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Have any of y'all visited Uzbekistan?
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Date: September 21st, 2014 1:06 PM Author: Maniacal Brunch Mostly interested in seeing Samarkand, would also likely fly into/out of Tashkent. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=2680157&forum_id=2,5#26367338) |
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Date: September 21st, 2014 1:09 PM Author: Shaky concupiscible candlestick maker there's nothing interesting in tashkent. you can skip it entirely. i saw everything i wanted in 2 hrs. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=2680157&forum_id=2,5#26367343) |
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Date: September 21st, 2014 1:11 PM Author: Maniacal Brunch That's what I was thinking. Flights are just so few to Samarkand, plus their Soviet-bloc visa policies.
Have you been to Samarkand? |
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Date: September 21st, 2014 1:17 PM Author: Shaky concupiscible candlestick maker take the train to samarkand. it's easy and cheap.
been to samarkand/bukhara/khiva. i liked samarkand the best of the 3. i didnt think any of this shit was the most fascinating shit i've ever seen. |
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Date: September 21st, 2014 1:18 PM Author: Maniacal Brunch Fair enough, but the architecture in Samarkand is fascinating to me. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=2680157&forum_id=2,5#26367395) |
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Date: September 21st, 2014 1:19 PM Author: Shaky concupiscible candlestick maker yeah, the registan and the avenue of the mausoleums are the two coolest things in UZ. both really impressive. the rest of it gets kinda old after a while. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=2680157&forum_id=2,5#26367405) |
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Date: September 21st, 2014 1:20 PM Author: Maniacal Brunch I wasn't planning on a lengthy stay, figure two nights. That would give me four shots at shooting in the golden hour. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=2680157&forum_id=2,5#26367409) |
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Date: September 21st, 2014 1:27 PM Author: Shaky concupiscible candlestick maker two nights is fine. you can see the major shit in a full day. are you planning on going to bukhara / khiva too?
photography in the golden hour at the registan is kinda shitty because of the shadows. |
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Date: September 21st, 2014 1:32 PM Author: Maniacal Brunch I wasn't planning on a full tour of the country. I'm thinking of options to add on a definite trip to Kazakhstan. Figure a week in KZ, I'm looking to add a stop before and a stop or two after. Anything in Central Asia or Europe is a possibility.
Primary motivations for these added stops are photography and history. |
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Date: September 21st, 2014 1:42 PM Author: Shaky concupiscible candlestick maker i'm a wannabe photog, so i can help you there. not a huge buff of timurid history tho.
there's literally nothing in KZ, and it's expensive and logistics are difficult. KZ is pure emptiness.
you're better off spending more time in UZ b/c that's where most of the photography and history is going to be. |
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Date: September 21st, 2014 1:45 PM Author: Maniacal Brunch Oh, the KZ portion is unrelated to photography. I'll be in Almaty for a week. I will say that KZ has some amazing natural areas that rival some of the national parks we have in the Western US. They're just hard to get to and photograph, so few people know about them. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=2680157&forum_id=2,5#26367505) |
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Date: September 21st, 2014 1:48 PM Author: Shaky concupiscible candlestick maker yeah, KZ has some cool natural shit from what i've seen from pics, but it's prohibitively inaccessible and expensive for tourists to visit. KG has much better natural shit (scenery and hiking) for much cheaper than KZ.
do you *need* to be in almaty for a week? what exactly are you gonna do there? the city itself was blah. i didn't even want to waste money going out to big almaty lake. |
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Date: September 21st, 2014 1:49 PM Author: Maniacal Brunch Yes, I need to be there. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=2680157&forum_id=2,5#26367525) |
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Date: September 21st, 2014 1:51 PM Author: Shaky concupiscible candlestick maker you can even do a trip to KG from almaty, if you can get away. free visa and easy border crossing. and flights are like $60 o/w. nothing to do in bishkek, though. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=2680157&forum_id=2,5#26367535) |
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Date: September 21st, 2014 1:53 PM Author: Maniacal Brunch Yeah, I already figured that I wouldn't have much to photograph in KZ, since I can't spend the time going out into nature ... although maybe to their version of the grand canyon, that's just a few hours from Almaty ... and I've heard that there's no point in going to Astana, as it's a sterile wanna-be Dubai. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=2680157&forum_id=2,5#26367548) |
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Date: September 21st, 2014 1:55 PM Author: Shaky concupiscible candlestick maker i didn't go to astana. i had no interest. i met a couple people who went and they said it's cool to see for a few minutes just to see the architecture itself, but that's it. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=2680157&forum_id=2,5#26367559) |
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Date: September 21st, 2014 6:12 PM Author: Provocative Sooty Feces I am looking at trip with stops in Almaty and Bishkek, worth it for a few days? It looks like as of now U.S. citizens can visit Kazakhstan for up to 15 days visa free which makes it significantly more appealing to me. Would just be a few days in each on the way from Europe to Asia. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=2680157&forum_id=2,5#26368877) |
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Date: September 21st, 2014 10:01 PM Author: Shaky concupiscible candlestick maker bishkek is literally a shithole and there's absolutely nothing to do. people go to KG for the nature/scenery/hiking/outdoorsy stuff. that shit doesn't seem to be what you like to do, and you'll need a lot of time to see it.
