Trip to the Silk Road
I. Silent Scream - the Aral Sea
As soon as we arrived at Tashkent, we had
dinner. It was quite delicious-the Asian flavors
In May when the spread of SARS was
surprised me. We were served two large plates
threatening the world, I took off from Kansai
of round bread like nan and fresh vegetables-
Airport and headed for a Central Asian
whole tomatoes, cucumbers, and leeks-while
country, Uzbekistan. The non-stop flight to the
the fragrance of coriander stimulated my
capital of Tashkent had just entered service
appetite. A noodle soup called laghman we
from Kansai Airport. A group of reporters was
named udon (Japanese noodle), and we had it
waiting for me, and we had an unexpected
everywhere while we were in Uzbekistan.
press conference.
They have plenty of meat-various kinds of
Uzbekistan has been an oasis nation over
lamb, beef and chicken kabobs. As it is an
3,000 years of history at the center of the Silk
Islamic nation, there is not much pork.
Road. It gained independence from the Soviet
Union in 1991 and became a republic.
While I was there, they served similar dishes
almost every day. But there is more than that
Compared with Europe, Uzbekistan feels much
to eat!
closer to Japan. It takes eight hours for the
direct flight and the time difference is just four
I became so accustomed to their food that I
hours.
couldn't readjust myself to Japanese dishes for
a while after my return to Japan.
with Uzbek Vodka. Vice President Kdelnyazov
looked like the Japanese comic strip character
Once you've been possessed by spicy
Gorgo 13. His dignifi ed face wore a sad
seasonings, garlic, and herbs, it is hard to forget
expression that conveyed his fi rm sense of
them. Someone had said they are good against
mission as a leader.
SARS, which quickened our liking for them.
Two years before, Uzbeks suffered from severe
The purpose of the UNEP excursion this time
draught. This year they've had lots of rain,
was to visit the Aral Sea, because the volume
and the Amu Darya River has had some water.
of its water has become just one-seventh and
It rained outside that night. Usually the dry
its area merely a third of what they had been
season begins in May, and the temperature
several decades ago.
rises to 47°C in the summer.
The following evening we flew to Nukus, the
Under the former authority of the Soviet
central city in the Karakalpakstan where the
Union, a "Nature Transformation Plan" was
Aral is located.
put into effect to transform the desert into
a green area, and irrigation was installed
Tashkent is completely surrounded by
for growing cotton. As a result, the water
cultivated fi elds. There are no indigenous
fl ow from the Amu Darya plummeted, and
forests. When you pass that area, the rest is
desiccated land formerly under the Aral Sea
desert. It is just like the surface of the moon,
became barren land badly contaminated with
as if watching a violent dust storm. Far away in
agricultural chemicals and saline damage.
the twilight, beyond the spread of salted fields,
During the dry season, dust would be picked
the city of Nukus emerged.
up and transported by the dry wind over the
surrounding areas, causing great damage.
It is a deserted city. Still, it is the capital of
the autonomous republic of Karakalpakstan,
Today, construction work is under way to
which occupies one-fi fth of Uzbekistan (for
secure drinking water for residents and fresh
your information, Uzbekistan is 1.2 times as
water for agriculture. With the help of the
large as Japan). The Karakalpak people live in
World Bank and ODA, this effort will stop the
this area, and special autonomy is allowed in
water in the Amu Darya flowing into the Aral.
the province.
We arrived at the Guest House where
President Islam Karimov had stayed, and
attended the welcoming party.
The gap between the desolate landscape we
saw from the sky and abundance of food we
saw on the table baffled us. We made a toast
"Ordinarily, we should decrease the volume of
water we use and let it flow into the Aral Sea.
We cannot imagine how the disappearance
of the Aral will affect its surroundings," said
a concerned Kdelnyazov. "Our thinking that
if something is not necessary to humans
it can disappear is similar to the Nature
Transformation in the Soviet Era."
