Aug
17
In Kyrgystan, at the foothills of the Tien Shan mountains bordering China, a small settlement of Mennonites holds out. Centuries ago, their forefathers left the Netherlands and Germany in all directions. They fled from worldliness and went looking for better pastures to start anew a life according to their strict interpretation of the bible. A few pioneering families who went all the way to Central Asia found themselves trapped when the borders of the emerging Soviet Union got drawn. Despite harsh times, their descendants managed to preserve a good part of their culture, independence and religious beliefs.
Wim Klerkx, 1996-1997.
