Turkmenistan was a fascinating country, and there were plenty of things that struck me as we journeyed through it. Those that were particularly common/memorable: Flat desert scenery Fancy green signs Gas pipelines with a U-shaped dog-leg every couple of hundred metres Image of the President all over (yes, that is an LED screen!) Green roofs Pristine […]
Looking out the window at Turkmenistan Read More »
After a couple of wonderful days in the fascinating city of Ashgabat, we were back in the truck for the 540km trip to Turkmenbashi to find a ferry to transport us across the Caspian Sea to Azerbaijan. The road was pretty good (for a change), and although it was 4 lanes for most of the
Turkmenistan to Azerbaijan over the Caspian Sea Read More »
If I ever again hear anyone complain about how Canberra is a planned and dead city, my response is going to be: “Go to Ashgabat”! The capital of Turkmenistan is a truly bizarre experience. Completely destroyed by an earthquake in 1948 that killed a large fraction of the population (though the Soviets denied this
Ashgabat – Turkmenistan Read More »
I remember first coming across a picture of the Darvaza Crater a few years ago and desperately wanting to go see it for myself. So you can imagine how excited I was that it was on our itinerary for this Silk Road overland trip! The story goes that the crater was formed after a natural
The Door to Hell – Darvaza Crater – Turkmenistan Read More »
Turkmenistan is, in a similar fashion to North Korea, a very closed country, which can make it quite difficult to visit. We needed Letters of Invitation (one of our group was refused this because in his photo he wasn’t clean-shaven and yet didn’t have a full beard … just a 5-day growth) and Visas, both
Konye Urgench – Turkmenistan Read More »
Uzbekistan does not make it easy for most nationalities to visit. My Letter of Invitation and Visa cost AUD$650 and took a month to obtain (my passport had to be sent to Washington in the USA). I’m guessing this must be easier for French and Germans, as they seem to make up the largest number
Uzbekistan Reflections Read More »
The Uzbek Som is a crazy currency. At the time of writing, the official exchange rate was USD$1 = 3790 Som, which is not necessarily problematic, until you realise that the most commonly used note is 1000 Som. And although Uzbekistan is quite a cheap country to travel in, even something that costs $5 suddenly
Uzbek Currency – The Som Read More »
The road from Bukhara to Khiva was an interesting one. For the first hour out of Bukhara, we were travelling through more farmland, once again playing with potholes and making slow progress. Then, as soon as the green fields and ubiquitous civilization suddenly gave way to the Kyzylkum desert, the road magically transformed into a 4-lane,
Khiva – Uzbekistan Read More »
Although the old city of Bukhara is full of Madrasahs, Minarets, Mosques and Mausoleums, it is also famous for its 3 surviving undercover bazaars, or trade domes – Taki-Sarrafon (dome of money changers), Taki-Telpakfurushon (dome of hat makers) and Taki-Zargaron (dome of jewelers). Those who have been reading along for a while can imagine why
Bukhara – Markets – Uzbekistan Read More »
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
Bukhara – Uzbekistan – Madrassahs, Minarets, Mausoleums, Mosques Read More »
