Jump to: Early July

Jump to Other Countries:  Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, U.A.E., Oman

Day 671: Saturday, July 16, 2016

Today was my last day in Iran. I was in Iran for 17 days, about one week more than I originally expected. The country was very interesting but mainly for the people I met. I made some good friends and hit it off with a few in particular. Of 93 countries I have been to the Iranian people are the nicest I have met in regards to their interaction with me as a foreign tourist.

The ride from Quchan, Iran to Ashgabat, Turkmenistan was only supposed to be 125 kilometers so it should have been a short day. Despite that I wanted to get started in the morning and I was already later than I wanted to be so I skipped breakfast. I should have known better knowing I had a border to cross which always takes time.

When I got on my bike I realized I needed gas.   I got on the road heading out of town in the direction I was going thinking there would be a gas station near the edge of town. Wrong. I got to the edge of town which was more like a cliff and ahead of me was nothing but dessert as far as the eye could see. I had to go all the way to the other side of town to find what was probably the city’s only gas station. I filled up and that was 30 minutes of lost time.

Along the way, even with my GPS I missed a turn. When that happens my GPS recalculates the route and in this case it had me making a U-turn but not for 50 kilometers up the road so it looked like I was still on the right course since my view is only a few kilometers out in front of me. The road was a nice mountain road with good turns and great scenery. The only problem was that I was going the wrong direction. For some reason I must have sensed something was wrong and I pulled over for water, chap stick, and I checked the map on my phone just to get my bearings. I was surprised to see I was about 20 kilometers off course. At least I was not 50 kilometers off course. I turned around, tried to enjoy the ride back in the direction I had come from but was not settled again until I was back to the missed turn and feeling like I was making progress again. There went another 45 minutes that wasn’t planned for.

At the border I was the only one there, not counting the couple of commercial trucks that were there as well. I thought it would be a breeze to get through customs and immigration. Wrong again. Getting out of Iran was not too time consuming but it was not quick either.   At least it did not cost me any money or bribes to get out like it did to get in. Just as I was pulling past the last checkpoint gate an Iranian official started shouting something at me. I did not turn around or stop but got past the entrance gate for Turkmenistan just 20 meters ahead and felt safe from whatever it was he wanted.

At the Turkmenistan customs and immigration again I was the only soul there. It was anything but quick though. There was a lot of paperwork to do. Again there were about 6 to 8 different people that had to stamp something or check something. I can’t believe how specialized each person’s function is. It seems like such a waste of resources. I don’t know the details of all the charges but the total for everything was $85. These were not bribes like when I entered Iran. There was actually an itemized list of charges. The only one I understood was the $15 for liability insurance. These types of charges were reminiscent of riding through Central America.

By the time I got to Ashgabat it was 5pm and I was starving and thirsty. First I found a place to stop for a Coke. The guy charged me the equivalent of $5 for the Coke but I was not confident in my calculation of the exchange rate and thought there was a chance I was mistaking. Regardless I was thirsty and needed the Coke. Later I figured out that I got totally scammed. He saw a sucker and took advantage of the situation. I then found a restaurant and had a really good meal which I needed desperately by this time.

I still needed a hotel. I went to a few that were on my GPS but neither had Internet. By my third attempt I found a hotel that did have Internet. They also had a pool. It was way over my normal budget but I was done with the day. What could have been a 2 hour ride turned into a full day given my detours and the border crossing. I made it to the pool by 8pm so I had 45 minutes to enjoy it before it was close down. The pool felt amazing as did the cold iced tea on ice that I treated myself to.

Went in search of breakfast. This is what I found. Shop owner promised it was delish.

Still in Iran about 10 minutes from the border with Turkmenistan.

Driving into Ashgabat which looked like an ultra-modern ghost town.

Just one example of the buildings and spaciousness of Ashgabat.

