This is my second time in Central Asia.

My first journey took me to Mongolia years ago, and now, I find myself in Kyrgyzstan, the land of the Celestial Mountains, often called the Switzerland of Central Asia.

It’s easy to see why.

Nearly 90% of the country is covered by mountains, from the mighty Tien Shan to the rugged Pamir range. In a place like this, anyone who travels here must surely come for the mountains.

The moment I stepped onto its soil, I felt a quiet stillness in the air.

From afar, the mountain range stretched endlessly beneath the soft light, and in that instant, I knew that there was no rush here. The people of Kyrgyzstan seem to move at the same gentle rhythm as the land itself; calm, unhurried, and deeply connected to nature. I reminded myself to do the same here. To move slower, to listen deeper, and to simply be present in this moment.

Back home, life often moved too fast, days blending into one another as I tried to balance my passion for living with the weight of time pressing on my shoulders. But here, under the vast open skies and endless horizons, I felt that sense of playfulness again.

Two precious weeks to wander, to breathe, and to reset — to absorb the calm of this land and carry its gentle rhythm back home with me.

What could be better than moments like this … surrounded by nature, laughter, and a circle of kindred spirits, both old and new, whose hearts beat for adventure? Every year, this group of seasoned hikers makes a pact to reunite somewhere in the world for two weeks of epic exploration. Just us, the mountains, and the joy of sharing stories while trekking rugged trails together.

For this journey, we turned to our friend, Zahariz Khuzaimah (zahariz@gmail.com) — a man who knows Kyrgyzstan like the back of his hand.

We told him we wanted to hike through the mountains, and he helped craft the perfect itinerary to match our wishes. Known for his incredible solo adventures cycling across Central Asia, Zahariz fell so deeply in love with Kyrgyzstan that he made it his home for several years.

Together, we traced a path through the heart of this beautiful country — beginning in Bishkek, the capital city. From there, we drove to Kyzart Village and spent a night before continuing on horseback to Song Kol Lake, where we slept in a traditional yurt and tasted the Kyrgyzstan nomadic lifestyle.

Our journey then carried us to Jeti Oguz for a 4-day 3-night hiking trip ascending toward Telety Pass at 3,800 meters, ending at Karakol Gorge Camp. We spent two nights in Karakol town. We hopped aboard the iconic Russian van, the UAZ 452, bound for Altyn-Arashan for a day trip, where we soaked in the natural hot springs before crossing into Almaty, Kazakhstan, to catch our flight home to Kuala Lumpur.

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Honestly, I don’t even know what else to share in this post because these days, you can find almost everything about Kyrgyzstan on social media, especially TikTok. Even the horse-riding journey to Song-Kol Lake was exactly how people described it there. And yes, spending long hours on a horse does hurt your back. Trust me, the soreness stays with you for at least two days!

I’m not here to be the “terpaling” traveller 🤣. If I keep trying to compete with other travel content creators, I’ll lose the joy of it all. 

I just want to be me. Writing this blog the way I always do, in my own messy, honest way. No “terpaling”, no pretending, just stories from the road as I see and feel them.

What really caught my attention, though, was the nomadic lifestyle.

More than half of Kyrgyzstan is covered in agricultural land, and herding plays a huge role in the local economy. Their main products are cotton, wool, and meat. With the tough terrain and limited infrastructure, living a nomadic life just makes sense here. Many families still move a few times a year, following the seasons to find the best pastures for their livestock.

I first got a glimpse of the nomadic life back in 2017 when I travelled through Mongolia in winter and stayed with nomad families along the way. You can check out my post about that experience here: >> ENCHANTED BY THE MONGOLIAN (2017)

During that period, I had been practising a Minimalist Mindset for several years as a way to refocus and heal from the weight of past traumas. Then, while journeying through Mongolia and witnessing the nomadic way of life, something within me shifted. Their simplicity, their rhythm with nature, their sense of freedom … somehow, it all spoke to a part of me I didn’t know was longing for that kind of peace.

I realized I didn’t need to physically become a minimalist or a nomad.

What I needed was to embrace the mindset or the spirit behind both lifestyles – the clarity of minimalism and the fluidity of nomadism – and let them guide me in recalibrating my own path.

So when I found myself in Kyrgyzstan, that same sense of familiarity returned.

The wide open landscapes, the quiet rhythm of life, the people who still move with the seasons, it all reminded me of what I felt back in Mongolia. It’s as if the land itself were whispering the same lesson again: live simply, stay adaptable, and move when life calls for it.

All of these reminded me that freedom doesn’t always mean chasing more.

Sometimes it’s about knowing when to let go, when to move, and when to rest. Their way of life felt like a mirror to the mindset I’ve been trying to live by — the balance between holding on and letting go, between stillness and motion.

Forgive me for getting a little poetic in this post — but being here in Kyrgyzstan brought me right back to my 2017 journey in Mongolia, and I couldn’t help but feel a wave of nostalgia.

So, what exactly did I do during my two weeks in Kyrgyzstan?

I was taking a much-needed pause from my ordinary life, and while there, I did what I always do whenever I travel: observe the world through my camera. I watched life unfold around me. Capturing the faces of friends and strangers on the streets, listening to stories of the nomads, and sometimes, catching quiet reflections of my own journey. But more often than not, it was the land that held my gaze. The mountains, vast and timeless, drew me in. And to be honest, as always, I found myself admiring their silent beauty far more than the people themselves.

In my next post, I’ll take you along on my next adventure in Kyrgyzstan. Hiking through the scenic mountain pass of the Telety Pass in the Terskey Ala-Too range, a route that connects the Karakol Valley and the Jeti-Oguz Valley in the Issyk-Kul region. It’s a story of wind, wilderness, and a few quiet lessons the mountains had to share.

Read about my Telety Pass Hiking Experience here:

Cheers

Sallymatsuda

P.S. Definition of Minimalist-Nomadic Mindset

✅ A minimalist mindset is the practice of living with intention, focusing only on what truly adds value to your life, and letting go of excess. Whether it’s possessions, distractions, or negative thoughts, the goal is to create space for clarity, peace, and purpose.

✅ A nomadic mindset is the outlook of embracing change and movement, staying open to new experiences, and remaining unattached to places or possessions. The goal is finding a sense of home and freedom within yourself rather than in anything external.

✅ ✅ A nomadic–minimalist mindset is a way of living that values freedom, simplicity, and inner peace. Embracing change and movement while letting go of excess and attachment. It’s about finding a sense of home within yourself, living lightly, and focusing only on what truly adds meaning and purpose to your journey.