After travelling the length and breadth of Europe, last winter we joined a group to go to Libya; we were very happy and delighted with this country with its deserts, salt lakes, towns and villages; we had already visited Morocco on African soil, but the Libyans, with their kindness and hospitality, won us over. This preamble is to explain our thirst for adventure beyond Europe's borders, in countries not yet reached by mass tourism. Through the internet I set about looking for other motorhomers for a trip to these unknown countries; among the first I found a group that was going to Iran in the spring, but after initial contact we ruled it out: it was too close to the previous trip to Libya and, what's more, it was very expensive as it was organised by an agency-magazine in the motorhome sector.
Then, through the Traiano Camper Club of Benevento, I heard about a group who, after visiting Iran last year, wanted to extend the trip as far as Samarkand in Uzbekistan; I contacted the group leader, who sent me the rough itinerary, the cost for the organisation, including visas, the guides for the various countries, parking at the various hotels with electrical hook-up and the supply of electricity (Iran, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan), quoted at 1,850.00 euros per crew; we agreed to meet at Porto Recanati at the Bellamare campsite on 2 June, and in the meantime I sent confirmation with 50% of the total. MEETING: The Bellamare campsite is very nice and welcoming; we arrived the day before, the crew from Aosta got there before us and we soon make friends. At departure a welcome surprise: the stay at the campsite was paid for by the crew from Osimo.
CREWS: There are 12 of us in motorhomes from 9 different regions, the average age is 64, the oldest crew is the one we already knew: they are both 76, there are two crews from Piedmont who were with us in Libya, and the last crew was added even though it took us over the agreed number (10+1) because they are doctors, very useful for the group. LOGISTICAL PROBLEMS: The group leader lists the various problems for us: logistics, borders, water and fuel supplies. DOCUMENTS: he lists the various documents needed to obtain the visas: passports, 8 passport photos (the women will need to have 3 photos taken with a veil on their heads), filling in various forms and a photocopy of the vehicle registration document with the full list of accessories (radio-CB-stereo-PC), tyre make and size, engine number.
All of this is fairly complicated because the embassies are not all in Italy: for Iran in Rome, for Turkmenistan in Paris and for Uzbekistan in Vienna. CARNET de PASSAGE en DOUANE: Each crew will have to arrange a bank guarantee for two or three times the commercial value depending on the age of the vehicle, and through the ACI have issued the document we'll need to cross the Iranian border. My vehicle was valued, on a friendly basis, at 10,000.00 euros, a figure doubled because the vehicle is 6 years old; at the ACI I paid 180.00 euros and at the bank (Friuladria) 60.00 euros of fixed charge plus 359.01 euros for the one-year guarantee (interest at 1.80%); on my return, presenting the documents duly signed by the various customs offices on entry and exit, I will be refunded the unused months.
LICENCE: In these countries an international driving permit is compulsory; to get one at an agency I paid 50.00 euros. SPARE PARTS: The group leader advises us to equip ourselves with various spare parts, filters, various belts, top-up oil, mounted wheels in addition to the spare, inner tubes and an extra gas cylinder; I also provided myself with a reconditioned starter motor (120.00 euros). MEDICINES: The two doctors will send us a list of medicines that may be useful, and they will obtain drugs for extreme cases, to be available to everyone. CLOTHING: Besides the headscarf, the women will have to wear long, loose clothes with long sleeves, so as to cover their figures; Tina, my wife, got two outfits at a Moroccan shop in Udine.
Men will not be able to wear shorts; the group leader advises wearing long-sleeved shirts, though on tv I've seen them wearing short-sleeved shirts and polo shirts instead. All of this only for Iran; in the other two countries you dress however you like. MAPS and GUIDES: through the internet I found some Lonely Planet guides ( Guide to Iran at 23.50 euros Guide to Central Asia at 28.00 euros and some Freytag & Berndt maps ( - Central Asia scale 1:1,750,000 at 9.80 euros - Iran and neighbouring countries scale 1:2,000,000 at 9.80 euros bought the lot in a bookshop in Udine. FERRIES: Ventourisi Line company, all motorhomes will be accepted from 5 to 7 m. (some, including mine, are over 7 m.) at the price of 156 euros (Bari-Igoumenitsa and return), boarding on 4 September at 20.00. 30% to be paid to the company at once for the booking.
