Travel Guide At-Bashi

Very pretty village where about 10,000 people live. At-Bashi is also a good starting point for walks totally off the beaten track in the forests that flank the Naryn Tau Mountains or to jailoo and small villages even more confidential. An alternative is to explore the ruins of the fortress of Koshoï Kurgan, an ancient merchant citadel inhabited between the 8th and 13th centuries and located south-east of the small town of Kara Suu. The Karakhanid city that controlled this part of the Silk Road to China until the 12th or 13th century covered more than eight hectares. All that remains of this fortified city today are high sections of jagged walls that are gradually turning to dust. The legend wants that Manas, the mythical hero of the Kyrgyz epics, built it as well as a mausoleum for his comrade in arms Koshoï. While the snow-covered foothills of the nearby mountains stand in stark contrast to the steppe, a few walls of red clay still stick out of the ground, lonely and worn down by erosion, forming a Hollywood-style backdrop that you won't tire of exploring. A small museum has been set up in the village, where you can learn everything there is to know about the construction and fitting out of yurts.