May 28 Twenty hours on the train from Mashhad to Isfahan.

Interesting trip! There was a group of 9 other Aussies on a similar trip to us so we all compared notes. 

We dashed passed lots of cultivated land standing in stark contrast to the dryness of the surrounding land and mountains.

A fascinating village with lush gardens and curious looking mounds behind. We never did discover what they were.

The countryside was an ever changing vista. Through wheat fields, grazing goats and sheep, barren stretches, ‘jump ups’ in the flat plains much like central Australia. Much of this was seen through a soft orange filter caused by rain clouds and dust. The effect was extraordinary! 

As the light faded the sky became the colour of the underside of young mushrooms with smudges of fading blue clouds. As the sky darkened to purple, the gibbous moon became a soft butter pink.

Our wonderful guide in Mashhad had made sure we got on the train alright and spoke to the steward about our sole use of the cabin, but seems another group decided they were sharing our cabin. Got sorted but not until after they’d eaten and drunk the treats the train steward had set out for us. In the end, the train was quite adequate. And fortunately we could charge our devices. 

Our introduction to Isfahan. Quite the modern metropolis.

A rough sleep broken by an early dawn and we were creeping ever closer to the ancient town of Isfahan the capital of Persia from the late C16 to C18th. 

[To see my pix of this please go to www.flickr.com/photos/hwheat8pix/  and go to Albums and find ‘Mashhad to Isfahan’. 

Or go to Facebook.com/heather.wheat.925]

May 26 Mashhad - first stop the Bathhouse Museum

What an amazing place!  Mahdi Quli Beq, a Turkish Amir (leader) of Khorasan in C11th bequeathed this bathhouse and other properties to the Holy Shrine of Imam Reza, where we’re heading next. 

We wandered through a small street bazaar to teach the Bathhouse. Quite intriguing.

The bathhouse is now a museum and is beautifully restored with well labeled exhibits including samovars, clothing, washing implements and cosmetics. It also houses a rather special photographic exhibition of traditional crafts and artisans at work. 

The walls and ceilings are painted with images depicting contemporary stories of those times. These are many layers thick as the humidity impacted the stucco and colours. 

Quite beautiful and lovingly maintained.

Frescos like this adorned walls and ceilings. These frescoes and mosaics were touched up as the humidity impacted over time. 

The building comprised many rooms with different uses including an open area containing a huge blue pool for the young women to play in when the men weren’t around - there were separate access times for the men and women. Under the floor at one end of the house was brick lined room called a Stockehold, basically the furnace room, which provided heating for the walls and various pools and baths via copper trays (Tians) throughout the building. A brilliant design. 

Then we headed next door to the Holy Shrine. 

This is the Stockehold a gigantic furnace which heated the whole bathhouse. The chimney and drafts are on the back wall. Ingenious design.

Some of the clothing and footwear which would have been worn to the Bathhouse. 

[To see my pix of this please go to www.flickr.com/photos/hwheat8pix/  and go to Albums and find ‘Bathhouse museum’. 

Or go to Facebook.com/heather.wheat.925 ]

May 26 Sacred places full of glitter and colour

Lindsay, our guide and the Shrine guide waiting for me to cover up. 

In case you’re wondering I didn’t buy one! Underneath I’m wearing all my clothes including long sleeved shirt and head scarf. It was rather warm!  

The women who helped we struggle into my garb were lovelynand we all giggled a lot at my clumsiness. 

The Holy Shrine of Imam Reza is a city within a city and covers a huge area; non-Moslem are allowed in the outside areas and some buildings. Women must wear a chador and didn’t I look fetching in my mauve print number. [Next time you complain about ‘hat hair’ think veil/headscarf hair!]. I have a chuckle when I see poking out below many of those modest black cloaks of invisibility, flashy shoes, maybe green patent leather platform soles with studs, and a glimpse of eyelash extensions fringing head scarves. Hmmmm! 

Acres of tiled courtyards which could hold a couple of million people. 

We weren’t allowed into the holy places. Here people are removing their shoes before entering to pray. 

However....... Within the complex of the Haram - a series of sacred precincts, we wondered through quite dazzling courtyards many still being built and covered in brilliantly coloured ceramic tiles. We also visited a couple of the museums housed within the complex - the carpet museum which was quite impressive and the collection of precious  gifts mainly from other countries. Overwhelmingly opulent!

