This journey starts in a Silk Road city with a 3,000-year history and climbs toward 7,000-meter (about 23,000-ft) snow peaks. In this episode of EBS1’s World Theme Travel, the crew explores the vast mountain ranges and everyday lives of southern Kyrgyzstan. Expect rugged passes, dramatic alpine scenery, and intimate nomadic wedding rituals — warm moments tucked into unfamiliar landscapes.
Episode 2, “A Wondrous Route of Comfort: Alai Pass,” of EBS1’s World Theme Travel — Rumor Pilgrimage: Kyrgyzstan, airing on the 26th, follows the crew as they leave the Silk Road hub of Osh and head along the Pamir Highway toward the Alai Range and Lenin Peak. Former special forces soldier and wilderness adventurer Park Eun-ha joins the trip as curator.
The journey begins in Osh, a southern Kyrgyz city with a 3,000-year history that once thrived as a Silk Road trading center. The show samples a local favorite, samsa, highlighting a version stuffed with an entire leg of lamb. The crunchy, just-baked pastry filled with juicy lamb captures Osh’s lively energy.
From there, the crew drives the Pamir Highway — one of Central Asia’s most iconic mountain roads — toward the Alai Range and Lenin Peak, which rises to 7,134 meters (about 23,405 ft). As they wind over the passes, Kyrgyzstan’s sweeping steppes and snow-clad peaks open up in breathtaking panoramas.
In the village of Sopugorgon, they stumble upon an unexpected sight: the whole community bustling with preparations for the innkeeper grandmother’s granddaughter’s wedding. A traditional Kyrgyz wedding lasts three days. The bride’s and groom’s families each host guests, with the main ceremony held on the final day.
The bride’s family alone welcomes more than 300 guests in a large-scale celebration. Villagers spend the day making borsok — traditional fried bread — and preparing chuchuk sausages, made by boiling horse meat with offal, among other dishes. On the wedding morning, relatives and neighbors present the couple with kalpak hats and jooluk headpieces to bless their new life. A father who had seemed stoic ultimately sheds tears as he gives his daughter away, leaving a lasting impression.
The journey then pushes back toward the high peaks. After crossing Taldyk Pass at 3,615 meters (about 11,860 ft), Lenin Peak emerges through the clouds. In Sarimogol, the southernmost mountain village, the team sets off on a trek with Abdisalam, the area’s only Lenin Peak sherpa.
High-altitude travel is unforgiving. Above 3,000 meters (about 9,843 ft), breath comes harder and bodies grow heavy. Some crew members show signs of altitude sickness and descend. Still, the team presses on, and a vast high-mountain lake, Tulpar Kol, eventually unfolds before them. The emerald water beneath the perennial snows and the surrounding peaks create an utterly overwhelming scene.
They pause to catch their breath, cooking instant noodles with melted snow beneath the peaks. The peaceful moment is short-lived: a sudden hailstorm heightens the tension on the rugged route.
“A Wondrous Route of Comfort: Alai Pass” promises more than a travelogue — it offers a close, human look at life across Central Asia, from sprawling steppes to towering snowfields and the people who call them home.
EBS1’s World Theme Travel — Rumor Pilgrimage: Kyrgyzstan, episode 2, “A Wondrous Route of Comfort: Alai Pass,” airs on the 26th at 8:40 p.m.
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