Killing Time in Daşoguz.

Posing with my gal pals in the market in Daşoguz.

Thanks to the cold and windy weather and skies that threatened to open up and pour at any minute, we had a whirlwind tour of Konya-Urgench.  In fact, we went through Konya-Urgench so fast that we had hours to kill before we could even arrive at our next destination - the border with Uzbekistan.

A Cold and Windy Visit to Kunya-Urgench.

The Mausoleum of Sultan Ali in the background.  Passing under the ribbon covered wishing branch.

We arrived into Daşoguz early this morning via a flight from Ashgabat.

Flashback to Ashgabat.  With Pat as the time keeper, we are never late so we had several minutes to spare before Jabbar showed up in the hotel lobby at 3:30a.  He and our driver (it wasn't Dolat) drove us to the airport and Jabbar accompanied us in.  He helped us with getting our luggage through security, getting us checked in and then assisted with us going through customs.  As my rug had caused some issue with arrival into Turkmenistan, I think he was concerned I would have issue with taking it out of the country.  He exchanged a few words with the customs officer and indeed there was an issue, albeit a very minor one, with the rug.  They asked to keep my copy of the customs declaration form, that I had filled in on entry, as proof that I had indeed brought the rug with me.  Since we wouldn't be returning to Turkmenistan on this trip, I didn't see any issue with relinquishing the form so I gladly handed it over.  Whew!  I am now safely out of Turkmenistan with this rug.  I remembered to note it on the Uzbek customs declaration form so hopefully, all will be okay re-entering that country.

Ashgabat to Daşoguz.

Daşoguz ("Dah-show-gooz") also spelled as Dashoguz is a city in northern Turkmenistan and the capital the province of the same name.  For tourists, it is the launch point to the seeing the ruins of the ancient city of Kunya-Urgench.

The Home of Turkmen Pride. Bedev Hippodrome.

A very friendly palomino photobombing my shot as I attempt to take a picture of a mare and her colt.  I loved this moment!

After spending much of our day seeing the ostentatious side of Ashgabat, including monuments constructed as a tribute to himself - their former leader, Saparmurat Niyazov, I had had enough.  I was ready to flee Ashgabat.  But, then we finally got to visit a place that made me smile.  We ended our day of sightseeing with a visit to the Bedev Hippodrome which is located within the city limits of Ashgabat.  To say that Turkmen love horses would be a true understatement.  They are obsessed with horses and these beloved animals are treated as well as any human.

Sights of Ashgabat.

Decorated panel of the front entry door to Gypjak Mosque.

We woke up to a cold and dreary day in Ashgabat.  I dreaded that the rain would damper our sightseeing today and debated whether or not to bring along my umbrella.  I decided against it as I am one of those Murphy's Law believers so if I bring the umbrella, it will most certainly rain.

Thanks to a bit of cold temperature, I had a good night's sleep last night and I woke up pretty well refreshed.  I was ready to tackle whatever Ashgabat would throw at me today. We're only here one day so we have a lot of sightseeing to cram in.

Pat and I were down at the hotel restaurant, for breakfast, just around 8a.  The dining room was a large space with a buffet table to match.  There were only a few other people around so we had our pick of tables and food.  Oddly enough, one of the restaurant workers was watching a movie on the flat panel TV that was hung up in one corner of the room.  I watched for a few minutes to see what the movie was and it was Gladiator, starring Russell Crowe.  It was bit too early for the blood and gore of gladiators fighting it out in the Roman arena.  I turned my attention to the food.  Same old tourist stuff.  I just took a bit of food and washed it down with black tea.  Good to go!

Visiting the Ruins at Old Nisa.

At Old Nisa.

Old Nisa (also known as Parthaunisa) was an ancient city of the Parthian kingdom, located about 18 km southwest of Ashgabat. It is traditionally assumed that Old Nisa was founded by Arsaces I who ruled the Parthian kingdom from about 250 BC–211 BC.  Old Nisa was also reputedly the royal necropolis of the Parthian kings, although it has not been established that the fortress at Old Nisa was either a royal residence or a mausoleum.

To Ashgabat!

