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Going home

March - December 2019
An epic journey from Australia to Germany by car Read more
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  • Turkey
  • Georgia
  • Azerbaijan
  • Uzbekistan
  • Tajikistan
  • Kyrgyzstan
  • Kazakhstan
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  • Going home

    Border crossing Uzbekistan-Kazakhstan

    September 24, 2019 in Uzbekistan ⋅ ⛅ 21 °C

    We enter another country for the second time. First, it was Russia that we entered twice with the car. Then, we entered Kyrgyzstan three times on this journey (though one doesn't really count as we had left and came back by plane in between).
    Today, we come back to Kazakhstan, this time at the Western side of the country. These countries are so vast, it's hard to grasp!
    At the border, we're allowed to bypass the long line of trucks again. Having arrived at 12.44pm, we cross the Uzbek side quickly and are out a mere 15min later. The young customs officer inspecting Hans clearly would have loved to take Hans for a ride, as he even sat down behind the wheel!
    On the Kazakh side, trucks and cars are waiting alike. No bypassing here as it seems we arrived at lunch time. Oh well, at least we have time to eat something. During the wait, few of our fellow travellers would love to have a conversation. By now, Tom pronounces "I only speak a little bit Russian" in Russian so well that people don't really believe it. After a few tries they understand at last and stop asking further questions, a bit disappointed. Foreigners with a car still cause curious interest all around. And yes, we still need to work on our language skills.
    Then the gate opens and everyone gets waved through, only to line up inside again. As tourists, we're pointed to the side, but still have to get our passports stamped along with everyone else. The queue isn't long. On Tom's turn, the officer enquires about a long piece of paper, that we don't have. In the end, he simply waves us through, upon us asking saying we won't need it. Alright then.
    Afterwards Tom and I are separated as usual as he needs to get the TID for the car. I walk back to Hans, on my way meeting an officer. He speaks no English at all, but I manage to explain that Tom is getting the rest of the paperwork done. I'm allowed to wait by the car, but he doesn't want to do the customs check yet.
    On Tom's return, we're a bit clueless about what's next as no one is around. After a few minutes, Tom walks up to the passport control area for the second time. At the same time my non English speaking officer and another one in formal uniform show up to check Hans. They, too, ask about the paper slip. Turns out, we should have gotten it at the main gate at the entry and it needs to be stamped by passport control and customs! So Tom goes to receive it and get it stamped while I show the official officer around. It's a simple examination and his face lights up when he sees the hoola-hoop (usually people notice the guitar first. I guess this guy likes gymnastics 😊). Tom returns, the slip is checked and we're done. Driving out, we hear the officer shouting "I love you". That's a first!
    All in all it took 2hrs, one of which was spent waiting during the lunch break.
    We're so eager to hit the road (still lots of ground to cover to get to the ferry) that we almost forget to get insurance. It hadn't been obligatory in the last countries we entered, but it is in Kazakhstan! Thank God for the booths, lining up right after the border, reminding us. Since Tom needs to do most of the work related to the car, we decide I go to get it this time. The young guy selling insurances barely speaks English, but is excited enough about me to call his friends over to join him. While he's typing in the details, I'm bombarded with pseudo-German stars (mostly soccer players and somehow Ronaldo and Messi end up in their name game). It gets a bit tricky when they ask about how much money I earned last year. I try to get away with asking how much they make: 1000USD a year. So when they ask for USD 30 for the insurance, I simply agree without checking the price. Noticing it, one guy asks for 35, but that I refuse. I'm not that easily fooled (or so I think). A quick and confusing discussion between the three of them follows, involving my $30 and 4000Tenge (approx $8) being shuffled over the table, but then I'm handed the insurance and we say goodbye.
    Back at the car, I feel a bit cheated still and talk to Tom about it. A second look at the insurance reveals that it only costs the equivalent of $22. While I'm too embarrassed to go back, Tom decides it's about principle and gets back another $5 at the booth. I suppose it's important to make clear that foreigners shouldn't be tricked, but at the same time I'm also painfully aware of the harsh contrasts of the worlds we live in. It's not easy to deal with it on an every day basis. We're not some rich kids on a holiday, but surely it must look like it from another perspective. But instead of being tricked into paying extra, I'd rather buy another bag of fruits and veggies of the next local farmer. One way of supporting the local economy. And I'll keep on thinking about other ways, too. Promise.    Read more

