The 5-stans of the Middle East

I don't see how that's possible. Is it not fur?

Don't count on my remembering the correct price on those hats; I only remember a guy in our group trying on some of the hats, and he asked "how much?" It could have been $25, $35 tops.

Any idea what it's made of? I paid considerably more for the rabbit I wear on my head when it's cold.

No idea what they're made from. It was not one of my "interests" while in Central Asia, but I believe someone in our group bought one - the big black ones that looks like curly hair.

Thats a hat made of Uzbekhi MUFF.

The finals.

I'm showing these donkeys, because we saw them during our lunch stop. Several of us saw them, but when we turned around for a moment, they just disappeared, and the landscape was almost flat.


Doors seems to be a favorite photo subject, so I'll end this travelogue with these. I think it tells alot about the culture/countries by their designs.







This is not a door, but can you guess what it is?


Chow.

A little tidbit on Karakalpakstan, our sixth stan.

The Republic of Karakalpakstan was established as an autonomous state with its own Constitution under the 1992 Constitution of Uzbekistan. It is autonomous with its own Parliament, but they must abide by the Uzbekistan Constitution - with any modifications requiring Uzbek authorization.

In reality, although an autonomous state, Karakalpakstan is little more than another province of Uzbekistan with the practice of laws that are identical to Uzbek laws.

It was still fun to learn we visited six stans instead of five.

I waited this long to check in, because I can't stand waiting for all the pictures. This way, I see most of it at once.

Hi edgar, Glad you came to visit. Enjoy.

I've been visiting this thread regularly for some time, and I just wanted to say "Thank you, CI"! This is a part of the world that very few of us will ever have the opportunity to see. I really appreciate your sharing all of this with us. The photos are beautiful, and they have dispelled many wrongful impressions I previously had of these parts of the world. Travel does that. And so can threads on A2K, it seems.

Again, my heartfelt thanks.

Eva, Thanks for "visiting" the 6-stans as I saw them. It's always a pleasure to see friends visit and comment on my travelogues. T.

As I reminisce about our trip to Central Asia, those three names of great conquerors continue to pop into my head; Alexander the Great, Genghis Kahn, and Tamerlane. They pretty much covered the same territory at different times, but they all started when very young to develop into the skilled and powerful military men who controlled vast areas of Europe, Russia and Asia.

When we consider the simple fact that two of the three men didn't even learn how to read or write, their accomplishments go beyond the skills we value in contemporary politics.

I went to see a movie yesterday afternoon, because the San Jose Mercury News had an interesting article on the "Mongol," based on Genghis Khan.
The movie was shot in Russia, China and Kazakhstan, and that alone had enough attraction for me. My journey to the 6-stans last month exposed me to more stories about Genghis Kahn, so it was only natural that I go see the movie.

Timuchin (Genghis Khan) was the son of a noble in a poor mongol tribe who lived in Outer Mongolia. He was born some time in the 1160's, and eventually created the largest empire in terms of geographical expanse. By the time of his death in 1227, his territory extended from Poland to Siberia, from Moscow to the Arabian peninsula, from Siberia to Vietnam, and Northern China including Beijing. The Mongolian Empire was ruled by four separate khans and overruled by the Great Khan. The Golden Horde ruled Russia, Ilkhanate ruled Persia and the Middle East, Chagatai Khanate ruled over western Asia, and the Great Khanate controlled Mongolia and China.

Kublai Kahn relocated his capital to Beijing in 1260, and adopted a Chinese dynastic name, the Yuan, in 1271. Kublai Kahn eventually built a palace, the Forbidden City.

I just find it so fascinating to learn new facts about places I have visited (even several times) with very little factual information learned before, during, or after the trip, but to later learn that the grandson of Genghis Kahn built the Forbidden City.

I shall never get tired of travel, but my age and finances will surely slow me down. I'm just thankful that I have had the opportunity to travel to all the places I have on this planet we call "earth."

This is the jacket I got for my wife during our farewell dinner in Ashgabat.

Eva, I should have responded to your post earlier, but better late than never. At any rate, what you posit is true; most of us have wrong impressions about parts of the world we never have the opportunity to visit or learn about. What upsets me is the impressions most Americans have about Muslims; most of it is wrong. More than 80 percent of the five countries we visited in Central Asia are Muslims - with many exceeding 90 percent. Of all my travels, I have not met a friendlier and polite people as the people of Central Asia. Even the children are polite; they will vacate seats in busses and subways to let elders sit; I'd be shocked to see the same in our own country, the US. Many school children approached us to say "hello" and to talk - probably to practice their English. It's amazing how much our country has lost in the way of simple politeness and communication with each other.

I was happy to share my experiences of Central Asia; it was a great learning opportunity that expanded my knowledge about the Silk Road, and to visit with people half way around the world to eat their food and drink their vodka and beer. Some of their museums are first rate, but many will need to accommodate English speaking tourists, because most of their signs still lack translation.

My next trip to Bhutan and India in November will also be a unique trip with a small, private, group of eight. Please keep an eye out for my travelogue with pictures after my return in late November.

Adding my thanks.

And coincidentally, on our TV this evening I saw part of a travelogue on Bhutan.

Beware the thin air, c.i. It's awfully high up. Take care.

McT, I've been doing some reading on Bhutan, and although we'll be driving through some high elevations - over 11,000 feet, most of our sites where we stay will be below 8,000 feet. Also, the climate will be ideal between highs in the high seventies to high fifties and lows in the freezing range - at night. After all, we will be at the foothills of the Himalayas.

We were told by some experts who has traveled there frequently that mid-November is the best season for a visit to Bhutan.

One of the fellows on our Central Asia journey is from NC. He owns a chain of restaurants called the Mayflower Seafood, and he sent me this t-shirt last week.

Genghis Khan's descendants seem to like naming countries they conquered with the suffix -stan. Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Kygyzstan, Tajkistan but also Afghanistan, Pakistan and Hindustan, otherwise known as India (British name) and Bharat (Indian name).

Mughals (Persian for Mongols) conquered Afghanistan and India thus Pakistan and Hindustan.