Current location: Warsaw. Vilnius was really great city. It's small, really interesting, and lots of fun. The weather was a bit shit, however. The entire old town is a UNESCO heritage site, so you can imagine how beautiful it is.
There are tons of cool bars and restaurants sprinkled throughout the old town. I stayed at an amazing hostel close to the town hall, Jimmy Jumps house. It's brand-new and pretty nice, but the other guests really made it worth while. 9 of us ended up going out Thursday and Friday nights.
I took a night coach to Warsaw. It wasn't as luxurious as my coach to Riga, but it was comfortable enough (I actually slept!). As I write this, it's 10 AM and I'm sitting in my hostel. I'll most likely go sight-seeing, then finish checking in here.
I highly, highly recommend the Baltic countries as a destination. Riga and Vilnius were both incredibly fun. I didn't stop in Tallinn on this trip, but I enjoyed it when visiting several years ago. Travel between the three cities is quite easy and comfortable. They are also compact and easily walked. I am absolutely heading back sometime in the future - each country has plenty more to see outside of the capitals.
Sunday, September 19, 2010
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Better late then never: Pamirs Part 3
Ok guys, I know this is obscenely past due, but better late then never, right?
The drive from Murgab to Jalal-abad was pleasant, but long. We left Murgab early, around 7:30 AM. The scenery was much different then what we encountered in the Wakhan Valley. The Pamir Highway had much more in common with the desert, it was extremely dry and dusty.
We also achieved what is most certainly our highest point on the trip: a 15,000 foot pass on the Pamir Highway. The Jimny may not climb with power, but it does climb with style.
After completing the pass, the landscape became much wetter. Lakes and streams dotted the landscape. It was obvious a lot of water passed through this area - an entire bridge was missing. My first thought: "Wow. I'm glad we didn't come across this at night!" This actually worked out for the best as we were able to film several gnarly little water crossings.
Checking out of Tajikistan was straightforward, but tedious. There were quite a few more steps to complete then entering the country - lots of increased attention from customs. Tajikistan is a major narcotics smuggling route due to its 1300 kilometer border with Afghanistan. We saw no indication of this, besides a little more attention when leaving the country, but that's what the guidebook says.
The road to the Kyrgyz checkpoint was rutted, pitted, and sometimes completely washed out. The Tajik checkpoint is at the top of a mountain pass so one slowly descends into a Kyrgyz valley. The scenery behind us was amazing.
We received quite a shock after reaching the Kyrgyz checkpoint: it was closed. It wasn't deserted - we could see soldiers milling around and going about their business. Eventually, a soldier came and chatted with us. He indicated it would only be 20 more minutes until the crossing opened.
As passed the time, another vehicle approached the border. A Kyrgyz man was very interested in our vehicle and chatted with us for a bit. Eventually, the woman riding with him got out and asked us how long we had been at the border. By this point, it had been nearly an hour. She stated "Well I will call his superior."
She dialed a number on her mobile and a soldier quickly came out to greet her. They conversed for a few minutes and the soldier returned to his post. The woman informed us that he had asked her not to call his superior in Bishkek. The soldier was one of the three border chiefs. Each chief was in charge of an inspection point (veterinary, customs, and antiquities) and if one was missing, the border couldn't open. She also revealed that the antiquities chief was missing.
The woman then gave us a little more background about herself - she was a French expat operating a foundation in Bishkek. The goal was to restore the horse culture to the Kyrgyz people and she had been in Bishkek for over a decade.
Eventually the missing officer appeared - but not before she had mentioned how the country was changing after the violence in Osh. This was unsettling to say the least.
Now that the entire border staff was present, we could finally proceed through the checkpoint. After our chat with the French woman we were both on high alert, but everyone was courteous and the crossing proceeded quite quickly. The customs official did ask us if we had any "souvenirs" so we furnished him with several stickers and a keychain. We were finally in Kyrgyzstan.
The road to Sary Tosh was just as bad as the road through no man's land. This was clearly not a popular border crossing. We fueled up the Jimny and began heading north to Jalal-abad.
It was immediately obvious that Kyrgyzstan is more prosperous then Tajikistan. Roads were better, cars were newer, and homes were bigger. The scenery had changed as well. Kyrgyzstan was much more green then Tajikistan and you could see a lot more moisture. The arid, dry Pamirs gave way to green valleys.