  • Going home

    Taking the ferry across the Caspian Sea

    September 28, 2019 in Azerbaijan ⋅ ⛅ 15 °C

    Due to our difficulties to get a Russian transit Visa (processing time and location just didn't work out), we finally decided to cross the Caspian Sea by ferry. It's not very we organised yet, there is no timetable and no clear information about costs etc. but that's part of the experience. We know it leaves from Aktau, so we head to the port there first. Not being able to identify the right building, we ask a woman in a Café for help. She's super friendly and helpful and gets us to call a guy with further information. There is a ferry at 2am, but we need to head the port a little further down South. There, they've built a big new terminal to process the ferries quicker. However, no one is around apart from Tom, a motorcyclist from Tasmania. Turns out we had met in Murghab already. Small world 😊
    With a bit of effort, we find a guy to talk to and he simply tells us to wait. And so the journey begins.
    (Note: this might be a bit too detailed, so I won't be offended if you don't read it!)
    3.30pm we arrive at the new terminal, establish contact and make sure people know we want to take the next ferry to Baku (hardly anyone speaks English)
    We wait for hours that we spend talking and in my case playing with a super cute dog.
    11pm We get waved through the entrance gate, the car is checked quickly and we're surprised that the vodka isn't being taken.
    Next, we are led to a big hall, where we get the ticket for the car. The hall is huge, well signposted and clearly built to process masses. This late at night, with just the three of us in there, it feels a bit like we're the only survivors in a zombie movie. They then send us back out to drive to the ferry. As it's nowhere to be found we head back to the parking where Tom and I sleep in the car. Motorcyclist Tom stays inside.
    3.30am Moto Tom wakes us up (which apparently took a while). We go inside again to our get passenger tickets and car customs paperwork sorted. The ferry has arrived and is unloading at the moment.
    4.45am Time to board the ferry. This time, we're following an officer's car to not get lost again. Our gang of three is joined by another backpacker, but no other cars or trucks in sight.
    5am A welldressed guy checks our paperwork while we have a quick coffee and pack our bags on the loading deck. We're motioned to move forward (still not much English around). Our passports are stamped in one of the rooms on the main deck and then we're allowed to choose our rooms. They all are kept simple, but we manage to find a two passenger cabin with a bunkbed, a couch and even our private toilet&shower. Not too shabby at all!
    6.05am we can't quite believe it, but the ship is leaving! As far as we can tell we're the only passengers. All of us are fairly tired, so we go to sleep. The day passes without any turbulences, we have lunch & dinner, read and watch a few episodes of our current TV series.
    11pm The anchor goes down, we can see the mainland but we're too early to go on shore. We had expected to be on the boat for 20-22hrs, but surely we'll be able to leave earlier?
    2am the ferry moves towards the port
    3.45am we arrived. We are asked to leave the ferry and go to passport control. This time it doesn't happen on board.
    Everything is empty and deserted. Again, no one really tells us what to do but by standing around and waiting somehow someone moves us forward. The guy who held on to our paperwork still has our car registration which causes a bit of confusion at customs. He wants to keep it as he still wants us to pay for the boat. Reluctantly, he joins the Tom's and customs gets sorted.
    5.15am the Toms "just" need to pay for insurance, road tax and the ferry now (the vehicles cost more than we paid in Aktau). While they're gone to the payment office, I wait in the car. One of the older guys working here seems to have grown quite fond of me. He zwickt my cheek, talks to me shortly and then pets my head before heading off. Does this happen to others, too? He's got very kind eyes, a cheeky smile and reminds me a bit of my grandpa....
    5.40am there is a problem with the banking system and we can't pay the road tax. That means waiting for another 1.5-2hrs. Moto Tom is free to go though so we say goodbye
    5.55am Moto Tom comes back. Apparently we're missing a paper slip and can't leave the port just yet. So the boys head to the ferry again and get the Bill of Lading
    6.35am second try. Moto Tom hadn't been asked for the road tax proof, so all of us try to get through. No luck, one paper is still missing. Back to the office building again.
    6.53am next try. We paid a bridge fee (maybe the road tax?) and get through!

