uncommon destinations

Chinghiz Aitmatov greatest Turan writer

Yes i am saying Turan! call me gray wolf if you like I don’t care..But I didn’t even know that he wrote “‘Selvi Boylum Al Yazmalim” which I think was made into one of the most memorable Turkish movies from 70’s

He is my latest literary interest and well worth it for numerous reasons.  I could only find two of his books in the states one is called “The Day Lasts More Than a Hundred Years”(I ordered it) and the other one is called Jamila(Cemile?) .  They will be english translations I am afraid ;however, I will certainly be looking for a greater variety when I go to Turkey this april or may?

I read an excerpt from The Day Lasts More Than a Hundred Years about “MANKURTS” mindless slaves that is very interesting video on you tube about that :

There is a turkish version too just type mankurt on search it will pop up

Jodha Akbar

Not really a central asian movie but had some ties to Central Asian history. Jalaluddin Muhammad Akbar  was the son of Nasiruddin Humayun whom he succeeded as ruler of the Mughal Empire from 1556 to 1605. He was the grandson ofBabur who founded the Mughal dynasty. On the eve of his death in 1605, the Mughal empire spanned almost 500 million acres (doubling during Akbar’s reign) 

It was an interesting take on the great Mughal emperor.  His great tolerance towards Rajputas was reflected as he took a Rajput princess in hand for marriage.   Making her the great empress.  Winning her heart and mostly hindi singing and dancing stuff.  However the movie was extremely beautiful to watch and had some relationship to historical events.  Though little research reveals that he(Jodha Akbar) had harem full of Rajputa wives ;-)) can’t make a love story out of that material though..

Moghuls! or should I say Mughals?  An era worth reading to.

Stars Caravan

I watched a movie called “stars caravan” today.  It was a documentary about travelling propaganda film projectorists.   Though it was only an hour, it provided a realistic look into post communism Kyrgyzstan(slightly after declaration of their independence).  Rundown cinemas,  suffering economy and unknown future of their country was intermingled with the epic story of kyrgyz hero Manas.  Some Kyrgyz traditions such as horseback wrestling and eagle hunting were shown.   Also revival of Islam and islamic life of the Kyrgyz were reflected in the movie.  It was short, sweet and realistic definetely a must see for someone who is interrested in Central Asia.   I wish there were nmore films available 😉

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map of central asia

Ok these countries will be my focus of exploration.  Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, uzbekistan, azerbaijan(though not central asian but Turkic), Xiangiang(East Turkistan).  Gaining their independence from the Soviets in 90’s, central asian countries have become my interest.  When I first heard azeri or turkmen spoken, I for the first time realized that there were countries outside of Turkey in which languages similar to ours were spoken.  All this time, I thought we were pretty lonely in our geography.   My interest in hearing these dialects grew into learning about the geography, the history and the culture of the region which I will share in my upcoming posts.  I know my blog has almost very little content but I will appreciate your input about areas to explore or subjects.

Now I am off for a cup of tea! or should I say CHAY!