We drove to Jalal-abad without incident. Our pulses quickened near Osh, the sight of so much trouble but the road to Bishkek was clearly marked. We didn't even enter the city.
It was dark when we entered Jalal-abad. This almost always makes finding a hotel a massive pain. We drove around for sometime, stopping at anything that looked remotely like a hotel. No luck at all until something that looked like a lobby caught my eye. Finally, a hotel!
The hotel ended up being extremely nice and priced very reasonably. So reasonably, that we splurged on room service. After five days of mutton in the Pamir Mountains, it was time to feast! Steak, french fries, and beer all around.
The next morning we continued our journey northward. The drive to Bishkek was quite pleasant and the territory reminded me of Colorado. We crossed several beautiful mountain passes. We ended up rolling into BIshkek around 5:30.
Bishkek hotel rooms were in short supply, which cost us a bit of coin but we wanted to relax after the Pamirs. That night we dined at the Lonely Planet recommended bar The Metro. Everything was good, but a bit pricey. Such is life when dining at expat bars. Upon entering, nearly every voice we heard was American. I immediately put two and two together and realized this must be a popular bar for the Army crowd (the US has a large military base in Bishkek). It's always a great feeling to enjoy a few beers knowing that you don't have to get in the car the next day.
Our day off was uneventful. Most of it was spent catching up on work and communicating with loved ones back home. The highlight was finding a local coffee shop with wi-fi (which was also frequented by some very attractive Kyrgyz girls). We did have an enjoyable meal at a Mexican (!) restaurant.
After another solid night of rest, it was time to cross another border. Bishkek to Almaty is only 250 kilometers so we had a leisurely morning. We enjoyed breakfast and paid another visit to the coffee shop.
The border crossing was immediately north of Bishkek and aside from a bit of traffic, we made it through quite quickly. One tip: it's important to come prepared with many "souvenirs". We didn't even have to fill out a second customs form.
The drive to Almaty was easy. Roads were clearly marked and very good. Almaty was rather surprising: it was clean, very pleasant, full of people who spoke English, but a bit expensive. Our hotel was the second priciest yet (a 130 euro hotel in Austria still takes the cake - that night, the entire town was booked solid).
A modern, international city means a wider variety of goods and services are available then in the countryside and I was finally able to track down another camera! It's not as sexy as my Olympus, but it will do.
Most of the evening was spent at the local coffee shop Coffeedelia. Free wi-fi, good food, and a fully stocked bar make for a happy Mongol Rally team.
Our next stop: Ust-Kamengorsk aka Ochemen, where we will be staging for the Russian border crossing.
The drive from Murgab to Jalal-abad was pleasant, but long. We left Murgab early, around 7:30 AM. The scenery was much different then what we encountered in the Wakhan Valley. The Pamir Highway had much more in common with the desert, it was extremely dry and dusty.
We also achieved what is most certainly our highest point on the trip: a 15,000 foot pass on the Pamir Highway. The Jimny may not climb with power, but it does climb with style.
After completing the pass, the landscape became much wetter. Lakes and streams dotted the landscape. It was obvious a lot of water passed through this area - an entire bridge was missing. My first thought: "Wow. I'm glad we didn't come across this at night!" This actually worked out for the best as we were able to film several gnarly little water crossings.
Checking out of Tajikistan was straightforward, but tedious. There were quite a few more steps to complete then entering the country - lots of increased attention from customs. Tajikistan is a major narcotics smuggling route due to its 1300 kilometer border with Afghanistan. We saw no indication of this, besides a little more attention when leaving the country, but that's what the guidebook says.
The road to the Kyrgyz checkpoint was rutted, pitted, and sometimes completely washed out. The Tajik checkpoint is at the top of a mountain pass so one slowly descends into a Kyrgyz valley. The scenery behind us was amazing.
We received quite a shock after reaching the Kyrgyz checkpoint: it was closed. It wasn't deserted - we could see soldiers milling around and going about their business. Eventually, a soldier came and chatted with us. He indicated it would only be 20 more minutes until the crossing opened.
