One of our takeaways from our past trips was trying to see too many places in too short a time and always having the sense of being on the go. We therefore consciously planned this year's itinerary to allow more time in as many of the places as we could so we could rest more and be on the go less. In a perfect world that makes so much sense but in some towns there's just not much to 'do' and Karakol was one of those as is Khiva, Uzbekistan, where I am writing this post from but that's a story for down the line!
Karakol was an ideal place for three nights but stretching it out to four was probably one day too much since we didn't want to do any more extreme hiking in the nearby mountains or something else equally adventurous having just come off the three day horse trek. Steven did some research and found about some hot springs not far away so that sounded like something new and different for us to explore. Being able to get to Altyn Arakshan by marshrutka for next to nothing made it an easy decision. The springs were located about a half hour southeast of Karakol at the top of a canyon so we had gorgeous views on the way.
When we got dropped off at the end of the road, I began to wonder what we had gotten ourselves into when the driver had gestured the hot springs were in this nondescript building and this was Ak-Suu Hot Springs Resort!
Another of the rooms, perfect for three!
Steven was all for staying put but I suggested we go for a walk and see what else was on that same road beyond the hot springs. Steven thankfully agreed!
If there had been a place for us to sit in the sun so we could read and dangle our feet in the water for an hour or so, that would have been perfect in my mind. Alas, we found no such spot so on we walked.
The old, rundown playground seemed out of place at that point.
This was the outhouse for the so-called resort! Notice the unusual sign for my rapidly expanding bathroom sign collection!
I hoped the building up ahead might be a hotel and fancier hot springs as I really wasn't in favor of going back to the other 'resort.'
We didn't see any signs so just walked in and down some halls. It was soon apparent that it was a children's hospital, likely for those who could benefit from the healing waters in some way. I found it to be a very depressing place with dark, dingy corridors and rooms and felt sad for the crying children who needed to be there. Now I understood the presence of the nearby playground.
Well - you can guess where we ended up, back where we started! I was so glad I brought my swimsuit as I wanted minimal contact with the tub! The water was very hot but we could adjust it as needed.
I also saw there for sale the traditional Kyrgyz men's hats called kalpaks which were four panels of white felt sewn together with traditional patterns stitched in as decoration.
There were several tiny cafes or tea houses in the alley, too, something we hadn't seen elsewhere in Karakol.
Since it was still only early afternoon, we decided to while away the rest of the day in the park by the university.
We hoped to score by snagging one of these combination benches and swings that looked so much fun but we were out of luck.
We were lucky enough, though, to get this backwards-forwards bench which we'd never seen before. It turned out to be a perfect spot right in front of the fountains so there was an endless parade of children and people walking by to watch if I got bored trying to keep abreast of political news back home on my phone or if Steven wanted a break from the game on his iPad.
When a woman showed us the room with the private 'hot tubs,' i.e. the bathtubs, I was not terribly enthralled, I must admit. There was a strong sulfur smell which I could deal with but the condition of the tubs made me want to run for the hills which were fortunately nearby! The tubs didn't appear to have been cleaned for months and there were long hairs everywhere - yuck! I am definitely not a clean freak but this place just grossed me out.
This was Steven's tub, just a few feet away from mine. When we were done, the water drained directly onto the floor! It was pretty relaxing and I was glad we had done it but was also sure I didn't want to go back again after an hour! We couldn't beat the price of only 100 som or $1.50 for an hour in the hot tubs.
We had no idea how often the marshrutkas ran back to Karakol but, just like the day before, we were in luck and only had to wait two minutes. We had thought we had hit all the 'sights' in Karakol, having seen the Sunday Cattle Market, the wooden Russian Orthodox Church, the Przhevalsky Museum, the Big Bazaar, the Dungan Mosque and, of course, the cows at Pristan Beach! But the Ashlan-Fu Alley was new to us so we wandered down the narrow clothing and food lane. We had noticed that most women in Karakol wore vests just like these - don't know whether it was for warmth or as a fashion statement.
Next post: Travel to Kyrgyzstan's capital city of Bishkek by marshrutka.
Posted on October 2nd, 2018, from Khiva, Kyrgyzstan.
This reminds me of taking short stops at benches throughout Warsaw in the massive park in the city and also in London just to read a book. It was so peaceful!
ReplyDeleteAs busy as we've been since arriving in Spain where there are so many 'must see' sights, it's still important to step back and put on the brakes once in a while and be in the present and not thinking about the next place we want to see. Thanks for the reminder, honey. XOXO, Mum
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