    Despite of all of this sounding super tedious, we actually enjoyed the ferry crossing. Pleasently surprised about not having to wait too long for it to leave (people wait for days sometimes), we feel we made the most of it. It only took 1.5 days and saved us hundreds of kms of fast driving (our friends only got a 3day transit Visa for 800kms). And now we're super excited to explore Azerbaijan.    Read more

  • Going home

    Random observations in Azerbaijan

    September 28, 2019 in Azerbaijan ⋅ ⛅ 20 °C

    What can you learn about a country in just two days? Well, not much really. But some things we found noteworthy nonetheless:

    Azerbaijan is the first country on our journey where geese seem to be super popular. It felt like every second house in the mountain villages had some.

    The road from Baku to Gabbala leads through very diverse countryside. While you start at the Caspian Sea and then drive through semideserts, the landscape changes drastically as soon as you reach higher altitude. Lush green forests and vineyards greet here. Furthermore, there are hundreds of beautiful looking restaurants along this stretch, nestled on hilltops or underneath trees, inviting to take a break and enjoy the scenery. (With hardly anyone around, we were, however, wondering how on earth they all survive...).

    Another find, crucial for our travel planning, is the very good cellphone reception all over the country. Something we haven't been used to so far.

    And we were also positively surprised by the first recycling machine we spotted in a supermarket. Yes to waste management!

    Good for our budget: diesel ist finally cheaper than petrol and every gas station has the same price. Is it government regulated? Don't know, but we're leaving all fuelled up.

    As we're looking for nice campspots, we can't help but notice the dried out riverbeds everywhere. It's hard to imagine a full flowing river here, but after all, it's autumn and it might be different in spring with all the snow melting in the mountains? The debris that's lying around suggests that way. We might have to come back and check it out!
    Right now, we head to lakes instead. However, as refreshing water sources seem to be scarce, the ones that exist have been capitalised on: the two lakes we approach have been taken advantage of a hotel with a boom gate denying entry to non-paying guests. What a shame!

    Last but not least, we realize that Russian isn't very popular here anymore. The Azeri language sounds very different and they use yet another alphabet. A strong Turcic influence can be detected. Time to move on from Russian and learn new words!

    We leave, feeling that we haven't explored enough of this country's landscape and culture. But mountains are calling and we need to take advantage of the great weather forecast. Azerbaijan, you deserved more but we tried to make the most of it.    Read more

  • Going home
    2

    Jo's perfect Sunday

    September 29, 2019 in Azerbaijan ⋅ ⛅ 16 °C

    What a day! It started with getting up early, a cup of coffee made by Tom and jumping into the nearby lake. Though our campspot on the parking lot of what could pass as an amusement park was far from perfect, at least no one else was around this early and we enjoyed the short swim.
    While heading back to the car, the weather decided to cheer up and I was looking forward to breakfast and researching Georgian festivals (internet reception was quite good). Little did we know that we were in for a surprise: Tom called me to the back of the car as he was cuddling one of the cutest puppies we've met in a while. "Tara" (we named her and were seriously considering taking her along) kept us busy with cuteness overload. She staid around for a few hours, but headed off when it became busier and she had the prospect of getting some fresh fish from the fishermen. So no dog, yet...
    And time for research with no distraction 😉 Tom repaired a few small things around the car and I got all excited about the many opportunities in Georgia. There is a city festival "Tbilisoba" in Tiflis next weekend that I don't want to miss. Tom, having finished the repairs, had found out about a beautiful National Park just after the border and so our plan was fixed: head towards the National Park, spend a few days there and then live in an AirBnB over the weekend to explore Tifllis and the festival. And on top of that we'll attend a cool DJ event working with the symphony orchestra!
    Wow.
    Now time is precious, so we pack up, ready to go. At that moment, yesterday's flower seller returns to his workplace. He had gifted me a lovely bunch and I wanted to say thank you again. So I get some biscuits and a bit of money, but he refused. Instead, I get another flower. Unfortunately, he wouldn't take a picture with me, but he was such a lovely soul, it makes me smile every time I look at the flowers that are now in my keepcup in the cupholder on my door.
    We have time enough to visit one more sight in Azerbaijan so we head to Sheki. A beautiful village, home to a still actively used caravanserai (silk road resting place) and two of the Khan's palaces. Small, but beautifully restored, I love walking through them on our cultural excursion.
    To take care of our hungry bellies we feast on our earlier bought fresh local bread and cheese (sor is a kind of quark and dangerously yummy) and move to our campspot for the night. It's only 10kms from the border along a small creek. Lush green surrounds us. I'm fearing to be sushed away when a man walks quickly right towards us, but no, it's a local fisherman. I mistake his hand movement for wanting to take a picture of the car but am handed 4 small fish instead. Ok... He heads off and I suddenly feel movement. Tom tells me it's probably just muscles working after its death but I'm not convinced. It's moving again! On Tom's suggestion (I am far less experienced with fish), I carry it down to the creek. It's breathing! After a few minutes being held underneath the surface and gullping up the fresh water, the fish actually manages to swim away. What a win!
    The not so lucky ones we'll fry over a campfire tonight (both of us would have preferred if we had been able to rescue all of them). With a glass of wine, we'll toast our short but beautiful trip through Azerbaijan.
    What a day!    Read more