The glitter in here was dazzling. It is the entrance to a huge mosque which we were allowed to walk through. It was pray time and I felt like I was imposing on precious time. The atmosphere was electrifying, overwhelming and humbling. 

There are many museums within the Shrine complex. We visited the multi level carpet museum and ogled at rich carpets dated back into antiquity. 

Lastly we walked through an underground area, glittering with gold and mirrored walls, columns and ceiling, in which people were praying. We had arrived at one of the appointed prayer times and it was a moving experience watching and listening to what seemed like a sea of people murmuring en mass; the women at the back a blanket of black quite touching. I feel a certain connection with the women; it comes through their looks and smile as I pass - ah, the sisterhood! They have it rather tough here. 

Our gentle guide took us through hill villages to give us a panoramic view over the valley that cradles Mashhad. 

Our day ended with a relaxing drive out into the countryside. The next day we were to board a train for Isfahan. 

[To see my pix of this please go to www.flickr.com/photos/hwheat8pix/  and go to Albums and find ‘Holy Shrine’. 

Or go to Facebook.com/heather.wheat.925 ]

May 26  Mashhad - first stop the bathhouse museum!

What an amazing place!  Mahdi Quli Beq, a Turkish Amir (leader) of Khorasan in C11th bequeathed this bathhouse and other properties to the Holy Shrine of Imam Reza, where we’re heading next. 

The bathhouse is now a museum and is beautifully restored with well labeled exhibits including samovars, clothing, washing implements and cosmetics. It also houses a rather special photographic exhibition of traditional crafts and artisans at work. 

The walls and ceilings are painted with images depicting contemporary stories of those times. These are many layers thick as the humidity impacted the stucco and colours. 

The building comprised many rooms with different uses including an open area containing a huge blue pool for the young women to play in when the men weren’t around - there were separate access times for the men and women. Under the floor at one end of the house was brick lined room called a Stockehold, basically the furnace room, which provided heating for the walls and various pools and baths via copper trays (Tians) throughout the building. A brilliant design. 

Then we headed next door to the Holy Shrine. 

[To see my pix of this please go to www.flickr.com/photos/hwheat8pix/  and go to Albums and find ‘Bathhouse museum’. 

Or go to Facebook.com/heather.wheat.925 ]

May 25. Mountains, vales and veils!

All too soon it was time to leave Turkmenistan and head for Iran, but I would happily return - there is so much more to see from the shores of the Caspian in the west to Afghanistan in the east, from Uzbekistan in the north to Iran in the south. Ruins, deserts, mountains and millennia of history. But to the present  ....

Kopet-Dag Mountain Range

The border region between Turkmenistan and Iran is mountainous and beautiful, made all the more so by recent rain which has created a green fuzz across the ranges softening rocky outcrops here and there. Apparently there are wolves, hyenas and jackals, goats, antelope and other small animals living in the Kopet-Dag Mountain Range. At one point a couple of antelope peered down from a high cliff watching as we passed  by. Sadly we were not allowed to photograph here, but it is imprinted on our minds. Multiple checkpoints didn’t spoil our enjoyment of the relatively short, 40-odd km drive to the Turkmenistan-Iran border control.

The border crossing went as border crossing go! Nobody likes them - endless waits, seemingly pointless searches, etc, so I won’t say another word on the subject except to say that I had to don a headscarf and cover myself.  I put on a long-sleeved shirt packed for the occasion. It was a bit hot - phew! but what can you do? All the officials were very curteous. Here we were met by the first of a number of guides who were to look after us as we travelled through Iran. 

Soon we were through the official business and on our way driving further into these spectacular mountains with multicoloured, twisted strata, and monstrous shards of rock projected into the sky, softened in many places by a fine green velvet fuzz. Magnificent and awe-inspiring!  The strata and colours in the rocks were fascinating. I could have spent hours taking photos and pondering the forces that had created such wonderful patterns.  Incidentally, most of these photos were taken through the dirty back-seat window of our chaff-cutter car hammering along the road. 

Stunning multicoloured, twisted strata,

Through the mountains and out into the valleys on the Iranian plateau

And then we were descending into a broad string of valleys with a brief stop on the way at an isolated village ‘hole in the wall’ for a glass of sheep's milk doogh, a traditional Persian yogurt drink - a slightly salty taste.

