World Nomad Games in Kyrgyzstan: An Olympics for Nomadic Cultures If you were following my Facebook Page or Instagram in 2014, you’ll have undoubtedly seen a flood of images from old-school portraits to crazy sporting events, all from one very specific and amazing event: The World Nomad Games 2014. Hosted by Kyrgyzstan and featuring teams from […]
Turkmenistan
Darvaza Gas Crater: A Quick Trip to Hell
A quick trip to the gate of Hell, anyways. Somewhere out in the deserts of Turkmenistan in 1971, Soviet scientists made a bit of a blunder. In the process of drilling a natural gas well, they tapped into an underground cavern and released an unmanageable amount of the stuff. Attempting […]
Ruins of Merv: the 12th Century Mother of the World
Ruins of Merv: The 12th Century Mother of the World Ancient beyond ancient, the ancient of Mary was a known settlement as far back as 500 B.C. as part of a Satrapie under the Persian ruler Darius (yes, of 300 fame). Well beyond that, though, the city was also later […]
Ashbagat’s Tolkuchka Bazaar
Anybody who has been reading this site for a while will already know that I’m a bit on the obsessed side with bazaars and markets around the world. Not only for the sweet headgear opportunities, but also because they’re just such generally picturesque and atmospheric places that tend to make […]
Ruins of Konye-Urgench
En route from Ashgabat and the Darvaza Gas Crater to the Uzbek border and Khiva is one of Central Asia’s saddest historical sites and most poignant memories: the ruins of Konye-Urgench. With the dubious honor of being one of the bloodiest massacres in human history, Genghis Khan’s destruction of Konye-Urgench […]
Modern Marble Ashgabat
Modern shiny new Ashgabat doesn’t play around. Remember that moment in Sim City 2000 when everything was in perfect order, just before the option to build Arcologies opened up? Well, I never got there because I always used the Urban Renewal Kit to cheat my way to megalopolis. Still, though, […]