Day 672: Sunday, July 17, 2016

I was in awe at the city of Ashgabat yesterday driving in but the only real tourist attraction is the ruins of Old Nissa about 15 kilometers to the west of the city. I got up and left early without my luggage and went to check it out. It ruins were really in ruin and there was nothing much to look at. When I parked I was the only vehicle there with the exception of 2 rather old buses and their bus drivers sitting on the curb chatting. I walked into the walled area and of course what few structures did exist were all the way across a big empty field. I saw no one. I walked across and into the structure when I then heard a bunch of voices. I still didn’t see anyone and I followed the arrow indicating the route through the structure. Just as I got to the end I ran into a large group of about 100 Turkmenistan Army, Navy, and Airforce personnel. It felt awkward as I was stuck in the middle of this big group walking all the way back across the field to the parking lot. One guy in particular was interested in talking with me. Others around us would just laugh every time this guy tried to say something in his broken English but he paid no attention to them. Back in the parking lot I was surrounded by them as they were interested in my motorcycle, of course.

Back at the hotel I took a swim in the pool to get some exercise and relax for a few minutes before I had to check out. At 12:30 I was on the road for the long 350 kilometer ride to Mary, my destination for the day. The ride was very difficult as the road was well traveled and with the heat was melting. I was very worried about skidding on the soft tar and had to be extra vigilant not to get caught up in some deep ruts that were to be found. There was a strong wind as well which did not help with maneuvering or with visibility in the sandy dessert. But make it I did. I stopped at the first hotel I could find and called it good. On days like this price is a much less important factor than just getting a place to get settled.

Rarely do I stay in a nice hotel like this!

Mingling with the Turkmenistan military at Old Nisa near Ashgabat.

Day 673: Monday, July 18, 2016

I got an early start today mainly because I wanted to sightsee around nearby Merv. Merv is the ancient ruins of what at one time was the largest city in the world and situated on the famed Silk Road. I also wanted to beat the heat the best I could.

Arriving at Merv I found the ruins to be quite unimpressive compared with many other places that exist. About the only thing remaining are the outer walls of what at its height must have been an incredible place. For sure the walls enclosed huge amounts of space. I could not help but wonder how much remains of the city might actually exist under the topsoil as it looked as if it had never been excavated. There were ticket booths at each of the few larger structures that do exist and a nicely paved road connecting the individual sites. It seemed strange that it was laid out as a tourist destination though since Turkmenistan seems to do everything it can to not welcome tourists. I spent about one hour in total and I literally had the whole place to myself.

I was happy to see that north of Mary heading to Farap and the border with Uzbekistan that the traffic was much less than yesterday. With the reduced traffic, slightly lower temperature, and an older road I did not have to deal with the soft, melting roads that I had yesterday. It made the ride feel much safer. As I progressed north the dessert turned to sand dunes but other than the occasional strong wind gusts there was not much flying sand which was also a blessing. I can image at times it would be a brutal ride. I had glimpses of memories from northern Peru today.

Getting out of Turkmenistan proved to be a bit of a frustrating experience. One of the customs guys was not very nice to begin with and then I managed to misplace my customs form I got on import which did not help matters. After about 10 minutes I found the form in my pocket. The not nice guy with very limited English told me that he liked Trump for President. I couldn’t believe it. He is the first person on the whole trip that I have met that likes Trump. His reason is that “he is millionaire.” I am not sure why that is a good quality for being President but he seems to think so. After about 40 minutes I final said “What is happening? I want to go. I need to go.” Since it appeared that nothing was being done and we were just talking I added “Can I go now?” A different guy said “Okay. You can go now.”   Really?! Did that just happen? I wonder how long they would have kept me if I had not asked.

At the Uzbekistan border it was also a process; forms to fill out and six different people stamping things for various reasons. Even a doctor wearing a white robe like doctors do had to stamp a form. He said to me “Are you fine?” I said “Yes.”   He stamped my form. What a job. It is the first border I have ever crossed where there was a doctor. Customs did not want to see any of my luggage except my prescription drugs. I carry a lot since I have a one year supply with me. They examined each bottle carefully but did not hassle me about any of it. The whole thing took about an hour and I was done.

