And More From Tajikistan

25 September 2022

It’s hot as Hell and I’m not going to take it anymore!

Do donkey carts pay for use of the toll road?

We’re on the road again. Today, we drive 50 miles southwest through the foothills to the ancient city of Istarafshan, a city that is one of the oldest in Tajikistan dating back over 2,500 years. An important stop on the Silk Road, it again is becoming a trader destination for new age tourists. The trip takes us almost 2 hours. Before 2000, the city was called Üroteppa but was renamed because of the government’s plan of Tajikization or persianiizaton. This is the planned program of cultural change with the purpose of assimilating people, culture, and language. In other words, to remove diversity and create unity.

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KKTUT – TRAVELING THE FIVE STANS (minus a T)

11-13 SEPTEMBER 2022

Once Five and now there are Four

Sometimes it takes a lot of preparation to travel to distant places. And yes, it will take me three days to arrive at my destination of Almaty. In the case of what travelers typically lump together as “The Five Stans,” my first challenge was locating the countries on a map, remembering their five names, and learning how to spell them. Though we tend to lump them together as one destination, each country is unique and deserves more than telling friends I am headed for the 5 Stans of Central Asia. 

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