Subject: Re: Silk Road Rehabilitation
From: Heather Clark (afp@astel.kz)
Date: Thu Nov 18 1999 - 13:37:09 EST
> (1) the objective absurdity of the borders and their negative impact on
> travel, the economy and the quality of life in the Valley, and (2) the
> absence of anything like a hotel suitable for travelers, let alone
tourists,
> in those four cities (with the partial exception of Khujand).
David,
I have to agree with you 100 percent! I, too, just returned from a trip to
these cities and thought I would come down with pneumonia from the freezing
cold hotels. The administrators of these state-owned hotels do all they can
to discourage travelers to stay there, but when asked if they know of any
private apartments with some wood-stove heating, they refuse to tell you.
At the very least, they could put a space heater in the rooms, which is
what many locals do. Aggravating!!!
Also, if I ever see another Uzbek border guard in my lifetime it will be
too soon! We were stopped every half hour traveling from Tajikistan across
Kyrgyzstan to Andizhan. At one post at Sokh the guards stood around and
laughed as their colleague made me remove my coat and lift up my sweater in
freezing temperatures because the snap on my jeans had set off his metal
detector. This search had nothing at all to do with security but was all
about power. At other guard posts, we were forced to undergo 30 minutes of
'questioning' with bored guards who had nothing better to do before they
would let us go.
If Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan really want to attract tourists as they say,
they need to put a stop to this sort of behavior among border guards and to
provide at least minimal facilities for travelers.
Just my thoughts!
Heather
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