June 28

“Do you know of any place in Samarkand that carries high-octane fuel? 91 or higher. I haven’t been able to find it anywhere”

“Yeah, this is very difficult to find in Uzbekistan”

“I don’t get it. It’s a wealthier country than Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan and I had no problem finding it there”

“Yes, well oil production is nationalized here and many people are very corrupt with distribution. You basically can only find high octane petrol at Uzbekneftegaz”

“That’s the place I went to in Jizzah to fill up! I checked literally every station in town and that was the only one that had it”

“Yes. Only go to this gas station, it is the government supplier. If you see high octane from a private gas station, it is probably not truly 91”

“What, like it’s 80 and they just use the wrong label?"

“Yeah”

“That’s fucked up”

“Yes, well…cars here only need 80 anyways”

...

June 27

“Do you invest in Bitcoin?”

“No”

“Why not?”

“Um…I don’t really understand it. I don’t like to invest in anything I don’t fully understand. And I know a lot more people who have lost money trying than I know people who’ve gotten rich from it. And I’m traveling. For Bitcoin you need to pay a lot of attention, which I don’t really have time for. You like to invest in Bitcoin?”

“Yes. I think it’s the future. Almost all the problems I can think of in our country is because of the dollar”

“The dollar?”

“Yes. I think the United States steals money from people because they like to print dollars”

“How do you mean?”

“Is it fair to say that for every 100 dollars you have, your government takes away 4 dollars because they keep printing money?”

“So you’re referring to inflation. Yes, I guess it’s a fair statement if inflation is at 4%. But it’s a stretch to say that they’re stealing from us because generally wages will re-adjust every few years to keep pace with inflation”

“Maybe in your country. But not for us. Try 2,000 percent across 5 years. And wages don’t increase like you say”

“Yeah, I saw that inflation is especially bad here. I’ve never been handed such a thick wad of bills in exchange for dollars before”

“I think Bitcoin will help solve this problem. You can trace every transaction to its source. It will end a lot of corruption. I’ll give you an example: a few years ago the former president’s daughter wanted to start her own company. So she basically asked her dad to force a bunch of smaller companies to give up money to help fund hers. There were other companies that even gave her money to get favorable treatment in the future. The telecommunications company gave her a 30 million dollar bribe. They finally tried and arrested her, but the United States wants to claim the money that was paid to her as bribe. Because they say because the money was paid in dollars illegally, the money must be taken back to the United States. You see the problem? The president’s daughter took the bribe in soms but changed the money into dollars and then hid it in a Swiss bank. But the money belongs to Uzbekistan. Bitcoin will make it much much harder for things like this to happen”

“Yeah, but Bitcoin can only work if as a common currency if everyone has internet connection”

“No, you don’t need internet all the time. I can just pay you by writing down a code on a piece of paper and then giving it to you”

“Yes, but then you need internet connection to cash it. And writing down a code doesn’t guarantee that you actually have money. People need to somehow verify that you have the funds immediately when you make a transaction, and for that you need an internet connection”

“Yes, that is a problem”

“I can see how it will help, but I think it’s a long way before everyone here has instant internet. I mean, just walking through the bazaar you can see that. Cash is still king”

“Not if it becomes more worthless every year”

...

June 24

“This is the first step where we spin the thread. These are cocoons, see? We boil them and then find the fiber and tie it to the wheel”

“There’s like…a hundred cocoons in here. You have to find the thread for each of them?”

“Yes. We have a special stick that helps look for the thread. See, she’s fishing for them right now”

“It’s literally just a stick”

“Yes, but she use to find the thread”

“Okay…”

“You understand?”

“Not really, but keep going”

“Ok, after we collect the threads, we attach them to the wheel and we spin the smaller threads to make a stronger thread”

“This is incredible”

“Here, you can feel it after it dry”

“It feels really stiff, I thought silk was usually much softer than this”

“Yes, it is. After we make the bigger thread we boil it for 5 hours to make it soft again”

“This is already too much work”

“Ah, come see. After that, we bleach and dye the threads in these tubs, see? 20 hours”

“And then?”

“Come. Here is the room where the masters paint the dye pattern onto a canvas, and then…we take them to the last step”

“Which is?”

“Here is the weaving station. Each fabric roll takes several days to weave”

“And what about the carpets?”

“For one person, sometimes a month or more”

...

June 22

“Hello. What you want?”

“Is this Valentina guest house?”

“Yes. What you like?”

“I was wondering if I can spend the night here”

“No room. Full book”

“How much is a room if it were available? I might come back tomorrow”

“Fifteen dollar”

“Ok, thanks”

“Where you go?”

“I think I’ll look for another guest houses. If not, I’m sure there’s a place to camp somewhere”

“You just one person?”