Here and there vivid red poppies and forget-me-nots nodded in greeting as we passed - so beautiful in their simplicity. In the distance I thought I could see a tinge of red in the valley spreading into the foothills. That tinge turned into a veritable blanket of red!  The recent rain had stirred a miriad of poppies to bloom. Heavenly!  I kept thinking of the poem ‘In Flanders fields the poppies blow, between the crosses ....... ‘. Of course we stopped and took a mass of photos. And just like at home when the canola crops flower creating dense blankets of yellow, this splendid display brought quite a few people out to take selfies in the blood-red fields. So beautiful! The poppies were lined up in rows as if they had been planted, but no. These gorgeous things seem to pop up unbidden in tilled or disturbed soil - along the furrows. That together with the rain and they exploded into glorious bloom. 

I was intrigued by the variety of blooms at my feet when we stopped - poppies of course, but euphorbia, forget-me-nots, lupin, ‘Salvation Jane’ and more. The colours were just lovely. It was a delightful drive.

Top L: euphorbia, R: something like ‘Salvation Jane’. Bottom L: poppy R: lupin,

We were heading for Mashhad in Khorasan, an historic province in the northeast region in the Iranian Plateau and our first short stop on the way was a small town. Here I had my first experience of country Iranian toilets. I learnt to forever after, look for the disabled cubicles. Otherwise I might have ended up 'disabled' - if you get my drift! Risky business! 

Our first town in northeast Iran

And then we arrived in Mashhad and checked into our hotel, the Saman Hotel where the staff were very helpful and friendly. Remember that we had arrived during Ramadam which had a number of implications including dining - we had room service!  That afternoon our very obliging guide took us out to buy a SIM for my phone so we could access the internet. 

Samen Hotel

On the streets, in the hotels, everywhere there are scurrying, billowing black figures. Some of the younger women wear shorter, coloured and patterned veils, but it is predominantly full-length black - at least here in Mashhad where the temperature was in the mid-30s. Of course the men were sensibly wearing short sleeved, open neck shirts! Hmm ... but as they say ‘when in Rome ‘. Heat exhaustion is just not a consideration .... for the women. Poor things. How many days are we here? Oh dear ..... 

May 24 Darvaza and the Door to Hell

Almost 300km north of Ashgabat through the Karakum Desert - which incidentally makes up 70% of Turkmenistan - past camels wandering haughtily along the road in pairs, alone or in small family groups completely oblivious to traffic; past small flocks of multicoloured goats and long haired sheep; past villages built on sand; and through sand dunes reminiscent of Australia. Past expanses of water which was such a surprise in this arid place. This water is part of the drainage system from further south where they collect the run off from irrigated fields and pipe north to the desert against a future need.

This village is very slowly being buried in sand

The water is slightly salty but in a bad year would be very welcome

Almost 300km along a bone-shaking road through the vast Karakum Desert only to then go off-road along an even bumpier 8 km drive through sand dunes. But then we came upon it, our destination, a huge burning crater! Known as the Door to Hell or Gates of Hell, but officially it is called the Shining of Karakum. This is natural gas perhaps oil territory!

Before we got there we stopped at two small craters - one a flooded mine with gas still fizzing to the surface and the other a crater of plopping mud and fire. The wonders of this part of the world - just amazing!! 

L: gas fizzed up through the water. R: plopping mud pushed up by gas leaks and burning gassy earth

The Shining of Karakum or Door to Hell - it is awesome

It is a very big crater - with no safety barriers!

Whatever the reason for this phenomenon, it is mighty impressive. This is a natural gas site that went wrong the end result being a crater of continuously burning gas, flames licking and leaping out of rocks, rubble, earth and sand, blackening and scorching the sides of the crater. Hundreds of small natural gas fires illuminate the floor and rim of the crater. Some local geologists have claimed that the collapse of a crater happened in the 1960s and was set on fire only in the 1980s to prevent the emission of poisonous gases into the air. Others assert that the site was drilled by Soviet engineers in 1971 as an oil field but it collapsed within days, forming the crater, with the engineers choosing to flare the crater to prevent the emission of poisonous gases but they underestimated the volume of the gas. Whatever the explanation it is truly awesome in the extreme! Billowing heat rising skyward in a wall of shimmering heat-haze searing, scorching from metres away.  A great gaping hole of fire and searing heat in the middle of nowhere. I got as close as I dared but when the wind changed direction slightly it was enough to singe your eyebrows.

