Victory Square in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan

Victory Square in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, was erected in 1984 on the 40th anniversary of the Liberation of the USSR.

The memorial had three giant red granite ‘ribs’ representing a yurt—a traditional home. The statue represents a woman waiting for her husband to return from war. A Guard of Honour from the National Guard of Kyrgyzstan protects the eternal flame. The Changing of the Guard occurs every hour.

MARTINA NICOLLS is an international aid and development consultant, and the author of: Similar But Different in the Animal Kingdom (2017), The Shortness of Life: A Mongolian Lament (2015), Liberia’s Deadest Ends (2012), Bardot’s Comet (2011), Kashmir on a Knife-Edge (2010) and The Sudan Curse (2009).

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