Backdate: Kyrgyzstan Naryn- Issyk-Kul Lake - Bokonbaevo Aug 2019 Day 8

9/8/19 Fri: We had soft-boiled eggs and pancakes for breakfast at 7.30am and set off to Bokonbaevo (1800m ASL) via Tosor Pass (3893m ASL) northeast-wards at 8am. *I checked the weather for the day and saw that it will be rainy in the afternoon...*

There were lots of amazing photo stops along the way. Don't the picture above look like a scene that would appear in "Lord of the Rings" or a magical adventure movie? *PS... that is actually a pee-pee stop for passing tourists haha.* 

The two girls probably caught some rest on the car but as someone who can't really fall asleep in moving vehicles, I can't help but be amazed by the ever-changing scenery now and then. Saw those big and colourful stones? Apparently they are rocks in the seabed many years ago before the water level fell and revealed their presence. *How I wish I took some home lol!* We had picnic in the wild out of nowhere~ We also got to marvel at the beauty of the snow-capped Tian Shan mountains that seemed to be at the closest point where we got to see them.

Driving up and down towards and on Tosor pass was a tough experience. Tosor Pass is one of the highest mountain roads in Kyrgyzstan, and the altitude difference from the low to high points is about 2000m. Though I believe Sergey has driven there many times, it still proved to be difficult with steep slopes, unpaved routes and rocky paths. It was a bumpy journey for us. Oh, there is also a river called Uch-Emchek along the road we were driving on. 
The weather forecast was between 13 degrees Celcius to 5 degrees Celcius at Tosor Pass that day. It was gloomy and dark as we made our way up. *Sergey had to get down a few times to check the tyres in case they got stuck or punctured by rocks or anything. We would be "dead meat" if we're stuck there seriously.*  

If it was already that difficult for a car to drive up, then all the more I must praise those cyclists who attempts to cycle up! It was 3.30pm and raining when we reached the highest point of Tosor Pass. YJ and I got down the car to take photos. It was pretty cold and chilly, plus it was foggy, so we can't see much, and hence we hopped onto the car back fast.

The mountain sceneries were endless, but it slowly changed from rocky, mundane ones to ones filled with greens as we approached Bokonbaevo and Issyk-Kul (1607m ASL). I can't believe it is only a LAKE because I can't even see the opposite shore! Known as the crown jewel of Tian Shan, this second largest saline lake after the Caspian sea aka seventh deepest lake aka 10th largest in the world by volume, measures a surface area of 6236 square metres... about eight times the size of Singapore! The name meant "warm lake" as it never freezes despite being surrounded by snow-capped peaks.

We passed by a small town on our way to the yurt camp. Though we didn't have internet in Kyzyl-Oi village, Song-Kol, Kol-Suu and Tash Rabat area, some towns in between those places still has it. The internet there are fast and cheap! I remember when I was in Bishkek and the staff saw that my phone was on "3G", he looked shocked... as if thinking "no one here uses 3G anymore, all 4G!" Lol. You can get free Megacom or Beeline SIM cards, and then top-up. We got ours at Manas airport for 50 som for 10GB for a week, and I topped-up 200 som at the convenience store attached to Rich Hotel, and it was unlimited data for me then on phew!
Sergey drove us to Bel-Tam yurt camp where we thought we would be staying at, but apparently it was full, and so he turned and drove to Jurten Camp Almaluu nearby that was to be our place of rest for the next two nights. It was 6pm by the time we got there... 10 hours of journey on the road... the longest we ever gone on in Kyrgyzstan.

There were four beds in our yurt, but they said they'd remove one. I slept on the green one on the first night, but they took it away, so we shifted the one on the left over for me to sleep on on the second night. There are also hammocks and swings tied onto trees outside our yurt... simple entertainment. *Saw a little boy and we gave him sweets... but he's a bit "dao" wor~* 

*Saw the Belgium couple from Kyzyl-Oi village staying at another yurt camp just beside ours~ the auntie was reading and the husband was accompanying her on the bench outside their yurt.* Three of us decided to take the 20 minutes' walk to the south side of Issyk-Kul in the evening. We did not swim on the first night, just people-watch. This side of the lake wasn't as gorgeous as the stretch we'd seen while driving pass. 
On the way back, Jess spotted a full rainbow! It was very pretty!

Dinner was served at a common dining yurt from 6.30pm to 9.30pm daily. Randomly chit-chatted with a guy from the UK outside the yurt while we wait for our turn to go in. We were being served beef noodle that night~ it was a change for me! I thought the soup reminded me of mee soto's and I quite enjoyed it. *It's funny how the lady boss told us "spaghetti" was on the menu for that night, and when it turned out like the one in the photo... Jess was utterly disappointed lol.* 
Oh and because there's showering facilities in this yurt camp, we thought those strings attached inside our yurts should then be used to hang our clothes la haha. This yurt is much bigger in size compared to those we stayed in earlier too. *Nope I didn't shower the first night, but as my watershoes were soaked in the lake, it took me a long time to dry it and cleaned out the sand that night.* 
YJ and Jess ate the cup noodles they brought over at night as supper if I didn't remember wrongly, and though they "encouraged" me to eat as well, I didn't feel like eating it till we're nearing the end of the trip since I only brought one there haha.
It was very cold and dark at night as we popped out of the yurts and walk to nearby the toilet to wash-up. Not much stars here though.