The GREAT Railway Bazaar

Nature has this AMAZING power, doesn’t it? It lifts our spirits when we’re feeling low, and it strengthens our minds—so says Paul Theroux in The GREAT Railway Bazaar. Theroux suggests that travel can offer a kind of joy that we forget exists, and what BETTER way to find it than in Kyrgyzstan? Studies back up Theroux, too—just one from Stanford University shows how being outdoors makes us less anxious and happier. Meanwhile, an IMPRESSIVE bit of research from the University of Illinois shows children do better at school, including when they’re swamped with homework, if they spend time in the woods. For adults too, the outside can calm the mind: one simple explanation for why people are getting their knickers in a twist over wild green exercise tracks may be that it works wonders for a worried brain! Whatever your age, there’s something SPECIAL about being surrounded by nature that gets you straight and good inside. Try it; you might even find it’s ADDICTIVE. It’s IMPORTANT too, if you’ve little ones with you: as well as great fun (you can ride horses, walk across soft grass, and sleep in a yurt all at once!), children pick up loads when they’re outdoors, which doesn’t happen at school. Indeed, when we’re talking about learning experiences, it doesn’t get much better than spending time with nomadic families in their warm tents. You can feel like a REAL-LIFE hug! Whilst you’re here, you can also explore some great food and follow old stories at an international Manas festival that features eagle shows where birds do tricks, helping people hunt or fight off thieves from farms as they did back in the day!