Just outside the gate was a small café. I needed water, money, and food would have been a bonus. Just before going in a guy asked if I wanted to exchange money. I said “yes”. He offered me half of what I thought was the correct rate but he would not budge. I took it and went into the café and he came in as well. Inside was a couple from Germany on bicycles that I had met at customs. I asked them about exchanging money and they told me the café owner would give me the correct rate. I went to the man who had changed my money and said I wanted to cancel the transaction because his rate was terrible. To my surprise he reached in his pocket and handed me back my money. I handed him his money. The transaction was canceled. I then order a 1 liter bottle of water and some dumplings. Wow, a good exchange rate, water, and food. I hit the trifecta.

It really is not here and I finished the entire 1 liter bottle of water before leaving the café to head to Bukhara. A little more than an hour later I was settled in the first hotel I saw.

I’m a sucker for camels. Had to stop and take a picture.

Outer wall of the ancient city of Merv. I climbed up the wall to see inside and found…nothing!

One of the few standing remains at Merv.

I wonder if their dad knows they “borrowed” the donkey and cart.

Jump to Other Countries: Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, U.A.E., Oman

Day 674: Tuesday, July 19, 2016

I woke up today and decided I needed to stay put for the day. There is a lot in the city to see and I did not think I could do that and get to the next city without pushing myself too much. I have put 2,000 kilometers behind me in the past 4 days in heat on average of 39 degrees (or 102F) so I needed a break.

I was out of bed too late to get my free (included) breakfast so I went without. Before noon the hotel owner’s wife walked me to the bazaar and took me to a man who in turn took me into his back room to make a currency exchange. He opened a large cardboard box filled with bundled stakes of 100 notes each the equivalent of approximately $0.80 USD. It reminded me of Argentina a year ago when they still had a grey market for their currency. When I exchanged 200 Euro for Som (their currency) I got a huge stack of bills. I mean huge. It in turn reminded me of Venezuela where the largest bill is worth $0.10 USD. So here the black market rate is 200% of the official rate. It is therefore not prudent to use credit cards here although I have yet to see anyplace that accepts credit cards.

Late in the afternoon I got up the energy to go out and do my obligatory sightseeing of which I was not too excited about. The past three weeks of these efforts have been less than interesting so I did not have high hopes. To the contrary, today turned out to be enjoyable. The Uzbekistan Office Booklet that is distributed by the Uzbekistan consulates describes Bukhara as one of the oldest cities in the world. There is a very large area in the heart of the city that has ancient architecture yet looking brand new. I really felt as close to being in Disney’s Aladdin movie as I think I ever will. No matter where you turned there was more. It was not just one or two ancient buildings. Unfortunately there were not more people on the streets in these areas. It was pretty empty so lacked the vibe that would have made this a really magical place.

Late in the evening I finally had my first meal of the day. I don’t even feel hunger anymore. I am so used to having just one meal, maybe two a day. I went into a restaurant with a nice atmosphere and it turned out a good menu. I had some really great soup and grill beef strips. The taste was different from what I have had the past 2 months so despite the meat being tough I thoroughly enjoyed it.

I imagined these are flying carpets.

This architecture seems to be unique to Uzbekistan the best I can tell.

I was impressed at the intricate masonry work on this tower.

This architecture is very common in this region. Inside are shops.

This fortress/palace in Bukhara is called the “Ark”.

Day 675: Wednesday, July 20, 2016

It was not too long of a ride today; only about 300 kilometers. The roads were good so progress was steady other than stopping every 45 minutes to stay hydrated. I got to Samarkand, Uzbekistan about 2pm with the plan to do as much sightseeing as I could today so I could get an early start tomorrow. Once checked into the hotel I wanted to go out but felt like I had zero energy so I ended up taking an hour nap.

Feeling a bit better I managed the energy to head into the center of the city where the attractions are located. On the way I spotted a Korean Restaurant. I almost fell off my bike as I snapped my head around to double check what I had seen as I was zipping past. That was different. Finding ethnic food restaurants in any of “these countries” is a rare thing indeed. My front brakes squeaked in protest as I came to a screeching halt. I turned the bike around, found a place to park, and prayed that the place was open at 3:30pm.

