Results for "Gobi+|+112+>+171"

Bonjour à tous,

J'envisage sérieusement d'aller 2 semaines en mongolie. Je prévois d'abord de passer 2-3 jours dans la capitale avant de chercher un guide +chauffeur pour des activitées de randonnées équestres. Je cherche des personnes qui prévoient d'y aller seuls à ces dates (car j'essaierais d'y aller seul aussi), l'idéal c'est de regrouper là toutes les personnes qui souhaiteraient faire le séjour sans agence de voyage et qui ne seraient pas contre prendre du temps pour observer un peu les alentours( j'aimerais m'arreter pres d'un lac connu mais dont je ne me rappelle plus le nom).

J'avoue que les trekkings avec 1 village par jour, les gers avec plein de touristes et les circuits déjà dessinées et pré-organisés ne m'emballent pas trop.

Pour info, je suis un jeune homme de 26 ans.

J'attends vos réponses.

Cordialement les amis.

Atismon

La musique est une forme insoupconnee de langage universelle. Dans bien des pays, elle regule meme chaque evenement de la vie sociale des gens, les unifient, est omnipresente indubitablement! Au cours de votre tour du monde, dans l'idee ou vous avez avec vous le materiel necessaire, quelle musique emporteriez vous aucours de votre periple???

Ce forum permet de reccueillir les temoignages de chacuns, et qq part de vous connaitre, peut etre meme de vous reconnaitre dans cette forme tres subjective de langage, d'echange et de voyage

Laissez vos commentaires, vos impressions, et parlons en, reparlons en meme...

Qu'ecoutereiez vous face a des milliers de chameaux au portes du desert de Gobi, dans un "souk" em Inde, sur un bateau en train de traverser le pacifique, un bookin a la main, au reveil face au Macchu Picchu, ou meme actuellement en train de penser tour du monde..???

Salut les photographes ! 😉

Je prépare un voyage assez long en Russie et Mongolie et je voudrais être un peu plus éclairée quant à l'éventuel achat de pelloches n&b et couleur en Mongolie (Oulan Bator). Savez vous s'il existe un revendeur la-bas ? Quelles marques et sensibilités de films peut on trouver ? A quel prix et en quel état ?

Merci à tous de nous faire partager vos expériences... tous vos posts m'aident à préparer mon voyage avec enthousiasme, la tête pleine de rêves.

J'attend vos éventuelles infos sur le sujet de ce post ci... merci 😎

je viens d'effectuer un tour organisé en mongolie (du 1er au 15 juillet 2005), si vous avez des questions je suis à votre disposition...

salut

on vient de se faire un pure tour dans le province de bayan olgy en pays kasaks et franchement c'etait magnifique, les kasaks n'ayant rien a envier a l'hospitalite mongol.

on a fait la connaissance de Aicha une mongol parlant le francais (quel luxe) et qui habitent a Olgy. Nous avons voyager avec son beau pere et un chauffeur de sa connaissance ce qui nous a permis de sortir un des sentiers battus (et oui il y en a meme en mogolie)

donc si il y a des personnes interesses pour le contact de Aicha, faites moi signe

on se prepare pour 24h de fourgonettes direction le lac Khovsgol et de nouvelles aventures...

loic

ps: apres mures reflexion nous n'iront pas voir les tsatans, on pense qu'il vaut mieux les laisser tranquille ... faites passer le mot...

Bonjour! Nous sommes deux étudiants qui partent en Inde pour aider bénévolement. Nous savons qu'y faire mais les questions pratiques restent encore sans réponse: quel budget pour un séjour de trois à six mois avec quelques déplacements intérieurs? Etes vous déjà partis à l'arrache là-bas? Ou logiez-vous et que mangiez-vous? Un grand merci, Aurélie.

Bonjour a tous,

Nous venons d'arriver a Ulaan Bator ce jour (29/05/2005) et sommes a la recherche d'une bonne formule de voyage pour visiter la Mongolie. Nous disposons de 3 semaines a 1 mois et d'un budget routard.

Nous avons consulte les offres de quelques agences locales. Les formules qui incluent tout nous paraissent cheres : 60 000 Tg par pers par jour en moyenne / contre 25 Euros par jour par personne pour une formule a la carte n'incluant pas l'essence.

