離天空很近的湖：吉爾吉斯頌湖 Lake beneath the Sky: Song Kol in Kyrgyzstan
吉爾吉斯的大門：比什凱克 Bishkek, gateway to Kyrgyzstan
從烏茲別克首都塔什干到吉爾吉斯首都比什凱克的航程只有短短45分鐘，但這段航程裡飛機跨過了好幾座積滿白雪的山脊，可以想像若是在陸地上走，這段路程肯定會顛簸崎嶇不少；直到最後10分鐘，窗外見到的不再只是雪山，而是開闊谷地裡綠意盎然的農田，相較於乾燥的烏茲別克，這裡的植被茂密。
It took only 45 minutes to fly from Tashkent, Uzbekistan to Bishkek, the capital city of Kyrgyzstan. As I looked at the snow-capped mountains and rough terrains from the plane, I knew this journey wouldn't be easy if I was going on the land. As soon as the plane landed, I messaged my family with Zhuyin alphabets (注音, a Chinese spelling system used only in Taiwan); when the young Kyrgyz on my left saw that, he thought I was typing hangul (Korean alphabets, which look a bit like Zhuyin) and tried to tell me he really loves Korea. It's not hard to spot East Asian influence in this small mountainous nation.
不一會兒，飛機已經開始降低準備落地，這時我身邊的吉爾吉斯青年突然轉過身來、用手勢問坐在窗邊的我能否借他拍一下落地的影片，我欣然答應；飛機一落地，我馬上打開手機上的line向打算家人報平安，這時吉爾吉斯青年用手勢加上Korea告訴我他很喜歡韓國，問我能否借我的手機在上面打韓文，這個動作讓我愣了一兩秒才理解——原來他把我手機上的注音輸入法成看成是朝鮮諺文字母了，以為我是韓國人，想在手機上打韓文給我看，只好趕快說明我不是韓國人，這個上面的字母也不是諺文啦（不好意思讓您失望了，哈哈）。
一下飛機我就竭盡所能往前衝，期待趕快入境，畢竟接下來還要進市區、轉車、換錢、安排隔天行程，沒時間在此耽誤；身為全機屈指可數的非中亞居民，移民官看到我的電子簽證許可開始面露難色，叫了好幾個同事來看，結果我就這樣在入境關口站了整整半小時，甚至全機其他乘客都入境之後還是不得其門而入，不諳英文的移民官員仍然束手無策。最後他們勉強用英文告訴我，no visa！我這才想到可能是國籍登記的問題——台灣人可以使用電子簽證入境，但國籍必須選擇中國，因此當他們用我的台灣護照查詢系統裡的入境許可，當然不會找到我的資料；把國籍解釋清楚之後，他們開始用中國查詢，幾秒鐘之後就讓我入境了。
從機場搭乘380小型巴士前往市區，位在高原上的比什凱克郊區綠意盎然，公路兩旁有著成排的行道樹，遠方還有著頂覆白雪的高山為背景。首都建設固然先進一些，公路中央分隔島上卻仍然可以見到放牧吃草的動物，堪稱遊牧傳統與現代建設的完美融合。
比什凱克的市容讓人乍看之下以為是台北——這裡人口非常集中，大多數的街道上都有濃密的行道樹，兩旁的建築物有的仍然保留過去蘇聯時代的呆板風貌，有的則是新建的公寓大下，有趣的是他們也喜歡在陽台外加裝鐵窗，或者在窗外吊掛冷氣，這種新舊交融、有序又帶點混亂的風格還真的像極了我的故鄉台北。這個晚上住在火車站旁的乾淨舒適的膠囊旅館，晚餐在一家韓國餐館吃到了久違的東亞食物，飯後到和先進國家毫無差別的購物商場超市買麵包，準備做為明天上山途中的乾糧。
After some delay at the passport control (due to the complicated China-Taiwan relation, *sigh*), I reached the city and the capsule hotel, where I spent the night. Located at the elevation of 2,625′, The city is much greener than those in Uzbekistan. Both old Soviet and new high-rise buildings exist in the city, and the mixture of old and new made me think of my home city Taipei. I had dinner at a Korean restaurant, bought some breads and drinks for the next days, and spent the night at the clean and modern capsule hotel.