“Yes”

“I have closet with bed. Very small. You want?”

“Um…how much will it be?”

“Fifteen dollars”

“But that’s the same price as an actual room”

“Yes”

“I’ll take it”

...

June 19

“How long have you been living here?”

“All my life. And so did my father. And so did my father’s father. For 145 years my family live here”

“And what about your children? Are they planning to stay here as well?”

“No, they want to go to Moscow. All young people ever want to do nowadays is to go to Moscow”

.

.

“You American?”

“Yes”

“People from America are very nice”

“What makes you say that?”

“Many American people visit this place. They all very nice. They always like to give money”

“Haha, yeah Americans tend to be pretty generous tippers. You’ve never had an American who wasn’t nice to you?”

“No”

“Have there ever been people from certain places that aren’t so nice?”

“Only some. Not many”

“Like who?”

“Not many”

“Yes, but of those that weren’t so nice to you, where were they from?”

“Some people from France”

“I’ve heard that more than a few times”

“Always the older people who give me problem”

“What kind of problems?”

“They always complain no shower. No electricity. No wifi. They ask many thing I don’t have”

.

.

“Can I ask you a question? Do you prefer living in today’s Tajikistan or during the Soviet Union?”

“I liked it during the Soviet Union”

“What did you like about it?”

“During Soviet time, everything much cheaper. Food was very cheap. We go to market and we can buy food always. Today, I go to market and price are so much. Also, we have to work harder now. Back then we don’t need to work much. Life very easy”

“So you liked it better back then?”

“I like Soviet Union”

“Yes, but my question was did you like it better than today”

“Today…I think is better. Now is getting better. But when we changed in…”

“…1991”

“1991…everything suddenly became very difficult. No one was giving us anything anymore. Everything started to cost more money and we didn’t have any money. So my family had to work very hard. Very hard…”

“But now?”

“Now…we still work hard, but we have much more, too”

“Would you go back to Soviet times if you had the chance?”

“I don’t know”

.

.

“You can write English, yes?”

“Yes”

“Can you help me write some signs?”

“Sure, do you have paint?”

“Yes, I have. But you just write small on paper, and I look and write big on sign”

“Oh, so you just need to know what to write”

"Yes, yes"

“Um, sure. Let me just get my pen…so what do you need me to write”

“I need to write in big letters so tourist can see…’do not sit in crop’…’do not sit in lake’…’do not sit in path’…can you write me that?”

“I…I don’t know what you mean. What do you mean by ‘sit’?

“People come, they camp, they sit…very dirty”

“Wait, you mean….they use these places as a toilet?”

“Toilet. Yes toilet. They have to sit at least 20 meters away from these places”

“Oh god, that’s disgusting. Ok, sure I’ll write those”

“And 'no littering', please”

...

June 17

“Hello”

“Hello”

“What you want?”

“I was wondering how much a room here costs”

“Hotel room one person?”

“Yeah”

“200 Somoni”

“Oh…ok, thank you”

“Wait, why you go?”

“I’m sorry, it’s just way out of my price range”

“Where you stay?”

“I think there’s a guesthouse back in the village”

“No, you come stay in my home if like. 50 somoni”

“Oh that’d be amazing, thank you so much”

“Ok ok. No problem. Come in. Have dinner. Welcome”

...

June 15

“Welcome to Tajikistan. For full details on your International travel plan please contact your Account Administrator. If you need help call +1.908.559.4899. Enjoy your trip. Welcome to Afghanistan. For full details on your International travel plan please contact your Account Administrator. If you need help call +1.908.559.4899. Enjoy your trip. Welcome to Tajikistan. For full details on your International travel plan please contact your Account Administrator. If you need help call +1.908.559.4899. Enjoy your trip”\

...

June 13

“Pazhaloosta, benzin”

“You need to borrow some gas?”

“Oh, you speak English”

“Yes, you need gas?”

“Yes, just enough I can get to the next town”

“You’re trying to get to Khorog, yes?”

“Yeah, my tank’s almost empty, but I think three liters should be enough to get me there”

“You’re lucky to have found us, there aren’t any fuel stations for almost a hundred kilometers”

“Yes, I’ve noticed”

“Just wait while we drain it from the tank. Want some cola?”

“Sure, thanks so much…wait, you like RC Cola?”

“Yes”

“I haven’t seen this anywhere in the world outside the U.S. Everyone prefers Coca-Cola everywhere else”

“Oh no, RC Cola is the best. People like to drink RC more than Coca-Cola”

“You can’t be serious”

“Yes! It was the first Cola”

“The only people I know back home who drink RC are like, truck drivers”

“We’re truck drivers”

.

.

