Central Asia I: Bishkek--the Fashion Show

We traveled halfway round the world on October 7, 2021, rising in Salt Lake City, Utah, and sleeping in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan.  It was the trip of a lifetime--a private, three week tour of two of the five "Stans" in the former Soviet Union--Kyrgyztan and Uzbekistan.  The travel agency, MIR, planned this trip for Dave, our son Michael, and me.  Originally, we were part of a small group tour visiting all five "Stans," but once Covid hit and our options were limited to only two of the five countries, the other tour members opted out.  MIR gave us their best guides, since there were so few tours running, and added out-of-the-way spots to our tour that most foreign visitors don't get to see.  It was spectacular!

We began the tour in the capital of Kyrgyzstan, Bishkek, at the middle, northern edge of the map above.  We traveled east along the northern edge of one of the highest lakes in the world, Issy-Akul, to Karakol, on the eastern end of the lake.  Karakol is less than 100 miles, as the crow flies, from the border of China, but it is several hundred miles from Karakol to one of the few high mountain passes from Kyrgyzstan into the Xinjiang province of China.  We were in the back of beyond!  We returned to Bishkek along the southern shore of Issy-Akul.  

The highlight of our first day in Bishkek, October 8, was dinner and a "fashion show" at Supara, an elegant museum/restaurant.  Mike wore his new Kyrgis hat, made from wolf fur, with a wolf tail hanging down the back.  He will add it to his exotic hat collection at home.

The Supara complex includes a "hotel" made up of yurts.  Yurts are an important part of the Kyrgis culture.  The top of a yurt is even featured on the Kyrgis flag.  Although most Kyrgis now live in Western-style homes, yurts are still used as temporary shelters for sheepherders who take their herds into the mountainous summer pastures.  During our stay in Kyrgyzstan, we watched ranchers put up a yurt, and we visited a yurt maker who sells his yurts as far away a Dubai.

The Supara auditorium was shaped like a yurt.

Before dinner, we wandered the Supara museum, with exhibits of Kyrgis crafts.  Horses are as prominent as yurts in Kyrgis culture, and so many of the items were coverings for yurts or horses.

Kyrgyzstan was not Dave's first choice for a vacation, but he loved being with his son, Michael, and he had a good time sightseeing in spite of himself!

Our guide, Fahrod, was excellent.  He spoke fluent English and had spent several years as an exchange student in the U.S.--Texas, as I recall.

The "fashion show" at Supara began with a demonstration of winding the iconic women's headdress, or "elechek," onto a young girl.  First, the girl's hair was braided and wound around her head.

Then, yards and yards of white material were wound around her head and under her chin, forming the elaborate headdress.  We saw many women wearing elecheks in Kyrgyzstan, although most wore Western dress.

The Kyrgis are beautiful people who look, to me, quite Chinese.  In Uzbekistan, many of the people look Persian.  That's not surprising--Kyrgyzstan nestles against China and its neighbor, Uzbekistan, borders Iran.

This group of ladies paraded around the auditorium to show us their ethnic dress and their elecheks.  Again and again, MIR staged special programs for Dave, Mike, and me alone!  It was a luxury tour, and, if I had the means, I would take every tour MIR offered.  Most of their tours explore Russia, the former Soviet Union, and Eastern Europe.

We ate dinner in our own yurt.  This was our first taste of Kyrgis food, and it was luscious.

We enjoyed well-seasoned salads and unique breads all over Central Asia.  I thought, often, of how my mother's hair would stand on end at the very thought of eating raw vegetables in a less-developed country.  I got sick only once during our trip.  Our guides told us they knew where to take Westerners to keep them well.

Our dinner was accompanied by musicians playing traditional instruments--mostly variations of flutes, drums, and stringed instruments.  The music was hauntingly beautiful.

 

We stayed at the elegant Hyatt Regency.  All of our hotels were excellent, but most had "character," located within walled cities, as "homestays" in the countryside, or decorated in elaborate, Russian or ethnic style.  It felt very good, for just a night or two, to unwind in bland, Western luxury.

We were given the first day to rest and get over jet lag, but that was not our style.  Within an hour or two of checking into our hotel, after the long flight, we went exploring.  We spent an hour or more at the Bishkek art museum.

I spent most of my time searching the exhibit of Kyrgis paintings for common elements of culture.  Horses were a major theme.  It is in the Fergana Valley of Kyrgyzstan and neighboring Uzbekistan where Chinese emperors got their war horses.

Another common theme was mountains.  Kyrgyzstan is huge, but has only 6 million people.  Much of it is mountainous.  The major mountain range is the Tien Shan, just north of the Hindu Kush and the Himalayas.  There are a number of  20,000 foot high peaks among the Tien Shan.