前往Kochkor找門路上山 Find the way to Song Kol in Kochkor
我在吉爾吉斯這幾天最重要的景點位在國境中部是頌湖（Song Kol），是個至今仍然保留遊牧民族傳統的地方，沒有任何大眾運輸工具，必須透過旅行社安排越野車或者騎馬前往，通常是從離湖最近的城市、比什凱克東南方3小時車程的Kochkor出發，全程3天2夜或2天1夜。膠囊旅館櫃檯的正妹很熱心地說可以幫我聯繫從比什凱克出發、200USD的行程，但旅遊書上說如果自己搭車前往Kochkor然後在當地湊團，價格會比較便宜，於是我便決定隔天一大早自己到客運站找車，先到Kochkor再說。
如同過去一週，除了屈指可數的幾個俄文單字之外，我和當地人基本上是無法溝通的，還好在客運站隨便晃了一圈，重覆著Kochkor這個字，馬上就有熱心（當然也是為了搶生意）的當地人把我拉到一部快要滿載的廂型車前，跟司機砍價砍到450som後就上了車。（中亞許多地方的公共交通都是這樣，沒有固定時間表，但人坐滿了就開車。）
Most people visit Song Kol via travel agents in Kochkor, a town about 3-hour bus ride away from Bishkek., and I did the same. As it was off-season, most agents were out of business, and the first one I checked out gave me a unreasonably high price. While walking around and thinking about other solutions, a lady from Shepherd's Life caught my attention. She offered a significantly better price (200USD including horse-riding, food and lodging for 3 days and 2 nights, for a one-person group) -- not cheap, but I decided to take it, as I didn't know when and whether I could be here again.
前往Kochkor的路，前2/3都走在縱谷中的平原上，是吉爾吉斯非常少見的四線道大馬路；後面1/3是山路，但由於是交通要道因此道路品質還不錯。早上11點多就到了前往頌湖的門戶Kochkor，一個大多是平房和泥土路的小鎮。由於5月還不是旅遊旺季，大多數的旅行社都沒開，唯一營業中的CBT開了一個我不太願意付的天價，於是我決定先在鎮上走走，看看有沒有機會碰到其他背包客一起湊團，好把價錢壓低。當我正在鎮上主街旁來回走動的時候，突然一個阿姨從對街用英文叫住我，你需要幫忙嗎？
這時我才注意到，剛抵達時還沒開門的另一家旅行社（其實說穿了就是路邊一間僅容一張桌子的小木屋）開始營業了，叫住我的阿姨便是這家的老闆，旅行社名稱叫Shapherd's Life，是除了CBT之外另一家在網上搜尋時就有發現的業者。跟阿姨說了我想去用最便宜的方式去頌湖走走，不用騎馬也沒關係，她很快的在計算機上按了幾下，用流利的英文報給我兩個價錢：3天2夜騎馬大約200USD、2天1夜坐車上去再下來大約USD130，都是單人成團的報價，大約是CBT的2/3。我當下還是覺得有點貴（而且竟然和前一天在比什凱克的報價一樣），於是跟阿姨說我們再等等吧，或許等下一班到達，我就可以找到其他背包客一起湊團了；不過就在等的同時，我也開始覺得，既然來都來了，這種體驗大概一輩子也就這一次了，就硬著頭皮把錢付下去吧！於是我便向她購買了3天2夜騎馬的單人行程。
從現在開始，你就是個偽遊牧民族！ Beginning of nomadic life
3天2夜的騎馬行程開始於2小時的顛簸車程，阿姨聯絡了一輛廂型車把我載到山的另一頭、騎馬嚮導所在的村莊Kyzart；和嚮導會合之後，第一天下午及第二天早上分別要騎4小時與5小時的馬，翻過另外一座山脈才能到達頌湖。剛開始的這2小時車程裡風景就已經非常壯觀，但天氣卻非常不好，讓我開始擔心是否要這樣在雨中騎上兩天的馬，幸好接近Kyzart的時候天氣就恢復晴朗；接著廂型車司機離開主幹道，走泥土路進入村莊並且拐了幾個彎，最後在一戶牧民的住家前停了下來。
The trip began with a 2-hour ride in a Marshrutka (minivan) to a village Kyzart. I was worried about the weather as it was cloudy and rainy on the way, but fortunately it turned nice before I started riding. My tour guide Urmat is a 21-year-old local. He helped me get on the horseback and hung my backpack on his horse. Within a few minutes, we were already on the way toward Song Kol. The time was about 2:30pm. It generally takes 4 hours on the first day, and another 5 hours on the second day to ride to get to Song Kol.