Nous aimerions avoir un retour d'experience sur ce type de voyage : est ce que ca vaut vraiment le coup de mettre plus d'argent pour une formule qui inclut tout ou est ce qu'une formule a la carte permet d'etre plus libre.

Par ailleurs, si vous avez des adresses de bonnes agences / guides on est preneurs.

Pareil pour les zones a visiter. (Gobi / Lac Hovsgol / Ouest)

Merci

bonjour,

je pars 4/5 semaines me balader en indonesie cet ete. y-a-il des risques politiques importants? quels ont les endroits a absolument eviter?

Salut à tous,

Un ami me demande : combien de temps faut-il envisager de passer en Mongolie en juillet-aout pour vraiment bien en profiter ? Les TO proposent souvent 16 ou 23 jours, mais est-ce que 2 semaines c'est suffisant ? Par ailleurs, où peut-on avoir un "concentré" des paysages mongols et de leurs variétés ? Vaut-il mieux faire un voyage nord-sud ( en gros, Gobi et Khangai ) ou un circuit est-ouest ( Ulan Baatar et Khenti jusqu'à l'Altai ) pour avoir un maximum de variété et de rencontres avec les nomades ? Enfin, quelqu'un est-il déjà parti avec un TO genre Terdav, Club Aventure, Allibert ou Nomade ? Qu'en penser ? Cela fait beaucoup de questions mais je suis preneuse de tous tuyaux.

Merci beaucoup par avance

Stéphanie

Bonjour à tous!

Je projette de partir faire une traversée de la mongolie vers l'inde a velo avec des portions en transports publics car je n'ai que 3 mois max.

Y aurait-il des connaisseurs?

Je partirai mi septembre 2005 avec un vtt. Merci de<me faire part de vos experiences!

Tchao!

Quel bonheur d'entendre aujourd'hui à 16h00, sur Europe 1, Sylvain Tesson raconter son tour du Baïkal en Moto-side car. Il est rentré début Avril et après l'avoir lu, je ne suis pas déçu de l'avoir écouter pour la première fois. Il est plein d'humour, et cultivé, comme ses livres.....

Je voudrais passer la frontiere depuis le Xinjiang vers l ouest de la Mongolie. Quelqu un sait il si cela est possible?

Salut,

Je compte me rendre en Mongolie cet été de juin à septembre. Histoire de découvrir d’autres coutumes, modes de vie… de me dépayser un peu. Ce pays aux steppes infinies me fait rêver d’autant plus que je suis une passionnée des chevaux.

J’ai plus ou moins planifié la première partie de mon séjour (je me rends dans la région du Khovsgol) mais la seconde reste encore un peu vague.

Je pensais arpenter l’aimaig de l’arkhangai… mais bon je ne sais pas trop encore

Qu’en pensez vous ? D’autres idées d’endroits où se rendre ?

J’ai tout un tas de questions qui se bousculent dans ma tête :

le coût de la vie

que faut il emporter ? une tente ? quels vêtements ?

est il vraiment nécessaire de prendre un interprète ?

quelles sortes de cadeaux peut on offrir ?

et j’en ai encore pleins de ce genre là mais elles ne me reviennent pas…

Enfin bref, je ne pars que dans 5 mois et je suis déjà stressée. Ça va donner.

A plus

Je dois voyager au Rajasthan en mars 2005.Quelles précautions doit on prendre au sujet de la nourriture. Merci

.....vous en auriez vous, des contacts, des points de chute, des conseils de choses a voir ou à éviter, des récits de voyage là bas, des noms et/ou des actions d'assos....

précision: on sera 4 étudiant(e)s passionnés mais ne parlant pas mongols et montant très peu à cheval et ayant peu de sous... mais rêvant depuis longtemps de mongolie, de steppes, de nomades, de yourtes et de chamanes, et de transsibérien et tout et tout....

je prends tout pour l'instant, je cherche et je lis et j'écoute tout ce ke je peux, donc allez y gaiement!

merci d'avance

je commence a rever a mon prochain voyage, et j ai une idee qui me trotte dans le tete.. traverser le desert de gobie a cheval!

quelqu un ici l'a-t-il deja fait? ou simplement aurait qq renseignements, ou quelques idees pour savoir si c est possible, et comment?

ou encore mieux, quelques souvenirs? faites moi rever! je suis a bangkok, mais mon avion est demain pour reprendre la fac, c est la deprime a mort!!

