[ English ]

The actual number of Kyrgyzstan gambling halls is a fact in some dispute. As info from this state, out in the very remote central section of Central Asia, often is awkward to get, this might not be all that bizarre. Whether there are two or 3 accredited gambling dens is the thing at issue, perhaps not in reality the most consequential slice of info that we don’t have.

What certainly is credible, as it is of the lion’s share of the ex-Russian states, and absolutely accurate of those located in Asia, is that there no doubt will be a lot more not allowed and underground gambling dens. The adjustment to authorized gambling did not energize all the underground places to come out of the dark and become legitimate. So, the bickering regarding the total amount of Kyrgyzstan’s gambling halls is a minor one at most: how many accredited gambling halls is the element we’re attempting to reconcile here.

We understand that in Bishkek, the capital city, there is the Casino Las Vegas (a marvelously original title, don’t you think?), which has both table games and video slots. We will also see both the Casino Bishkek and the Xanadu Casino. Both of these contain 26 slots and 11 table games, divided amongst roulette, vingt-et-un, and poker. Given the amazing likeness in the square footage and setup of these 2 Kyrgyzstan casinos, it may be even more surprising to find that both share an address. This appears most strange, so we can perhaps state that the number of Kyrgyzstan’s gambling dens, at least the accredited ones, stops at two members, one of them having adjusted their title not long ago.

The nation, in common with almost all of the ex-USSR, has undergone something of a accelerated change to capitalistic system. The Wild East, you may say, to allude to the lawless conditions of the Wild West an aeon and a half back.

Kyrgyzstan’s casinos are certainly worth visiting, therefore, as a piece of anthropological research, to see money being played as a form of collective one-upmanship, the conspicuous consumption that Thorstein Veblen spoke about in 19th century u.s..