As passed the time, another vehicle approached the border. A Kyrgyz man was very interested in our vehicle and chatted with us for a bit. Eventually, the woman riding with him got out and asked us how long we had been at the border. By this point, it had been nearly an hour. She stated "Well I will call his superior."
She dialed a number on her mobile and a soldier quickly came out to greet her. They conversed for a few minutes and the soldier returned to his post. The woman informed us that he had asked her not to call his superior in Bishkek. The soldier was one of the three border chiefs. Each chief was in charge of an inspection point (veterinary, customs, and antiquities) and if one was missing, the border couldn't open. She also revealed that the antiquities chief was missing.
The woman then gave us a little more background about herself - she was a French expat operating a foundation in Bishkek. The goal was to restore the horse culture to the Kyrgyz people and she had been in Bishkek for over a decade.
Eventually the missing officer appeared - but not before she had mentioned how the country was changing after the violence in Osh. This was unsettling to say the least.
Now that the entire border staff was present, we could finally proceed through the checkpoint. After our chat with the French woman we were both on high alert, but everyone was courteous and the crossing proceeded quite quickly. The customs official did ask us if we had any "souvenirs" so we furnished him with several stickers and a keychain. We were finally in Kyrgyzstan.
The road to Sary Tosh was just as bad as the road through no man's land. This was clearly not a popular border crossing. We fueled up the Jimny and began heading north to Jalal-abad.
It was immediately obvious that Kyrgyzstan is more prosperous then Tajikistan. Roads were better, cars were newer, and homes were bigger. The scenery had changed as well. Kyrgyzstan was much more green then Tajikistan and you could see a lot more moisture. The arid, dry Pamirs gave way to green valleys.
We drove to Jalal-abad without incident. Our pulses quickened near Osh, the sight of so much trouble but the road to Bishkek was clearly marked. We didn't even enter the city.
It was dark when we entered Jalal-abad. This almost always makes finding a hotel a massive pain. We drove around for sometime, stopping at anything that looked remotely like a hotel. No luck at all until something that looked like a lobby caught my eye. Finally, a hotel!
The hotel ended up being extremely nice and priced very reasonably. So reasonably, that we splurged on room service. After five days of mutton in the Pamir Mountains, it was time to feast! Steak, french fries, and beer all around.
The next morning we continued our journey northward. The drive to Bishkek was quite pleasant and the territory reminded me of Colorado. We crossed several beautiful mountain passes. We ended up rolling into BIshkek around 5:30.
Bishkek hotel rooms were in short supply, which cost us a bit of coin but we wanted to relax after the Pamirs. That night we dined at the Lonely Planet recommended bar The Metro. Everything was good, but a bit pricey. Such is life when dining at expat bars. Upon entering, nearly every voice we heard was American. I immediately put two and two together and realized this must be a popular bar for the Army crowd (the US has a large military base in Bishkek). It's always a great feeling to enjoy a few beers knowing that you don't have to get in the car the next day.
Our day off was uneventful. Most of it was spent catching up on work and communicating with loved ones back home. The highlight was finding a local coffee shop with wi-fi (which was also frequented by some very attractive Kyrgyz girls). We did have an enjoyable meal at a Mexican (!) restaurant.
After another solid night of rest, it was time to cross another border. Bishkek to Almaty is only 250 kilometers so we had a leisurely morning. We enjoyed breakfast and paid another visit to the coffee shop.
The border crossing was immediately north of Bishkek and aside from a bit of traffic, we made it through quite quickly. One tip: it's important to come prepared with many "souvenirs". We didn't even have to fill out a second customs form.
The drive to Almaty was easy. Roads were clearly marked and very good. Almaty was rather surprising: it was clean, very pleasant, full of people who spoke English, but a bit expensive. Our hotel was the second priciest yet (a 130 euro hotel in Austria still takes the cake - that night, the entire town was booked solid).
A modern, international city means a wider variety of goods and services are available then in the countryside and I was finally able to track down another camera! It's not as sexy as my Olympus, but it will do.
Most of the evening was spent at the local coffee shop Coffeedelia. Free wi-fi, good food, and a fully stocked bar make for a happy Mongol Rally team.
Our next stop: Ust-Kamengorsk aka Ochemen, where we will be staging for the Russian border crossing.
