Nathan's Insights

Now that I’ve been back for one month I have enough distance to from the trip to look back and recall the good and the bad (basically only getting sick as I left Turkmenistan).

My 42 day trip that started on 29 April 2023 and finished on 9 June 2023 covered Türkiye, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, and Turkmenistan. This was a long overdue overseas experience exploring different and fascinating cultures, architectures, and stunning landscapes.

See a summary of my daily 2023 trip experiences and highlights here.

Flights

I had decided to explore this region back in late 2018 and early 2019 but world COVID situation meant the trip was delayed, not just to when travel restrictions lifted but also to when travel had stablished and when I could maintain costs at a reasonable level.  This meant booking long haul flights using points in premium cabins when possible, mostly business class and paying only $200-300 per flight.  To do this I had to book almost 12 months out as these rare seats become available. 

Travelling so far, 37,548 kms across 9 flights being 52 hours and 11 minutes in duration, it is better to get more comfortable seats.  For 5 of those flights, 2 to get to Istanbul at the start and 3 to get home from Istanbul at the end I enjoy the most comfortable way to fly (well First Class is even better).  Once in Central Asia region I did shorter flights, the longest being 5 hours Istanbul to Bishkek, in economy.

I got to fly on three airlines for the first time; Turkish Airlines, Somon Air (airline of Tajikistan), and Malaysia Airlines.  Of these I was most impressed with Turkish Airlines.  On Somon Airlines I got to be part of a major diversion and delay with little communication from the airline while we stayed on the land at our diversion airport in Khujand. 

Thankfully the airline industry is now running to the standards from before the pandemic, sometimes bad but on better airlines normally it goes as advertised.

Country Highlights – Türkiye

A central part of this trip was visiting Türkiye, first as a short G Adventures tour and later staying in Istanbul for 4.5 days. Something that has stayed in my mind was one of the first experiences, a visit to Gallipoli Peninsula. Some many people died in World War 1 on this peninsula and learning about the history of this area and why the Ottoman Empire was even in WW1 to why in the end the Allies had to land here despite it never being the plan, to the desperate battles, the courage and even the mateship shown on all sides.

Türkiye has lengthy world history being the capital of the Roman Empire in 330, then following the collapse of the Western Roman Empire, become the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire (also know as the Byzantine Empire) and finally the Ottoman Empire (1453 to 1992). This means the Türkiye was at one point the central part of the Christian world at later a main point of the Muslim world.

History is everywhere in Türkiye. I saw this history in Tory, in Ephesus and even in Istanbul itself. I was also impressed by how when cat and dogs are looked after in Türkiye with people feeding and caring for street animals highlighting to me a great deal of kindness.

Country Highlights – Kyrgyzstan

While Türkiye is on the edge of Asia and Europe my first country in Central Asia and a whole new world was Kyrgyzstan. Starting in Bishkek I quickly learned of the Russian Empire and later Soviet are (USSR) on this region having arrived just as Victory Day celebrations which in the Russian influenced world is on 9 May (the Western world celebrates this on 8 May the day of Nazi Germany’s unconditional surrender).

After leaving Bishkek I got to seeing some of the most beautiful snow cap mountain ranges I had seen. In Kyrgyzstan I got to hike in the mountains with snow (Chong-Kemin and Song Kul) and in desert like areas (Fairy Tale Valley). There is a vast range of landscapes to experience. I even got to hold a hunting eagle on my arm!

Country Highlights – Kazakhstan

Despite it’s enormous size I only spent two full days in Kazakhstan but this still allowed me to experience nature starting with the Kolsay Lakes National Park and later hiking in the amazing Charyn Canyon with stunning rock formations and texture of red.

I also got to see the strong USSR history in Almaty with the Zenkov Cathedra, a magnificent Russian Orthodox Church, and the numerous memorial to the soldiers lost in WW2 defending Moscow and Russia from Nazi Germany.

Country Highlights – Tajikistan

Nature at is best was what I experienced in Tajikistan starting with the snow capped mountain ranges in Sughd Province just outside Dushanbe and later the remote mountain area around Gazza Village and the even more remote Voru Village. The air was fresh and there was running streams and waterfalls. Tajikistan is where I learnt about the Five Pillars are the core beliefs and practices of Islam and also how some local practises are different, mostly around the Mecca visit as Tajikistan residents were banned from visiting Saudi Arabia during the Soviet era.

Khŭjand is also a beautiful city located on a river, I got to see a wedding celebration at our hotel which was very festive.

Country Highlights – Uzbekistan

Uzbekistan was all about historic architecture, sometimes ruins but most times mosques and ancient cities like UNESCO Khiva.

Registan Square in Samarkand was a highlight of the entire trip, during the day the structures were amazing but at night the light show elevated this to another level altogether.

Staying inside the ancient city of Khiva was almost surreal, ancient buildings surrounded me, structures that will likely be here in hundreds and probably a thousand years – Kalta Minor Minaret, Tash-Khovli Palace, Madrasah Qutlug Murad, Tash-Khauli Palace, Juma Mosque, Islom-Hoja Minaret and lots more. If you go to Uzbekistan than Khiva is a must.

And only in Uzbekistan could a town like Bukhara not be the top attraction which has the brilliant Kalyan Minaret that not even Genghis Khan (13th century) or the Red Army (1920) could destroy it was so well made!

But Uzbekistan was more than historic site, watching the sunset and the next day rise over the Kyzylkum Desert was an experience I’ll treasure plus the night of singing and dancing under the stars before sleeping in a cosy yurt is something I’ll recall for a long time.

Country Highlights – Turkmenistan

Turkmenistan is one of the most restrictive countries I’ve ever visited with few tourists visiting. Their internet blocking was more effective then I’ve experience in Cuba, China or Russia! But the desert experience in Karakum Desert made the difficulties getting here and other hassles like money and restrictions on tourists still well worth it. The Darvaza Gas Crater (Gates of Hell) was a surreal experience, something that you wouldn’t see anywhere else and at night in particular almost like it was real. I know it’s an environmental disaster buying this gas but it was extremely beautiful and if you didn’t know why it was could even be terrifying.

Ashgabat is also a brilliant and unusual city. It should be known as the city of lights. The very cheap to free electricity and the riches the country gets from selling their fossil fuels are on display in this marble city. So white during the day and should bright and colourful at night, gorgeous, elegant and attractive a one of a kind place.

Conclusion

I loved this trip and the experiences that came along with it. Exploring this planet and it’s history gives me faith in humanity and also nature. There are some many wonders out there, and knowing this can help me get though the difficult times, the stresses and disappointments in life. Our people, our history, beauty and friendship this are the balances to lifes challenges.

I learnt a lot from this trip, both in the regions I visited, but also in myself, my limits and my prejudices or blind spots. It takes effort to do this typesd of trips but the rewards can be immense.

I really appreciate just how fortunate I am in life.