我的嚮導名叫Urmat，21歲的當地青年，家裡還有幾個兄弟。幾個小時前Shapherd's Life的阿姨才打電話過來確認，等我到達時他早已準備就緒，呈現一個隨時可以出發的狀態。Urmat把我的紅色背包吊掛在他的馬上，接著幫助我蹬上馬背並且坐穩，不到5分鐘的時間，我們兩人就已經騎著兩匹馬，走在前往頌湖的小徑上了！
剛開始的這段風景非常秀麗。寬闊的山谷間地勢和緩，溪水輕柔蜿蜒的流過，我們則沿著溪旁平坦的小徑前行。這段路不難走，而且騎馬也不像我以為的那麼困難（雖然剛開始Urmat還是得常常幫我控制方向），不過御馬有術的Urmat似乎很喜歡讓馬高速奔馳，但每次一跑起來，我整個人就會在馬背上來回彈跳，屁股被反覆擊打得發疼，害我一路默默期待路上狀況多一點，才能讓我們的速度慢下來。
時間來到下午5點半，我們一行人來到一個山谷，谷裡是不太平坦的草地，上面點綴著幾戶人家的蒙古包（yurt）。我還來不及反應，兩位嚮導就把我們各自帶開，分別前往各自住宿的人家；那時候我想著反正隔天還會和另外兩位背包客相見，就揮揮手告別他們，也沒有留下聯絡方式，沒想到那個下午之後，我就再也沒有見到他們一行人，至今還是不知道隔天他們究竟去了哪裡（其實應該就只是走了不一樣的路線，怎麼會被我描述這麼陰XD）。
About an hour later, we met another group of 3 people -- a guy from Germany and a girl from Netherland, plus their tour guide. We merged into one. We grabbed the chance to take photos for each other and chat in English. I asked them how they arranged this tour, and they said it was through their hostel in Bishkek, and it was surprisingly easy. At that moment I regretted that I didn't stay at a hostel, where it's more likely to meet other backpackers. Had I joined them in Bishkek, I would have saved at least 30% on this tour. Around 5:30pm, we reached the valley where we'd spend the night. We each went to our own yurt camp. I thought we'd meet again the next day, but surprisingly I never saw them again.
Urmat在蒙古包前幫助我下馬，並且從他的馬上卸下了我的紅色背包，然後把兩匹馬拴在一旁的木欄上；接待我的是一對中年夫妻，他們把我和Urmat安頓在同一個蒙古包裡，自己則在一旁用鐵皮搭建的廚房裡面準備晚餐。我隨意在蒙古包附近閒晃著，看到天色慢慢變暗，牧民擁有的馬群開始往蒙古包這邊聚集，鐵皮廚房的炊煙裊裊上升，成為了風景的一部份。Urmat利用空閒時間教了我幾個吉爾吉斯語的單字，馬、牛、羊、很好、謝謝等；我則讓他隨意瀏覽我手機上的照片，跟他分享我去過的地方——在語言不通的情境下，照片往往是說故事最好的工具。
我們的晚餐是簡單但美味的馬鈴薯燉牛肉，配上饢餅以及熱茶。牧民家的夫妻和Urmat簡單寒暄，和我沒有太多互動，但卻相當勤勞的不斷把我的茶碗灌滿，直到我因為擔心半夜不方便上廁所而開始謝絕續杯。飯後準備就寢，蒙古包裡東西不多，但卻應有盡有，我和Urmat各鋪了一張床墊，身上裹著3層棉被，蒙古包裡還有以馬糞為燃料的暖爐，因此就寢的時候一點都不覺得冷。
Our yurt camp was operated by a couple in 40s. There were 3 yurts and one kitchen built by metal panels. While waiting for dinner, Urmat taught me some Kyrgyz words, and I shared some travel photos with him. The dinner was simply but delicious -- potato beef stew, with unlimited naan and hot tea on the side. I wasn't able to have any conversation with them, but they were very hospital and would not stop refilling my tea bowl until I asked for a stop.
The night in the yurt was warm and comfortable beyond my expectation. In addition to multiple layers of blankets, the yurt even had a furnace fueled by horse dung.