The greening of a parched area sounds like
something of value. But it is now causing great
The Mayor of Muynaq and offi cials of the
trouble here and there. When water is fed into
Environment Ministry greeted us at the
parched land, through a capillary phenomenon
airport. The Mayor was a nice person with a
salt in the ground rises to the surface, causing
well-matched beret, but many of the officials
saline damage. Moreover, in the case of large-
for the Environment Ministry looked like
scale irrigation, there is a risk of losing more
contractors, which hung somewhat on my
than half of the water by evaporation as when
mind.
it is drawn from faraway sources. Ancient
people had the wisdom to utilize scarce water
At fi rst we were taken to the Community
effectively by cultivating land only near rivers,
Center. Well-dressed local people were
and watering fields not in the daytime but at
waiting for us. I was amazed at their imposing
night. As I heard about this, I became anxious
presence and the wonderful expressions on
about sprinklers that run during the day in
their faces-it was like a scene from an opera.
Tashkent, which has lots of greens.
One after another they sang, and in return I
sang songs of the Ainu and of Okinawa.
The next morning, it cleared up and the cool
air after the rain felt fresh on the skin. There
I felt a kind of deja vu. They were very much
were trees around the building and I could see
like the people I'd met in a town by Lake
green leaves from my window. It would have
Hovsgol in Mongolia.
been no surprise if a bird had chirped. But
there was no chirping of birds. I remembered
I had a lot of questions I wanted ask: what
Kdelnyazov's comment: "Life forms are
they think about their life in destitute, what
becoming extinct at a tremendous rate." It was
worries do they have about their uncertain
exactly the "Silent Morning."
future, what wonderful memories of the past
do they have, what have been the changes in
We flew to Muynaq on a small plane. It had
their lives, etc. But watching their energetic,
once been a waterside town on the Aral Sea,
lively expressions so carefree, I lost my words.
but now it is 120 kilometers away from the
Aral.
>From the plane we looked down on the old
shore where fishermen had once launch their
boats. It was a massive white expanse of salt.
At a luncheon table before we left Muynaq, the
Far in the distance light was shimmering on
Mayor sang the song Aibinrarl (Far and Wide):
water. In dozens of minutes, we were flying
above the lake. The shallow water is like a
"My lover left to go fishing beyond the far and
mirror, reflecting the beautiful sky. It does not
wide sea. He has not returned for a long time.
show the colors of water.
Oh, birds in the sky, oh, waves on the sea,
convey my feelings to him. And bring him back
I heard that the aforestation of sakusaor trees,
as soon as possible."
a species that is impervious to salt, on the
desiccated former lake bottom is in progress
This love song had been written when the
with the support of Germany. Surely that is
Aral Sea was big. But now it is sung to express
an important activity. But when we saw it
affection toward a sea that has become remote.
from high in the sky, it was just a scratch on
the land. It seems that, although the world is
The last night of our stay in Uzbekistan, I sang
aware of the Aral Sea problem, it is hard to
this song in the Karakalpakstan language with
enact some measures.
four members of the folk band Sogudiana at
the Navoy Theater, an opera house in Tashkent
It is true that conversion is urgently needed
that had been built by Japanese detainees.
from single cash crop agriculture to selfsustaining independent farming, from faraway
It was a short stay, but I came in contact
water to nearby water, from the power of
with many beautiful things: wooden fences
science and technology to the wisdom of
decorating the houses, tree-lined sidewalks
people. The reality is that it is difficult to stop
in the front. Such is the residential area in
using agricultural chemicals once they are
Muynaq. When a cotton candy seller comes
employed, and to stop using the irrigation
along on a bike, adorable children gather
systems that have already been made. I heard
around him. A pretty mother holding her
that dams are still being built.
baby watches them smiling. It is a sweet,
warmhearted landscape.
