Hey everyone,
I'm in my late 20s, and I'm planning a trip with my friend around Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgystan over about 7 weeks from July.
Any advice regarding the following would be greatly appreciated:
Thanks so much!
Thanks, I think we're going to apply for Tajik Visa in Almaty (apparently can be done quickly).
I think we decided against Turkmenistan due to Visa difficulties (and also I'm not sure we'l have that much time).
And yes, I'll be carrying a veil for that purpose :)
Train yourself on vodka, they love it, and it's strong stuff…
Travelling the 'Stans Advice
Don't go. It's not worth the risk.
Are you speaking from experience? Are you referring to safety?
Why not
No danger there other than the same thing that could happen anywhere.
Go and have a wicked time, I'm jealous, I have 6 days in the two K's only.
If I have any notes left over I'll post them too u… If u live on gc I'll give em to u
Thanks, yes post anything through please. Would be appreciated!
Stan advice??
I recently travelled in Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan, via train, car and bus. How are you planning on getting around? Buses and trains?
UZBEKISTAN:
We were issued an Uzbeki visa on arrival - funny quirk of the system lets Australian citizens get visa on arrival at the airport as there's no Uzbek embassy nearby. It was funny the amount the visa cost was EXACTLY the same amount as what I showed the nice immigration man we had in our wallets, rather than what is quoted on their website.
Do not expect any ATM's to work, or banks to change money or allow withdrawals. Carry most (if not all) of the cash you think you'll need, in USD of $50 and below denominations. Don't be as alarmed by this as you might be elsewhere - the locals don't use the banks much either, so carry around massive wads of cash. Get in any taxi or go to any market, and if you negotiate right, you'l get a favourable exchange rate. Don't use the banks for this.
I'm young, (very) white and female, and I'm particularly glad my husband was with me. Although I wasn't threatened, men only talk to men, and ignore women….doesn't matter if you're in a queue, men will go first, and females may not got served at all. I was literally stood on several times.
People will stare at you, and constantly ask if you need a taxi. Don't get angry, just decline politely.
Do not expect to eat at restaurants, because they may be closed or out of food. Ask the taxi drivers where they eat, and go there.
Expect to be the only foreigners to ever cross land borders on that particular official's watch. If you have trouble, refer to 'my friend, the Minister for Tourism.' We crossed the Kazhak/Russia border by train and they had absolutely no idea what to do with our visas or passports. After much holding up of train, they eventually decided to write our passport and visa numbers on a bit of paper and put us back onto the train. My friend the Minister for Tourism said it was okay if I paid a small fee, after all…
Overall, Uzbekistan is startlingly poor but hugely hospitable. We were invited to eat and worship with locals, simply by walking down the street in some smaller towns. Would 10/10 return.
KAZAKHSTAN:
We hung out in Almaty, which I found to be a particularly boring but fascinating city. See if you can get a local guide, and get out of the city.
They're having an identity crisis - they have oil and all the money that goes with it, but are still too corrupt to figure anything out. That's all I've got on Kazakhstan, as our visit was cut short by train times moving by days.
If you have other practical type question, let me know.
Wow, thanks Erin!
We are actually planning to enter UZ from Shymkent, crossing the border overland.
Can I ask what kind of accommodation you had in UZ, and which cities/towns you enjoyed the most? Or perhaps any specific things you did or saw?
Yes, it seems prepurchased USD cash is the way to go. I'm sure we'll be conned a few times over there, but considering how fortunate I am and where I live now, I'm not phased too much!
I'm sure it must have been odd, being that you as a female was disrespected.
Thanks again, and I'm really looking forward to it!
Sorry I missed your reply. This is a long response!
We travelled mostly between Samarkand and Bukhara, but also flew into and out of Tashkent to Almaty.
I pre-booked most accom with a travel agent friend who specialises in this region. I can't remember what we paid, but it would have been between $40 - $60/night for two of us, including breakfast. We travelled in off season, and i'd call it guesthouse/bnb style accom.
(Unless you've travelled alone in a similar region before, I'd highly recommend pre-booking hotels and maybe even transfers, as it saves a lot of negotiating at stations when you're tired and not making sensible decisions.)
I liked Bukhara the best. The Ark was amazing, plus it snowed while we were there, so everything was lovely for half a day - until it melted and formed giant lakes and mud everywhere. We found a great local guide at the station, based purely on his hat choice. He was only supposed to take us into town but ended up having good enough English to also act as our guide. He gave us such gems as "No, it never snows here, I promise you, never snows! In all my life, it's never snowed…oh, it's snowing," and after we remarked on the exceptional road quality between the PM's country house and the airport (literally the only sealed road in town…) that was being guarded by police - "There are 30 million people in Uzbekistan, 29 million are policemen."
The town itself was hilarious, with most major attractions open but hugely surprised to find two english-speaking visitors in winter. Locals kept introducing themselves to us (well, my husband), randomly, in the street. They didn't want to sell anything, just to practise their English and welcome us to their town. At one mosque, we met a group of men from Afghanistan, who insisted my husband be in their photo because he was the first "white" person they'd ever met and wanted to tell their family. It was great, because we could tell them they were the first people from the Kolhm (?) region that we'd ever met.
Bukhara was also the place we had most problems getting money - their two "ATM's" were both out of USD, and the bank didn't have much USD so didn't want to give us any. They won't allow foreigners to directly draw Uzbeki som (or….could have just been that bank, that bank manager or any number of things we did wrong and didn't realise) so that was a bit tricky. We (I mean my husband, because I wasn't allowed to talk) managed to convince the bank to give us their US currency in the end, by promising to change $30 at their rate.
In all places, we saw lots of palaces, mosques, madrassas and minarets. I had to really work to persuade our guides to take us to regular places, not tourist places, like food markets. They're not embarrassed, but understand that sometimes tourists can be shocked or unprepared by….essentially, the poverty and sale tactics.
The thing I found the most interesting was the markets and regular residential areas. I love watching people, stalls and interactions at markets anyway, but when an entire market find out there are foreigners in the off-season, they all get on board the 'make the white people taste our typical food' train. Lots of people would ask me to take their photos with their best item. My husband also had two separate proposals of marriage for me, which he most disappointingly declined.
Most locals assumed were were Russian.
Thanks again for your reply! Very helpful, and hilarious at the same time :)
Goto the Turkish baths in Almaty…. And get a massage. You will see a lot of kazak ding as, but will feel great after the massage.
How was your trip?
Kazak and kyrgzstan free visa
Tajik can issue one on arrival at airport only, otherwise need LOI AND then VISA
Uzbek need LOI AND then VISA which sucks
I can't see map but see it's a circle from' to Almaty.
You could fly into Almaty, then fly to Dushanbe using solom air to save getting the Tajik visa, that something I'd consider, and modify ur trip that way.
Goto Turkmenistan too
Get a wedding vale on a chicks head in kyrgzstan and she is yours.