Ashgabat: City of White and (Solid) Gold
1. juni, Turkmenistan ⋅ ☀️ 90 °F
We are in the capital city of Turkmenistan, Ashgabat. Yesterday we spent 3 hours crossing the border: showing our passport (a total of 11 times at different checkpoints); waiting for a bus across no-man’s land along with several locals(?) with about 10 boxes each; getting a very cursory COVID test; waiting for visas to be issued onsite; sending our luggage through x-ray machines; and eventually walking to a bus that took us to the airport for a short evening flight (50 minutes) from the north to the capital city of Ashgabat. By the time we arrived at our hotel they had our dinner waiting—at 10 pm.
Turkmenistan is a wealthy country, with rich oil and natural gas reserves, along with other natural resources like lithium. We were told the country is the 4th largest natural gas producer in the world. Currently, it costs about $9.25 USD to fill the average car’s gas tank.
The country’s first president served for 15 years before he died. The second president stepped down after 15 years. His son was elected president, but his father, the former president, is now prime minister and leader of the country.
Some time after independence in 1991, the country’s leaders began transforming the look of the capital city using Italian marble. It is in the Guinness book of World Records (2013) as the city with the highest density of white marble-clad buildings in the world. Four years ago, the current president declared that all vehicles driving in Ashgabat must be white or light-colored(!). The president drives his own car past our hotel to work every day. But since he drives around 4 or 5 am, we missed seeing his entourage.
Today’s sights included:
The ruins of a former mosque and royal residence, built at end of 14th century. It was destroyed by a devastating earthquake in 1948–9 on the Richter scale—that killed 2/3 of the population.
A horse breeding farm, with award-winning horses—for “beauty,” as well as for dressage.
A market—the Russian Bazaar, named because historically the Russian army would trade with the locals here.
The National Museum of History and Ethnography, with the country’s history dating from the Stone Age. There they also have a giant silk carpet woven by 38 women for the 5-year anniversary of independence. Incredibly , it took only six months to complete, and it is 42 ft high by 67 ft wide. It weighs 1 ton.
Siesta time included a swim in the hotel’s pool for some, and nap-time for others. We brought cards and dice Catan, but all over Central Asia, playing cards and dice are banned as gambling. We were scolded by a hotel security officer on one of our first days when we tried to play a game at a table in the lobby.
Dinner was at a family-run hotel, where they had a number of our group (not us) dress up as members of a wedding party (including bride and groom), and learn about arranged marriage traditions. It was both educational and hilariously fun!
We wrapped up the day with a driving tour of Ashgabat by night—they love neon, especially color-changing lights, on their buildings, fountains and monuments.Læs mere
Last Day in Central Asia
2. juni, Turkmenistan ⋅ ☀️ 91 °F
We are wrapping up our Central Asia trip (and Athens and Turkey!) here in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan.
We were driven to a few more monuments (of the MANY in this city). The Turkmens are proud of their Arch of Neutrality monument, flying the flags of UN member countries, symbolizing Turkmenistan's “openness, goodwill, and peaceful diplomatic relations with the global community.” The monument looks like a rocket, to intentionally evoke a futuristic outlook, but the tripod base is intended to represent a traditional three-legged Turkmen hearth.
Even their indoor Ferris wheel looks like a monument. Seeing the monument to bicyclists on the day before National Bicyclists Day was fun. The president, who loves to cycle, will require all of the ministers to bike to work in that day. Too bad the monument only depicts male riders. Every roundabout has a monument—music, temperature, modern art, etc.
We visited the solid gold-domed mosque complex of Turkmen Bashi the Great (must use “the great” with his name), which contains a large carpet shaped like an eight-pointed star. That star motif is very common in Turkmenistan, as it pays homage to their nomadic history of sun-worshipping.
The archaeological site of Old Nisa is in the location where the Parthian kings chose to build their capital city after living a nomadic life. Their civilization existed from 300 BC until 300 AD, and was a powerhouse that stood as a major rival to the Roman Empire for control over the Silk Road. The Parthians, despite having inferior weaponry, were clever horsemen and successfully repelled invasions by the Roman Empire.
Wrapping up Central Asia:
We found the cities to be very clean, mostly well-maintained, and we felt safe everywhere. All of the people on the street or in the markets were friendly and curious. Families wanted to take pictures with us, kids loved to say “hello” and “goodbye,” and Darryl was pulled aside once to talk on the phone to a man’s friend to prove he had met an American. Young people offered their seats to us (as elders), and we didn’t dare refuse their kindness and show of respect.Læs mere
