Ata Mekenim Kirgizstan Dilbayan
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• • • • • • • Itinerary Day 1 – Ashgabat Arrive in Ashgabat and transfer to the hotel. Depending on your time of arrival, you may have the opportunity to explore the city.
Overnight at Ak Altyn Hotel or similar. Day 2 – Ashgabat After a briefing with your tour guide spend the day exploring Ashgabat. Visit a local Bazaar (depending on day and schedule), Independence Park and Neutrality Arch before heading to the National Museum and then the ruins of the ancient Parthian fortress at Nisa. Ashgabat is a city of grandiose monuments, giving an insight into the nation building efforts that took place after the breakup of the Soviet Union, and a good place to start getting to grips with Turkmenistan. Overnight at Ak Altyn Hotel or similar. (B) Day 3 – Geok Tepe – Nohur (150 kms- approx 3.5 hrs) After breakfast visit the private Ahalteke horse stables. We then head off to the Kopetdag Mountains.
We stop first at the Turkmenbashi Mosque in Kipchak and then continue to Geok Tepe, site of a famous battle between Russian and Turkmen forces during the conquest of Central Asia. We descend to the underground lake of Kowata, and after lunch we proceed to the village of Nohur, our base for the night. Overnight camping.
(BD) Day 4 – Balkanabat (250kms- approx 7 hrs) Leave Nohur behind and drive through walnut and pomegranate groves to Magtymguly. Our route takes us alongside the Iranian border so we can expect to encounter several checkpoints along the way. We stop at the ‘Moon Mountains’, a series of rather striking barren hills, before continuing on to Balkanabat. Arrive early evening and check in to your hotel.
Overnight at Nebitchi Hotel or similar. Project engineering of process plants howard f rase pdf. (BL) Day 5 – Yangikala – Gozli Ata (200 kms- approx 7 hrs) After a visit to the local bazaar to stock up on supplies, we drive to the Balkan Mountains and the canyon of Yangikala, home to some of the best scenery in Turkmenistan, via Mollagara salt lake. We continue to the pilgrimage site of Gozli Ata, where we take a picnic lunch. In the afternoon we visit the Yanagisawa canyon before returning to Yangikala. Overnight camping. (BLD) Day 6 – Caspian Sea (200 kms- approx 5.5 hrs) Today we drive to the Caspian Sea via the volcanic rock formations of Kemal Ata, to the port of Turkmenbashi.
We end our day in the seaside resort of Awaza, a sharp contrast to our experiences of the last few days. Overnight at Hotel Seyrana or similar. (B) Day 7 – Turkmenbashi – Dashoguz We head first to nearby Turkmenbashi where we visit the port and the fish market. After an early lunch we fly to Dashoguz in the north of the country. We spend our time here visiting the bazaar to stock up on supplies for our desert crossing. Overnight at Hotel Dashoguz or similar. (B) Day 8 – Konye - Urgench – Darwaza (400 kms- approx 6-7 hrs) Drive to the site of Konye-Urgench, an ancient capital of the land of Khorezm with beautiful mausoleums.
After visiting its key sites we travel on the highway through the Karakum Desert to Darwaza, a burning gas crater where flames literally leap from the ground. We set up camp here and watch the sun go down, the crater lighting up the night sky with its fires. Overnight camping. (BD) Day 9 – Damla – Ak Molla (200 kms- approx 6 hrs) We head deeper into the Karakum Desert, across rough tracks and sand dunes, until we reach the small settlement of Damla. We stop here for lunch and explore the village, with superb opportunities to meet and interact with people who rarely see western visitors. Later we continue our desert drive through to Ak Molla, where we camp for the night.
Overnight camping. (BLD) Day 10 – Gonur Depe – Mary (250 kms- 7.5 hrs) Set off for a full day of off road driving. We stop at the archaeological site of Gonur Depe, dating back to the Bronze Age. Around 55 hectares in size, the site comprises the remains of a fortified citadel with walls and towers clearly visible.
From here continue to Mary for the night, where a hotel room and shower await. Overnight at Hotel Mary or similar. (BL) Day 11 – Merv - Turkmenabat Visit the ancient site of Merv, the most important in Turkmenistan and dating back 2500 years, with an array of old mosques and citadels. After exploring Merv we head to Turkmenabat for the night passing through Repetek Nature Reserve, although we are not permitted to stop.