Bonjour,

Est ce que quelqu'un parmi vous l'a déjà fait ?, il semblerait que ce soit très difficile, voire impossible, où alors réalisable seulement moyennant le paiement d'une "taxe" journalière très conséquente.

Merci d'avance pour vos infos Christophe

Salut tous le monde!!

J'aurais voulus savoir si quelqu'un à dejà acheté un 4x4 en Mongolie et l'aurais revendus, car nous voulons utilser ce moyen de locomotion mais sans chauffeurs pendant plus de trois semaines.

Quels sont vos avis ?

J'aimerais savoir s'il est possible d'envisager un voyage en Mongolie pendant les mois de septembre, oct., nov., déc., janvier, bref en plein hiver. Les températures sont elles les mêmes dans toute la Mongolie?

Hi there, I’m planning to spend two months in Mongolia, and I’d love to be welcomed by a nomadic or semi-nomadic family in the Altai Mountains. I can work and, of course, contribute money for my stay! Has anyone already had this experience? Also, is it still possible today to take the Trans-Siberian to Novosibirsk and then cross the Russia-Mongolia border at Tashanta? Looking forward to your replies! Thanks

Hi everyone, I’m setting off to put one foot in front of the other for 5 weeks in Mongolia starting mid-January. I always travel like the locals do—buses, shared "taxis," trucks... Has anyone here had experience with winter transportation there?

Weather-wise, I’ve dealt with extreme cold before, so I’m all set with gear.

See you soon, Marie

Hi,

I’m supposed to be going on a university exchange in Shanghai from February to June 2025, and I’d love to return to Europe afterward via the Trans-Mongolian Railway. My plan was to fly from China to Mongolia’s capital and maybe spend 3-4 days exploring the country. Then, I could take the train, with a stop in Irkutsk before heading to Moscow for a two-day visit, followed by two days in Saint Petersburg. After that, I’d take a bus to Tallinn and possibly fly home from there due to time constraints. I was thinking this whole trip would take about two weeks. This site: Russian Train Tickets - Online Booking for Russian Train Tickets seems useful for buying tickets (though the ones that go through Mongolia need to be booked via a form or on tutu.travel), and this one for the bus from Russia to Estonia: St. Petersburg - Tallinn buses and tickets.

From what I’ve gathered, Russia now offers an e-visa, and Mongolia has suspended visas for Europeans until the end of next year.

Would anyone have any info or advice? Given the current situation in Russia, everything is pretty complicated to research, and most of the information is outdated.

Thanks in advance, Alicia

Hey Cyclists! So, here we go—departure this Thursday from Giromagny (90), still in bikepacking mode, but this time with my wife’s bike lol.

12 years later, back in the Alps for a crossing all the way to Barcelonnette. From there, I’ll head toward Vaucluse and face Mont Ventoux for the first time 🚴‍♂️. Until then, the Alps will most likely leave their mark 😅🚵‍♂️🚴‍♂️. I’m a bit nervous about the Col de la Colombière—if all goes well, I should leave a wreath there lol! The return after Mont Ventoux should be less traumatic (or maybe not).

A few photos below.

If you’re on my route, it’d be great to chat! ;) I’m also planning to film the ride (as usual), my impressions, etc.

Good luck with your preparations to everyone working on a project, and safe travels to those already on the road! ;) Gilles

Bonjour, nous partons à quatre qui avons une bonne expérience du voyage à vélo par des pistes un peu partout sur la planète. Nous voudrions faire une sortie de 10 jours entre les différents causses, l'Aigoual, le mont Lozère et la Margeride. Par exemple, on aimerait passer le plus près possible de la crête du mont Lozère de l'est à l'ouest, faire un maximum de montées et descentes à partir des différentes rivières, Tarn, Jonte, Dourbie et d'autres sur les différents causses, Méjean, Noir, Larzac, Sauverette, Bégon.... On aimerait si c'est possible trouver des pistes même si nous roulerons aussi sur goudron, cependant nous serons avec vélo de voyage avec sacoches et pas en VTT, donc pas de pistes trop techniques. D'autre part les conditions de bivouac sont restrictives dans le parc des Cévennes qui englobe tous ces coins, votre expérience nous intéresse. Nous prenons toutes vos expériences et conseils pour faire évoluer notre parcours. Merci par avance Luc

From Beijing to Khiva: China, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan Chronicle of anecdotes, highlights, and other adventures that marked this eight-week journey in 2018.



