Hunt master Ruslan sits astride his horse on top of the craggy mountain, with golden eagle Kara-Barachyn perched on his wrist.
He lifts his arm and the bird takes wing in search of prey, her cruel talons ready to spear whatever it can find to the ground.
This scene has been played out in the Central Asian nation of Kyrgyzstan for thousands of years. The only difference between now and the times of Genghis Khan is the holidaymakers snapping away furiously with their cameras.
When Genghis was in charge, this mountainous country was part of the central belt of the vast trade routes known as the Silk Roads. For almost 2,000 years until the Middle Ages, goods and ideas flowed between China and Europe along these, with Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan at their heart.
Some of the finest surviving examples of those goods will go on display from Thursday at the British Museum’s Silk Roads exhibition, which runs until February.
Dazzling: Matt Quinton embarks on a Silk Road tour through Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan (pictured)
Above, an eagle hunter and his golden eagle in Kyrgyzstan. Matt says: ‘My trip highlight is unquestionably the eagle-hunting display’
For almost 2,000 years until the Middle Ages, goods and ideas flowed between China and Europe along the Silk Road, which passed through the three countries that sit between modern-day Russia and China
But to see treasures in their original context head to the three countries, which today lie between modern-day Russia and China.
I join a 15-strong tour group, accompanied by a driver and a guide in a high-end minibus. Hotels, some meals, and the itinerary are pre-arranged.
We start in Kyrgyzstan, where people only recently gave up nomadic lifestyles, and some still live in yurts. After a gentle hike in the vast Ala-Archa National Park, we cool off in salty Issyk Kul Lake.
At the 1,000-year-old Silk Road staging post, Burana Tower, we hear how merchant caravans grouped together here to shelter from brigands. It’s a magnificent setting. But when I ask our guide, Vitaly, what drew his own grandparents here from Russia, he explains: ‘It was Stalin’s decision that we should move – not ours!’
In fact, the whole of Central Asia was used as a dumping ground for less-favoured USSR citizens. While these three countries have long since turned their back on communism, it would be wrong to say any are now free and fair democracies. However, this region is safe and welcoming for tourists, although English is not widely spoken.
In a restaurant in Kyrgyzstan’s capital Bishkek, asking about local specialities resulted in staff talking about reality TV stars. Eventually, a manager explains: ‘The best lamb comes from a breed we call the Kim Kardashian because of the size of its…’ Ah, I see. At least it goes down easier than another local favourite, fermented mare’s milk. As strong as lager, this sour tipple – like a boozy Yakult – brings tears to my eyes.
As my group sips, the vendor slaps me on the back: ‘We have to feed the horses just the right grasses to get the taste perfect.’
My trip highlight is unquestionably the eagle-hunting display courtesy of Ruslan, but a close second is a night in a Kyrgyz yurt in the Djety Oguz mountains.
Matt reveals that in Kyrgyzstan (pictured) people only recently gave up nomadic lifestyles, and some still live in yurts. He spent a night in a Kyrgyz yurt in the Djety Oguz mountains on his trip
As the temperature drops, I bury myself in blankets and fall asleep listening to the horses whickering.
Entering Kazakhstan, a country bigger than the whole of Western Europe, we visit the former capital Almaty and its fabulous restaurants. As my tour-mate David points out when the bill arrives: ‘I paid more than this for a takeaway from the Pret A Manger at Heathrow.’ Here, the focus switches from nature to culture and history, and I’m wowed by colourful Zhenkov Cathedral. We arrive as the bell-ringing team finishes practice and amazingly Vitaly convinces them to let us have a go.
The team’s willingness to give up their time just to show a group of total strangers the ropes – despite the language barrier – is really quite touching, though being up close to the huge chiming bells does make it hard for my group to hear the rest of the day’s tour.
On a visit to Almaty, Kazakhstan, Matt is wowed by colourful Zhenkov Cathedral (pictured)
Awesome: Above, the gleaming arches of a tiled mausoleum in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, which Matt says is ‘the region’s glittering jewel’
Catching a sleeper train into Uzbekistan, I find a country that’s notably hotter and, as a former part of the Persian empire, more culturally Middle Eastern.
When I ask Dilshod, our guide for this portion of the trip, about a sticker of a high heel in a car window, he explains: ‘Ah, that shows other drivers it’s a woman’s car, so they can be extra-considerate.’
Uzbekistan’s capital, Tashkent, has beautiful mosques, but the region’s glittering jewel, just under 200 miles south-west, is the 2,500-year-old city of Samarkand. The towering madrasas of Registan Square are dazzling, with blue-and-yellow tiling sparkling in the light.
In the 1400s, marine shipping brought the dominance of the Silk Roads to an end – and sadly my trip must also finish. I may not be bringing back a camel-load of valuable goods. But I’ve memories of an extraordinary part of the world – which in many ways does not feel like part of this world at all.