almaty is a pretty damn russian city. there's a cute church and some nice green parks, but that's really about it.
i wouldn't go out of my way to go to either place. turkmenistan is awesome and fascinating. i'd recommend that. |
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Date: September 21st, 2014 10:04 PM Author: Provocative Sooty Feces The problem is I need somewhere in between Europe and Asia that is served on both ends by *A. I can fly into ALA from FRA and out to ICN and go from Almaty to Bishkek and back overland. I would just go to Bishkek for the weekend, I've read it's a surprisingly fun party town. It'd be winter time, so probably not the best time for nature stuff anyway. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=2680157&forum_id=2,5#26370758) |
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Date: September 21st, 2014 10:08 PM Author: Shaky concupiscible candlestick maker kashgar / western china? ulanbataar? (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=2680157&forum_id=2,5#26370800) |
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Date: September 21st, 2014 10:10 PM Author: Provocative Sooty Feces I was in Ulaanbaatar like 10 days ago, not in that much of a rush to get back. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=2680157&forum_id=2,5#26370815) |
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Date: September 21st, 2014 10:11 PM Author: Shaky concupiscible candlestick maker describe what you did and how it was. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=2680157&forum_id=2,5#26370829) |
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Date: September 21st, 2014 10:13 PM Author: Provocative Sooty Feces Saw all the stuff in town which is doable in about a day, went out into the countryside, rode horses, chilled in gers, drank some horrific local moonshine. Ulaanbaatar gets a bad rep as being ugly as fuck, but I've seen much uglier cities. Other than the traffic and the pollution it was a pretty neat place, easy to get around, pretty decent nightlife. Cheap. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=2680157&forum_id=2,5#26370849) |
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Date: September 21st, 2014 10:14 PM Author: Shaky concupiscible candlestick maker how were the girls?
did you do any safari shit in the gobi? |
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Date: September 21st, 2014 10:15 PM Author: Provocative Sooty Feces Mongolian girls not so hot. Didn't have time this trip to go to the Gobi, next time. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=2680157&forum_id=2,5#26370871) |
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Date: September 21st, 2014 1:22 PM Author: medicated boltzmann point I kinda want to tour the remains of Chkalov plant to see what the sand nigger wannabes have managed to do with it. It would probably make me cry. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=2680157&forum_id=2,5#26367415) |
Date: September 21st, 2014 1:15 PM Author: medicated boltzmann point My grandma's home attendant is from Samarkand. They get electricity for 8 hours a day and the girls are all married out by 16yo. Her husband wanted a second wife but she told him she would cut off his balls. Its Afghanistan effectively. The level of savagery is something else. Samarkand is also hugely Tajik and not Uzbek so it wont give you a flavor for Uzbekistan generally.
They won the greencard lottery but arent staying here. They work here only long enough to buy enough farm land over there to move back. The Uzbek immigrants in the US for the most part have zero desire to stay. She goes back there every 3 months. They already have a decent sized farm and 2 huge houses. They invited me to the wedding of one of their sons.
Only way I'm visiting it is at the head of a column of Soviet tanks and only to kill every last living breathing nigger there. |
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Date: September 21st, 2014 1:17 PM Author: Maniacal Brunch Spasibo, comrade. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=2680157&forum_id=2,5#26367385) |
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Date: September 21st, 2014 1:17 PM Author: medicated boltzmann point Uzbeks hate Tajiks too. Only Vlad keeps them from killing each other. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=2680157&forum_id=2,5#26367393) |
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Date: January 10th, 2015 7:42 PM Author: crusty therapy sart gibbons and slav chimps are exhibited in the same wing of the great house of primates (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=2680157&forum_id=2,5#27093603) |
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Date: September 21st, 2014 1:18 PM Author: Shaky concupiscible candlestick maker tbf, the kyrgyz are infinitely more savage than the uzbeks. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=2680157&forum_id=2,5#26367394) |
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Date: September 21st, 2014 1:19 PM Author: medicated boltzmann point Same difference. Kyrgyz are at least loyal to the empire and know when to bend the knee. Good snipers too. Uzbeks cant shoot for shit and make poor soldiers. Never was any good use for them except to grow watermelons and shit like that.
