07 Jun 2022
The tour began with a pick up at my hotel and transport to the Tajikistan where I was met on the other side by my guide and driver. The trip to the mountains included several stops to a variety of sites and while it was a longish drive up to the lakes, I had a great conversation with the guide, whose English was very good, and he told me a lot about the area, Uzbeks, Tajiks and Kyrgyzs, along with the different languages. It was very interesting to learn about the area from someone who grew up in the area. The driver was very good, the roads were a little rough but not terrible.
The lakes were incredible, even though it was a little overcast when I was there. I have never seen bluer blues or greener greens. It is a remote area and there isn't a lot to do other than just take it all in but if you like the outdoors, beautiful landscapes and a glimpse of a very old and remote culture (many of the people in these mountain areas fled the Arab invasion a thousand years ago), this might be for you.
Silk Roads Tours did a superb job of organizing this tour and I did other another tour with them as well which was equally well run. They helped me arrange a variety of things like airport transfers and train tickets, just a really efficient and nice group of people.
This tour was just about perfect in length, and we got to to see most of the highlights of this area of Tajikistan. Everyone involved from the Uzbek side to the the Tajikistan tour was on time, friendly and made the tour even better with good conversation and a really good vibe. Thanks to everyone!