“When did you cross into Tajikistan?”

“A couple days ago, I was traveling from Osh so I went through via Sary Tash”

“Wait, you got all the way here in two days on that tiny little Yamaha?”

“Um…it could’ve been three days…no, wait. It definitely was two. I only checked into a hotel once before arriving here”

“That…that’s insane. You didn’t have any problems with the altitude?”

“I…don’t think so. Am I supposed to?”

“Yeah, usually because the atmosphere is thinner in the Pamirs, your engine can’t compress gasoline properly, so most of us have to keep running our engines or we risk stalling out. I know a lot of people who got stranded because they couldn’t start back up again”

“Wait, so THAT’s why I’ve been stalling out? I had no idea that it had to do with the altitude. I was worried that the bike was coming to the end of its lifespan”

“No, it’s definitely the altitude. So how did you make it regardless?”
“Kickstart”

“Ahhhhhh. That’s really useful to have. Most of us only have electric ignition. Still crazy you got here in only two days though”

“Yeah, what’s even crazier is how rapidly the landscape changes once you cross the border from Kyrgyzstan. One minute it’s an ocean of green, the next you’re practically on the surface of the moon. It’s so jarring. It doesn’t even make any sense, the climate can’t possibly be so different between 1km of border. The altitude is definitely the same”

“I know what you mean. I feel borders are pretty arbitrary in general, but over there nature does the job for you. It’s still a mystery to me how black and white the difference is”

...

June 06

“How much is it to rent a horse to ride up to Song Kul lake?”

“One horse is 700 som per day. Horse man is 400 som, and his horse will be 700 som. So total is 1800 som per day”

“Wait, what do you mean by horse man? You mean a guide?”

“Yes. He take care of horse. You sleep on lake. Then next day, he take horse down here. So total will be two days. 3600 som”

“I don’t think I can afford 2 horses with a guide, is there any way I can take a horse up on my own?”

“Maybe, I ask my husband”

“Ok, is there also any way I can just take the horse up to the lake and then walk down on my own so I don’t have to pay for two days rental?”

“How will the horse find its way back?”

“I…don’t know. I forgot this isn’t like renting a car"

...

June 03

“Here’s your blanket for tonight”

“Oh, thanks so much! It’s super thick”

“Yes, my father hand-stitched them himself, using wool from sheep we used to grow here”

“These were handmade?? I could’ve sworn they were factory made, the stitchwork is so straight and precise”

“It’s our national craft! Of course we’re very good at making them. Guess how many sheep it took to make this blanket?”

“I’d say seven”

“No. Fifty. You’ll be warm tonight”

.

.

“Your English sounds so American. Did you live there?”

“I did for only a year, but I learned to speak much longer before that. I went to an American school in Bishkek”

“That makes sense, where were you when you lived in the States?”

“Just a couple hours outside Chicago. You know there’s actually a large population of Kyrgyz in the Midwest. If you see any taxi driver who looks Asian there, you can be pretty confident that he’s Kyrgyz”

“I had no idea. Kyrgyz are such an obscure nationality to us…how did people respond when you told them where you were from?”

“They would just look at me and go ‘oh’ and then I would say ‘it’s in Central Asia’ and then they would say ‘oh’. They never let on that they didn’t know where it was, but you could always tell. They were nice about it though. Not many people I met could point it on a map”

“I have to admit I wouldn’t have either until a couple years ago”

...

June 02

“I love how many trees there are in the valley. They’re like the…ah, what do you call it in America when a man shaves his beard, and then the next day you can see the outline of his hair?”

“We call it 5 o’clock shadow”

“That’s what you call it? Why 5 o’clock?”

“Don’t ask me, I can’t really grow any facial hair. I think that’s just the time most men will start growing the stubbles back again”

“Okay, what I was about to say was that the trees here are like the 5 o’clock shadow of the earth”

“These trees are huge, I think it’d be better to call them a full grown beard”

“Not if you look at the earth as a whole”

“I’m pretty sure if that’s your sense of scale the earth would pretty much never grow a full length beard. Maybe we could call it the fur of the earth?”

“Yeah! It’s the fur of the earth”

“Haha, it’s quite appropriate because these trees look like fir. Fir as the fur of the earth”

“And come December, you shave them for Christmas”

.

.

“How did you arrive in Karakol?”

“By motorbike”

“You came by motorbike?”

“Yeah. It’s registered in Kazakhstan, and I crossed the border this morning”

“And…how was the ride?”

“Awful. Some of the most uncomfortable roads I’ve ever been on. I didn’t see any other bikers, I think I can see why now”

“Yeah, it’s hard even for cars. We just don’t have real roads here. But that’s okay because we have horses and horses don’t need good roads”

...