English is widely spoken by those involved in tourism. Uzbek, Kazakh, Tajik and various other regional languages and dialects are also spoken. Round 2-pin continental plugs are standard. All international calls from Kyrgyzstan have to go through the operator. Direct-dial calls within the CIS are obtained by dialling 8 and waiting for another dial tone and then dialling the city code followed by the number.
Services are available from post offices in large towns.
There is a cybercaf on ul. Sovetskaya in Bishkek. Letters to and from Western Europe and the USA can take anything between two weeks and two months. Stamped envelopes can be bought from post offices. Visitors can also use post offices located within some major hotels.