CAMPING by a 2500 YEAR OLD FORT in UZBEKISTAN! - The Way Overland - Episode 77

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In this episode we leave behind the ‘Fredericks’ and our desert camp and once again begin the drive northbound.

We drive through the huge, open, dry expanses, over varying quality of roads until we reach our destination for the night, Ayaz Kala. Ayaz Kala is a complex of three forts and one of the largest Kala (fortress) of the ancient Khwarazm. Several of the other forts in the region have received a level of restoration of late providing a more polished appearance. We were attracted to these forts as they have been left as is, showing the raw effect of the ravages of time . Gives you the feeling you’re discovering it for the first time!

We found our way around the back of the highest fortress (owning the elaborate title of ‘Ayaz Kala 1’), along a rough track, and found an amazing spot to camp in the shadow of the 10m high 2400 year old walls. The fortress sits atop a hill approximately 100m high, providing an incredible view of the surrounding plains, Kyzylkum Desert, and Ayaz Kala 2 and 3. We explored the remnants of the huge Ayaz Kala 1 (AK1) compound in the cool afternoon temps before sitting to enjoy watching the sunset and the sky shift through different shades of pastel as night fell.

The next day after a hearty breakfast, we set off to explore the lower fort we had been looking over, Ayaz Kala 2. The elevation of the forts cause an escalation of the dry desert winds up the slopes, providing a welcome relief from the temps which were hovering around the low 40s (degC). Ayaz Kala 2 was built several centuries after AK1 and is said to have been a palace with residential quarters, ceremonial halls with ceilings, a Zoroastrian fire temple, all luxuriously decorated with wall paintings. Perhaps due to a language barrier we had thought it was still possible to enter part of the palace though the roof is now only accessible. We could still gain a good understanding of the palace layout and room sizes while walking over the sunken roof, of which was providing a nice sunning place for a rather shy occupying snake.

The road from Ayaz Kala to Nukus followed the Amu-Darya, passing continually from desert to lush green farm fields. We were heading for an area just to the South of Nukus we had found on Google that looked like it had access down to the river. Due to Turkmen visa restrictions we could not cross the border for several more days so the river side camp would provide a good spot to catch up on some videos. Heading down some overgrown tracks we found a nice spot, in a semi open area, right next to the fast flowing river, and tried to escape the high 40degC temps by tucking under some trees. The next morning we found we weren’t the only ones making use of this river location. Hundreds of camels made an unannounced arrival just after breakie, much to Jolie’s joy. These ‘ships of the desert’ are farmed for meat in these regions and the local herders had brought the flock down for a cool off in the river. Through the language barrier the herders generously offered for us to go for a ride on their horses, and insisted we take photos with them. Living a relatively simple life with limited technology, access to such western privileges like the internet was not an option for them. We discovered that one of their phones had a removable SD card so we were able to transfer the photos onto that, of which they were very happy about!.

Our time restrictions on the Turkmenistan passage had come to an end so we stocked up on supplies in Nukus and headed for the border. Between Nukus and the border lay an another ancient fort, Gyara Kala. The day was getting on so we decided to stay here for the night and cross the border the following day. Gyara Kala translates to “the fortress of infidels”, a name given to the 2400 year old fort by the Arabs who conquered the region in the beginning of the 8th century. The Arabs, being Muslim, gave it this name as the inhabitants were Zoroastrian. There has been evidence of the ancient religion of Zoroastrianism throughout our journey in the Stans even back to Western India. It is one of the worlds oldest continually practised religions and is integral to Uzbekistan’s, as well as Central Asia’s history. We took a walk through the ancient passage ways of the fortress before setting up on top of one of old crumbling walls to watch an incredible sunset over the fort. A great end to another great country.

That’s it for our time in Uzbekistan, and a little history lesson for this part of Central Asia! (Hope you managed to stay awake!) Catch the next one where cross Turkmenistan.

Thanks for watching!

Jolie and Mark

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