Articles from this Category
26 July 2024
Roadworks and landslide We had been given a choice of starting at 0400 today or 0700. The earlier time was to avoid road works and Altynbek, the driver, didn’t seem to offer an in-between option. So, we chose the later departure, as 0400 is obscene! With delays settling up the bill at the homestay, we […]
25 July 2024
Yesterday Dushanbe isn’t exactly loaded with sights apart from museums. In this heat, I didn’t feel like wandering around repeating exterior visits to various governmental buildings or white elephants. I did walk around the Rudaki Ave area and beyond, quite early around 0800 to explore and try get rid of about USD5 of UZS. If […]
23 July 2024
Above: You could say these four men are having a good time in bed. Samarkand to border Today, I start my 2400 km overland adventure from Samarkand in Uzbekistan to Hotan in Xinjiang, China. Today’s portion is a relatively solo border crossing from Samarkand to Dushanbe, Tajikistan. After a good breakfast at 0900, I took […]
22 July 2024
Bibi Khanym The Jahongir put on an amazing breakfast this morning of hot items, lots of fruit and cakes/sweets. I don’t understand how the fruit here tastes so good compared to New Zealand. The nectarines and cantaloupe were dripping and super sweet. I walked to the Bibi Khanym mosque taking shade whenever it was […]
21 July 2024
Flying to Samarkand I was seated immediately after the exit rows on the A321 (version with only two window exits and two doors per side, no extra doors). I had received an email notifying that my original assigned seat was no longer available due to operational reasons (perhaps an aircraft configuration change). It turned […]
30 June 2024
Going to the airport I was happy to take public transport (NZD11 or EUR6 per person) to the airport for our midday flight but Kim was keen on an easier option. Last year, the hotel offered us a ride for EUR20 (per car) but this year it was going to be EUR40. So, we decided […]
29 June 2024
Revisiting sights Kim arrives in Istanbul today, coming from Taipei via Hanoi. His flight was scheduled to arrive at 0520 but had landed at 0445. I had set the alarm for 0610 and hit the tram at 0630 for Aksaray Metro. He had already been waiting 10 mins when I got there at 0640. The […]
28 June 2024
Flying to Istanbul I woke to an email from Turkish Airlines advising of a 50 min delay to my 0725 service to Istanbul. From the airport hotel, I walked over to the terminal about 1h25 prior to the new departure time. At the check-in desk, I asked if they would accept a mobile boarding pass […]
26 June 2024
I spent the morning indoors reinstating the bookings I had cancelled two days ago for my alternate scenario in case I cannot be hosted in Normandy later in the trip. I had been expecting to pay megabucks for (re)-booking so late but surprisingly, I saved EUR8 in total across 7 nights in three cities. Not […]
24 June 2024
Today I fly from Shymkent to Astana at a very pleasant time of 1130, meaning that could have a leisurely breakfast before ordering a car. I got to the airport at 1000 to find the counters already free of queues. The staff asked me to get a paper boarding pass even though I noticed people […]