My trip to Uzbekistan is coming together and no one needs to worry. The local Uzbekistani Travel Agent who makes all the arrangements for the staff and family of the US Embassy in Tashkent is doing all the work – all the transportation, transfers, hotels, guides, a car and driver when warranted. It’s turning into a private tour and someone will know where I am (or supposed to be…) at virtually every moment and I’ll have a local English speaking connection who answers WhatsApp 24/7. Not what I had in mind but as she kept adding services and I kept saying oh yes, that sounds good.
Here is the outline: Turkish Air LAX to Urgench, taxi and train from Urgench to Nukus, from Nukus there’s a long drive through the ancient fortresses to Khiva, then I’ll have a Khiva flight to Bukhara, take the train from Bukhara to Samarkand and later a train to Tashkent. Next comes the Fergana Valley by train from Tashkent and then by car to the three different hotels around Fergana. This is a 3 week trip in October that feels, despite all the help, like such an adventure. Just what the doctor ordered.