The Chinese Far West More than 30 years after my first trip to eastern China, I finally fulfilled an old dream: traveling solo from Beijing to the far west, discovering Xinjiang, the Uyghur people and the oppression they endure, the oases of Turpan and Kashgar, the Taklamakan Desert, the end of the Great Wall... The route was covered by train.

MENU PART 1: CHINA

1- Beijing (Jiankou) : the authentic Great Wall, without tourists 2- Cycling in Beijing, the best way to get around 3- Beijing : departure for the far west 4- Jiayuguan : getting by without English 5- Jiayuguan : scams and heritage 6- Dunhuang : abundance in the middle of the desert 7- Turpan : the Uyghurs under heavy surveillance 8- Kashgar : love at first sight for the old city 9- Kashgar : China’s recipe for controlling the populace 10- Tashkurgan : what on earth was I thinking going there! Kyrgyz border: a surreal epic Photo album from the 80s, contributions from other travelers (page 2)

1- JIANKOU Finding the authentic Great Wall, without tourists or a guide Friday, August 24, 2018 Thirty years later, I didn’t feel like revisiting the Great Wall at Badaling or any other overcrowded site. I chose to explore it at Jiankou, in its wildest, most authentic, and unrestored section, starting from a lost village deep in a valley—though it wasn’t *that* lost, since it had everything for communication.



No need to pay for a taxi to get there—by timing it right, you can take the bus for just a few yuan. You have to get off at Xizhazi, the bus terminus. Be careful, there are only two buses a day in each direction. At the Xizhazi bus stop, I met a young couple who’d arrived with zero information about what to expect. We hiked the three of us toward the restored section of Mutianyu.

Still, be cautious With GPS and a topographic map (OpenTopoMap), you can set off without a problem or guide. The trail up to Jiankou is easy and well-marked. The trails down are too. But be careful—once you’re on the Wall, it’s real mountain hiking, with easy but dangerous climbing sections (over sheer drops). Not for amateurs or those afraid of heights! But what a reward. The Wall all to yourself, where it’s at its most daring. Truly mesmerizing.

More photos...

2- BEIJING The best way to get around the capital Sunday, August 26 The best way to explore the city is still by bike. Most are in a bike-share system, but you need to use an app—WeChat, the app that does everything, like monitoring your every move. No way I was installing that.



I found one at a rental shop near the hostel. The key is to quickly learn local traffic customs to minimize risks. Bike lanes are wide along the avenues.

But you still have to: - Watch out for anything parked on the bike paths—the most annoying are people napping or talking on the phone in their cars - Keep an eye on everything coming the wrong way—the list is long - The worst is right turns on red, which in Chinese traffic rules seem to have priority Once you get the hang of it, it’s fine. The city is huge but flat, so you can just wing it.

3- BEIJING By train to the far west Sunday, August 26 Beijing West Station is the size and operates like an airport. With your e-ticket from the agency, you first have to pick up your ticket at the special "English" counter, after passing through security. With your ticket in hand, you have to exit and enter through the boarding waiting area—not the platform—after a second security check.

Then you find the right hall and wait for the sign to finally access the platform. In the end, it works pretty well given the incredible number of passengers to manage. Everywhere in Beijing, I saw that the Chinese have mastered crowd flow management.

Nice surprise: second-class carriages are clean, air-conditioned, and bright. Perfect, since I was in for 20 hours. One uniformed attendant per carriage, mobile meal service—luxury! Small downside: no luggage space. Hauling your suitcase up to the top bunk is quite a workout. I was in the middle, so it wasn’t too bad. The landscape, though, whether rural or urban, is pretty bleak. That should change once we leave the eastern plains.

Of course, I got my first police visit, with a thorough passport check and bag search. I was warned—going to the Chinese far west exposes you to this kind of hassle. But they were polite and respectful.

The Chinese Far West

4- JIAYUGUAN Getting by without English Monday, August 27 At the gates of two deserts (Gobi and Taklamakan) and at the foot of the Tibetan highlands, the Great Wall ends at Jiayuguan. Here, I found the deeper China I’d somewhat rediscovered during my bike ride, even if now everyone gets around on electric bikes and I’m no longer stared at like an alien.



