The drive from Samarkand to Bukhara is a seemingly never-ending display of agriculture and what would appear to be Russian commission houses (all identical). Along both sides of the road, an irrigated, green region fans out to a width of a few kilometres, but look a little further and you can see the arid hills…
After dire predictions about how strict the Uzbek border guards would be and long it would take us to get across the border, in the end only took 4.5 hours to cross from Tajikistan to Uzbekistan with the truck, the guards only interested in what medications we were carrying. This meant we easily made it…
While we were waiting for James to un-stick the truck from the Tamgaly petroglyph mud with the help of his fireman and Army friends, we hired a mini-van and headed off from Bishkek for a 3-day tour around Issyk Kul – the second largest mountain lake in the world (behind Lake Titicaca). It turned out…
First day on the overland truck started with a quick overview of the truck itself, where everything goes and how everything works. Then it was loads of photos with the owners of the hostel and off down the tiny backstreets of Almaty in our humungous beast! Took forever to get out of Almaty, and then…
Dennis’ “Golden Quarter” walking tour was fantastic, but it wasn’t the reason I initially contacted him. Those of you who have been following along for a while won’t be surprised to know that he also offers a foodie tour in the Green Bazaar of Almaty. Of course, I was in! We were met by another…
Walking tour of Almaty’s Golden Quarter, exploring everyday architecture, hidden urban details, cultural symbolism, and local perspectives beyond standard landmarks.
Much closer than Cerro Vizcachas, in fact just below the road where it passes below the 3.6m telescope, are the rock engravings, or petroglyphs, of La Silla. I visited these a couple of times when I first arrived at La Silla about 15 years ago, but haven’t been back since. Given I was wandering…
One of the things I wanted to do this time around on Easter Island was head out to Tongariki for the sunrise. There are excursions offering this for US$60 per person for a 3 hour trip (ouch!), so I decided to rent a scooter instead (even cheaper) to ensure I got out there to see…
Final day on the e-Bike was a bit of an easier one as I was just exploring the Rano Kau volcano and Orongo, both of which are right near Hanga Roa. Started out early and was at 90% assistance getting up the volcano. Everybody who comes to Easter Island visits Orongo at the top of the…
Back on the e-Bike today but not as much riding 🙂 First stop – Puna Pau – where they quarried the red basalt for the topknots (pukaos). It is thought that these represented hair rather than hats, and seem to be very late additions to the Moais (only a fraction of the Moais actually…