Empire of the Ring

Chapter 660: Switzerland in Central Asia (1)

Kyrgyzstan was a mountainous region where 80 percent of its land was higher than 2,000 meters above sea level.

Comparing its height with mountains of Europe, the Alps’ highest peak, Montblanc, was 4,807 meters, but Kyrgyzstan’s highest peak, Pobeda Peak, was 7,439 meters.

The existence of high mountains that could only be seen in the Himalayas was also a great thing to boast about, and small and large mountain lakes and streams of the valleys from the icecap were also beautiful.

Despite such a beautiful nature, Kyrgyzstan was unknown to the world.

With four distinct seasons and an average annual rainfall of 700 millimeters, there were distinctively dense forests in Central Asia as neighboring countries did not have such amount of precipitation.

In addition, there was a lake called ‘Issyk Kul’, which was the size of Chungcheongbuk-do in Korea, which was the second-largest lake after Titicaca in South America and 12 times larger than Leman in Switzerland.

That was why this place was nicknamed as the Switzerland of Central Asia because of its great natural environment.

It was compared to Switzerland which was famous for its natural environment, but in Youngho’s view, Switzerland was nowhere near as beautiful as Kyrgyzstan.

The heads of multinational companies who toured such places on the royal planes looked totally incredulous.

They wonder why such a beautiful place was not known to the world.

Some even joked that if it were known, the number of people visiting the Alps would be halved.

Then when Youngho invited them to the royal villa by the Issyk Kul Lake, they could not close their mouths.

They were overwhelmed by a lake as large as the sea could be.

It was also surprising that the basin, which was the edge of the lake, was sparsely dotted with nomadic yurts, and that the mountain range that was surrounding it like a folding screen was preserved in its primitive state.

There was a small amusement facility located at one corner, but it was not enough to receive tourists, which made them even more surprised.

If it was in the West, big resorts would have been everywhere already.

“Your Highness, it is so unfair that only people of Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan enjoy the scenery of these beautiful places. We must build entertainment facilities so that anyone can come. How on earth has it been so well preserved?”

“If you know why, you’ll probably laugh.”

When Youngho explained that the reason place was preserved so far was because the place was restricted to be used as a site for torpedo tests during the Soviet time, everyone was dumbfounded.

“Well, we should thank the Soviet authorities for their job, then.”

“It’s a great thing to be thankful for now, but it would’ve been horrible news for the people who lived around this lake at that time.”

Lake Issyk Kul was rich in fish resources.

After thousands of years of fishing and nomadic activities near the large lake and basin, the natives were all driven away under the pretext of protecting military facilities.

“Your Highness, I’ve been to all the good places, but there won’t be a few places left on Earth where nature is so well preserved like this.”

“Kyrgyzstan has been a poor country with less than 1,000 dollars per capita income. Under such circumstances, would a view like this has been a matter to the people? It’s been preserved so far because they couldn’t afford to develop it. It’s proof that life in Kyrgyzstan is just tight.”

“I heard Central Asia was poor, but I didn’t know it was as poor as some places in Africa.”

“Socialism has made it that way. In a place where corruption is rampant and politics is a mess, it’d be even admirable that a country’s been maintained. It’s been a lot better since it became a federation of Kazakhstan.”

It was not long after being incorporated into a federal state that per capita income approached 10,000 dollars.

The government’s efforts to reduce foreign debt and defense spending to put them into state-run facilities had spurred economic revitalization. Attracting various light-industry plants to increase jobs, and realizing wages also contributed to raising national income although the income level was still less than half as much as that of the Kazakh people.

The heads of multinational companies were excited to start the Kyrgyzstan resort business right away.

If accessibility was improved, it would be a greater tourist destination than Switzerland.

The conditions they had come up with were the expansion of basic infrastructure, such as roads and airports that would allow access to mountain resorts.

Youngho gladly promised their conditions since roadworks were already underway to develop gold mines scattered in mountainous areas.

***

All of the heads of the multinational companies wanted to develop resorts around the Issyk Kul Lake.

It was understandable that they were greedy for the Issyk Kul Lake.

As the Terskey Alatau Mountains on the south side of the lake and the Kunkey Alatau Mountains on the northside rose 3,000 to 3,600 meters above the surface of the water, and the icecap was a spectacular sight.

The lake was 177 kilometers east-west and the widest part was 57 kilometers long, so the scenery was hidden everywhere, and it was 1,600m above sea level, so it was cool in summer and warm in winter due to the effects of hot springs.

This meant that water sports could be enjoyed with all weather conditions.

The Issyk Kul Lake and its surrounding basin were 250 kilometers east-west and 100 kilometers wide, and there was plenty to eat as the native people who returned were not only fishing but also growing fruits and vegetables, and raising livestock.

Lake Issyk Kul had all the necessary conditions for a perfect resort.

The multinational companies that had done a lot of resort construction work could judge exactly when they could recover their investments.

“I’ll believe it if you say it’s the sea because of the waves. It would be spectacular to float a yacht here. I think we need to build a large-sized resort from the start.”

“Are you saying all three companies are going to build resorts here?”

“It’s just one corner of the lake. Even with dozens of resorts, we can still have a huge operating profit.”

The transportation to the Issyk Kul was already fully prepared with railroads and roads, and its basic infrastructure for electricity and telecommunications were relatively good.

It was also close to Almaty, Kazakhstan’s largest tourist destination, so linked tours were possible.

“Will global companies only invest in the Issyk Kul Lake?”

“How could we? In the mountainous region like this, you need a ski resort to complete the tour. I’m thinking of a four-season resort on Pobeda Peak.”

The remark was made by Piccolo, a representative of the French company Vinci.

Kyrgyzstan’s resort investment project was a success because he first wanted to join, and he was also at the forefront today.

Sure enough, presidents of ACS in Spain and Bechtel in the U.S. also flashed their eyes.

The remark was thrown by the head of a company that had done resort business at the Alps. They seemed to trust his decision.

Pobeda Peak was Kyrgyzstan’s highest mountian peak, reaching 7,439 meters above sea level. Unlike the 7,000-meter peaks in the Himalayas, the mountain had a gentle slope, making it an eligible area for a ski resort. The only problem was that the rough terrain made it difficult to access.

“If accessibility is a problem, let’s see if we can put the rails.”

“Your Highness, will you open a railway for the resort?”

“Well, you can’t put a road on that rough terrain.”

Switzerland also built rail tracks rather than dangerous roads on steep mountains, and thanks to the rail tracks, tourists enjoyed a safe trip. Compared to that, constructing a railway to Pobeda Peak was no big deal.

Just as in Kazakhstan, the Sovient Union build cob-web like railroads everywhere in Kyrgyzstan to move various resources. It would be resolved if the railway line, which was connected to the city of Karakol, was extended.

“If it’s not possible to put a railway, I’m thinking of installing a simplified airport in the ski resort. Moving on a propeller plane will save us time and we can see the spectacular view of the Tianshan Mountains from the sky.”

Propeller planes had slow speed, but they could land and take off anywhere because they did not need long runways. Because safety was guaranteed, it would become a great tourist attraction.

Traveling around the Tian Shan Mountains on a light plane would also be fun to experience here. It would feel like going back to the past in a time machine.