Update!
Just wanted to let everyone know I'm alive and well in Riga, Latvia. It's been a whirlwind few ten days since the Rally ended. After UB, we took the Trans-Siberian to Moscow, spent the night, and flew to Riga. Been a bit crazy since then.
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Mongolia
Quick BGAN post:
Made it into Mongolia in less then a day. It's been an amazing country. Hoping to make the finish line on Friday.
Made it into Mongolia in less then a day. It's been an amazing country. Hoping to make the finish line on Friday.
Sunday, August 22, 2010
The Pamir Highway, Part 2.
The newly arrived Mongol Rally teams were in dire need of some repair work, so they planned to spend several days in Khorog. The Jimny has been holding up incredibly well (we spent quite a bit more then the average Mongol Rally team and it has proven to be a wise investment) so the decision was made to leave them and the M41 for the Wakhan Valley. The Wakhan Valley loop leaves Khorog and heads south. It continues to follow the Afghan border for quite sometime and is absolutely stunning.
The morning began with a bit of chaos as we rushed around the Khorog bazaar in an attempt to find some water without gas (carbonated water is the drink of choice in Europe and Asia). We did manage to get some fuel and I snagged a pair of sunglasses (my old pair went missing with my camera).
Not long after hitting the road, we emerged from a forested area into a wide open, arid valley. The Hindu Kush mountains were on to our right for the entire trip. They were some of the most spectacular peaks I have ever seen - almost totally covered in snow and it was the middle of August!
We had lunch in the village of Ishkashim, where we were finally able to obtain plov. For those who don't know, plov is rice pilaf, vegetables, and a bit of meat cooked in lamb fat and oil for several hours. It's supposedly the national dish of Uzbekistan, but I was unable to find any. Our plov was worth the wait - that meal still ranks as the best on the trip. A fellow traveler informed me that the long cooking time prevents most restaurants from serving it - it's a dish most people cook at home.
We hit the road again after lunch - our goal was the village of Langar. We gained some elevation and stopped to visit Yamchun Fortress. Yamchun Fortress sits on a bluff over looking the Wakhan Valley and the Hindu Kush mountains. Scott took some amazing photos and the view was one of the best we have seen.
We continued onward toward Langar and made the decision to try our first homestead. We found one tucked back away from the main village and it was a perfect choice. If anyone reading this visits the Pamirs, homestays are a fantastic lodging choice. They are usually clean, comfortable, and a great way to help the community. We stayed in an extra room and they set up rather comfortable mattresses and blankets on the floor for us. The price also included dinner and breakfast. It was a great way to actually enjoy some relaxation time.
We dined with some other homestay guests - a young couple from Taiwan. They had been teaching English in Dushanbe and were excellent conversationalists. We ended up spending several hours after dinner drinking tea and chatting with them.
The next morning it was off to the dusty village of Murgab. We continued along the river and mountains for an hour or two, but soon began to climb up and away from the river. We encountered an impressive water crossing - runoff was spilling down the side of a hill and washing out the road. It was a significant amount of water and increasing as the temperature rose. Naturally, the Jimny handled it with no problems. Unfortunately, this wasn't the case for some of the Tajik vehicles headed the opposite direction. A marshrutska attempted to tow a vehicle up the crossing, but in the end sheer manpower was the key. Almost everyone milling around the crossing got out to push.
We climbed up a spectacular mountain pass and saw some amazing saltwater lakes. It has been rumored that travelers frequently swim across the river to Afghanistan, touch the opposite bank, and swim back to Tajikistan. We spent a lot of time looking for the perfect stretch of river to attempt this, but the water was just too high.
Not long after, we rejoined the M41 and motored to Murgab. The road was strangely empty - we could count the number of other vehicles we saw on one hand. The highlight of the afternoon was eating a late lunch in with a Kyrgyz family in their yurt. We feasted on yak yogurt, bread with yak butter, and a dumpling-like dish containing potatoes and onion (obviously served with more yogurt). The yogurt was interesting - it initially had a sweet flavor, which turned into a sour flavor. Quite pleasant with a bit of sugar actually. The butter was really delicious!