Lunch or sleep?  Looks like Pat's ready for her nap :-)

We had gotten such an early start today that by late morning, we were ready for lunch. Jabbar took us to a local restaurant - a very nice place compared to the roadside one that we ate at yesterday for lunch.  It served tradtional Turkmen food which is pretty much like traditional Central Asian food. I know there are differences but for me, Uzbek plov vs. Tajik plov vs. Turkmen plov is all beginning to blur.  Ditto for their *fresh* salad of tomato and cucumber.  But, the one thing that does differentiate Turkmen food from the other two cuisines we've had so far is that there is some Turkish influence here.  I started my meal with that Turkish classic - lentil soup.  It was quite delicious!  Then it was the salad but here they added some bits of lettuce and cubes of salty cheese - similar to what you would have in Turkey.

The Sunday Market in Mary.

Camels for sale.

We ended our visit to Mary with a bit of fun. We went to the market. But since today was Sunday, we got to visit the animal market. This is the one day of the week that the villagers can bring their livestock to sell.

The market was located just on the outskirts of town. Dolat pulled the van to an area of the market grounds that was designated for parking. It was like the parking you get when you go to the county fairground except there was no longer any grass here - it was just bare dirt.

More of Ancient Merv. Two Mausoleums.

At the Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar.

After spending time with the Turkmen family at the pilgrimage site, we were off to see two mausoleums. We started with the most famous one in the area and the landmark that is considered to be the best preserve of all the structures in Merv - the Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar.

Enjoying Some Family Time at a Pilgrimage Site.

Posing with some very friendly local women who kindly invited us to join them at their table for a meal.

After spending time visiting the Kalas (Kyz, Gyaur, and Erk), our next destination was the mosque and mausoleum complex of Hodja Yusup Hamadani.  Hodja Yusup was a Sufi scholar of the 12th century, whose teachings formed an important element in the development of Sufism in Central Asia.  He was buried here when he died in 1140 and today, the complex is one of the most important pilgrimage sites in Turkmenistan.

Ancient Merv.

Kyz Kala.

We were scheduled to leave the hotel at 7a. That means breakfast at 8a. As usual, I was up before the alarm and ready to head down for breakfast at 6a. So was Pat so down we went. It was a very simple breakfast in the hotel's dining room. Jabbar was already eating when we arrived; we joined him at the table. A few minutes later, Dolat arrived. By 6:30a, we were finished eating. No point hanging around the hotel so we decided to hit the road. Jabbar got us checked out as we are leaving Mary this evening for Ashgabat. With all luggage safely stowed in the back of the van, we headed off!

Welcome to Turkmenistan!

Having dinner in Mary.  Pat with our guide, Jabbar.

Today marked two events. One is that we've reached the halfway mark on our trip. I cannot believe time has flown by! The other is that we are finally going to Turkmenistan, our third Central Asian country on this trip! We'll be there for a few days before returning back to Uzbekistan.

Meet My Travel Partner.

Say hello to Pat, my travel partner for this trip. When I had decided to do this trip,  I wanted a seasoned traveler by my side as I knew that traveling through Central Asia would not necessarily be easy.  There was only one person that I thought who would be even remotely interested and capable in coming with me and that is this lady.

She is an experienced traveler who has been to more than 70 countries and counting.  Her travels have taken to all corners of the globe and even in her younger days, when money was tight, she and her husband (now deceased) figured out how to stretch their money to enable them to travel.  They were budget travelers before the phrase ever even existed!  Her husband's love of foreign languages took them to non-English countries that most people would never dream of traveling to - like Mali.  I find it amusing to think that off all the places that she has never been to but wants to go to, the UK tops the list.  

Turkmen Culture. Carpets, Hats and Horses.

A Turkmen, in traditional costume, with his beloved Akhal-Teke horse.  Photo by Reza

As I've been reading about the culture of the countries we'll be visiting, I've come to the realize that Turkmenistan stands slightly apart from the other four.  The reason for this is that the ancestors of the Turkmen were nomadic tribes; the other four countries were populated by settled tribes of farmers.   Each clan has its own dialect and style of dress and that has been true for centuries.

The Markets.

Photo From International Mission Board (imb).

With a legacy imbued by centuries of trade, it does not come as a surprise to me that Central Asia is famed for its markets.  Contrary to what the name implies though, the Silk Road was never a single road.  Instead, it a loose network of routes, linking together the major trading centers of East Asia with those in the Middle East, the Mediterranean and Europe.

Cities in the Oasis. Ancient Merv.

Painting of the 2th-century mausoleum оf Sultan Sanjar, located in Merv.

Ancient Merv is one of the most complex and well preserved urban centers along the Silk Route.  The cities that emerged at Merv date back to the 6th century BC and a number of monuments are still standing today.