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.
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