We checked into a homestay in Murgab and headed to the town's dusty bazaar, where we purchased traditional Kyrgyz felt hats. It's always fun to chat with fellow travelers - we had a group of older Italians and a young Italian/Finn couple as company. The younger folks had just come from Kyrgyzstan so it was good to get some up to date information.
We hit the sack early, as we needed to motor from Murgab to Jalal-abad the next day.
The morning began with a bit of chaos as we rushed around the Khorog bazaar in an attempt to find some water without gas (carbonated water is the drink of choice in Europe and Asia). We did manage to get some fuel and I snagged a pair of sunglasses (my old pair went missing with my camera).
Not long after hitting the road, we emerged from a forested area into a wide open, arid valley. The Hindu Kush mountains were on to our right for the entire trip. They were some of the most spectacular peaks I have ever seen - almost totally covered in snow and it was the middle of August!
We had lunch in the village of Ishkashim, where we were finally able to obtain plov. For those who don't know, plov is rice pilaf, vegetables, and a bit of meat cooked in lamb fat and oil for several hours. It's supposedly the national dish of Uzbekistan, but I was unable to find any. Our plov was worth the wait - that meal still ranks as the best on the trip. A fellow traveler informed me that the long cooking time prevents most restaurants from serving it - it's a dish most people cook at home.
We hit the road again after lunch - our goal was the village of Langar. We gained some elevation and stopped to visit Yamchun Fortress. Yamchun Fortress sits on a bluff over looking the Wakhan Valley and the Hindu Kush mountains. Scott took some amazing photos and the view was one of the best we have seen.
We continued onward toward Langar and made the decision to try our first homestead. We found one tucked back away from the main village and it was a perfect choice. If anyone reading this visits the Pamirs, homestays are a fantastic lodging choice. They are usually clean, comfortable, and a great way to help the community. We stayed in an extra room and they set up rather comfortable mattresses and blankets on the floor for us. The price also included dinner and breakfast. It was a great way to actually enjoy some relaxation time.
We dined with some other homestay guests - a young couple from Taiwan. They had been teaching English in Dushanbe and were excellent conversationalists. We ended up spending several hours after dinner drinking tea and chatting with them.
The next morning it was off to the dusty village of Murgab. We continued along the river and mountains for an hour or two, but soon began to climb up and away from the river. We encountered an impressive water crossing - runoff was spilling down the side of a hill and washing out the road. It was a significant amount of water and increasing as the temperature rose. Naturally, the Jimny handled it with no problems. Unfortunately, this wasn't the case for some of the Tajik vehicles headed the opposite direction. A marshrutska attempted to tow a vehicle up the crossing, but in the end sheer manpower was the key. Almost everyone milling around the crossing got out to push.
We climbed up a spectacular mountain pass and saw some amazing saltwater lakes. It has been rumored that travelers frequently swim across the river to Afghanistan, touch the opposite bank, and swim back to Tajikistan. We spent a lot of time looking for the perfect stretch of river to attempt this, but the water was just too high.
Not long after, we rejoined the M41 and motored to Murgab. The road was strangely empty - we could count the number of other vehicles we saw on one hand. The highlight of the afternoon was eating a late lunch in with a Kyrgyz family in their yurt. We feasted on yak yogurt, bread with yak butter, and a dumpling-like dish containing potatoes and onion (obviously served with more yogurt). The yogurt was interesting - it initially had a sweet flavor, which turned into a sour flavor. Quite pleasant with a bit of sugar actually. The butter was really delicious!
We checked into a homestay in Murgab and headed to the town's dusty bazaar, where we purchased traditional Kyrgyz felt hats. It's always fun to chat with fellow travelers - we had a group of older Italians and a young Italian/Finn couple as company. The younger folks had just come from Kyrgyzstan so it was good to get some up to date information.
We hit the sack early, as we needed to motor from Murgab to Jalal-abad the next day.
The Pamir Highway, Part 1.
I apologize for another prolonged period of blog silence. Our time in Tajikistan was quite busy and an internet connection could not be found.