Prices are nothing like Beijing: you can find a full meal for 2 €, and my bike cost 7 € for two days. Plus, few people speak English—neither the owner of the HI hostel where I stayed, nor the ticket sellers at the sites, let alone the servers at the small eateries where I ate. Everything is written in Chinese. So I had to use the little Chinese I know to communicate about essentials. It makes the locals laugh to see a European trying to speak their language, but it earns respect. With Google Translate’s help, I managed.

Rant: With their avenues blocked for construction for kilometers without warning, and new roads not yet on maps, I must’ve taken 15 km of detours. More photos...

5- JIAYUGUAN Scams and heritage Tuesday, August 28 The Great Wall doesn’t exactly end at the fort I visited yesterday but 10 km further, at the entrance to a river gorge at the foot of the mountains. All that’s left is a badly damaged tower (more like a mound of earth) and a section of clay wall, similar to the one I biked yesterday.



This morning, I hopped on my bike, determined to venture into the desert to see this highly symbolic site. First, you access it via a wide, brand-new road with not a soul in sight. Just before the site, I came across a grand welcome gate, very period-style, but it’s actually the inevitable toll booth.

Behind the gate, the road continues straight to the site, which you can see in the distance—at least 2 km away—the remains of the tower and wall. I had to leave my bike here. Fine. I went to the ticket counter and asked the price: 120 yuan! I couldn’t believe it—over 15 € for a simple mound of earth.

I showed my displeasure to the attendant, who couldn’t care less, and immediately turned back. 120 yuan—that’s the price for a new road, a fancy gate planted 2 km before the site just to force you to take a shuttle, and employees with nothing to do all day... Now I understand why I didn’t meet anyone!

Heritage China is a bit pricey Generally, sites are expensive for the country’s standard of living, but travelers are supposed to have money, so why hold back? I even gave up on the Forbidden City—reservations required days in advance (or on the black market at an impossible price). I prefer to keep the memory of my first visit, when entry must’ve cost a few dozen cents, and there were only a handful of visitors.

This morning, I took a taxi to see remarkable tombs of common people from the 3rd to 6th centuries. They’re small vaulted caves made of painted bricks, depicting scenes of daily life. Very pretty and moving. But even here, though the price was more reasonable, I was left wanting—only one of the 16 tombs is open to visitors, and it’s apparently not the most beautiful.

The authentic China—at least what’s left of it... Wandering the impersonal avenues of the city, you stumble upon a market. There, you still find traditional China—small shops with questionable hygiene, Go players, musicians, and even a dental prosthetist. The last refuge for those untouched by modernity. More photos...

6- DUNHUANG Abundance in the middle of the desert Wednesday, August 29 Well, I thought the landscape would be less bleak as I headed west. Nope. The only distraction in this expanse of dark, clayey sand is the forests of pylons and wind turbines, plus wild camels racing each other.

However, Dunhuang, the gateway to the Taklamakan, is by far the most pleasant Chinese city I know. There’s a real city center you can explore on foot. It’s hot but not unbearable, with a light, dry breeze. Much nicer than Beijing. The Han Chinese are still the majority, but the Muslim Uyghurs are more numerous, and the muezzin’s call to prayer echoes around the mosque.

The most surprising thing is the abundance and diversity of fruits and vegetables. You wonder how it all grows here. Well-irrigated, the desert sands are very fertile. Here, raisins have subtle, mysterious flavors, and the lamb really tastes like lamb.

Today, I visited the must-see Mingshashan, a dune complex next to which Pila is a molehill. The Basque Country, but covered in sand... More photos...

7- TURPAN The Uyghurs under heavy surveillance Friday, August 31 Surveillance cameras everywhere in the city, armed police stationed at intersections, in front of public buildings, at the entrance and inside tourist sites, police stations on every corner, patrols on foot or by car, khaki uniforms even for middle schoolers... here, the Han Chinese are in the minority, and you can feel it. Turpan feels like a city under siege.



To enter the youth hostel where I stayed, there’s even a security gate, and the receptionist (a Han, like everyone in tourism) wears a bulletproof vest! Reassuring. Still, you don’t feel particularly threatened here, especially as a European. The troublemakers are the Chinese, not the Uyghurs. Generally, China is a very safe country for visitors.

