On the way back to Ashgabat we visited two more craters in the desert area. One had flames in the bottom while the other was full of water and bubbles of gas could be seen rising to the top. The soil around the crater was white with mineral salts.
Typical housing on the outskirts of Ashgabat
We returned to the hotel to do laundry and pack up our gear while the rest of the group headed off to the Russian market.
The lovely security lady who taught me how to say good morning in Turkmen. It's a pretty hard language for sure.
The hotel called a taxi for us as we all decided to head back to the Yyldyz Hotel for another lovely dinner and enjoy our last night views of the city all lit up in ever-changing coloured lights. Rather than one taxi we ended up with two and had been told the price we needed to pay. When we arrived at the hotel the driver doubled the price and Ben gave him two options - the price arranged, or nothing. The driver chose nothing so we didn't pay. We were lucky enough to get the same dining room to ourselves, as before and be waited on by our own staff. At the end of the meal the staff called a minivan taxi for us and we returned about 1.00 am long after the curfew time, but the driver drove lots of back streets to get us back. We never knew what the consequence of being out after curfew meant so were not worried. Once we got into the hotel we were told Andrew had dropped his passport in the outgoing taxi on the way to dinner and the driver demanded the higher fare for the taxi before he would return Andrew's passport to them. The taxi driver won that battle.
Andrew left for London early morning and Tom and Coen, the Dutch guys left to fly home.
As our flight to Dubai was late afternoon so we had time to see the equestrian jumping in the morning. The specially built complex was a short distance out of the city. As we entered we had to go through security where they took English John's medication off him as they felt it might endanger the horses' health. Cigarettes were taken off others but the smokers in our group managed to keep their stash hidden. We had to walk through a foot bath of disinfectant before entering the stadium.
We were able to help the others understand what was happening and how the jumping worked so that made it more interesting for them. Most of the riders and horses were from neighbouring desert countries.
Checking out the avenue of famous scientists and literary Turkmen.
During the long break between sessions to give the horses a rest we were able to return to the hipster Sha cafe for lunch. After this we were able to see the finalists and the medal ceremony at the end.
Ashgabat airport is beautiful and the roof is shaped like a bird with its wings out. Amazing both inside and out.
My wish at the well came true as our Fly Dubai flight was on time and we had a great flight to Dubai.
Reflecting on our time in Turkmenistan. It was certainly a highlight. Having an income from oil and gas has certainly helped build all the infrastructure for the country. The late president wanted to make it like the Dubai of Central Asia.
The new part of the city is full of government ministry buildings, each one with a symbol on top to show what they are for. Coins on the finance ministry, education building like a book, world globe on the foreign affairs building. Other photos of some of the buildings in this link. There are apartment buildings for the government workers to live in near the ministries but we were told they are too expensive for them so they live outside the area.
The people seem very reserved and appear to us to follow like sheep and not query things. They seem used to being told what to do. This makes it one of the top 10 safest countries to visit I guess.
The current president seems to want to make Turkemnistan stand out from the other Central Asian countries by promoting the 8 pointed star symbol everywhere, having school children, university students and government staff wear traditional clothing. No one was wearing jeans, tee shirts, or short skirts even though they are for sale in the markets.
Typical housing on the outskirts of Ashgabat
We returned to the hotel to do laundry and pack up our gear while the rest of the group headed off to the Russian market.
The lovely security lady who taught me how to say good morning in Turkmen. It's a pretty hard language for sure.
The hotel called a taxi for us as we all decided to head back to the Yyldyz Hotel for another lovely dinner and enjoy our last night views of the city all lit up in ever-changing coloured lights. Rather than one taxi we ended up with two and had been told the price we needed to pay. When we arrived at the hotel the driver doubled the price and Ben gave him two options - the price arranged, or nothing. The driver chose nothing so we didn't pay. We were lucky enough to get the same dining room to ourselves, as before and be waited on by our own staff. At the end of the meal the staff called a minivan taxi for us and we returned about 1.00 am long after the curfew time, but the driver drove lots of back streets to get us back. We never knew what the consequence of being out after curfew meant so were not worried. Once we got into the hotel we were told Andrew had dropped his passport in the outgoing taxi on the way to dinner and the driver demanded the higher fare for the taxi before he would return Andrew's passport to them. The taxi driver won that battle.
Andrew left for London early morning and Tom and Coen, the Dutch guys left to fly home.
As our flight to Dubai was late afternoon so we had time to see the equestrian jumping in the morning. The specially built complex was a short distance out of the city. As we entered we had to go through security where they took English John's medication off him as they felt it might endanger the horses' health. Cigarettes were taken off others but the smokers in our group managed to keep their stash hidden. We had to walk through a foot bath of disinfectant before entering the stadium.
We were able to help the others understand what was happening and how the jumping worked so that made it more interesting for them. Most of the riders and horses were from neighbouring desert countries.
Checking out the avenue of famous scientists and literary Turkmen.
During the long break between sessions to give the horses a rest we were able to return to the hipster Sha cafe for lunch. After this we were able to see the finalists and the medal ceremony at the end.
Ashgabat airport is beautiful and the roof is shaped like a bird with its wings out. Amazing both inside and out.
My wish at the well came true as our Fly Dubai flight was on time and we had a great flight to Dubai.
Reflecting on our time in Turkmenistan. It was certainly a highlight. Having an income from oil and gas has certainly helped build all the infrastructure for the country. The late president wanted to make it like the Dubai of Central Asia.
The new part of the city is full of government ministry buildings, each one with a symbol on top to show what they are for. Coins on the finance ministry, education building like a book, world globe on the foreign affairs building. Other photos of some of the buildings in this link. There are apartment buildings for the government workers to live in near the ministries but we were told they are too expensive for them so they live outside the area.
The people seem very reserved and appear to us to follow like sheep and not query things. They seem used to being told what to do. This makes it one of the top 10 safest countries to visit I guess.
The current president seems to want to make Turkemnistan stand out from the other Central Asian countries by promoting the 8 pointed star symbol everywhere, having school children, university students and government staff wear traditional clothing. No one was wearing jeans, tee shirts, or short skirts even though they are for sale in the markets.
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| Berkarar Mall |
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| Darvaza crater |
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| Earthquake monument |
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