Kyzyl.

History

The town was laid out in 1914 as Belotsarsk, shortly after the Uryankhay region came under Russian protection. It was renamed Khem-Beldir in 1918 and Kyzyl, Tuvan for "red", in 1926. From 1921 it served as capital of the Tuvan People's Republic, from 1944 of the Tuvan Autonomous Oblast and from 1961 of the Tuvan ASSR. Since 1991 Kyzyl has been the capital of the Republic of Tuva.

Culture & traditions

The main museum is the Aldan-Maadyr National Museum, which holds finds from the Scythian burial mounds of Arzhan and Arzhan-2, including their famous gold. The city has the Viktor Kok-ool Music and Drama Theatre with its Tuvan company, a puppet theatre and a philharmonic founded in 1969. Every two years Kyzyl hosts a festival of khoomei throat singing that draws performers from many countries. Buddhism is represented by the Tsechenling and Tuvdan Choikhorling temples, Orthodoxy by the Trinity Church of 1929 and the Resurrection Cathedral.

Sport

Khuresh, Tuva's traditional wrestling, is the region's sporting emblem. Bouts are part of Naadym, the herders' festival held in mid-August, alongside horse racing and archery. A dedicated Khuresh stadium stands in the national park, and the Subedey sports complex has a dome shaped like a yurt. Another major venue is the Ivan Yarygin Sports Complex.

Practical information

Kyzyl Airport has scheduled flights from Moscow, Novosibirsk, Krasnoyarsk and Irkutsk and links the capital with remote parts of Tuva. There is no railway yet: the Kuragino–Kyzyl line has been under construction since 2011, and the nearest station is in Minusinsk, about 390 km away. The Yenisei federal highway connects the city with Abakan and Mongolia. Local time is Moscow plus 4 hours. The climate is dry and sharply continental, with January averaging around −29 °C, so summer is the best time to come, ideally for Naadym in August.

What to see

• Centre of Asia obelisk — the city's emblem on the riverside at the confluence, redesigned in 2014 by Dashi Namdakov.
• Aldan-Maadyr National Museum — Scythian gold from the Arzhan-2 mound and rich archaeological collections.
• Tsechenling Temple — a Buddhist temple built in 1998.
• Prayer wheel — installed in 2006 and considered the largest in Russia.
• Viktor Kok-ool Theatre — performances by a Tuvan-language company.
• Kadarchy monument — a herdsman figure unveiled in 1997.