The group leader will make a single payment; we will pay that sum along with the balance of the trip fee in July. THE CATS: One of our problems is the cats; we have two, they have always been with us on every trip, now they're getting old: Schizzo is 14 and Principessa 18, we don't feel up to putting them through a trip like this, we're thinking of putting them in a cattery in a nearby village; it will cost us about 800.00 euros, but there's no getting around it, especially as they warn us that at the borders they could refuse animals even for no reason, and that settles it for us. RENDEZVOUS: The starting point is Benevento; for various reasons we can't be there, we'll meet at the boarding in Bari. They inform us that two crews, for different reasons, are pulling out of the trip; I'm sorry for them, but on a long journey like this it's better to be a limited number
Day 121 Sep 2005
178/6561 – Khiva – Aranci Hotel
CONTINUES FROM "Samarkand 2005" Part Four
Arrival in the city with a wonderful view of the walls and its buildings. Parking of the campers in front of the hotel with water refill and electrical hookup, very precarious, we had to replace the power socket, it was one solid mass. After settling in we had dinner in the campers, some of us at the hotel restaurant. Then a tour of the little town with its illuminated monuments, it really is a fairy-tale city.
Tourists under the wooden columned portico of Khiva mosque
Day 222 Sep 2005
0/0 – Khiva – Aranci Hotel
This morning a meeting at 9.30 for a tour of the city accompanied by the guide, who unfortunately only speaks English; our LP guide is very useful to us; besides the various monuments and minarets, a visit to the bazaar, as usual colourful and folkloric, purchase of bread, mineral water and vodka. Dinner at the hotel restaurant: the usual cooked and raw vegetables, spicy soup, sweetish wine and vodka, and a poor dance performance; the dancer has teeth covered in gold, they tell us it is a quirk left by the Russians………. What taste!!!!
Smiling children at a window among pink flowers in Khiva
Day 323 Sep 2005
498/7059 – Bukhara – Semurg Hotel
Departure at 7, the road is fairly good at first, then, after the iron bridge over the river the desert of red sands begins, the "Kyzilkum"; like the other it is very flat with small shrubs, the road becomes bad, even unpaved and very monotonous, then at the end some stretches where you can run at 70/80 km/h. The hotel is new, located on the outskirts of the city, the parking lot faces the street; tonight few will manage to sleep………. It depends on the traffic. This evening a big table with a communal spaghetti dish, made by no. 1, 9 and my wife, plus other tasty things brought by everyone.
Women in headscarves selling grains at Bukhara market
Day 424 Sep 2005
0/0 – Bukhara – Semurg Hotel
At 8.30 a bus picks us up and with a guide who speaks Italian, Nutih, I don't remember exactly how it's spelled, we begin the visit of this beautiful city; we visit mausoleums and madrasas and a bazaar where we do a little shopping; before returning for lunch, while waiting for the bus to pick us up, we sit in a café to drink green tea, good and thirst-quenching; unfortunately no. 5 is stung by a wasp, probably allergic to insect stings, he goes into anaphylactic shock and faints; we were all very worried and for a while we remained anxious, but shortly afterwards he recovered; the doctor made him drink a lot of water; more relieved, we returned to the parking lot.
After lunch, while I was waiting for the departure for the new afternoon excursion, I go to a room in the hotel, reserved for us, to empty the grey water; through my carelessness the spout of the portable toilet comes out of the WC and floods the floor, initial panic, then with good will and two rolls of toilet paper I cleaned everything up.
At 15 we set off again for the city, visit to the main square of Bukhara: a view out of a thousand and one nights, buildings and a breath-taking minaret that reward us for the effort of all the kilometres devoured in these days. Needless to say, at every bazaar, especially the women, buy everything: carpets, silks, daggers and various trinkets; my wife was no exception either and bought a length of silk and a cashmere shawl.
Kukeldash Madrasa in Bukhara, turquoise domes framed by a brick arch
Day 525 Sep 2005
0/0 – Bukhara – Semurg Hotel
The visit to the city continues, disappointing because we saw buildings of lesser importance; after what was seen yesterday, today's itinerary could have been skipped. At lunch it was decided to offer a spaghetti dish to Nutih, the excellent Italian-speaking guide; I made the sauce and 500 grams of pasta, no. 10 another 500 grams, in all there were 6 crews. No. 9, closing the door, also locked the deadbolt; the keys were inside the camper and there was no way to get in; first of all we tried to force the locks, then it was thought to go in through the roof hatch; no. 7, of slim build, climbing on the shoulders of two people, managed to climb up, remove the piece, get in and open from the inside, resolving the situation. This evening dinner ($10 each + $7 for 1 bottle of wine) in a former madrasa with traditional dances and a fashion show worn by splendid models.