Lindsay dared go very close trying to get the ulyimate photo of Hell!

A desolate place but rather magical in the particular way that vastness and isolation can create. Silence but for the sound of wind rushing past your ears or the roar of fire close to the crater where jagged edges draw you hypnotically closer to peer into the fires of Hell. It generates that shuddering feeling of fear and riveting fascination simultaneously - mesmorising. And do you know they found life down there in the hellish centre! Have a look on YouTube National Geographic channel, search for Crater of Hell or Darvaza or Turkmenistan (I don’t have access at the moment). 

A simple BBQ but with million dollar views over the desert .....

A great place for a BBQ - simple but with million dollar views over the desert!  And of course we did just that or should I say our guide and driver prepared one for us while we wandered in the desert. We ate later in a cozy yurt. There is a camp near the crater with 6 yurts and there are even toilets and showers.  While our meal was being prepared Lindsay followed pippets fluttering and bobbing along the ground while I fossicked around looking at desert vegetation - small tufts of feathered grass, a desert herb with pretty creamy-green flowers, desert ‘dog’ or rat burrows and other stuff which caught my eye. We had plenty of time because we were staying late so we could see the crater as the sunset and the sky became dark.  

Absolutely breathtaking and terrifying - magnificent!

As the sky darkened the glow intensified. Absolutely awe-inspiring and terrifying - magnificent! Of course staying late meant that we didn't get back to town until after midnight rather shattered because of the hour but also because of the bone-jarring roads (which we are accustomed to of course but .......). What a day it had been! Our heads were abuzz so sleeping proved difficult as images kept flashing before our eyes. 

Central Asia and the Caspian region represents the most concentrated mass of untapped wealth in the world. It is worth a visit! As a matter of interest we have managed to do this trip thanks to our wonderful travel agent, Bev Edwards, working with Sundowners Overland and the local agent in Turkmenistan, Ayan Travel - if you come you should ask for Atu as your guide. He is a walking encyclopaedia and a delightful attentive ambassador. 

Next stop over the border to Mashhad, Iran ....... 

May 24 Old Nisa Dynastic Sanctuary of the Parthian Kings

The Parthian Fortress of Nisa

Dating back to C3 BC, Nisa was the capital of the Parthians and that was also once part of the empire of Alexander the Great who referred to it as Antiochia. The site is reputed to be the royal necropolis of the Parthian Kings. Today the archaeological site of Old Nisa is UNESCO World Heritage listed. The fortress city was surrounded by walls, now in ruins, and inside those walls were large depressions which were used for water catchment. The whole site is nestled at the base of that great dividing range, Kopet Dag Mountain Range, which we have been following and through which we will drive tomorrow into Iran. The ideas, the history, the location - it is staggering and leaves the mind spinning.  We walked up many steps to arrive at the top of the now crumbled city walls - and there it was before us! Thanks to Sundowners Overland and the local travel agency, Lindsay and I were very fortunate to have a private tour led by one of the key local archaeologists who took us through most of what had been excavated. It was fantastic, mind-blowing - very special. We felt very priveleged.

An ancient water catchment area surrounded the fortress-  must have looked stunning when filled!

Kopet Dag Mountain Range with Iran on the other side 

Our archaeologist guide, his skin burnt to a rich chestnut after being out in the blazing sun for decades on this dig, had marvellous stories to relate (Atu, our guide translated for us). All the treasures have been taken to the museum for safekeeping but we found piles of mostly terracotta shards. I would loved to have scrounge but ..... Most of the structures are built of mudbrick but the columns were made of baked brick for obvious reasons. The mud bricks used to rebuild some of the structures are made from the surrounding earth washed down by rain over the years from the walls and structures of Nisa. 

Our guide, an archaeologist who had worked decades on this site

We walked through the depressions/water catchment areas now dry piutside the fortress walls

In the dry ground we found poppies and wild caper plants, and a tortoise ambled across our path 

Mud bricks made from eroded walls are used to rebuild structures

One of the old columns being restored

Lots of wonderful tumbles of broken pieces of history. Look how these two pieces join

Much has been washed away over the millennia

It was a wonderful morning but we had to curtail our visit because we were to drive north to a wild and astonishing place ....

