While social media users in Kyrgyzstan often discuss what they don't like about the country's capital, they seldom talk of what they do like about Bishkek. Breaking up with the tradition, blogger Amina Suleyeva offers [1] [ru] a list of qualities that make the Kyrgyz capital a city she loves. These include public parks and tree-lined roads, busy clothes bazaars, cheap and healthy foods, comfortable taxis, barrels with maksym [local drink] on the city's streets, as well as supermarkets and pharmacies that stay open 24/7. The blogger also mentions greater tolerance towards people from other ethnic backgrounds, political freedoms, and respect for women as attributes that she thinks distinguish Bishkek from other Central Asian capitals.
[2]Osh bazaar in Bishkek. Image by Flickr user neiljs, uploaded on May 9, 2009 (CC BY 2.0)
Commenting on Suleyeva's blog post, other social media users discuss additional reasons for loving the city.