As luck would have it they were willing to serve me and I had Korean BBQ with kimchi and the best thing of all, a hot, steaming bowl of Japanese (and apparently Korean) style rice. It was the real thing so I felt like I was in heaven. I have not had Japanese rice in 10 weeks!

After eating I finally made it to the attractions of the city. After Bukhara I had high hopes. They were dashed pretty quickly as the place did not come close to the feeling of wonder that overcame me just a day prior. Within 10 minutes I realized this was just not worth it but as usual I felt like it was my duty to spend more time and after an hour I had enough.

Back at the hotel I enjoyed relaxing in the outdoor courtyard that had a covered pavilion surround by trees and grass complete with a sprinkler system that made it feel and sound just like a real, light rain shower. It cooled the air, sounded like rain on the tin roof and dripping through the leaves of the trees, and most of all made me feel at home. It could not have been more perfect.

As seen in a park in the center of Samarkand.

Day 676: Thursday, July 21, 2016

I was 10 minutes from leaving the hotel today for Dushanbe, Tajikistan when the hotel owner asked me where I was headed. Telling him I was going to Dushanbe he questioned my plan. I asked why and he said the border crossing near Samarkand was closed and had been for years and why I did not already know that. He sure put me in my place. The only alternative would take over 10 hours to get there and I was not going to do that.

I thus spent the next 1 ½ hours trying to come up with a new plan. There were 3 options so I had to research each. The route I wanted to do the most would require 3 border crossings which are significant negatives. In addition, it was hard to get road condition information so there was a lot of uncertainty. The other 2 options both took me to Tashkent today which is as far as I could go in one day anyway. I decided it was the smart thing to do to just go to Tashkent which I knew had good roads and would require no border crossings, at least for today.

In the end I left 2 hours after I originally thought I would. The ride was uneventful and I got to Tashkent by 5pm. The hotel I had a reservation at said their Wi-Fi was not working which is a major negative. I was hot and tired but got back on my bike to go to my backup location to check it out. I don’t know why but I ended up in a rundown neighborhood and the hostel was nowhere to be found.   Twenty minutes later I was back to the first place tail between my legs asking for a room.

By this time it was already 6pm and with no Internet to do any research I did not have a clue what to do in Tashkent. So I did nothing but find a nearby restaurant to eat at. There was a Japanese guy here, Hiroshi from Yokohama as well so we went to dinner together.

Jump to Other Countries: Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, U.A.E., Oman

Day 677: Friday, July 22, 2016

For some reason I had no interest in seeing anything in Tashkent. It is just a city and nothing in Trip Advisor’s “Top 10 things to do…” caught my fancy. Therefore, I made no attempt in the morning to do any sightseeing before leaving. When I woke up in the morning I still had not decided what to do in regards to my route to Bishkek. Would I take the route east through Eastern Uzbekistan and cross into Kyrgyzstan at Osh or would I go north into Kazakhstan and then east towards Bishkek? I did some research online and inquired at a travel agency about border crossings. I could not get any consistent information. What I ended up with is that border crossings between Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan are either closed completely, closed to non-citizens of the 2 countries, or open but not every day and unpredictable. Since I had to be out of Uzbekistan by tomorrow I decided I could not take the risk.

The border to the north into Kazakhstan I was consistently told was very reliable and always open. I decided to take the more predictable route even though it was certainly not as scenic. Knowing I could not get to Bishkek in a day I decided to go just halfway which would be the city of Taraz and would be only a 5 hour ride. Given that, I was not in a hurry to leave and did not end up getting started until after noon.

That is where I made my first mistake. I should know by now that you can never plan on things going as planned especially when border crossings are involved. My second mistake, which according to all my research was not a mistake I headed to the border just north of Tashkent that would take me into Kazakhstan.

I rolled up to the border gate totally expecting the gate to be opened and for me to roll on through. Wrong. I was told that I could not cross the border here because I was not a Russian, Kazakhstan, or Uzbekistan citizen. I would have to go to the next border crossing which is 75 kilometers south (of course I wanted to go east so this is not what I wanted to hear). If you look at the map you will see that once the border is crossed at the crossing they told me I had to go to that to get to Taraz I would need to go on a road that took me back to within 15 kilometers of the border crossing I was not allowed to cross.