偽遊牧民族的第二天 Second day of nomadic life
隔天早上我們睡到快7點，Urmat先帶兩匹馬去山上吃草，我則被牧民夫婦以饢餅和熱茶配上荷包蛋餵飽，告別他們的時候大約是早上8點。這天的天氣比前一天要好，早晨的陽光並不刺眼，從低到高慢慢的把近處的草原和遠處的雪山漸漸點亮的時候，拍出來的照片既不會太鮮艷也不會太黯淡，有一種恰到好處的溫度。
On the second day, we crossed a mountain ridge and entered the basin where Song Kol is located. Near the highest point, the road was steep, slippery, strenuous and partially covered by snow. Our horses had no difficulty until we reached a patch of snow, where they were reluctant to cross over. After some failures, Urmat had me work with him. One of us pulled the horses forward, and the other whipped from behind, and we eventually made it through.
這段山路非常險峻，僅容一人的小徑在30度陡坡上盤山前進，部分地區還留著殘雪並且因融雪而泥濘，這種路要是自己背著背包走絕對會讓人絕望；然而對於被我騎著的馬來說，這種路似乎是家常便飯，牠的馬蹄和肌肉對地形的適應力勝過任何人類發明的交通工具，讓坐在馬上的我幾乎感覺不到地形的險惡。一個多小時之後，我們已經接近山脈的最高點，這裡草木已經相當稀疏，腳下踩的是台灣高山常見的碎石坡，回頭可以遙望昨晚住宿的山谷。我們稍微休息拍照了一會兒，正準備前進時，卻發現眼前的山徑仍然被白雪覆蓋著。為了安全，Urmat把我從馬上卸下來，準備以「人馬分離」的方式通過。
這段被雪覆蓋著的路徑並不長，大約只有30公尺左右，但兩匹馬對於通過積雪似乎非常抗拒，無論怎麼催就是不願意前進。最後Urmat請我和他一起合作，一人在前面拉，一人在後面揮動馬鞭，在雙方夾擊的策略下兩匹馬終於不甘願的通過了積雪，踏上了稜線的最高點。
跨過寸草不生的最高點碎石坡之後不久，眼前的風景像是來到另外一個世界——那是一個很大、看不到盡頭的山谷，谷底濛瀧中彷彿有一面鏡子；再前進一些，鏡子的面貌又更加清晰，不待Urmat說什麼，我就知道那是此行的目的地，頌湖。
從這裡到頌湖邊看似不遠，實際上是10多公里的距離，馬背上的2個小時，這段時間裡我們慢慢橫切過幾道山谷，逐漸往湖邊靠近，看著同一個湖慢慢變大變近，從模糊慢慢變得清晰。沿路上完全沒有人煙，看不到任何人工的痕跡，甚至有時連路徑都不一定清晰，但卻有著在山間享受的水草的馬群與羊群，我也搞不清楚他們是如何來到這裡的。
頌湖的湖岸邊是什麼樣子？我之前看到地圖上一條實線配上好幾個yurt camp的點位，以為是一條雙線道公路，兩旁偶而會出現蒙古包度假村，事實證明我錯了——那條實線其實只是條路徑不太清楚的泥土路，被四輪傳動車在旺季碾壓出來的；至於那些yurt camp，其實大多數只有旺季時存在，平常就是一片渺無人煙的大草原，沒有人，只有動物。
After that point, Song Kol soon became visible. It laid quietly on the bottom of the basin, and we spent the next two hours from the ridge top to approach it. No one else was around (I still don't know where the other group went). Only herds were grazing the grass there. As we reached the lakeshore, I realized this is very different -- there is no highway around the lake! Everything is still primitive and unspoiled. Shortly after, we arrived at the yurt camp. The lake shore is usually full of yurt camps during the peak season, but the one I stayed at was the only one when I visited, and I was the only backpacker there.