The Russians ruled Kyrgyzstan for more than 100 years, and many of the paintings show Russian style clothes and Slavic people.  After independence in 1991, most of the Russians went home, but Kyrgyzstan still has a close relationship to Russia. It is also considered the most democratic of the five Stans.

And there were many paintings showing Chinese influence.  

After the museum, we visited GUM, a five story apartment store.  One whole story was devoted to Kyrgis crafts.  Although many Uzbeki crafts showed even greater artistry, we were tempted in Kyrgyzstan by felt-and-silk scarves, fur hats, embroidery repurposed from antique yurt covers, and Russian nesting dolls.

Iowa IV: Last Day in Chicago

Michael is not one to squander even a moment of a trip.  Our plane didn't leave Chicago until 7 p.m. on October 4, 2021.  I asked Michael to choose the itinerary for our day in the Windy City.  He chose lunch at a Japanese barbecue restaurant and then an architectural cruise along the north and south branches of the Chicago River.

I adored the Japanese barbecue.  There was a fire pit built into our table, and we grilled bits of marinated pork belly (bacon), pork, chicken, and several varieties of steak, as well as a foil-wrapped package of mushrooms, which we dipped into melted cheese sauce.  Each type of meat was marinated in a different, delicious sauce, and there were also dipping sauces for after the meat came off the grill.  I have never eaten meat so crisp, sizzling, and juicy.  

David and I have taken the architectural cruise along the Chicago River a couple of times, but I don’t remember enjoying it as much as I did on this trip.  I marveled at the sheer variety of Chicago’s stylish buildings, from so many different periods.  And, of course, we noted the flashy Trump Tower.

It was a relaxed afternoon, with our guide's witty and fact-filled patter.

Dave is always up for a boat ride, whether it is along the Mississippi, the Chicago River, or the Nile.  The only time I have seen him balk at a boat ride was a dugout canoe trip across a crocodile-infested river in the tribal areas of Ethiopia!

And, of course, the people-watching on a boat is as fun as the sights.  iPhones, UP!

 

Iowa III: Oktoberfest at the Amana Colonies

The “whole gang” drove to the Amana Colonies to celebrate Oktoberfest on October 3, 2022-- Jenny, her parents, Dave and I, Mike, Thomas, Sam, and Henry.  Dave treated us to a German lunch—brat sandwiches with sauerkraut, hot potato salad, root beer, and pretzels with cheese sauce.  The best part of the meal was watching Thomas eat it, and seeing his brothers' horror at Thomas' table manners!

We then took front row seats in the music tent.  When the band played the “chicken polka,” Henry and I got up to dance.  For the next song Henry joined the dancers again, do-si-doing and shaking his body.  It was just Henry and three older ladies!  When the music ended, the mistress of ceremonies gave Henry a ceramic mug and a medal to wear around his neck on a thick blue ribbon!

I took a ceremonial photo of Henry and his blue ribbon.

Of course, no little kid can resist putting his head through a hole in a sign!

Jonny and Jenny will have four sons, when their last baby is born next month.  Jenny says, "Just don't leave me behind!"  A family of four boys will have lots of adventures.

Jonny and Jenny finished their day at Oktoberfest with ice cream cones and a ride on the swing.
 

At Jonny's home that evening, we played board games on the back porch.

Henry needed to make all sorts of contortions to make those dice shake out just right.

Success!

Iowa II: All About Sam (and Henry and Thomas)

The Big Event, for which we had traveled to Iowa, was Sam's baptism on October 1, 2021.  Sam's Leatham grandparents, who were staying with Jonny and Jenny during the last weeks of her pregnancy, fixed Sam's favorite meal--pork tacos with red cabbage, salsa, and sour cream.   Jonny and Jenny then packed a duffle bag with everything needed for Sam’s baptism, including the picture of Christ and Sam’s fuzzy blanket that I needed for my talk about the Holy Ghost.  It was a special treat to share, with Jonny and Jenny and our grandchildren, in the baptism and confirmation of their oldest, eight-year-old son.  

During the songs and talks, before Sam was baptized, Henry sat next to his brother, all dressed up in a white shirt and tie.  The Leatham grandparents sat behind, with Thomas.

After Jonny baptized Sam, Thomas tried to climb the glass wall separating the spectators from the baptismal font.  “He’s a tank!” Michael marveled, at the aggressive three-year-old, who is built very solidly.  Thomas ran around and around the room, as songs were sung, and as his “Papa,” Dave Leatham, gave a talk about baptism.  “Come follow me,” Thomas called to his Papa, as Thomas crawled under the legs of baptism guests, as if crawling through a tunnel!

