The old car in the hotel foyer with New Zealand sponsorship all over it. It belongs to three young Kiwis who are doing the Mongol rally which is driving old and cheap cars from Europe to Mongolia. Later another 6 Kiwis arrive. It appears about 60 Kiwis are entered in the rally this year. We have a great time talking to the six at the hotel and sharing stories and tips about travel in the region. Note to self - must persuade” Davies of Arrowtown” to enter his car in the Mongol rally next year - it will easily pass the low value and clapped out test by then!
Now the last leg to the Caspian Sea We leave Ashgabat on the crack of dawn, again to try to beat some of the late afternoon heat.
And pass the famous book building. I do feel like we have turned a new page in our journey !
The trip takes us thru what is to be quite frankly 420 km of quite a lot of not a lot
We stop to get petrol. Doing the maths on the bowser price shows the petrol is New Zealand 20 cents per litre! Yes, there isn’t a typo. 20 cents per litre!
This is a country with 30 % of the worlds gas reserves. Plus oodles and oodles of oil. But it is more than that. To keep his subjects happy as well as providing dirt cheap petrol the el presidento also gives a free allocation of electricity and gas to each household per month. Plus subsidised housing and free housing for large families. Plus the tax rate is only 5% and there is no sales tax. To keep this all of these benefits of subsidised living all the good people of Turkmenistan have to do is to vote for el presidento at election time which is made very easy as the Presidential pattern here is to president for life. When you see the size and magnificence of the Presidential Palace you understand why. It certainly puts Buckingham Palace to shame.
Anyway back to the road. It is hot, flat and boring. The temperature gauge on the bike touches 40 degrees
Yes, I know the picture below is a photo of a camel. But it was the most interesting sight for 300 km !
We get to the town of Balkanabat where we stop for the night. Then next day it is a short hop to Turkmenbashi which is our seaport on the Caspian Sea. Here it is at last. It does seem like a milestone to finally see it.
We go out to a lovely dinner with our guide and driver. Our boat is in the background somewhere. But dear reader the joys of getting on it are the subject of almost a seperate blog. But we will tack it on to this one
Now here is the next chapter
JUST A’CRUISIN ON THE CASPIAN SEA
A SEAFARERS SAGA
First we cannot get any information on when the boat might sail, when tickets will go on sale and will there be any tickets available. We are told the boat might go tonight, tomorrow, tomorrow night or the next day.
Then in the following morning we hear the ticket office is open. We go down and join a throng of stroppy Turkmenistan truck drivers also waiting for tickets. We wait and hour and a half. The woman is in the air conditioned office. We are in stifling corridor heat. Then suddenly the office woman decides it is time for lunch. Off she goes. An hour later we queue again. Three and a half hours long hours later we finally get our tickets. It is a portent of things to come!
We go back to the hotel. We are told we might get a call anytime in the night to get ready for loading. That does not happen. At 9.30 am we go to the offices. Diana goes off as a foot passenger. I go from office to office collecting bits of paper , stamps, paying fees for this and that. At 10.30 am me and the Redhead are allowed into a sealed compound where the trucks are waiting
Then the fun starts. No one speaks a single word of English. Thru sign language no one can tell me how long to boarding time.
So I wait. And wait, And wait, And wait, And wait, And wait , And wait, And wait, And wait And wait And then I wait some more.......
For seven and a half long and tedious hours I wait. There is no water, no food , no toilets. It is 36 degeees in the shade. What do I do about no toilets! Don’t ask !
So this is my seat for seven and a half hours. I learn every weld mark amd every imperfectation
Here is how a typical hour goes
2,00 pm Have self rationed 250 ml swig of warm water
2. 15 pm. Walk around bike clockwise
2.30 pm. Stretch both legs
2,45 pm. Observe shadow movement on the paving stones
3,00 pm. Repeat hourly cycle another three times
Here below is the shadow pattern I study. Do you know - and this is riveting stuff - that every hour the rate of movement of the suns shadow actually speeds up. I feel as of I am right up there with Ptolemy and Galileo in terms of break through intellectual and astronomical observations. Can you see my markers on the slabs?
6. 30 pm comes round. Suddenly there is movement. I get waved through a cursory customs inspection. Then passport control. Just on 7.00 pm and dusk I ride on to the boat nine and a half hours after starting the boarding process. And you might think the Interislander ferry loading process was slow? All up boarding has taken 12 and a half hours of waiting The boat is full so it is now going to sail, right ? Wrong ! The boat sails we think at some early hour the following morning
Fast forward now to the following morning. We talk to a young American traveller. He befriended three Japanese girls. After boarding the boat after dinner last night he and the three girls get invited to the Captains cabin for drinks. For drinks read some vodka drinking. The Captain and the Chief Engineer drink vodka. Bear in mind this is all after the ship is loaded and ready to sail. Through google translate the Captain enquires of the girls age and their marital status. He asks if they want to use his shower facilities . My goodness me. It is all a bit bizarre if not surreal and somewhat worrying. I am glad I did not know about it last night
As sun rises I walk the deck. The sun is just rising
I am relieved to see that the rising sun in the East is directly behind us. I deduce therefore that we are going due West . Given the Captains vodka drinking habits that is somewhat of a relief !
And finally I also note as I walk that our boat is currently 27 metres below normal sea level. On most boats that would be a very big problem. Got it ? Yes, the Caspian Sea is 27 meters below normal sea level so we are OK I certainly did not know the level of the Caspian Sea before
And don’t ask me if Princess cruise boats call in at Baku !
And thus after our little cruise holiday on the Caspian we prepare to arrive in Baku in Azerbaijan sometime this afternoon ( we think !)
Comments