  • Going home

    Azerbaijan to Georgia in the Northwest

    September 30, 2019 in Azerbaijan ⋅ ⛅ 20 °C

    After just two days in Azerbaijan (way too short!), we're crossing the border to Georgia. Our camp was just 10kms away and we reach it bright and early at 10am. There are a few cars in front of us but nothing too bad.
    Once we are at the control area (customs and passport control happens in one building), an officer takes our passports, another one quickly looks around Hans and we're motioned to get some luggage x-raid. What to take? Surely, we're not going to take everything... In the end, Tom takes our dirty laundry, a bag full of groceries and his backpack, but probably no one would have noticed if we hadn't taken anything (though the lady at the X-ray did ask "is that all?", upon which Tom answered we travel in a camper van, that it was a bit difficult and left.) Luckily, no one bothers about the car nor our belongings anymore. Instead we queue to have our paperwork checked. Tom and the car are first and there seems to be a problem. At first, we can't really figure out what happened but then they tell us that we haven't paid the road tax yet. You're supposed to pay it on arrival in Azerbaijan. We had assumed road and bridge tax (40$!) are the same, but no. A friendly and very well English speaking officer helps us out. We can pay it at the counter now, and everything is sorted. Those were costly two days in Azerbaijan... Happy that it's done, we continue to the Georgian side. I need to walk through the pedestrian/passenger passport control and am through in no time. Tom, however, is stuck due to our Australian registration. The officer just doesn't want to accept that this is the only official piece of paper we have! Realising the trouble we're in, I ask Tom to check whether we can look up the registration on the Queensland department of transportation website. Luckily, our internet connection is still working and Tom is able to find it after some time. Last problem: the registration we have with us has an expiration date on it. And while we had paid for it to be prolonged, neither of us has received or saved the new document. Jeez... Something we need to rectify asap! In the meantime the border officer grew tired of waiting and finally tells Tom it's ok and waves him through. Sigh. Deep breaths. And on we go. The compulsory insurance can be bought at a booth just 3kms away and soon thereafter we also find a shop to buy a simcard and an ATM. Everything sorted for now.
    Later, we meet a Dutch couple (labopstop.nl). I had seen their car at the border going the other direction and was wondering what happened. Well, as they didn't have paperwork for their small trailer (in the Netherlands you don't need it), they were refused entry to Azerbaijan. And that's when we really realised just how precarious our situation had been. With all those digitalised border crossings ahead of us, we better get our paperwork in better shape!    Read more

  • Going home

    Georgia - Abano Pass

    October 3, 2019 in Georgia ⋅ ☀️ 18 °C

    After we managed to cross the border to Georgia the number of possible destinations were endless.
    When looking for a spot to take the Mountain Bikes for a spin I read about a region called Tusheti, which lies in the far north of Georgia, close to the Caucasus. It comprises a few scattered remote villages with Omalo at its center and high mountains with hiking trails all around. Sounds perfect!
    The trick, however is to even get there in the first place. What separates Tusheti from the rest of Georgia is the infamous Abano Pass. Listed as one of the most dangerous roads in the world and the highest unpaved road in Europe it made us question our choice for a few minutes. Nevertheless, the weather was supposed to be untypically warm and dry the next few days and Hans is still in great shape so why not at least try it, right? And boy were we in for a treat!!