Given this development I knew there was no way I’d be able to make it to Taraz so I set my sights on Shymkent. Of course the border crossing while not difficult did take time as always. Once inside Kazakhstan I headed back in the direction I just came from but on the other side of the border. By then it was getting late in the day so I tried to hurry the best I could. Of course when in a hurry obstacles are thrown at you. As it turns out the road was under construction for a good 100 kilometers which made progress slow and visibility bad what with blowing dust. The last hour of the ride into Shymkent was pushing dark and it was totally dark by the time I got into the city.

I stopped at a hotel and it was too expensive. I asked if they knew of a cheaper place I could stay and they told me there were some apartments that were for rent on a daily basis for only about $20 a night. They said the lady there did not speak English so they wrote a note for me in Russian that I could hand to the lady at the apartments and they marked the location on my map so I could find my way.

When I pulled up in front of the apartments there was a middle-aged, rather large woman sitting on a plastic chair on the side of the street. I stopped, showed her the note, not at all sure that I was in the right place. She read the note and said “Yes” with a smile and bingo, I had a place to stay. The apartment was in an old soviet era apartment building so I was a bit uncomfortable as she guided me around to the back of the building in the dark. When she showed me the apartment I was so surprised to find it large and beautifully furnished. This was going to work, I thought.

I finally got dinner at midnight and by the time I got back to the apartment I was glad the day was over and I took a moment to reflect on how different the day turned out than I had expected when I got up this morning.

Day 678: Saturday, July 23, 2016

When I got up this morning the plan was to go only as far as Taraz as I thought it would be too far to go all the way to Bishkek in one day. Therefore, I was not in a lot of hurry to leave in the morning. I walked to the tourist information office and got some information. I discovered there were some nice mountains nearby that looked worth visiting. Upon closer look I found that the road although going in the right direction also dead-ended in the mountains and would require coming all the way back to Shymkent before going to Taraz. That would mean another night in Shymkent and I was not interested in doing that. So much for that idea.

By noon I was on the road heading east. The road remained extremely good as all the construction was now behind me. I made good time and by 3pm I was in Taraz. I could not imagine stopping so soon so I pressed on. When I made it to the border with Kyrgyzstan I could not believe how easy the process was on both sides. I think I got through both borders in less than 15 minutes. Why can’t all borders be so easy? It was another hour from the border into Bishkek proper. By that time, because of my casual start to the day and the long distance covered it was already sunset.

Not expecting to be in Bishkek today I had not researched places to stay. At the edge of town I pulled over to the side of the road, got out my cell phone and my Maps.me app. I searched on hotels and found a hostel called “Sakura Guesthouse.” I expected it was owned by a Japanese person so thought it would be a perfect place to check out since I had a better chance of being able to communicate. I found the place easily enough with my GPS and when I got to reception I was rewarded with a Japanese speaking individual. I got a room, parked my bike inside their garage and crashed for the night.

Stopped for a coke and ended up chatting with locals for 30 minutes. Love it!

Jump to Other Countries: Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, U.A.E., Oman

Day 679: Sunday, July 24, 2016

Today being a Sunday and knowing that I am going to be in Bishkek awhile waiting for Roy to make it here I did pretty much nothing all day. I have a private room here at the hostel and it even has a work desk so I took the opportunity to work on my blog. I also watched YouTube videos so I could catch up on the “news.”

The hostel has a courtyard which acts as a social area. There I found 5 Japanese guys sitting around talking and some European people sitting together speaking in a language other than English. Needless to say I pulled up a chair and sat down with the group of Japanese. The first look on their faces was like “What is this white guy doing sitting down with us?” (in a curious way, not a bad way). But as soon as I introduced myself to them in Japanese they were all smiles. We ended up talking for well over 2 hours sharing life and travel stories. All of us met for the first time at the hostel but we were all friends now.

