A Day in Ashgabat

Last night I walked around the area near the hotel and finally found a restaurant, on the way home I discovered that there are places I’m not allowed to go and key amongst these is anywhere within a city block of the Presidential Palace (which along with any government building I’m not allowed to photograph). When I got too close the police and security people were very fast to let me know I was not welcome there.
Today I looked at Ashgabat which everyone is fast to tell me is noted in the Guinness Book of Records as having the most marble clad buildings in the world, along with several other records (they seem a little obsessed with these records).
I wandered around the remains of Old Nisa then headed off to the Spiritual Mosque, one of the biggest mosques in Central Asia I’m told, then off to the Monument of Neutrality (they are very proud of being a neutral country). I visited another mosque and the Independent Park and spent a while looking through the National History Museum which was good.
Unbelievably in this city in the desert it rained today quite heavily for a short time.
Tonight I will play it safe and look for somewhere to eat in the opposite direction to the Presidential PalaceLes mer