Category Archives: Uncategorized

UAE – November 18-27, December 4-5, 8-14, 2015 For most people, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) means just one place: Dubai, the sci-fi-esque city of iconic skyscrapers, palm-shaped islands, city-sized malls, indoor ski slopes and beach resorts. But beyond the … Continue reading →

For centuries, the great civilizations of East and West were connected by the Silk Road, a fragile network of shifting intercontinental trade routes that threaded across Asia’s highest mountains and bleakest deserts. The heartland of this trade was Central Asia, … Continue reading →

HISTORY Early History. 40,000BC – Neanderthal man remains found in cave near Samarkand. 3,500BC – Botai Culture of N Kazakhstan domesticated horses and horse-based nomadism becomes the dominant steppe culture. Cultural continuity begins in the late 3rd millennium BC, with … Continue reading →

Confidence tricks – alongside small bags going missing – are perhaps the biggest annoyance and danger to any traveller. These type of tricks are a mainly urban phenomenon. ‘Do you remember me?’, ‘My daughter goes to university in your home … Continue reading →

Uzbekistan Nov 5-17 2015 This is Central Asia’s cradle of culture for more than 2 millennia, the home of an arsenal of architecture and ancient cities, all deeply infused with the bloody, fascinating history of the Silk Road. In terms … Continue reading →

TIPS & OBSERVATIONS 1. Currency. Denominated Turkmen Manat (DTM). 1€ = 4.1 DTM This is a black market money country – the official rate is 1$US = 3.5 DTM. The black market rate is $1 = 18 DTM. As a … Continue reading →

Area. 447,400 sq km Capital. Tashkent Population. 30 million. Languages. Uzbek, Russian, Tajik, Karakalpak. Uzbek, a Turkic language, is official, has 15 million speakers and is the most widely spoken non-Slavic language from the former Soviet states. It was first … Continue reading →

This is Central Asia’s cradle of culture for more than 2 millennia, the home of an arsenal of architecture and ancient cities, all deeply infused with the bloody, fascinating history of the Silk Road. In terms of sites alone, Uzbekistan … Continue reading →

This is Central Asia’s cradle of culture for more than 2 millennia, the home of an arsenal of architecture and ancient cities, all deeply infused with the bloody, fascinating history of the Silk Road. In terms of sites alone, Uzbekistan … Continue reading →

Afghanistan October 31, 2015 Shighnan (also Shignan, Shugnan, Shughnan, Khughnan in the local language) is an historic region whose name today may also refer to a town and a district in Badakhshan Province in the mountainous northeast of Afghanistan and also a district in Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Province in Tajikistan. The administrative centre of … Continue reading →