Capital: Tashkent | Language: Uzbek, Russian | Currency: Sum | Religion: Islam | Population: 32 million

Uzbekistan – that legendary stretch of Silk Road linking the East to the West. Cities like Samarkand, Bukhara and Khiva with their incredible mosques and medressas conjure up images of camels and caravans and desert oases. There’s another side to Uzbekistan too, a more remote and desolate one: the old fortresses in the emptiness of ancient Khorezm and the fast disappearing Aral Sea.

Sakhi Shrine, Kabul

Border to border: an unexpected journey in Afghanistan

So this was it. We drove slowly through the greyness over the Friendship bridge between Tajikistan and Afghanistan. There was no time to question the wisdom of our decision. I couldn’t think about it anyway, what with ‘I saw Mommy kissing Santa Claus’ still stuck in my head.

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Sakhi Shrine, Kabul

Border to border: an unexpected journey in Afghanistan

So this was it. We drove slowly through the greyness over the Friendship bridge between Tajikistan and Afghanistan. There was no time to question the wisdom of our decision. I couldn’t think about it anyway, what with ‘I saw Mommy kissing Santa Claus’ still stuck in my head.

Read More »