Stories about Central Asia & Caucasus from February, 2014
“A Trip He Will Not Forget”: Russian Man Flies to Tajikistan By Mistake
A young man did not check his ticket before departure and arrived in Tajikistan's Kurgan-Tyube instead of Russia's Kurgan.
Kazakhstan's Charyn Canyon
Sergei Terekti presents [ru] a photo essay about his recent trip to Charyn Canyon, Kazakhstan's own smaller version of the Grand Canyon in the United States: The main canyon is about 150 kilometers long; the Charyn River crosses it. Multiple gorges, valleys, and smaller canyons surround the Charyn Canyon. One of the main...
Women Out For The Evening Risk Arrest in Turkmenistan
The Vienna-based opposition blog Chronicles of Turkmenistan reports that police in northern Turkmen town of Dashoguz raid cafes and restaurants in search of women out for the evening. According to the blog, single ladies and women dining without their husbands are taken to police stations. Chronicles of Turkmenistan alleged back in...
Tajik Court Fines Journalist for Calling Docile Intellectuals ‘Shit’
A journalist who quoted Vladimir Lenin in criticizing state-appointed, docile intellectuals in Tajikistan has been ordered by court to pay over 6,000 US dollars in "moral damage".
“We Are Not an Anomaly or Disease”: Gay Bloggers Speak Up in Tajikistan
Social media is enabling Tajikistan's gay community to speak up against widespread homophobic attitudes. These attitudes, however, are quite sticky.
Tajikistan's Tastiest Blogs
There are three blogs in Tajikistan that are a must read for anyone interested in Tajik cuisine. Tajik Restaurant [Tarabkhonai Tojiki] [tj] shares cook-it-yourself videos and recipes of popular Tajik dishes. Suhailo's Cooking Diary [Daftari pukhtu-pazhoi Suhailo] [tj] teaches its readers to bake pastries popular in the country. Finally, Osh...
Kyrgyz MPs Explain Themselves Over a Prayer Room in Parliament
The recent opening of an Islamic prayer room in the Kyrgyz parliament has triggered a heated online debate about the boundaries between the state and religion in the Central Asian country. Responding to criticisms, MPs designed and circulated among journalists and bloggers a six-page document suggesting that prayer houses in...
“They Fell Our Souls and Memory”: Felling of Trees Draws Anger in Tajikistan
Whenever the authorities in Dushanbe launch a redevelopment project, they start by felling trees. Over the last decade, Tajikistan's capital has lost thousands of trees.
Soviet-era Monuments and Slogans in Tajik Capital “Should Stay”
Over the last two decades, the authorities in Dushanbe have dismantled most of the Soviet-era monuments and huge political slogans on rooftops which had all been an important feature of the cityscape before 1991. However, as Radio Ozodi reports [tj], Tajikistan's capital has preserved a handful of Soviet statues, slogans, and signs...
The President That Could Not Stand His “Stan”
As far as countries go, "stan" is something of a bad brand. PR-sensitive Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev is suggesting it could be time for a change to his country's name.
Kazakhstan Gets Its First Medal in Sochi
Kazakhstan's Denis Ten finished third in men's figure skating tonight, bringing the country its first-ever Olympic medal in this sport.
Despite Bans, Central Asians Observe Valentine's Day
Looking at how people in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan observed Valentine's Day.
“Celebrating Valentine's Day Is a Direct Way to Hell” in Tajikistan
Popular among younger people in cities, Valentine's Day struggles to gain broader acceptance in Tajikistan.
Did Turkmenistan Get Cold Feet Before the Sochi Winter Olympics?
Warm-wintered Turkmenistan failed to send a singe athlete to this year's Winter Olympics. The only representative the republic sent to Sochi was its sport-loving president.
An “Increasingly Uncertain” Future for Central Asia's Fergana Valley
On the Caravanistan blog, Cycloscope writes about radioactive landfill sites in the Fergana Valley, a region “absurdly divided between Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan”: Unaware of the dangers of radioactivity, the locals take the equipment in the old abandoned mines and sell them as scrap, risking not only their own lives...
VIDEOS: Argentina's Melting Pot of Culinary Traditions
A large diversity of migrants in Argentina allows us to enjoy a wide array of international dishes often shared in feasts for the various immigrant communities throughout the country.
Prisoners Lists Stir Informbiro Memories in Former Yugoslav Republics
Publishing of the lists of Goli Otok prisoners, victims of 1949-56 communist purges, reignited dormant debates and opened some old wounds, throughout the former Yugoslav republics.
“Vegetarianism Equals Evil” in Tajikistan
A foreigner tweeting under @onlytajikistan tells about Tajik food and about the way the country has changed him from a vegetarian to meat eater.
Tajik Team at Olympics Opening Ceremony Included a Russian “Tourist”
Following the Olympics opening ceremony, many people in Tajikistan were shocked to find out [ru] that one of the individuals who walked into the ceremony in Sochi alongside Tajik athletes under their nation's flag had little to do with the country. Vladimir Vladimirov, a Russian entrepreneur and member of a municipal...
“Dreamlike Kyrgyzstan” As Seen by a Photographer
Kloop.kg presents [ru] a collection of photos from “dreamlike Kyrgyzstan” by Russian photographer Danil Korzhonov.
Tajik Bloggers Ask to Meet With President
Every year, the president of Tajikistan meets with selected members of the national intelligentsia in Dushanbe, in late March. These meetings normally feature long speeches by the president followed by endless praise of his work and his answers to carefully scripted questions from the audience. As the authorities begin [ru]...
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