Tash Rabat

I sometimes am cooped up on campus for days at a time, so I don't get to see very much of the extraordinary country in which I am living. Today I traveled with J Soms and The Barista to one of the most amazing sites in Kyrgyzstan: Tash Rabat.

Situated at an altitude of about 3200 meters and about 30 kilometers from China, Tash Rabat was a "caravanserai" (or a roadside inn) where travelers could rest in ancient times. The remaining structure at Tash Rabat was built in the 15th Century and was thought to have been originally constructed as a Nestorian Monastery. Some scholars speculate that parts of it date back as far as the 10th Century. The design is extraordinary as the entire complex, especially the dome, would have required intricate engineering knowledge.

Over time the complex served not only as an inn, but also as a place where prisoners were held and our driver said that, in Soviet times, it was used as a slaughter house.
 
Equally as spectacular is the dramatic Kyrgyz mountainscape one finds along the way. It is a distinctively Kyrgyz journey as one encounters herds of sheep and horses, communities of yurts, and a pastoral life reminiscent of nomadic times.

What made the trip most enjoyable is that we were able to spend time together with J. in the precious few days he has remaining in our company.

Yurt Camp at Tash Rabat

Entrance to main structure at Tash Rabat

On top of the structure

The domed ceiling inside Tash Rabat

Kyrgyz Mountainscape near Tash Rabat

With J. and The Barista on the Tash Rabat Structure