Travel. Discover. Learn. Grow.
My arrival in Kyrgyzstan
My name is Jade, I landed with my skis and backpacks in Kyrgyzstan to spend the winter of 2024. After several seasons and trips to different European countries, I wanted to experience a winter season in a country I didn't know, to discover the world of skiing in a Central Asian country. Kyrgyzstan, which I had heard about from a friend I met in Italy two years earlier, had remained in a corner of my mind, for the beauty of its landscapes, and last winter, here I am.
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Kirghizistan
Going to Kyrgyzstan in winter
When preparing my trip to Kyrgyzstan I did a lot of research on the country and the ways/means to visit it. The websites and the few books I found advised against visiting Kyrgyzstan in winter because of the low temperatures and the lack of tourist activities.
While there, I was able to see this winter that winter tourism is well established in Kyrgyzstan and allows travelers to go to the mountains to practice different activities such as ski touring, horseback skiing, rattrack skiing, snowmobiling or even ski resorts.
These possibilities and places are not easy to find on your own and I was able to discover and learn about the country, its customs and traditions thanks to the locals with whom I shared my winter.
Mes débuts
The first few days were really disorienting, I lost my bearings, I didn't know how to get around, how to buy a SIM card... This country was unlike any other country or city I had been to before. The languages spoken in the country are Kyrgyz and Russian, few locals speak English, I had trouble getting advice, expressing myself and making myself understood. I stayed in a youth hostel in the capital for a week and there I met a French couple who were traveling from France by public transport and who had spent several weeks in the countries of Central Asia. We spent several days together and they taught me a lot about the country, its codes and its culture. I started to get my bearings little by little in the capital and visit, I wanted to go to the mountains but I couldn't do it at first, I stayed a few days in the capital.
Ma rencontre avec les locaux
I left the capital after about ten days and headed to Karakol, where I had planned to meet and stay with the "Ryce Travel Foundation" to spend the winter. Without knowing it, I found myself at the heart of the ski world in Kyrgyzstan, a community of people very close-knit around the same passion, to introduce the mountains and the practice of skiing in Kyrgyzstan.
I then became part of this community for this winter season and I was able to learn alongside them, on the mountain, about the country, its culture, its codes, its language by meeting many different people who shared this same passion. I spent my season in Karakol and Jyrgalan, incredible places and people that I would like to introduce to you today.