In Nukus I met college students who
were planting trees after fi ve o'clock as an
extracurricular activity. At the market cheerful
men and women hailed us with a salute. In
this city you can still find paintings made by
avant-gardes who had come to this remote
region to escape Stalin's purge. There is a
splendid museum that was founded from that
art movement, storing all of those pictures.
By no means do they lead an affluent life, but
I want everyone to know that it was a very
nice city. Viewed from the plane, it is simply
a wasteland. But I shall treasure the colorful
beauty and magnificent smiles of the people
who live there.
II. Eternal Brilliance-Samarkand
Here everything sparkles: not only the mosques
but also the people's expressions. It is the pride
of their long history that supported the people
and their living traditions.
The mosque in this city, which was one of the
central cities on the Silk Road, does not disdain
enthusiastic salesmanship: its corridors have
become charming gift shops.
Vivid colors, hand-stitched embroideries,
hand-woven carpets, silk shawls-they all have
nice designs. Wherever I went, whether it was
the old city or a bazaar, pleasant, fresh energy
filled my body.
Simply wander around and you will come
across fantastic scenes: a young baker baking
nan to the rhythms of cheerful dance music;
skateboards; tailors working with foot-pedal
boys following you everywhere you go on
sewing machines in a courtyard. Everywhere
you look, everyone is enjoying home
manufacturing. You meet people planting trees
as they dig holes by the concrete road leading
up to the mosque; see the fresh bright eyes
of stylish girls with ribbons; notice old men
sitting on chairs along the road drinking tea.
Having been told that they are very enthusiastic
about studying Japanese, we visited a Japanese
class at the University of Foreign Studies.
Dozens of students there had come on a bus
to my concert in Tashkent, spending six hours
traveling one way!!
I wondered if the cheerfulness of the people
here is in their nature: Or if it is a survival art.
Whichever it may be, it is the most magnificent
free service to the travelers here.
III. Fairyland-The Kyrgyz Republic
We moved on from Tashkent to The Kyrgyz
Republic (informally known as Kyrgyzstan). It
is a mountain nation: 90% of the land is 1,500
meters above sea level, and 40% of it is higher
than 3,000 meters. It has the famous and rare
Lake Issyk-kul that boasts the second-clearest
water in the world.
summer house of President Akayev is located
"Issyk-kul" means "warm lake." It is located
there and so are magnificent hotels. Recently,
higher than 1,600 meters above sea level but
tourism seems to have been dropping sharply
never freezes. It is nine times larger than
due to wars and economic recession, and the
Lake Biwa. During the Soviet Era, this was
shore was very quiet. In Japan, there is the
a prohibited entry zone. Yasushi Inoue and
impression that this nation is a dangerous
Ryotaro Shiba, famous Silk Road writers in
country, due to the kidnapping incidents
Japan, did not see it in their lifetime.
of Japanese citizens. But such kidnappings
took place near the border of Tajikistan. This
We drove amid a wonderful countryside from
nation, as a whole, is a very peaceful country,
Bishkek, the capital of the nation, for three
like a heaven on Earth.
hours. It was spring. Farmers were plowing
fi elds and sewing crops. It was like a scene
Wherever I went, there were farm village
from a picture book.
landscapes with beautiful mountain ranges. In
the evening, shepherds guided their sheep and
Finally, we arrived at a town called Cholpon-
the cows and headed toward home. Around
Ata, located on the northern shore of the lake.
one house, an old lady on a bench cuddled
From the lakeside can be seen the towering
her grandson while some children played a
snow-capped Tian Shan Mountain Range in
jumping game with an elastic string while
the south. It reaches 5,000 meters high.
others played with a ball. Decorated wooden
fences and windowsills were as cute as the
Since the Soviet Era, this place has been
ones in a picture book. Young men plowed on
among the very popular summer resorts-the
a large field. They were planting potatoes.
Along the shore, I came upon a family living in
an old container. Perhaps it was a poor family.