It's been at least a week since I posted an update - we've covered a lot of mileage since then. We spent our last night in Samarkand on the hotel terrace. Instead of paying for an entire room, we paid 20 dollars for access to the rooftop terrace instead. It was quite comfortable - we slept on the elevated, pillow-covered table-platforms we saw all across Uzbekistan (obviously the correct name escapes me). Not only was it cheap and comfortable, but we also got breakfast and wi-fi access included.
Our next destination: Dushanbe, Tajikistan. We hit the road quite early (our usual policy when crossing a border) and drove the 60 or so kilometers to the crossing. Again, our expectations were defied: the Uzbek/Tajik crossing near Penjikent was incredibly easy. After hearing about all the bureaucracy and red tape present in other travelers accounts, it's extremely refreshing to find that some things have changed.
Exiting Uzbekistan was simple, all we had to do was fill out another customs form. Entering Tajikistan had a few more steps (we find entering a country tends to be more complicated then leaving, especially with a vehicle) but a very courteous border guard made things quite easy for us. We did have to pay a 40 dollar importation fee however.
After officially entering Tajikistan, we picked up our first hitchhiker! A young Russian backpacker needed a lift to Dushanbe, so we strapped some bags to the roof of the Jimny and made room for her. She proved to be quite interesting: she was a Spanish teacher back home in Irkutsk and was hitchhiking around Central Asia. Later that night we would find out hitchhiking seemed to be the preferred method of travel for many Russians.
As we left Penjikent, the scenery gradually increased in elevation and beauty. The Fan mountains surrounded us and we immediately understood the allure of Tajikistan. The first part of the drive was mostly uneventful. We got to know our new passenger, admired the scenery, and stopped for lunch. It was very nice to have a Russian-speaking traveller with us, as the majority of the populace is fluent in Russian.
Lunch consisted of sashlyk and bread. This was also one of our last kebabs. Fresh mutton became harder to track down as we entered poorer regions of Tajikistan. The food has been quite good in Central Asia, but this lunch introduced us to the one item we both refused to finish. The food in question was a small round ball of hard, compressed cheese with an extremely salty and sour flavor. Our Russian friend informed is that the old men eat them with vodka and beer, which they compliment nicely. That may be the case, but we found that they went extremely poorly with lunch. She also informed us that they are traditionally made by compressing them in your armpit but that this is not common anymore. Wonderful.
I'm not sure I can communicate how unpleasant that dish was. The flavor was bad enough, but it proved nigh-impossible to rid my mouth of the aftertaste.
We motored along for several more hours, our jaws agape at the scenery. The mountains were jagged with little foliage, resembling the Alps more then the Rockies.
Our passenger knew Dushanbe was close when we entered an eight kilometer tunnel. Unfortunately, it would be quite some time before we exited the tunnel. For an unknown reason, traffic came to a halt about midway through the tunnel. We spent the next hour and a half chatting with truckers, attempting to entertain ourselves, and listening to drivers honk their horns. The tunnel appeared to be in bad shape. It was humid and some parts of the tunnel had water streaming down the walls. Imagine my surprise when I found out the tunnel was opened in 2008!
We finally escaped the tunnel after 90 or so minutes. The descent into Dushanbe was quite thrilling - road construction was occurring everywhere and cars were dodging and weaving through traffic.
The delay in the tunnel set back our timetable. It was almost 9 PM by the time we arrived in Dushanbe. Trying to find a hotel at night can be a real pain, but luck was on our side. Our Russian traveler invited us to stay with her at a local house. The house was a sort of hostel/commune/house. It was free to stay, but people were expected to donate time, money, and food. All of the fellow lodgers were quite interesting. The majority were Russian and practically all were hitchhiking their way through Central Asia. The only other foreigners were a French couple cycling their way to China. Everyone was extremely hospital.
The next leg of our journey was Dushanbe to Khorog took two days to complete. I cannot overstate how beautiful Tajikistan is. We spent most of the time avoiding potholes and admiring the mountains.
I don't know if I have mentioned this before, but anyone curious about why I haven't posted any photos should know that my camera was stolen several weeks ago. I hate to be a tease regarding the scenery.
The highlight of the day was driving up an 10000 foot pass and finding a beautiful campsite not far from the road. We used our stove and cooking utensils to make some pasta and we were both sacked out before ten. It had been a long day on the road and we were camped about 30 kilometers out of Khalikum.