湖畔生活 Life by the lake
走了一個早上沒有人煙的路，接近中午的時候，終於看到遠方草原上的幾個黑點，推測那就是我當晚過夜的蒙古包所在；Urmat大概是想要趕快完成任務下班（他只負責把我帶到這邊就可以回家），又開始試圖讓兩匹馬全速衝刺，我只好不斷的用手勢拜託他慢一點，內心一邊嘀咕著你是在急什麼啦，不能讓我慢慢享受這番天堂般的美景嗎？
湖畔過夜的這戶人家的主人比較年輕，帶著太太和三個孩子。Urmat照例先把我和背包卸下來，我們一起在蒙古包裡的飯桌上吃了和前一天大同小異的午餐，飯後Urmat就把兩隻馬拴在一起踏上歸程；我向他揮了揮手，用吉爾吉斯語對他說謝謝，感謝他這兩天的照顧，看著終於可以讓馬全速奔馳的他消失的草原的深處。
Urmat headed back home with two horses after lunch, and I said thanks to him with the Kyrgyz word I just learned from him. The rest of the day, I simply walked around the yurt camp to enjoy the beautiful nature. I couldn't stop taking photos. I also spent some time with the kids of the host family. While I tried to entertain them with the Celtic whistle and harmonica I brought, they were far more interested in my cell phones and DSLR, to the extent that I had to hide them. (If I could speak their language, I would have said to them, don't you guys know people are here to be away from their cell phone and computer?)
接下來的一整個下午，我的任務就是「發呆」和「放空」。我帶著在馬背上根本無法使用的單眼相機，在蒙古包周圍散步，並且沿著湖畔道路走了一小段，藍天下的頌湖配上雪山實在太美，幾個小時裡快門從來沒有停過。這段時間裡我見到的人工建物只有一棟廢棄的水泥屋，以及一座用途不明的水泥平台，除此之外什麼都沒有，甚至沒有其他的蒙古包；除了牧民一家沒有看到任何人，無論是當地人或觀光客都沒有（我到現在還是很納悶前一天碰到的德國男和荷蘭女究竟是去哪了）。整個湖畔的觀光客只有我，整座湖由我一人獨享。
牧民家的孩子非常可愛，不斷地跑到我的蒙古包裡找我玩，我拿出特別準備的口琴和直笛和他們分享音樂，但比起這兩個樂器，他們顯然是對我的手機和單眼相機更有興趣，到了我不得不想辦法把它們藏起來的地步。
晚飯後的日落時分，整個頌湖像是一齣戲換了幕一般，呈現出截然不同的風景。我調整了相機上的白平衡，想把稜線邊上彩霞的輝煌給拍出來；這時候另一輛載滿了人的廂型車從遠方開了過來，他們從車上卸下了滿滿的工具和物資，從食材、建材、水到給小朋友的零食都有，顯然是趁機上來補給，並且準備在附近搭設另一個yurt camp，迎接幾個禮拜後來到的旺季人潮。司機會說簡單的英文，特地過來跟我打招呼，並且告訴我明天要把我載下山的人就是他。隨著天色從紫紅慢慢褪成幽黑，夜裡的主角是滿天的星斗，唯一可惜的是那天的我貪圖棉被裡的溫暖勝過難得無光害的星空（海拔3000公尺的山上畢竟還是很冷的），連一張照片都沒有留下。
The scene at sunset was equally astonishing. After dinner, a minivan full of food, ingredients and construction materials arrived. The driver told me that he would drive me back to Kochkor the next morning.
還俗之路 Back to the secular world
原本以為一個下午加晚上就足以讓我看遍頌湖的的千姿百態，隔天早上起來才發現我完全錯了，清晨才有的好戲才正好上演。前一天傍晚波光粼粼的湖面，經過一夜低溫，表面結出了一層薄冰，而這層薄冰又不斷的被風往湖岸推，造成了一種彷彿浪花在沙灘上凍結的奇景；腳下的草原整個表面都覆上了一層冰霜，眼前的空氣中則有晨霧讓山景若隱若現，整幅畫面就像是一幅飽和度被刻意調低的圖畫，整個大地靜默等待著被陽光喚醒的時刻。
Daybreak was another gorgeous moment. A thin layer of ice covered the lake, frost whitened the entire pasture, and morning fog masked the mountain ridges. A couple of hours later, the sun drove the frost and the fog away, and everything around became clear again. The world has come back to life, and the shepherds were about to start a new day.