Smile, you’re on camera! I was biking on an avenue when the car in front of me got flashed for driving slowly. I quickly understood why when I got flashed too.

Here, the official time is Beijing time, but it gets dark two hours later. It’ll be even worse in Kashgar. Trickier to manage: everything is displayed in Chinese and Arabic. Nothing in English. Choosing a menu is a shot in the dark. Apart from a few young Chinese, no one here speaks English, and my Chinese doesn’t seem very understandable...

Mogao, the end of the road for the Han Yesterday, near Dunhuang, I went to Mogao, a complex of decorated caves with Buddha sculptures and paintings. Stunning, but so crowded! Luckily, here in Turpan, Chinese tourists barely venture out. So I visited a Silk Road ghost town with only a handful of other visitors and under a howling wind.

The modern Chinese city is swallowing up the old Uyghur neighborhoods—only a museum-like district remains in the center, and pockets of resistance on the outskirts are doomed to disappear soon. More photos...

8- KASHGAR A (relative) love at first sight for the old city Sunday, September 2 After three overnight trains, here I am in the far west of China, nearly 4,000 km from the capital. Despite the omnipresent police and an old city preserved UNESCO-style, Kashgar is my Chinese love at first sight.



Finally, Chinese... well, sort of, because we’re in Uyghur territory here—a Turkic people with nothing culturally in common with the Han, the eastern Chinese. It started badly yesterday at Turfan station, where after three security gate passes, at least five passport checks, and a bag search, three adorable policewomen confiscated my antibacterial lotion because it had a flammable logo...

Then came the welcoming committee of armed cops at Kashgar station. Once all that was over, they left me alone—except you still have to go through security checks like everyone else to enter the old city, the bazaar, the livestock market... The further west you go, the more the siege mentality is evident. Luckily, the border isn’t far...

Despite the inevitable destruction-reconstruction, the city center has been well preserved. Thankfully, because it’s a very original style, a mix of local and colonial. I love it, even if it’s a bit too artificial, sanitized, and watered-down, and rather empty of residents. On the Silk Road, the city was famous for its great food. And it still is—rarely have I seen such richness and abundance of food! And not just scorpions or snakes. More photos...

9- KASHGAR China’s recipe for controlling the populace Saturday, September 1 Xinjiang, along with Tibet, is a "sensitive" area of rebellion in the eyes of Chinese authorities. As a result, the state has these regions and their populations under total control. Tourists also feel the consequences, even if they’re not at risk of re-education camps.

- Putting barbed wire and anti-ramming barriers around sensitive sites (schools, big hotels, government buildings...) - Installing traffic surveillance gates with cameras and photo flashes (for all vehicles passing, including bikes) throughout the city and even in the countryside - Posting uniformed guards with tasers, batons, or huge baseball bats every 100 meters - Training the Han population (ethnic Chinese) in self-defense with sticks, preferably in the morning on the street. Men and women of all ages - Starting school with the national anthem, doing military exercises, and receiving political indoctrination, all neatly lined up in the courtyard. (The dream school for any teacher) - Placing a snitch in uniform (a pseudo-guard) in public gathering places, like youth hostels. Mine spends the day loafing around the courtyard - Putting Chinese flags everywhere on the streets to remind everyone who’s in charge - Installing security gates at every entrance to areas frequented by tourists (thanks for that) but not just there - Never photographing cops, or else! I tried, but it’s not easy...

With all that, you can stroll around safely Not much crime! As for the amount the Chinese state spends to maintain such a system, it’s staggering! A third of the Han living in Xinjiang work in security. Today, I wandered freely around old Kashgar, which is quite large after all. More photos...

10- TASHKURGAN What on earth was I thinking going there! Wednesday, September 5 First, there’s the taxi—pretty crappy, with a driver who doesn’t speak a word of English and won’t stop smoking. Over six hours in that... shared with a completely out-of-it American.



Then there are all the checkpoints along the way. I won’t go on—you know the drill by now.

After that, there’s Tashkurgan—a town with nothing to see, nothing to do. Deserted as soon as night falls. There’s this huge youth hostel and a few lost Chinese tapping away on their smartphones, chain-smoking. This lost American-European crowd, swapping tips on how to enter Pakistan or Tajikistan.