I did go out for a walk to familiarize myself with the neighborhood and to find a SIM card for my phone. In the process I found an Indian food restaurant. I was so excited to see that as I am still in overdose mode on kebabs. Needless to say I stopped for dinner.

Day 680: Monday, July 25, 2016

This morning I got the word from Pegasus Asia Air that they could ship the bikes as cargo to New Delhi, India. That was great news. That means I did not have to worry any longer with China and Pakistan visas so I no longer needed to go to those consulates today. I did still need a visa for Tajikistan so I went there prior to noon. It was so easy. Just handed over the documents and passport, paid my $55 and was told to come back Wednesday afternoon to pick up my passport. Five minutes, in and out. It doesn’t get better than that.

I went back to the Indian restaurant for lunch and then back to the hostel. Back at the hostel the Japanese guys were sitting around talking so I joined in as well and once again we spent a lot of time talking. By evening three of the Japanese guys and I decided that tomorrow we will go for a day hike in the mountains near Bishkek.

Day 681: Tuesday, July 26, 2016

Masayuki, Hiroshi, Koji and I met up in the courtyard at 8am to head out for our hike. We first took a local bus to the main bus terminal and from there we took a taxi to the trailhead of Ala Archa National Park about 1 hour away. The day was perfect and in the mountains it was not as hot as in the city. Both up and back the hike probably took us 5 hours. The scenery was spectacular and the fresh air and the smell of nature were great for the soul.

When we got back to the hostel I was pretty tired but was starving. I went once again to the Indian restaurant for dinner. It is the only place I’ve eaten at since I arrived in Bishkek. It has 3 advantages. It is very close, the quality of the food is pretty darn good, and they have more than just Indian food. Tonight I had spaghetti carbonara. It was every bit as good as the Indian food I have had.

Back at the hostel I was sitting in my rooming and pondering the calendar and the map and wondering what I was going to do. Roy was nowhere close to get to Bishkek and I do not want to just sit here waiting for him. I already have plans to go to Istanbul on August 6 for 10 days but that still left me with 10 days with nothing to do. By 10pm I decided I would go to the Arabian Peninsula and go to Istanbul from there. I spent the next 5 hours making all the reservations I needed to get me to the United Arab Emirates, Oman, Bahrain, and Qatar. That is four more countries I am going to be able to check off my list.

Having a great day in nature at Ala Archa National Park, Kyrgyzstan.

Masayuki, Hiroshi, Koji and I stopping for a photo op.

Just one of the unending beautiful sights along the Ala Archa trail.

Standing in the spray of the waterfall at the end of the trail.

Day 682: Wednesday, July 27, 2016

Today I was really relaxed. I had nothing to do but catch my flight in the evening to Almaty. I spent the morning on my computer working on my blog. About 1pm I met up with all my Japanese friends and we went over to the India restaurant and all had the buffet lunch together. I rode my bike there since after lunch I needed to go over to the Tajikistan consulate to pick up my passport.

After a good lunch and picking up my passport I went back to the hostel and rearranged all my bags. I needed to pack my backpack for a 3 week trip. I arranged with the hostel to leave my bike parked there while I was gone so I will be going back there upon my return.   At 6pm a taxi arrived to take me to the airport.

My flight was short but sweet and I arrived in Almaty about 9pm. I had a 10 hour layover so I booked a hotel at the airport for the night and it was a quick walk across the parking lot to the hotel. The hotel is an old, soviet-era building so looked horrible from the outside. My experience is that the interiors of these buildings are better than one would imagine by looking at the outside. This was no exception. Don’t get me wrong. It was by no means an upscale hotel, far from it. It was sufficient for one night at least given the fact that I got the receptionist to give up her fan for me to use in my room. I walked back over to the airport terminal which is new and modern and got dinner, taking my time as I was in no real hurry to get back to my room.

Jump to Other Countries: Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Oman

Day 683: Thursday, July 28, 2016

My flight from Almaty was at 7:30am and it surprised me a bit that the flight was over 4 hours. Is that possible? I was very near Dubai when I was in Shiraz, Iran just 3 weeks ago. And now my bike is already a 4 hour plane ride away. The flight was good with no hiccups but I discovered upon getting to my hotel in Dubai that I left my Kindle on the plane. So after several years I finally lost my Kindle.

