From Samarkand to Bukhara by Train From Samarkand, we trundled two hours west by train to the second most visited place on the Uzbek tourist circuit…Bukhara. And in case you skimmed over that little detail…YES, we said TRAIN, which is undoubtedly one of the things that makes travel in this country both uncomplicated and pleasant, unlike some slower, more tedious…
Getting to Samarkand & Our Accommodation From the Tajik border town of Panjakent, it was time to wander into the next Stan, for our final 29 days in Central Asia. This would also be our most challenging border crossing of the region, so we were pleased to have had the overnight in Panjakent and not tried to do it all in…
Despite having the same last four letters, which actually just means “LAND,” Tajikistan felt radically different than the first two 'Stans of our journey. It felt much more off-the-beaten-path, the people are radically different in their Persian-feeling look and hospitality, and it allowed us to experience one of the most epic road trips of our lives on the Pamir Highway….…
Life in Panjakent After our days of rest in Dushanbe, it was time to resume our travels by heading into the last of the Stans, at least for this trip. But first, we chose to spent a night in the Tajik border town of Panjakent (population 50k), which comes from Persian meaning “five towns,” likely referring to a cluster of ancient…
Exploring Dushanbe It’s been quite some time since we encountered the level of ostentatiousness that Dushanbe displays…in a blend of Skopje, North Macedonia, meets Dubai, meets China, meets Vegas. It’s oozing with development, cranes, statues, towers, fountains, bright lights, (particularly in the shape of animals or plants), big screen TVs and a distinct “look at me!” attitude. It even goes…
Day One: Osh, Kyrgyzstan to Murghab, Tajikistan (September 8, 2025) The Pamir Highway, often called “The Roof of the World” or the second highest international highway in the world, is one of the most legendary roads on the planet, traversing the four countries of Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Afghanistan and Uzbekistan. The 1200-kilometer (750 mile) section we would journey over 6 nights/7…
People in Kyrgyzstan have been nomadic for at least 3000-4000 years, so it’s only natural two nomads like us have felt inclined to experience their customs since we first learned about it years ago. All four countries we experienced in Central Asia to delivered in every way, but none packed a punch more than Kyrgyzstan with its stellar natural allure,…
Exploring Osh From Bishkek, alongside Jonathan, we made our way to the southern city of Osh via the unknown TezJet Airlines to save ourselves a 9-hour ride sardined into a marshrutka. Once in Osh, we were reunited with good friends, Annabelle & Yi, from Quebec, who we originally befriended at a Sri Lanka guesthouse in 2019. Osh is undeniably not…