Bukhara, Lyabi-Hauz square: brick portal and trees around the pond
Day 626 Sep 2005
286/7345 - Samarkand – President Hotel
Departure at 8.30, transfer to Samarkand on a very busy and very undulating road, with sudden potholes that put the suspensions under strain; I was right before leaving to reinforce the rear leaf springs with air helpers, it was money well spent. A shorter road could have been taken but it is strongly discouraged by our guide, as it passes near the Afghan border and is heavily militarized with various checkpoints and is very dangerous. The problem of the day was refuelling with diesel; petrol is available as much as you want but diesel is hard to find; after 4 stations that didn't have any, we find one that has only 200 litres: 20 each at the exorbitant price (for this area) of $6; after another 3 we find another that gives us again 20 litres each for $7.50.
Arriving at the entrance to Samarkand, a group photo in front of the road sign indicating the city, our final destination, with the popping of Prosecco and tasting of Sienese pastries, applause for no. 1 who, despite his faults, is always the one to thank if we managed to reach this country. We park in the square in front of the President Hotel; we are immediately provided with an electrical hookup and a room for anyone who wants to take a shower; tomorrow we'll see about the water refill.
Tourists gathered under the large metal Samarkand sign on a sunny day
Day 727 Sep 2005
0/0 – Samarkand President Hotel
At 9:00, departure for the city tour. The guide, Shokhista—whom we'll call Gioia since her name is unpronounceable—speaks perfect Italian and is a beautiful 23-year-old girl who studied in Italy, in Turin and Siena, for 2 years. She walks with us all morning among mausoleums, madrasas, and minarets. At lunch she takes us to a typical restaurant where four couples stop to eat while the others catch up with the campers. The ten of us, including the escort and the guide, spent 46,000 Sum, about $40. At three o'clock the others join us with a minibus that will take us to various places: more mausoleums, madrasas, and a bazaar. Today we visited several places, some very beautiful and others a little less so, but all interesting, including the cemetery: you enter from the recent section and exit from the old section, with small mausoleums now under restoration.
The guide was very good at explaining the history and anecdotes of this beautiful country. Tomorrow is a free day—the women already know where to go to spend money!!!!
Tilla-Kari madrasa in Samarkand, turquoise ribbed dome and glazed tiles
Day 828 Sep 2005
Shahrisabz – President Hotel
With a minibus costing $100, together with two other crews we visit the town of Shahrisabz, Tamerlane's birthplace. Its imposing mausoleum is interesting. We notice several couples of newlyweds with a trail of relatives and friends having their photos taken by the various monuments. The guide explains that since the Ramadan period is near, everyone is moving up their wedding date, otherwise they would have to postpone it to the end of the period. To get to this town you can take two roads: one through the mountains, 50 km long, the other through the plains, 280 km. Unfortunately, the more beautiful one, the mountain road, is impassable with normal cars—only by 4x4—so we have to take the longer one. Still, it was worth it. Tonight, dinner at a restaurant recommended by Gioia, the Marco Polo on Registan str., at $6 per person. We ate well.
Shah-i-Zinda necropolis in Samarkand, brick mausoleums with turquoise tiles
Day 929 Sep 2005
302/7647 – Bukhara – Semurg Hotel
The return trip begins. We retrace the road we took on the way there, with the same potholes and dips. First, though, we stop with the campers in front of the most important mausoleums and madrasas for one last photo with our vehicles in the foreground. The first problem of the day is refueling with diesel. After several stations with no fuel, we find it on the black market: people with jerrycans in their car trunks who, on top of that, cheat when pouring the contents into the tanks—they pretend to pour and after a few liters take the jerrycan back to the car still almost full, making it seem they emptied it. We noticed almost right away, and after a small argument they filled the two who were cheating and then said they had run out of diesel.
Further on we found others using the same system, but, remembering the previous ones, we emptied their jerrycans into ours and then into our tanks, so as to be sure of the quantity. 40 liters cost me $22. In this case too, the guide, who yesterday should have looked for a safe refueling point as promised, didn't do it, making us waste two hours searching for fuel. Since tomorrow we have a long road ahead with the uncertainty of refueling at a station in Bukhara, we filled not only the tank but also the jerrycans, and here too there was another swindle: the fuel was dispensed from a pump with a meter that cheated. 80 liters (fake) cost me $22. A stop at a bazaar to stock up on various foodstuffs, then we returned for the night to the same hotel as on the way there, the Semurg Hotel, where I immediately did water.
Woman in golden dress and traditional headdress on a Tashkent sidewalk
Day 1030 Sep 2005
388/8035 – Mary – on the road
The border is 100 km away. We lose a lot of time on customs procedures. We pay the camper tax again in $99. In these countries propped up by the bureaucracy left over as an inheritance from the communist regime, this practice was predictable. We have lunch right after the border,
Continues in "Samarcanda 2005" Part Six
Trucks and containers lined up at the Turkmenistan-Uzbekistan border crossing
1 reader comments
bellissime foto!