kangeiko: (travel)
I am firmly convinced that if I can just wish hard enough, I can fall asleep at whatever time I need to. Sadly, this is 100% not the case and combining night travel with jet lag means that I require naps during the day and then can't get to sleep.

I did manage to get quite a bit done today though - a business meeting this morning which was helpfully frank and open, followed by lunch and shopping with someone I met last night. One of the nice things about travel is that you get to meet so many other fellow travelers! This particular travelers was a French woman living in Belgrade. We bonded over cheese.

Anyway, we found a nice restaurant for lunch and had a delicious steak salad for lunch, and then found a couple of shops selling traditional arts and crafts. I am sadly allergic to the hats and slippers (as there is a high wool content) but I did buy a couple of things. Tomorrow I will try to get some more work done, and also go for a bit of a wander again. I did think about possibly leaving the city to go exploring (the countryside is magnificent) but I haven't organised anything and on Sunday it might be tricky to get sorted. No reason not to explore the city though.

Anyway, a few photos from Bishkek thus far.

Read more... )

My Russian studies continue apace. I was able to ask about slipper sizes and order dates, so I guess I'm making progress? Kyrgyz slippers, by the way, are works of art:

Kyrgyz slippers

The above are from some international fashion house, but you get the idea. The ones listed on this site are actually a lot more representative. They are made from a sort of woolen felt, and are incredibly sturdy and warm. I'm sadly allergic to wool so could only admire from a distance, but the French lady I was with bought a pair in deep purple, with a printed pattern across the top. Should you want your very own, the linked shop has an Etsy page. Because of course it does.

We actually walked past a Soviet plane on our way home. I wanted to take a photo but I wasn't sure if it was in front of a military installation or not (i.e. whether the building behind it was military) - I've found a couple of tourist photos of it online so I guess it's safe to photograph. I may go back tomorrow and get a snapshot. So strange to be walking by with shopping and suddenly walk past one of these...
kangeiko: artic ice with the sun in the background, and a sledge being dragged by dogs (TG adventure)
I arrived in Bishkek a few hours ago. Er... 15 hours ago? I arrived at 5am local time, but it was only midnight on my body clock. By the time I arrived at the hotel, half-dead with exhaustion (the stop-over in Moscow was for some reason particularly grueling this time around), it was already breakfast time. So... I ate breakfast, and then went to bed. I went to the office in the afternoon, so now my brain is telling me that it's lunchtime, and my eyes are telling me that it's dinner time. Either way, I had a very delicious meal. I'm staying in some standard chain hotel, but the nice thing (as well as the frankly palatial room) is that there is a rooftop terrace with a view across the city. Of course, it's an ex-Soviet city in the throes of a construction boom, so the view is mostly of half-finished towering buildings, but I suppose we can't have everything.

This month is going to be one solid block of travel time. I'm only in Bishkek for a few days, before I have to head back and go on to Germany. After that, the US (DC and NYC). I'm half excited about being on the move again, and half terrified of the inevitable jetlag.

That said... I'm not tired? I don't know if this is because I had a vitamin B12 shot a few hours before getting on the plane. My arm is bruised and swollen but I feel rested and awake. And like I could sleep well this evening.

There is a not-so-small part of me that is wondering if this is because I have left the anxiety of my job in London, and all I have to be anxious about when out and about is not getting lost. (My Russian stretches to asking for directions, but not necessarily understanding the answer. Although I have been told that I have an absolutely beautiful accent when asking for Krassnaya Ploshit, so if I ever need to find Moscow's Red Square, I'll be able to do so with impeccable diction. And the set off in the wrong direction.)

Anyway, small fandom note, when I was on the plane I watched Deadpool as the in-flight film.

Read more... )

Profile

kangeiko: (Default)
kangeiko

January 2021

S M T W T F S
     12
34 56789
10111213141516
17181920212223
24252627282930
31      

Syndicate

RSS Atom

Most Popular Tags

Style Credit

Expand Cut Tags

No cut tags
Page generated 6 Jul 2025 10:25 am
Powered by Dreamwidth Studios