Upon arrival in Dubai I got the subway to my hotel which was only about 30 minutes away. I arrived about noon and ended up having to wait about 45 minutes for my room since it was not ready yet. Once in my room I made plans for the rest of the day.

I heard from my friend Monika who lives in Dubai and we arranged to meet along with her husband at 4pm at the Dubai Mall for dinner. I wanted to see the mall anyway so it worked out perfectly. I went early not only to make sure I was there on time but also to do some sightseeing of the mall. Having lived in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada for 6 years I was used to being in the world’s biggest mall. Now that the Dubai Mall is open it is the largest in the world and even Edmonton’s mall cannot prepare one for this.

After a nice meeting with Monika and Vivaldo and before sunset I made my way to the tallest building in the world. There I paid the hefty admission of about $75 to take the elevator to the 148^th floor. I knew at the moment I signed the sales slip I was going to regret it. And I do. While the view from the 148^th floor is nice it is not worth anywhere near that kind of money. If you are going to Dubai do not waste your money on this “attraction.” After the 2 hour debacle of the tallest building in the world I watched the Bellagio-style water fountain accompanied by music which lasted for 4 minutes. It was free and worth the price of admission! It was very nice. After 5 hours at and around the mall I was ready to go back to the hotel. With the 2 hour time difference from Bishkek I was very tired by the end of the day.

Dinner in the Dubai Mall with friends Monika and Vivaldo.

The view of the Dubai Mall from the top of the world’s tallest building.

My shot of the Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest building at night.

The world’s largest shopping mall, The Dubai Mall. Amazing place.

Day 684: Friday, July 29, 2016

The only thing on my agenda today was to go to the Atlantis Aquaventure waterpark. I have always wanted to go to Atlantis in the Bahamas but never went. Just recently I saw the Atlantis Aquaventure Dubai on one of the Amazing Race episodes. Finding myself in Dubai I could not pass up the opportunity to go. Of course a waterpark is more fun when experiencing it with someone but I have gotten quite used to doing things on my own and making the most of it. I still don’t like it but I don’t let it stop me from doing things I want to do.

It took 2 hours to get there from my hotel using public transportation which included a long subway ride, a shorter tram ride, and then a monorail ride. Since it was Friday the subway did not start running until 10am so it was noon by the time I got there. The slides were everything and more than I expected. The lines were not so bad. By 5pm I had my fill and headed back to the hotel very content with my experience.

Enjoying the day at Atlantis Dubai. A bucket-list item checked off.

Jump to Other Countries: Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, U.A.E.

Day 685: Saturday, July 30, 2016

This morning I got to the airport with plenty of time to spare for my flight to Oman. When I boarded my Oman Air flight to Muscat, just a 30 minute flight I was shocked to find that the plane was a 787. I just love this aircraft. Whenever I get a chance to choose a flight with a 787 aircraft I jump at it. I was disappointed my flight was only going to be 30 minutes. I think the ground time, what with boarding and taxiing was about 1 hour so that “helped” a little.

Arriving in Oman I discovered that my rental car company did not have a counter at the airport. There was no information desk so getting help was difficult. A lady at a different rental car company tried calling my rental agency but there was no answer. I made my way to the Omancell counter and got myself a SIM card. I figured it would come in real handy even though I was only going to be in Oman for 4 days. I paid about $10 for a SIM card and enough calling and data to last for my intended stay. The activation was difficult and the lady that sold me the SIM card had to get the help of the salesman at the next counter over and a competitor to get my phone set up. This whole process took at least 1 hour.

It is a daily occurrence that I face these situations that require patience. I was really hoping to be on the road by 1pm to do what I had planned for the day. But I have learned to control my reactions to these types of situations. The world was not going to end by this delay and I would just have to change my plans.

Once my phone was working I started calling my car rental agency. Still there was no answer. After 30 minutes of trying I finally got an answer and 10 minutes later they were there to pick me up and take me to their location. I didn’t bother asking why I could not reach them sooner. It did not matter. That was in the past. Before starting my travels and learning what I have these 2 years I would have reacted so much differently to this same situation. I like this way better.