Luckily, there’s the Chinese Pamir Highway, lined with peaks over 7,000m. There’s the feeling of no longer being in China, with a population whose features are Middle Eastern. And these Tajik women with their stunning hairstyles and vibrant costumes. There’s the fact of having reached the westernmost Chinese city, far from crowds and tourist sites. A sort of end of the world. More photos...

11- KYRGYZ BORDER A surreal epic Thursday, September 6 The road from Kashgar to the Kyrgyzstan border is a little over 200 km and passes through beautiful landscapes of colorful, desert-like mountains with acrobatic folds. That’s the bucolic part of the trip.

Yesterday, I managed to gather four people to rent a minibus to reach the border more easily: a Spaniard and an Argentine I’d already met in Turpan, and two New Zealanders who responded to the ad left at the hostel.

Absurdity and paranoia of Chinese authorities The highlight was crossing the town of Wuqia, 50 km past Kashgar. After tallying up with my fellow sufferers, we must’ve passed about ten checkpoints with: - Passport checks: 14 times, sometimes by two cops side by side - Bag checks: 4 times - Smartphone checks: 2 times, with deletion of "non-compliant" photos, and registration of your IMEI in the exit log!... Absurd and surreal at the same time, since my camera stayed in my bag, my apps are in French, and my photos have been online for ages...

With all that, we arrived just as the last checkpoint before the no man’s land marking the border between the two countries was on lunch break. And bam! Another 1.5-hour wait, alongside truckers who were much more used to this than we were.

What to think? The cops themselves aren’t fooled. They play the role they’re asked to, but sometimes you can coax a smile out of them—they realize how ridiculous the situation is.

What’s the point? That’s the big question my companions and I were tempted to answer with "to piss people off." To show you your place isn’t here, but with the other tourists, over there in the east, in Shanghai, Xi’an, or Guangzhou.

As for you, a traveler from a democratic country, you really experience this as aggression, humiliation, a violation of your private space. And yet, I’m respected, they speak to me properly. Today, I better understand what a Palestinian or a citizen of an occupied country might feel daily. A unique experience! Thanks, China.

And to top it off, the cherry on the cake! It’s still this glowing button you press to rate your passage after clearing the last obstacle before the exit stamp. I was so surprised it turned off before I could react. The Spaniard, with great humor and irony, had time to vote "excellent." In the end, he wasn’t wrong—you can hardly do better!

PS: I ditched my buddies at the border. They didn’t want to pay for a taxi to continue. So I took a direct taxi to Osh. The first 100 km are fabulous. I couldn’t take many photos, but I’ll be back on Monday to go to Tajikistan.

More photos...

The rest of the Silk Road, Part 2, in these travel journals: Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan.

Bonjour 😉

C'est ici - et uniquement ici - qu'on discute à propos de la thématique du mois : Seul(e) au monde - concours photo du mois de Mars 2020

Je prévois commencer à voyager un peu à travers le monde en bicyclette.

Je recherche quelque chose de simple, pour ne pas toujours être aux aguets pour le vole. Également sur lequel je peux installer quelques sacoches.

Je ne sais pas trop vers quoi me diriger, comme je ne connais pas trop le cyclotourisme.

Avez vous des idées pour m'aider un peu ?

Merci

Bonjour,

Quelle compagnie ou sites internets me conseillez vous pour un achat assez juste du prix réel? Merci à vous et si vous avez des infos sur la Mongolie en soi à sac à dos, le mieux à faire, les agences ou pas, les bus etc...le courchsurfing ....je suis preneuse de vos infos. Merciiiii

Nathalie

Bonjour à tous, J'envisage de prendre le Transsibérien en mars. Initialement, j'envisageais St-Petersbourg - Moscou - Mongolie - Pekin avec retour en avion de Pékin mais avec le coronarovirus, ça me semble compromis. Est-ce que l'itinéraire vers Vladivostok vaut aussi le coup et quel retour en avion prévoir pour Paris ? Quelles étapes me conseillez-vous ? Merci d'avance

Bonjour a tous Je suis devant un grand dilemme je pensais quitter mon fahrrad avec rohloff pour un VAE et on me déconseille surtout chargé et dans les côtes. Par contre les conseil donnés serait de prendre un vélo avec transmission PINION.

vos avis camarades alainenvadrouille.fr