    The road took us up 2000m of elevation, climbing more switchbacks we could count through the most beautiful autumn scenery you can imagine, with leaf colours changing from green to yellow to a firery red just before we left the forest. After a 4h drive we reached the top of the pass at nearly 2800m. While the drive was really doable in the perfect conditions we had, we can imagine how dangerous it must be when it’s wet (the numerous crosses marking deadly accidents were sad evidence!)
    Tusheti was no less spectacular. As we arrived off season we had the whole valley almost to ourselves. The tourist information provided us with info about hiking trails, but first we took a closer look at the old villages with their ancient stone buildings nestled into the valleys.

    Oh and the 4x4 driving fun didn’t stop at the pass. Moving around in the valley felt like being on a 4WD practice course!

    On the second day we did a lovely ridge walk of approximately 5h with amazing views over the snow covered peaks of the Caucasus, followed by a short hike on the third day. Since the weather was supposed to change for the worse on Friday we made our way back towards the pass on day three to conquer the Abano Pass once more early Friday morning. You better know how to engine break otherwise you’re due for new break pads afterwards.

    I have a feeling that our hunch to drive to Tusheti might have brought us to one of the most beautiful parts of Georgia!    Read more

  • Going home
    3

    Tbilisi

    October 5, 2019 in Georgia ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C

    Tbilisi is a city I just didn't want to miss on this journey. I had heard so many good things about it and on top of it the annual city festival "Tbilisoba" happened on a weekend when we were around. A chance not be missed.
    Short version: we staid in a beautiful Airbnb in Old Town, met lots of friends, got to see some of the city festival and most of its sights and even attended a DJ event.
    If you're keen on the details, you'll have to read on 😉.
    Due to our earlier experiences with staying in the car in a city (you just really wish for a shower and a toilet), we chose to get an Airbnb for the weekend and leave Hans parked somewhere safe. And we couldn't have decided better despite of our difficulties of getting to our Airbnb department. Of course, I had chosen one in the old town (formerly the Jewish quarter), but I hadn't anticipated that this would also be the main location of the festival with many of the anyways small alleys closed to traffic. We made it there eventually and then enjoyed the beautiful setup and great location for the next few days. Everything was in walking distance!
    And we had quite a programme lined up: after settling in we met up with Micha and Sonja, the German overlanding couple we had last met just before crossing the Mongolian border. Small world 😊 we had dinner with them in a small family run restaurant, that looked like they had simply converted their living room. Grandpa acted as the entertainer, singing Karaoke (and quite well so) for the whole evening. Afterwards, we walked together through some of the festivities to have a look at the overlander friendly hostel they were staying at. Tom and I had to reach a different destination: I had booked tickets to a DJ event (Worakl with the Tbilisi symphony orchestra) that happened in a warehouse about 2kms from the hostel. So we said "goodbye and till next time" around 11pm and made our way to the event. Anyone who knows us is going to doubt this, but we staid until 2.20am and really enjoyed the electronic music. Quite a contrast to our normal travelling life but all the more fun because of it. As our cab driver also wasn't allowed to enter the narrow streets, we ended up walking another 2kms through Tbilisi's sights at night, passing remnants of the festival, still going parties and -our lifesaver- a shop that still sold our favourite pirogis filled with potatoes. Nothing beats a late night snack!
    The next day we joined a free city walking tour. Moto-Tom was in the city, too, so he came along as well. Our guide Anya knew lots of interesting places and stories and the time passed super quickly. Afterwards we enjoyed some people watching on the main square and then headed back to the apartment.
    Years ago I had met Kristina, a local woman working for an incoming tour agency, in India and we had made plans to meet up. Tom and I enjoyed her and her partner's company exchanging stories and tipps at a cute teahouse before heading to the festival once again. It was the last evening but sadly we missed the main act, a music and light performance, as its timing had been changed just a few hours prior to the start.
    The next day we had to move out of the apartment. We took Hans to have a service done and then moved to the hostel as we wanted to stay another night. Still so much to explore! In the afternoon we finally met up with the Kudliks who we had last seen in Kazachstan on Tom's birthday. We enjoyed our reunion so much that a short meeting turned into four bottels of wine in a fabulous rooftop bar.
    How lovely it is to have friends on the road...
    Tbilisi will stay a highlight of this trip for sure!    Read more

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