It’s hard to believe I’ve been at this blogging gig for two years now. Having just re-upped concrete and kitsch’s Bluehost account for another year of blogging indentured servitude, I was filtering through old…
For whatever reason, it’s often the places where I have the most transformative experiences that get the least amount of screen time on this blog. I think it’s because I can never really find…
In a past life (circa 2009), David managed the local Russian bath here in Seattle. It was there that he met our friend Helmut, who happened to be traveling with us in Kazakhstan and…
Vastly different from other parts of Kyrgyzstan, travel in Osh is a chance to get to know the more devout Islamic heartland of the country. Boo yeah, that is a Walt Whitman reference in…
Unlike our time in Southeast Asia this past May, where we were pleasantly surprised by several examples of our favorite architectural styles in Phnom Penh, I knew leading up to our Central Asia trip…
There isn’t much space devoted to places like Sary Mogul, Kyrgyzstan in guidebooks. Sary Mogul is one of those places that is typically seen as a stopping off point, or a place to have…
The first stop on our whirlwind tour of Central Asia was Kazakhstan’s former capital, Almaty. It remains the largest city in the country, as well as its cultural epicenter. My knowledge of the city…
It’s been a few weeks since our return from Central Asia, and I think I’ve had ample time to process our amazing experience there. One of the things we noticed throughout our time there…
For as long as I can remember, I’ve been captivated by Central Asia. My father runs an antique rug store in the Seattle area, and since I was a wee child I’ve been surrounded by…