Author: Cindy

Off the grid for a day as we drove into the desert to a yurt camp near Lake Aydar and Nurata. Stopped to view petroglyphs and the ruins of yet another fort of Alexander the Great. Got to ride camels

A free day to explore Bukhara. Checked out a couple of museums and wandered the streets. Got to see the actual Bug Pit of Stoddart and Conolly fame. https://www.thoughtco.com/execution-of-stoddart-and-conolly… Did a bit of shopping then back to the hotel for

A long day touring around Bukhara. Way too many madrassahs and they all look the same! Also visited the last Emir’s summer palace, The Ark, a mausoleum, several mosques & minarets and markets. Finished the day with an ethnic music

Today we drove across the Kyzylkum desert from Khiva to Bukhara. Hot and dry 8.5 hour drive. Got to pick cotton in the fields near Bukhara.

Excellent day wandering through the town of Khiva. Beautifully tiled mosques, madrassahs and palaces. Traditional tiles are always white, blue and turquoise. Our hotel was a converted madrassah and we slept in an old study cubicle. Sunset atop a watchtower

Flew to Urgench in the morning then spent the afternoon touring 3 of the Qala Forts of ancient Khorezm – Kyzyl Qala, Toprak Qala and Ayaz Qala.

Started our tour. Nice group of people all from the UK. Tour of Tashkent for our first day.

Last full day in Tajikistan. Stayed in a sanatorium on the shores of the Kayrakkum Lake reservoir then spent the morning visiting the sights of Khojand. Tomorrow we’re overland to Uzbekistan!

Hiking in the Fan Mountains of Tajikistan. Beautiful scenery up around 2400m in the area of Haft-Kul (the Seven Lakes ). Excellent home stay in Padrud. Fantastic food but the toilet facilities left much to be desired.

Long drive to Penjikent today through incredible mountain valleys. Visited the archeological site of Sarazm which was established around 4000 BC. Next on to the ruins of ancient Penjikent. It was THE major Sogdian town on the Silk Road. Wandered

Spent yesterday high in the Fan Mountains around Iskander Kul. Gorgeous turquoise lake named after Alexander the Great who wandered through here conquering around 329 BC or so. Home stay that night in Sarytag another 5 km up into the

Lots of walking around today. Not much going on as it was a Muslim holiday and all museums and many restaurants were closed. Looked at several statues and had tea at a traditional teahouse. Fantastic carved and painted ceilings. Were

Museum day in Dushanbe. Very hot 36 degrees outside, ugh!

Felt carpet making demonstration at our B&B in Kochkor

Arrived in Kochkor this afternoon and back in a wifi zone. Toured a salt mine/sanatorium where patients go to cure their asthma???!! Spent the past 2 days driving along Lake Issyk-Kul then up into the mountains. Amazing scenery. Met a

Interesting day in Bishkek. Lots of walking but not really a lot to see. It’s not got much in the way of historical sights because it was a country of nomads that didn’t build anything . Had an awesome time