On September 2, the team of the Inclusive Sailing Camp project featuring the cycle of events "Sails of the Spirit 2026: Extrability Movement. We Choose to Continue" in Kyrgyzstan (organized by the WHITE CANE ANO with the support of the State Atomic Energy Corporation Rosatom) took part in the World Nomad Games – a large-scale event held at the initiative of the President of the Kyrgyz Republic.
As part of the Nomad Games, the team hosted the section "Nomad Workshops: Tradition, Movement, Hospitality, and the Future." Participants organized interactive stations where traditional hospitality culture was combined with inclusive methods: tying marine knots blindly, sensory exploration of the yurt and everyday life, master classes on sign language singing and songs in the Kyrgyz language, plasticineography "Nomad of the Future," straw paintings, and "Road of Hospitality." Part of the team stayed at the camp base during this time, welcoming guests and preparing a concert program.
Svetlana Shaikhullina – psychologist, playback practitioner, and burnout prevention expert – shared her impressions of the workshops and the atmosphere of the day:
"Today the weather was very unpredictable. Rain started almost immediately after the opening on the main stage. In this case, the top of the yurt is closed, and it becomes dark inside. Therefore, our first master class turned out to be very practical: finding food in the dark and organizing meals. As soon as the rain stopped and it became possible to open the top opening in the yurt, several workshops were quickly deployed: embroidery, straw paintings, plasticine paintings, and blindfolded plasticineography. At the same time, sign language singing and walks in the dark were launched outside. Walks in the dark and plasticineography generated the greatest excitement – these two stations worked without a break, and people gladly stepped into a new experience for themselves. After the master classes were completed, we hosted an open-air concert. There was the Turkish Halay circle dance, another energetic Turkish dance, then we all together sang the 'Sails of the Spirit' anthem in sign language, the song 'All Together,' and another song. Afterward, there were wonderful performances by visually impaired singers Nazgul and Dilyara. A master class on tying marine knots blindly was also held."
First emotions of the day from Mikhail Voitsehovsky, Central Asia coordinator for "Sails of the Spirit":
"Today's day began with adventures: the bus broke down, but our contractors replaced it promptly – we managed to worry a bit, but arrived on time. Despite the rain, everything went great: people took shelter from the bad weather in our yurt, and I helped too. There were a lot of participants, and the interest was huge. Sign language singing and sign language in general received a special response: for the viewers, it looked like real magic – conversation through gestures. There was also huge interest in the master classes: straw paintings, knot tying, 'walks between worlds' – people approached constantly, sometimes even stood in line to get acquainted with the culture of blind people. 'Walks between worlds' were conducted by local activists Ak-Nazar and Ramazan – unfortunately, I didn't remember their last names. A couple of times heavy rain started, but thanks to the yurt we took shelter on the spot, and no one suffered seriously from the rain. Our participants also watched the opening – a large-scale theatrical action showing the traditions of the Nomad Games and wedding traditions. It was very interesting. The day turned out eventful: we left at 7 AM, returned only at 8 PM – everyone was a bit tired, but very happy. The 'Sails of the Spirit' team prepared in advance: participants from different countries, where possible, put on national costumes, which also attracted great interest to our yurt. And thanks to the fact that there are many multilingual people in the team – from Kyrgyzstan, Turkey, Russia, Kazakhstan, as well as English and German speakers – we were able to communicate with a large number of guests. Many thanks to the organizers and Rosatom for such an opportunity! This project is being implemented for the second year with the support of the state atomic energy corporation. There were many participants from a wide variety of countries: spectators and workshop guests came from Belgium, the USA, Germany, the Netherlands, Italy – the interest was lively from everywhere."
The "Sails of the Spirit" camp on Issyk-Kul continues its work until September 4. Ahead of the team are several more events: on September 3, Extrability Day will be held at the camp base, attended by participants from Bishkek and other cities. The next stage of the sailing camp will begin in Kazakhstan on September 5.
