Gold!

Kyrgyzstan's economy: Spandau ballet

Congratulations to Kazakhstan on their 7 Olympic golds. There are images of the winners everywhere and I think it creates a significant feel good factor.

Speaking of gold, Kazakhstan's little brother in the south, Kyrgyzstan, has an economy which consists 43% of gold exports. Now either this country has a small economy, or it has a lot of gold; in fact both are true. 

Almost the size of Great Britain but with fewer than 6 million people, the country is 94% mountainous and sounded so fasciniating - not just because it's 90% vowels - that I wanted to go there. I had to spend a few evenings waiting at the consulate, and at BTA bank to pay $55 for a visa (the queuing system works by asking who's last, and then you become last, and then the next person asks you, etc. - so everyone knows. Very elegant - until, that is, we decided to leave because the queue was too long. The person after us in the queue had a look of horror on her face - 'who's before you?!'). After successfully getting a visa, the requirements were relaxed 7 days later - no visa needed. They didn't even notice my visa when they checked my passport at the border! Anyway, for those inclined to start lawsuits: the following articles will be about PBJ in Kyrgyzstan, not Kazakhstan!

BTA bank: BTA is short for 'lovely'