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Date: January 10th, 2015 7:43 PM Author: Laughsome flirting cruise ship LJL at this ignorant american shit.. uzbech is not afghanistan.. it gets a good amount of tourism in the summer too... its one of th eonly places i have not been in central asia and its on my list to go (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=2680157&forum_id=2,5#27093609) |
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Date: January 10th, 2015 7:46 PM Author: Provocative Sooty Feces The registan is pretty fucking impressive. I'd go back to Uzbek to see khiva, bukhara and what's left of the Aral Sea. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=2680157&forum_id=2,5#27093619) |
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Date: June 15th, 2026 9:56 PM Author: UN peacekeeper (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=2680157&forum_id=2,5#49941442) |
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Date: September 21st, 2014 1:29 PM Author: Provocative Sooty Feces sup? (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=2680157&forum_id=2,5#26367456) |
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Date: September 21st, 2014 5:26 PM Author: Maniacal Brunch Holy shit. The train from Tashkent to Samarkand costs 12,000 Som. Which is $5.09. And that's first class. Second class seating is 6,500 Som, or $2.75.
That's a four hour train ride, btw. |
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Date: September 21st, 2014 6:11 PM Author: Provocative Sooty Feces That's the slow train, there's a fast train. The problem is they often sell out and you have to show up at the station with your passport to cop DAT ticket. It might be possible to get one through a tour agency in advance though. Also no one takes cards so you need to show up with blocks of som. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=2680157&forum_id=2,5#26368874) |
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Date: September 21st, 2014 9:57 PM Author: Maniacal Brunch Found it, at least according to this site ... just two hours 10 minutes each way, the AFROSIYOB.
http://www.advantour.com/uzbekistan/trains.htm |
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Date: September 21st, 2014 10:02 PM Author: Shaky concupiscible candlestick maker i actually used advantour to buy my train tix. i highly recommend them -- reliable and professional. you're paying a $15 commission on each ticket, but as RSF said, they might sell out. i was afraid tix would sell out, and i went with them. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=2680157&forum_id=2,5#26370739) |
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Date: September 21st, 2014 10:06 PM Author: Maniacal Brunch If I do visit UZ, I'd need an invitation. Fucking CCCP-bloc rules. So yeah, it'll be easiest to go with them for that, the train, plus hotel. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=2680157&forum_id=2,5#26370771) |
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Date: September 21st, 2014 10:08 PM Author: Provocative Sooty Feces Assuming you have a U.S. passport you don't need a LOI anymore. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=2680157&forum_id=2,5#26370799) |
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Date: September 21st, 2014 10:09 PM Author: Shaky concupiscible candlestick maker correct.
you only need a LOI if you want to get your visa quickly in a foreign embassy. |
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Date: September 21st, 2014 10:09 PM Author: Maniacal Brunch For Kazakhstan, yes. But that's not what I've read for Uzbekistan. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=2680157&forum_id=2,5#26370811) |
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Date: September 21st, 2014 10:10 PM Author: Maniacal Brunch Fuck, y'all are right.
http://www.uzbekistan.org/consular/visa/us_citizens_requirements/ |
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Date: September 21st, 2014 10:11 PM Author: Provocative Sooty Feces I was in Uzbekistan in May, you don't need a LOI. Fill out your paperwork, get your money order and bring your passport to the embassy. Once you have the visa you're good to go. They didn't even look at my flight / hotel reservations. Under the new Kazakh visa pilot program launched in July, Americans can enter Kazakhstan visa free for up to 15 days per visit. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=2680157&forum_id=2,5#26370834) |
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Date: September 21st, 2014 10:14 PM Author: Maniacal Brunch Do you think I'd be good to go by waiting to get the visa until I'm in Almaty? There's an embassy there. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=2680157&forum_id=2,5#26370860) |
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Date: September 21st, 2014 10:15 PM Author: Shaky concupiscible candlestick maker absolutely not. you'd need to pay $70 for the LOI to get your visa quickly there. without the LOI, it could take a week to process, and you only have a week. what if it gets delayed or fucked up somehow? this is incompetent and lazy soviet bureaucracy. who are you gonna complain to? (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=2680157&forum_id=2,5#26370872) |
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Date: September 21st, 2014 10:21 PM Author: Maniacal Brunch I start speaking English slowly and loudly, like other Americans. But fair point. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=2680157&forum_id=2,5#26370913) |
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Date: September 21st, 2014 10:22 PM Author: Shaky concupiscible candlestick maker you'll likely be told "nyet" and have the door slammed on your face, breh (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=2680157&forum_id=2,5#26370925) |
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Date: September 21st, 2014 10:16 PM Author: Provocative Sooty Feces I have no experience with trying to COP a visa there. I like to have my visas sorted before heading out. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=2680157&forum_id=2,5#26370873) |
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Date: September 21st, 2014 10:11 PM Author: Iridescent bossy goal in life bawdyhouse does milana vayntraub poast here? (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=2680157&forum_id=2,5#26370832) |
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Date: September 21st, 2014 10:11 PM Author: Shaky concupiscible candlestick maker uuuunnnghhhh (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=2680157&forum_id=2,5#26370836) |
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Date: September 21st, 2014 10:27 PM Author: Gold Step-uncle's House (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=2680157&forum_id=2,5#26370974) |