用過了早餐，往天頂奔騰的太陽也漸漸把薄霧和冰霜驅散，整幅畫面也開始溫暖濃厚起來，牧人也開始帶著動物們往遠方走去；我則很早就把行李打包完畢，趁著在世外桃源的最後的幾個小時多拍幾張照片，並且向牧民家庭的孩子們道別。載我下山的司機告訴我他要先載人去另一塊營地搭帳篷，一會兒就回來，沒想到他的一會兒竟然是足以讓車子幾乎消失在地平線上的距離，或許這就是在山上生活必須習慣的距離感吧；幸好不久之後他的車子又從地平線上慢慢變大，早上9點左右我踏上了歸途。
回去的路上同樣是意料之外的精彩。首先，由於頌湖位在盆地裡面，離開的時候會越爬越高，可以看到更加完整的湖景，一路上也會不斷地和馬群及羊群邂逅；接著脫離了盆地之後，車子便得開始翻山。這段的地形非常壯麗，四周山勢雄峻，就像以前在旅遊書上看到的青藏高原那樣；但同時也極其險惡，四輪傳動的車子開在曲折蜿蜒的泥濘道路上，渺小的像是隻試圖從地板爬到餐桌頂上的螞蟻，路上到處可見碎石坡、泥石流的痕跡，部分路段連積雪都還未退，車子得鑽過像立山黑部那樣的雪壁之間。我的司機顯然對於這條路非常熟悉，對於各種路況地形的掌握駕輕就熟，但坐在副駕座上的我，看著這般景象仍是心驚膽跳，直到海拔漸漸降低、道路回到溪谷中才鬆了一口氣。
難得碰到會說英文的司機，我們有些簡單的對話，其中一些細節已經不記得，印象清楚的是他和我年紀差不多，有四個孩子，他靠著開車送觀光客到Kochkor附近的景點去玩，掙得的收入比吉爾吉斯的大多數人要高出許多。他和我分享手機裡照片，告訴我這團來自中國、這團來自台灣、這團是和我一樣在美國科技業工作的華人⋯⋯。聊著聊著我們還玩起樂器來，他一手抓著方向盤、另一手就拿著我的口琴吹了起來，開車和演奏樂器，這兩件事對他來說是可以同時進行的。
After breakfast, I grabbed the last chance to take photos and said bye to the kids. The way back was another unexpectedly amazing experience -- the highway passed several mountain ridges. On the highway, our minivan was as small as an ant trying to climb up to the table top. The road condition, however, was very challenging. It was curvy, unpaved and partially covered with snow. Fortunately the driver was very experienced. He had no problem driving, talking to me, and even playing my harmonica simultaneously. He told me that by transporting tourists to spots nearby, he made significantly more money than other locals.
大約中午的時候回到Kochkor，手機在進入市區前終於再次連上網路，看著累積了三天的訊息一口氣湧進來，心裡想到的第一件事情卻不是回訊息，而是趕快找到一個有自來水的地方洗把臉。回到Shapherd's Life辦公室，跟阿姨說這趟玩得很開心（顯然她也賺我的錢賺得很開心），順便到她經營的青旅那邊去洗臉，準備找車回首都比什凱克。
回程的車仍然是坐滿即開的中巴，上車時整部車還很空，心想完蛋了這下子不知道要等多久，幸好不到一個小時車子就被塞滿，啟程往比什凱克開去；全車除了我之外，還有另一位來自法國的背包客，同樣是透過Shapherd's Life去山上遊玩，他告訴我說那家的阿姨人很好，甚至還把多餘的交通費（因為後來有其他旅客分攤）退回去給他。
許多背包客都說，頌湖是他們在吉爾吉斯最難忘的地方，對我來說也是如此，不過老實說，回程的路上我完全沒有心思去回憶那如夢似幻的三天兩夜，因為下山之後還有好多好多的事情要辦——一定要好好先洗個澡，然後把旅行了10多天累積的髒衣服洗一洗（還要研究出在語言不通的情況下怎麼找洗衣店），最重要的是隔天馬上就得踏上翻過帕米爾高原、陸路入境中國的旅程，好多好多的不確定性接踵而來，我只得先把這幾天的回憶暫時拋諸腦後⋯⋯。
下一篇，是全程42天裡最緊張、刺激、驚險的一段，也就是從吉爾吉斯陸路進入中國的旅程，敬請期待。
Back in Kochkor around 11am. I reported my positive experience to the lady at Shepherd's Life and borrowed the restroom at her guesthouse to wash my face (as I had been out of running water during the trip). Shortly after, I hopped on a minibus heading back to Bishkek (although I had to wait for another hour for the bus to be filled up). Another backpacker from France was also on the bus. We exchanged our experience here along the way.
While the Song Kol experience was so unforgettable, I didn't have much capacity to replay that on the way back, as a much bigger challenge is coming next day: to cross the border into China via Pamir Highway, the most unpredictable and challenging part of my 42-day journey (can't wait to write about it!).
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