuganov – Specialized bicycle store
Bishkek, 14/a, Serova str., Tel.: + 996 312 67 09 74
Equipment: all necessary equipment for bikers, mountain bikes.
Repair of mountain bikes.
Drive – Specialized bicycle store
Bishkek, 213, Tokrogula str., Tel.: + 996 312 65 55 51
Web: http://www.giant-bicycles.in.kg
Selling and repair of bicycles.
Sport Express
Bishkek, 73/1 Mira Ave, Tel.: + 996 312 69 49 48
Selling: Outdoor equipment.
View “Postcard from Bishkek” here – http://ianbek.kg
Wanted to recommend this blog written by Ian Claytor. He’s the boss of Celestial Mountains Tour Company, the Silk Road Lodge (in Bishkek) & also the Naryn Guesthouse. He’s been in Kyrgyzstan for a long time & has much to share thru this blog. Highly recommended reading!
Posted in Tourism |
ProFoto is a great place to get your prints made. Great, central location right on Prospekt Chui, west of the fountains on Ala-Too Square.
Paper size ranges from 9cm x 13cm up to 30cm x 45cm. Prices for large prints are much cheaper than what you would have to pay in the West. Quick service also – usual wait is maximum 30 minutes, unless they are really busy.
The ProFoto staff do not speak much English (or maybe they actually do?)… anyway use whatever Russian language you have or sign language. 🙂
Posted in Tourism |
In Bishkek, there are a handful of souvenir shops dotted around the city centre, clusters of small shops in ZUM (5th floor) as well as kiosks in Osh bazaar.
By far the most prestigious souvenir shop in town is TUMAR. The shop decor & layout is certain very comparable to Western standards. They produce and carry their own high-quality items: made from felt, silk, leather, pottery, etc. Other items on sale include photography, music, clothes, etc. TUMAR is located at the junction of Kievskaya & Isanova streets. Their website is www.tumar.com
The Academy of Gifts is located next to Coffee along Togolok Moldo, just north of Chui. It is also another well established shop operated by local designer Tatiana Vorotnikova. The product range is very similar to Tumar, but includes Uzbek pottery as well. Their website is www.vorotnikova.kg
LaMaison du Voyageur is located along Moskovskaya (crossing Orozbekova), one block west from Navigator cafe. Housed in a refurbished Slavic house, it too carries a wide range of local handicrafts & souvenir items. Their website is www.lamaisonduvoyageur.com
Asia is a souvenir shop located at 134 Chui, opposite the “Russiya” cinema & fountains. Apart from the usual souvenir items, it carries many antiques from the Soviet era as well as Kyrgyz artifacts.
The History Museum (northern edge of Ala-Too Square) also has 2 souvenir shops on the ground floor.
The south-eastern corner of Ala-Too Square has a newly opened souvenir point (containing 3 shops) called Dairi. These shops were supported by a donor project to start up.
Iman is located at 128 Chui, almost opposite the White House. It sells mainly art-work inside the dimly-lit room.
Koldo is a new social enterprise set up by the Eurasia Foundation of Central Asia. It’s right next to Cyclone restaurant on 138 Chui (x-Togolok Moldo). Sells items made by beneficiaries of various grants & projects.
ZUM has a whole bunch of small souvenir shops on the 5th floor. This would be the best place to visit if you had limited time & wanted a one-stop-shop. Items on sale come from all over Central Asia, and probably has the largest selection of souvenir available in Bishkek.
Osh Bazaar has a souvenir section east & south of the Kiyal building (3 storey, beige colour building fronting Chui). Items on sale tend to be limited to Kyrgyz-produced souvenirs e.g. shydaks, slippers, hats, leather items, etc. The prices might be cheaper, but the quality is also generally lower than what is sold at ZUM & certainly the established shops.
There are also souvenir shops located at Beta Stores 2nd floor (156 Chui), Vefa Centre 1st floor (Sovietskaya & Gorkovo) & Beta Stores II 2nd floor (7th micro-region).
Happy shopping!
Posted in Shopping |
Unfortunately, at this point in time (8 May 2011), the physical TIC co-located with Nina’s souvenir shop is still not yet operational. Bear with us, because someone has to pay the rent for the TIC (in this case Nina’s shop).
Meanwhile, copies of the Free Map can be obtained from many places around Bishkek: cafes, hotels, embassies, international organizations, the International Church, etc.
Cafes: Coffee, Metro, FatBoy’s, Cyclone, Mexican Cantina, Obama’s, Pirogoff-Vodkin, Foyer coffee, German bakery, Vostok-Zapad, etc.
Shops: Tumar, Academy of Gifts, La Maison du Voyageur, etc.
Tour operators: Novi Nomad, Celestial Mountains, ITMC, various members of KATO, etc.
International organizations: UN House, World Bank, various embassies, etc.
Posted in Tourism |
This is the official website for the Manas International Airport (serving Bishkek). As far as I can tell, it’s only in Russian language though…
This page gives the timetable of flights to/from Manas Airport:
http://timetable.airport.kg/csp/adp/fids.csp
Posted in Tourism |
Apart from the usual tour operators based in Bishkek, there are a few tour operators who are based in other cities such as Naryn & Osh. Here are a few to consider. For more information, refer to their websites.
NTE Travel www.ntetravel.net
Owned by 2 Swiss, they have many years of experience living in Kyrgyzstan and mountaineering.
Shofar Group http://www.shofargroup.com
Set up by a British national as a commercial organization committed to developing financially sustainable projects in Naryn, e.g. tourism and handicraft production & export.
Turkestan Travel http://www.turkestan.biz
Based in Karakol, it can easily organize tours into the Tien Shan mountains south & east of town. It also run a yurt camp in Karakol & also has a rock-climbing wall in the compound.
Kyrgyzstan Community-Based Tourism Association www.cbtkyrgyzstan.kg
Apart from the main CBT office in Bishkek, there are 16 CBT groups scattered throughout the country. These offices can help to arrange stays at CBT-certified B&Bs, provide guides & horses, and arrange transport.
Posted in Tourism |
KATO is the Kyrgyz Association of Tour Operators & consists of many member tour operators. I have not used or dealt with all of them. Als0, the website details are not very up-to-date… Anyway, the URL is http://kat.kg – with Russian & English language versions available.
For those who are residing in Kyrgyzstan, or planned to only contact a tour operator once in-country, here are some recommended companies that I have dealt with & can vouch for their professionalism. Look on their respective websites for more details of their specific tour offerings, areas of specialization, etc.
Celestial Mountains Tour Company http://www.celestial.com.kg
– Great location along Kiev (x-Isanova). Also operates the Silk Road Lodge in Bishkek & Naryn Guesthouse.
Novi Nomad http://www.novinomad.com
– Another central location at Togolok Moldo (x-Kievskaya).
La Maison du Voyageur www.lamaisonduvoyageur.com
– French-speaking staff. Co-located with their souvenir shop.
ITMC www.centralasia.kg
– The office is not so easy to find. But lots of information on their website.
Ak-Sai Travel www.ak-sai.com
– Focus on alpinism, heli-ski, etc. Red Fox store under same management.
Posted in Tourism |
For your information, the souvenir shops in ZUM have moved a few days ago – from the 3rd floor to a new location on the 5th floor. The operating hours of ZUM are also longer than before: Monday-Saturday 10AM-9PM, Sunday 10AM-8PM.
Posted in Shopping |
Bishkek Tourist Info Centre 