My destination was a city called Sur about 3 hours south along the coast. Along the way was a sinkhole that is full of water making for a beautiful lake in perpetual shade. There are stairs that go down from the edge of the sinkhole down to the water and several people were there swimming. Of course I did not pass up the opportunity to take a dip and cool down. There were a lot of little, tiny fish that would bit you out of the blue. I have experienced this in other places as well. Fortunately I did not have that experience when I was swimming in the Amazon River!

By the time I got back to my car I was mostly dry. It doesn’t take long in the dry heat of the Arabian dessert. I got to Sur a little before dark and stopped at a hotel that looked like it was in my price range. It turned out to be a pretty nice place for the price I paid.

Before relaxing I had to figure out what I was going to do the next day. My idea was to visit a dessert camp that included a camel ride. I discovered there were several such places about 2 hours from where I found one called 1000 Nights Camp that fit my needs. The price for the room was not so bad but because I did not have a 4×4 car I would need to hire transportation from the nearest city for the 40km ride through the sand dessert to get to and from the camp. That cost was $120 roundtrip. I bit the bullet and made the reservation.

A quick stop at the Bimmah Sink Hole for a swim. The water was crystal clear and warm.

Day 686: Sunday, July 31, 2016

Before making my way to the dessert camp I had just booked last night I backtracked yesterday’s road by 30 minutes to do a river hike that I had originally hoped to do yesterday. Due to my rental car delay I had to postpone it to today. As it turned out the plan worked fine as I did not have to be to the city on the edge of the dessert until 3pm.

The trailhead for the Wadi Ash Shah hike starts just of the highway where there is a parking lot. First you pay $2 to take a small canoe-type boat across the river which is only about 30 meters across and only because it is a pond just before it hits the Gulf of Oman. Once across the trail heads up into an ever-narrowing canyon with steep cliff sides making for great scenery. Forty-five minutes in the canyon narrows such that the only way forward is to swim it. I hid my water and camera in the rocks and swam and waded up the river another 300 meters at which point the river dead-ends inside a cave that to get into your head just fits through the crack although just below the waterline it is wider so your body fits through easily. Once inside you are rewarded with a waterfall and a cave partial open to the sky above. Going back out of the cave the water’s color is an amazing blue that is reminiscent of the Blue Grotto on the island of Capri in Italy. If you’ve been there then you know what I am talking about.   The scale was much smaller but I had the place completely to myself which made for a spectacular experience.

Back at my car I changed clothes, got hydrated and made the 2 hour journey to Badiya. I got there at 10 minutes to 3pm and my driver was not far behind. I did not really grasp how far it was to the camp when I made my booking. Thirty minutes into the ride over the sand I asked the driver how far it was and that is when I learned it was 40km.

I finally arrived at the camp at 4pm only to find out that it was their slow season. In fact it was so slow there was only one couple from Scotland there besides me. The camp sits right at the foot of gigantic sand dune mountains that stretch for miles. I was told that at sunset I needed to hike to the top to watch the sunset. That sounded like a good plan. I had an hour so I went and relaxed by the pool (yes there was a swimming pool in the middle of the dessert). It really was the perfect setting.

I did the sunset thing. The sand dunes were difficult to climb in spots but the ground was firmer than I expected. The sunrise was not spectacular though. The sky was pretty hazy due to blowing sand and apparently sand and smoke have different effects on sunsets. Back at camp I had dinner which was included. Not only was it included but it was absolutely delicious. I got so full that I could not move after eating. It was the best food I have had in months and the first time in weeks I felt like I had just eaten a Thanksgiving dinner – stuffed.

The rest of the night until going to bed was spent relaxing under the stars and looking at the wonders of the universe overhead.

A quick stop at the Bimmah Sink Hole for a swim. The water was crystal clear and warm.

1,000 Nights Desert Camp as seen from the top of the sand dunes to the west.

Another view of the sand dunes of Oman.

More sand dunes. Fun to walk on.