Dushanbe, Tajikistan to Penjakent, Tajikistan to Samarkand, Uzbekistan
Drive through the mountains
Lots of Ladas, hairpin turns, a glacial-colored river, transport of tandoor ovens, even a pomegranate. Roads are marked with 12% grade. It is customary for big trucks to take the outer lane and smaller cars to hug the mountain on curves – even if that means you are on the “wrong” side. The tunnels we went through – one was 6 km and the other 5 km – and other improvements reduced travel from 12 hours to 6 from what we were told. If you were to drive through the Pamir range, you would use a Land Cruiser, because it is not all paved.
Fun fact – we saw an eagle soaring well below us!
The coal that is mined here is sold to Uzbekistan. Dushanbe uses coal to heat water and houses. The Zarafshon river carries gold from the mountain. At high elevations (over 3600 meters) villages rely on solar power because it is too hard to bring the hydroelectric power lines to them.
Lunch in Pendzhikent
Aren’t the variety of spellings fun? Of course it was plov. How charming that there was an olive tree at the border crossing?
Bazaar
The sign said Urgut Trade Complex but the location was in Samarkand. The market itself held lots of made-in-China cheap stuff, but our tour leader knew a woman who is a master artisan. She had a shop of hand embroidered suzanis, and shared a demonstration of card weaving with us. Nearby shop owners vied for our business!