We were proud of Sam, who made the important decision to be baptized and to become a member of the Church of Jesus Christ.

Our first fun event on Saturday morning, October 2, was Henry’s soccer game.  Henry plays on a huge field of artificial grass with big signs proclaiming, “No chewing gum.  No sunflower seeds.”  The soccer field is part of an enormous sports complex that has dozens of indoor and outdoor fields.  Jonny says that sports teams from many states around come to run tournaments at this huge complex.  Dave's and my job, at the game, was to help Jonny take care of Thomas.

I documented Thomas' struggles to get down and run around.

After Henry's game, the Leathams stayed with Jenny in Bettendorf, Iowa, to attend more of Sam's and Henry's Saturday events.  Dave, Mike, Jonny, and I took Thomas on a drive north, along the river.  We stopped in Dubuque at the excellent Museum of the Mississippi River.  

Thomas captained a keel boat.

Thomas, Mike, and Jonny were equally fascinated by the many exhibits, including this one which showed the effect of water flowing straight or through obstacles.

Thomas also loved simple pleasures, such as this ride-em toy.  We discovered, as Thomas emerged from the car in Dubuque, that he had no shoes.  We are casual folk, and let him pad about in his stocking feet for the rest of the day.  "Jenny wouldn't like this," Jonny sighed.

We drove north to Pike Peak, rear the spot where the French explorers, Marquette and Joliet, first saw the Mississippi.  We gorged ourselves on views of the picturesque Midwest—granaries and red barns and green forests bordering the Mississippi.

Iowa I: Checking Out the Quad

It all starts with Deere.  On September 30, 2021, Mike, Dave, and I flew to Chicago and then drove west to the Quad Cities, along the Mississippi, to visit Jonny and Jenny.  The event was Sam's baptism, but we also explored Moline, Illinois, where John Deere headquarters is located, and then parts of Iowa.  We stopped, first, at the John Deere Pavilion, with its collection of excavators, ag equipment, and simulators.  The Pavilion was being remodeled, but we browsed the Pavilion store, with everything Deere--models of equipment for adults and for children, and every variety of clothing with the Deere logo.  We also looped past the elegant Deere headquarters, surrounded by lush gardens, as well as farmland.

Dave added to his collection of sweatshirts.

Mike and Jonny posed, for me, next to the Deere deer.

Jonny then took us to see a line-up of excavators.  Jonny's prior job at Deere was supervising the marketing of excavators in North and South America.  Jonny walked around each machine, pointing out its virtues.  Jonny's new job was not quite so visual--improving the customer experience by reorganizing the way products are presented.  

The heartland of America retains proud bits of Old Country culture.  The Quad Cities includes a German restaurant we visit over and over.  We sat on the porch and talked, as we ate our jagerschnitzel, spaetzle, and rotkohl.

On Friday, October 1, 2021, Jonny worked, while Dave and I took Michael to some of our favorite Iowa places.  Michael has visited North Korea and Tibet, but he hasn't spent time in Iowa.   A pity.  We stopped first at the Mormon Handcart Park in Iowa City, where the handcart companies of the 1850s began their trek west to Salt Lake City.  "We have handcart pioneer ancestors, don't we?" Michael asked.  I had to admit that I had perpetrated a myth.  I told the kids my great-grandmother, Mary Bomelli Eyring, crossed the plains in a handcart, but I later learned she actually rode in a wagon.  We do, though, have ancestors, in both Dave's and my families, who drove oxcarts from SLC to Wyoming, through early snows in 1856, to rescue the Willey and Martin handcart companies, who were trapped along the high plains of the Continental Divide.  My great-great-grandfather, John Bennion, was one of those rescuers.  

We then drove on to Cedar Rapids to see the National Czech and Slovak Museum.  It is a first class attraction, affiliated with the Smithsonian.  There were two special exhibits—one elaborate, be-ribboned Czech wedding headdresses, and the other on Slovak history.  The regular exhibit was also excellent.  It included chilling, original radio broadcasts and newsreels about Hitler’s take-over of Czechoslovakia.  I thought of my grandson, Grant Flindt, who was an LDS missionary to Slovakia and the Czech Republic.

Before returning to Jonny's home in Bettendorf, Iowa, we stopped at Sykora Bakery, in the Czech Village of Cedar Rapids, for a selection of kolaches (lemon, poppy seed, and rhubarb) and savory pastries stuffed with mushrooms and sauerkraut.  For Michael, interesting food is an important part of travel.

Note the t-shirt:  "You bet your 'prdel' I'm Czech...."