SRAS students studying abroad in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan on the Central Asian Studies Porgram often have the opportunity to visit Lake Issyk-Kul as part of their program abroad. This semester, the local excursions into the surrounding mountains included a presentation on local traditions surrounding eagle training. Golden eagles have been used for hunting in Kyrgyzstan for […]
What defines being Kyrgyz? Defining something as broad as a nationality or ethnicity is always complicated. I decided to get a view specifically from young Kyrgyz women and interviewed Bigemai, 27 and Aiza, 22 for their thoughts. Bigemai grew up in Bishkek, the oldest of four siblings. She works professionally as a hairdresser and volunteers […]
Studying in Bishkek for the academic year, I took advantage of winter break to visit my host family in Armenia from a previous study abroad experience. This gave me my first opportunity to see how New Year’s is celebrated in this part of the world: the setting up of the New Year’s tree and other […]
