Central Asia is an area that I’ve wanted to visit for a while, so I’m glad to finally be on my way.
When I travel I like to visit new places, maybe places that have a unique culture, but definitely places that I believe I’ll discover things and experience something new. That’s one of the things that appealed to me about Central Asia – the area has had influences from so many cultures over the years from Europe, the Turks and Chinese during the era of the Silk Road, to the Russians more recently. This, from what I have read, has allowed the area to develop into a melting pot of people and ideas from around the region while still maintaining its own identity.
The second reason I wanted to visit the area is because it just looks so beautiful. Several years ago I discovered a photo of a Dragoman vehicle and tents next to a beautiful lake and thought “I don’t care where this is, I want to go there one day”. I later discovered that this photo was taken in Kyrgyzstan and so when last year I discovered a sale on flights to the region, and a special offer with Dragoman, I thought I had to jump at the chance!
I’m at London Heathrow waiting for my flight now and I’m really excited about my journey ahead, although for personal reasons this will be an emotional trip. There were the usual last minute rushes to get read but I got here with plenty of time to spare in the end. My mum decided to accompany me as she had the day off so we had a meal at the airport before I went through security.
The next couple of weeks should be amazing, as long as the group are nice and relaxed, so expect lots of updates to the blog and lots of photos. Although just a reminder that all of my travel blogs, due to the locations I travel being generally away from reliable internet connections, are typed up after I get back based on notes that I make on the road.