The next morning we broke camp and headed for Khorog. Khorog is considered the jumping off point for the Pamir Highway and is the last town of any significance until Murgab.
Most of this day was spent driving along the Afghan border. I don't know what I was expecting, but the border was very quiet. Only a few dwellings dotted the landscape across the river. Scott and I attempted to throw rocks onto the Afghan side of the border, but we failed miserably.
In addition to the usual amazing scenery, we saw two noteworthy events. The first was a tanker that had barely missed plunging off the road and into the river below and the second was a car accident outside of Khorog. A shared taxi driver locked up his breaks and hit the back end of a truck. His van was empty and no one appeared to be hurt.
We found a rather nice, inexpensive hotel in Khorog. We arrived fairly early (5:30 PM) so it was nice to spend some time lounging rather then hustling to grab some dinner. We ended up lounging a bit too long - everything was closing down by the time we made our move for some food. What we thought was a restaurant was an ice cream parlor, which ended up hitting the spot.
Around 9:30 PM, as we were relaxing, a Russian man entered our hotel and asked if anyone here was on the Mongol Rally. We gave him confirmation and he led us outside to meet some teams that had recently arrived in town. We were pleasantly surprised to meet the Beer Bongolians, whom we hadn't seen since Turkmenistan! They were also accompanied by the Swedes we met in Samarkand and a third team of two English girls. We hadn't expected to see the Swedes or the Bongolians again - they had left Dushanbe a full day or two before us!
It turned out that the southern route they took (we took the northern direct route) had taken quite a toll on their vehicles. Several wide water crossings had damaged the Bongolians ambulance suspension. What was supposed to be an early night turned into something much more fun as everyone raced to secure hotel rooms, and copious amounts of lager. We spent much of the night playing cards, sharing stories, and trying to figure out where to go from here.
That's all I have for now. The next update will contain: the Wakhan Valley, Murgab, and Kyrgyzstan.
It's been at least a week since I posted an update - we've covered a lot of mileage since then. We spent our last night in Samarkand on the hotel terrace. Instead of paying for an entire room, we paid 20 dollars for access to the rooftop terrace instead. It was quite comfortable - we slept on the elevated, pillow-covered table-platforms we saw all across Uzbekistan (obviously the correct name escapes me). Not only was it cheap and comfortable, but we also got breakfast and wi-fi access included.
Our next destination: Dushanbe, Tajikistan. We hit the road quite early (our usual policy when crossing a border) and drove the 60 or so kilometers to the crossing. Again, our expectations were defied: the Uzbek/Tajik crossing near Penjikent was incredibly easy. After hearing about all the bureaucracy and red tape present in other travelers accounts, it's extremely refreshing to find that some things have changed.
Exiting Uzbekistan was simple, all we had to do was fill out another customs form. Entering Tajikistan had a few more steps (we find entering a country tends to be more complicated then leaving, especially with a vehicle) but a very courteous border guard made things quite easy for us. We did have to pay a 40 dollar importation fee however.
After officially entering Tajikistan, we picked up our first hitchhiker! A young Russian backpacker needed a lift to Dushanbe, so we strapped some bags to the roof of the Jimny and made room for her. She proved to be quite interesting: she was a Spanish teacher back home in Irkutsk and was hitchhiking around Central Asia. Later that night we would find out hitchhiking seemed to be the preferred method of travel for many Russians.
As we left Penjikent, the scenery gradually increased in elevation and beauty. The Fan mountains surrounded us and we immediately understood the allure of Tajikistan. The first part of the drive was mostly uneventful. We got to know our new passenger, admired the scenery, and stopped for lunch. It was very nice to have a Russian-speaking traveller with us, as the majority of the populace is fluent in Russian.
Lunch consisted of sashlyk and bread. This was also one of our last kebabs. Fresh mutton became harder to track down as we entered poorer regions of Tajikistan. The food has been quite good in Central Asia, but this lunch introduced us to the one item we both refused to finish. The food in question was a small round ball of hard, compressed cheese with an extremely salty and sour flavor. Our Russian friend informed is that the old men eat them with vodka and beer, which they compliment nicely. That may be the case, but we found that they went extremely poorly with lunch. She also informed us that they are traditionally made by compressing them in your armpit but that this is not common anymore. Wonderful.
