At 5:10 a.m. I jumped up at the alarm. I barely had time for a shower, dropped my luggage in the hostel locker, and sprinted to the station. I couldn't afford to be late for the 6:00 tour meeting.
5 a.m. — a meeting time I couldn't oversleep
Starting today, the tour to Sary-Chelek begins. I ran desperately and somehow made it to the meeting on time.
When I arrived at the meeting place, many of the members were Asian. To be honest, I tensed up a little. For some reason just seeing Asian people makes me feel uneasy. I don't know why. But that feeling was real.
In the end, the group was more internationally diverse than I imagined: Russians, Kyrgyz, Poles, Canadians, Koreans, Vietnamese, Japanese.
The tour guide could speak Russian and English and was really cute. Ten minutes after departure we stopped at a big supermarket to get breakfast: bananas, Red Bull, Lay's snacks, and biscuits.
Every time I met a member, I took the initiative to greet and introduce myself. I even quickly handed a bag to a girl who looked like she had too many bananas.
I think it's important to make the first move. Compared to others, I believe I'm fairly socially skilled.
The mountain scenery of Kyrgyzstan took my breath away.
We quickly arrived at a spot with a beautiful mountain view. Tim, a Canadian, took a lot of photos for me.
It was a view that felt cleansing just to look at. Kyrgyzstan's nature is truly beautiful.
I think the eyes tell everything about a person. You can tell at a glance the eyes of someone tired from work or carrying stress and malice, and the eyes of someone with a clear heart. In Japan I feel like I often see people whose eyes are dead. By contrast, everyone in Kyrgyzstan looked lively. I thought that was wonderful.
We moved to another spot and took more photos. Thanks to knowing Russian, I naturally made friends with local Kyrgyz people.
Local dish loaded with beef
For lunch we had a Kyrgyz local dish — something like a large chunk of beef sautéed — and it was really hard to finish. It was heavy and filling.
But the taste was extraordinary. Maybe because the cows were raised in a stress-free environment, Kyrgyz beef is truly delicious.
We got in the car and headed to a reservoir next. I slept the whole time on the bus. I'd only slept four hours the night before, so my body was craving sleep.
Nearly drowned at a high-altitude reservoir
When we arrived at the reservoir, the guide invited me, saying, "Since we're here, it'd be a shame not to swim."
I changed and decided to swim. The footing was slippery and the water's edge was a bit dirty, but once I got in it felt good. Maybe because of the altitude, the water was extremely cold.
The guide was swimming too. Even though the hotel reception and the guide all had proper jobs, here titles didn't matter. Guests and travelers didn't matter either — everyone just played together. I thought that was really nice.
While swimming, another Kyrgyz man borrowed my camera and swam alone. He said he lives in California and has now returned to Kyrgyzstan. Though Kyrgyz, his look somehow gave off the vibe of a Japanese person living in America.
Where you place yourself changes both personality and appearance. Traveling, I realized again how important it is to truly feel what kind of person you want to be and what version of yourself you like.
When I swam after him, I nearly sank halfway. Unsalted water makes it hard to float. I couldn't keep breathing, almost suffocated. I was really close to drowning. It was terrifying.
I somehow managed to swim to a place where I could touch bottom and breathed a sigh of relief. After that I felt nauseous from the lack of oxygen.
Pestered for photos on the bridge
We got back into the car and went to the next place. I actually quite like bus time where you don't have to move, just sit. You don't have to think about anything, so if the ride goes on for about two hours I'm oddly happy.
When we arrived at the bridge, a group of girls approached and asked in Russian, "Where are you from?" and other questions. They asked, "Would you take a picture with us?" and I took photos with three of them.
I wasn't used to it and got really nervous. Thinking maybe they thought I was handsome made me a little happy. I felt my self-esteem rise just a bit.
My only regret is that I should have had someone else take the photo. I was flustered, so it can't be helped. Still, it turned into a good picture and a good memory. I'm not ugly at all. Rather, I'm an attractive person.
Two days begin with new companions
And so, we arrived at the hostel. We'll be staying here for the next two days.
At first I was a little worried about whether I'd make friends. But in the end things worked out. I was able to communicate with many people, even if only briefly, and everyone was friendly and kind.
I'm glad I got to travel with such people!