May 24 Ashgabat - amazing!

Ylym (or Atom) Monument dedicated to scientific discovery

It would take volumes to describe what we saw and learned in our brief visit to Turkmenistan. So, just briefly - me, brief? I’ll try.  From the ancient cities of the Merv complax to Ashgabat, the capital which is almost beyond belief. We did a tour of this quite eye-popping city most of which was rebuilt after it was levelled and the population decimated by an earthquake in 1948. Now rebuilt, it is a city of shimmering white and gold - all the buildings are either built of or clad with white ‘stone’.  It is said that Ashgabat has the highest concentration of white marble buildings. It certainly looked like it! The monuments are stupendous, all shining and sparkling new. This is a modern, new-built city whose currency is natural gas and 'white gold' AKA cotton.  Cotton was introduced by the Soviets into Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan: a practice which almost drained the Aral Sea but which is a valuable crop. 

Turkmenistan gained independence in 1991 and then gained status as a Neutral Country from the UN in 1995. And of course there’s a towering arched Neutrality Monument of white and gold reaching over 100m into the sky and towering against the stunning backdrop of the imposing Kopet Dag Mountains which mark its border with Iran. These mountains were born of tectonic activity eons ago. 

The gold figure on top once rotated following the the position of the sun.

You ascend the Monument in a glass-walled lift to stunning panormaic views

The Neutrality Monument is set in stunning grounds set out in geometric symetry

As well as the Neutrality Monument, which was relocated from the centre of the city some time ago, we drove past or visited many of the monuments.  We oggled and marvelled. We ascended the Neutraliy tower for a magnificent panoramic view. The landscaping around the tower is quite stunning in its geometric symmetry albeit still in relative infancy. Also we drove past the imposing Statue of the President Arkadag mounted on a golden horse riding a white marble wave!  The Yyldyz swanky hotel and many luxury apartment complexes.  All are elaborate and glittering but are somewhat topped by the Palace of Happiness or Wedding Palace which has amongst other 'essential' luxury spaces, three wedding halls two of which hold 500 guests and one that has the capacity to seat 1000 guests. The Turkmanistani people know how to celebrate in style! 

The wedding palace - the Palace of Happiness

Yyldyz Hotel

Statue of President Arkadag

Most the building and monements are symbolic. A new 5-star hotel in the shape of a flame - I'm not sure the symbolism of that, perhaps money from gas.  The design of Government buildings reflects their purpose. For example the Department of Medicine is in the shape of a cobra. The gas and fuel building is in the shape of a cigarette lighter - even though smoking is banned!

Bronze and gold statues of Turken leaders at the base of the monument to Independence

This is the monument to Independence

Poor angle but this is the Medical building built in the shape of a cobra

Eternal mother blessing all those who went to war (I think!)

The War Memorial

A monument to the victims of war and the earthquake. A child on top represents the esident who lost his mother in the earthquake

Turkmenbashi Ruhy Mosque

There are more sober monuments and space such as the Halk Hakydasy Memorial Complex which honours the victims of the Great Patriotic War and the devastating 1948 earthquake in Ashgabat.  The war memorial - I don't recall which war but perhaps the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945.  And topping these huge edifaces is Turkmenbashi Ruhy Mosque one of the largest in Central Asia - it has space for 20,000 people.  Nestled beside it is a mausoleum for Saparmurat Niyazov, leader of Turkmenistan from 1985 to 2006.

It is all thoroughly exhausting but mighty impressive and just in case you missed the other amazing monuments and palaces, in the centre of most roundabouts there are rather stunning artworks!

(Through the car window)

While its capital is a modern metropolis, Turkmenistan has emerged from a complex and very ancient history. From Parthians, Sogdians, Aryans, Zoroastrians and many epochs of domination including Alexander the Great, Genghis Khan and Timur. It is a real melting pot and this is reflected in the faces of people who have as their ancestors Persians, Greeks, Arabs, Mongols and course Turkmen. Their language is based on Turkic, a language which forms the basis of many languages across much of the area including Turkey (which also had a finger in the pie at some point). 

I can’t leave Ashgabat without telling you about Nisa ..... more anon ....