I'm not sure I can communicate how unpleasant that dish was. The flavor was bad enough, but it proved nigh-impossible to rid my mouth of the aftertaste.
We motored along for several more hours, our jaws agape at the scenery. The mountains were jagged with little foliage, resembling the Alps more then the Rockies.
Our passenger knew Dushanbe was close when we entered an eight kilometer tunnel. Unfortunately, it would be quite some time before we exited the tunnel. For an unknown reason, traffic came to a halt about midway through the tunnel. We spent the next hour and a half chatting with truckers, attempting to entertain ourselves, and listening to drivers honk their horns. The tunnel appeared to be in bad shape. It was humid and some parts of the tunnel had water streaming down the walls. Imagine my surprise when I found out the tunnel was opened in 2008!
We finally escaped the tunnel after 90 or so minutes. The descent into Dushanbe was quite thrilling - road construction was occurring everywhere and cars were dodging and weaving through traffic.
The delay in the tunnel set back our timetable. It was almost 9 PM by the time we arrived in Dushanbe. Trying to find a hotel at night can be a real pain, but luck was on our side. Our Russian traveler invited us to stay with her at a local house. The house was a sort of hostel/commune/house. It was free to stay, but people were expected to donate time, money, and food. All of the fellow lodgers were quite interesting. The majority were Russian and practically all were hitchhiking their way through Central Asia. The only other foreigners were a French couple cycling their way to China. Everyone was extremely hospital.
The next leg of our journey was Dushanbe to Khorog took two days to complete. I cannot overstate how beautiful Tajikistan is. We spent most of the time avoiding potholes and admiring the mountains.
I don't know if I have mentioned this before, but anyone curious about why I haven't posted any photos should know that my camera was stolen several weeks ago. I hate to be a tease regarding the scenery.
The highlight of the day was driving up an 10000 foot pass and finding a beautiful campsite not far from the road. We used our stove and cooking utensils to make some pasta and we were both sacked out before ten. It had been a long day on the road and we were camped about 30 kilometers out of Khalikum.
The next morning we broke camp and headed for Khorog. Khorog is considered the jumping off point for the Pamir Highway and is the last town of any significance until Murgab.
Most of this day was spent driving along the Afghan border. I don't know what I was expecting, but the border was very quiet. Only a few dwellings dotted the landscape across the river. Scott and I attempted to throw rocks onto the Afghan side of the border, but we failed miserably.
In addition to the usual amazing scenery, we saw two noteworthy events. The first was a tanker that had barely missed plunging off the road and into the river below and the second was a car accident outside of Khorog. A shared taxi driver locked up his breaks and hit the back end of a truck. His van was empty and no one appeared to be hurt.
We found a rather nice, inexpensive hotel in Khorog. We arrived fairly early (5:30 PM) so it was nice to spend some time lounging rather then hustling to grab some dinner. We ended up lounging a bit too long - everything was closing down by the time we made our move for some food. What we thought was a restaurant was an ice cream parlor, which ended up hitting the spot.
Around 9:30 PM, as we were relaxing, a Russian man entered our hotel and asked if anyone here was on the Mongol Rally. We gave him confirmation and he led us outside to meet some teams that had recently arrived in town. We were pleasantly surprised to meet the Beer Bongolians, whom we hadn't seen since Turkmenistan! They were also accompanied by the Swedes we met in Samarkand and a third team of two English girls. We hadn't expected to see the Swedes or the Bongolians again - they had left Dushanbe a full day or two before us!
It turned out that the southern route they took (we took the northern direct route) had taken quite a toll on their vehicles. Several wide water crossings had damaged the Bongolians ambulance suspension. What was supposed to be an early night turned into something much more fun as everyone raced to secure hotel rooms, and copious amounts of lager. We spent much of the night playing cards, sharing stories, and trying to figure out where to go from here.
That's all I have for now. The next update will contain: the Wakhan Valley, Murgab, and Kyrgyzstan.
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
Alive and well in the Pamirs
Tajikistan has been fantastic. The scenery has been incredible. It's been the best country of the trip so far. Off to Kyrgyzstan tomorrow. More to come once we have a good internet connection.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)