But their home was in a grass-covered plain,
with mountains and a lake nearby. Suddenly a
calf mooed, and the mother cow came trotting
up from the shore. As soon as the calf started
sucking at her udder, the father and his son
ran over to separate them. In a hut they milked
the cow for a few minutes, then they let the
mother return to its calf to feed it.
Here, they have the beautiful mother Earth
and animals to live with. Today people say,
"Let's erase poverty, those people whose
income is less than a dollar a day." In this
country, the average monthly income is $20.
It is surely one of the poorest countries in the
world. But here, people have riches that cannot
There is another legend that the ancestor of
be converted to cash, and the typical family
the Kyrgyz is the same ethnic group as the
business is self-sustaining: people cultivate by
Japanese. About 10,000 years ago, members
manpower alone.
of the Buryat tribe, which used to live on the
shore of the Baikal, went east in search of
I can't figure out how their lifestyle that I saw
fish and west in search of meat. Those who
seemed so impressive.
traveled east reached Japan and those who
traveled west became Kyrgyz. Therefore,
In the evening, we had dinner in a yurt and
originally the Kyrgyz did not have custom of
enjoyed the performance of a native band. The
eating fish and the fish inhabiting the Issyk-
word Kyrgyz contains the meaning of Kurkuz,
Kul was not eaten, I heard. But eventually
"forty women" in English. There is a legend
people discovered the taste of fish, eating it
that goes like this: When Alexander the Great
became very widespread, and the fish in the
invaded this region, 40 women fighters tried
lake decreased rapidly. Adding to the problem
to defend their land. Alexander did not want
was the proliferation of nonnative fish, which
to fight against women and so abandoned the
were feeding on the indigenous fish. Today,
fight and made a truce of peace. The helmet-
the extinction of the earliest indigenous fish
type hat that women there wear comes from
species has become a great concern.
the fighting helmet worn by women warriors
in that battle.
It seems that even in a peaceful fairyland, a
serious situation is under way. In this country,
the ground is getting fragile and landslides
happen often. This is due to the warming of
the Earth and the melting of glaciers. In the
region on the south of this lake, a place of
frequent landslides, are uranium mining holes
that date back to the Soviet Era, they told
me, and used uranium fuel and waste are left
unattended.
I heard that Japan's aid to Kyrgyzstan is ¥500
million, out of which ¥200 million is for large
agricultural machinery. Farms that can return
two-thirds of the aid money in the produce
they grow are chosen. It means a different
value system is being introduced. It threatens
this beautiful country where people have
been making a living within their own power.
How tragic that the precious nature that
remains on the Earth is faced with the danger
of such pollution!
Kyrgyzstan is a very endearing country. That
its people look Japanese is one big reason. I
feel that here is the prototype of the human
lifestyle that man has been building on
throughout history.
I saw people changing cotton in bedding, as it
is done in Japan. People working at the market
resembled Japanese so much that I could have
talked to them in Japanese.
To my surprise, I could choose what I wanted
from enormous varieties of rice, flour, dried
fruits and spices. The principle of slow food,
which puts importance on the selection of
ingredients, is a matter of course here. They
are not packed in a vinyl bag. You can touch
them with your hand and taste them with your
tongue and buy them at the amount you need.
I want to call it rich, don't you?
Modernization may be bringing about great
poverty-uniform selections of goods, mass
production, package and quality control
focusing on transportation and preservation,
etc. How much you resist, culture changes
with the movement of money.
Agriculture is scaling up and machinery is
introduced to make cash crops. Buying up
land from poor peasants, destroying local
communities, promoting population drain to
urban slums ...
I'm afraid that Japanese aid may be bringing
to this country the poverty scenario that has
been followed by every nation that embraced
modernization.
If they have been pursuing non-chemical
agriculture because of poverty, could we not
introduce more sustainable wisdom and
develop organic agriculture? Various ideas run
through my mind.
I want to know more about the Kyrgyz
Republic that shares its ancestry with Japan. It
has become one of my favorite countries.