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This is a report of a solo-trip to Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan, undertaken during July/August 1994.

Uzbekistan, part 1

Pierre.Flener
2004-04-03 18:50:20

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Thursday/Friday 28/29 July 1994: Ankara - istanbul - Tashkent
We land at about 5:15am in Tashkent, the capital of Uzbekistan. Only a bus-load of people actually get off the plane, which is bound for Alma Ata, and the bus is incredibly decrepit, but somehow operational. We are only a handful of foreigners, and I seem to be the only back-packing traveler, all others having suitcases and business visas or private invitations from Uzbek citizens. I overhear a Turkish businessman explaining to somebody that immigration is going to be unbelievably slow, so I sprint forwards with them as soon as the bus makes it to the terminal. And, indeed, the immigration officer, a Caucasian-looking tall blonde with cold blue eyes, almost stares holes into every page of every passport before stamping the Uzbek visa. He takes about five minutes per person (!), and I'm glad to be second in the queue and to have a brand-new passport with just visas for Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan. So I'm soon able to whisk my backpack off the carrousel, to fill out two customs declarations and undergo a minor luggage inspection, to change one dollar into Uzbek Sums (which is the new currency to be phased in tomorrow, in replacement of the old Sum coupons, after slashing three zeros), and to finally emerge into Tashkent, simultaneously with the Turkish businessman.
He turns out to be a representative of the DoGan car factory, which landed a deal to sell a thousand taxis to Uzbekistan. He spends half of his time is Tashkent and is quite knowledgeable about the place and about how to behave now. We are indeed "assaulted" by free-lance taxi-drivers who quote outrageous rates to drive us to the city. Since we are both heading to the Chilonzar suburb, I wisely shut up as he placates them in Turkish - which is quite mutually intelligible with Uzbek, both being of the Turkic language family - and expertly haggles one of them down to a still cut-throat $3 each, cash of course. That's ...