Unfortunately my trip of a lifetime had to end somewhere, and that somewhere was Ashgabat, Turkmenistan. I ended up with a few extra days there, as I was originally intending to also visit Afghanistan, but my reasons for not doing so are listed below. It was quite a ride, and thank you reading everything I've written and for enjoying all the photos I've posted. I only have one photo from Ashgabat, because all my film had been used up by then, but it is shown above. I took the photo of a screenshot of Turkmenbashi, Turkmenistan's deceased leader. I'll leave you with a piece I've written about him below. Enjoy, and thank you for reading about my Adventures in Central Asia!
Turkmenbashi
Turkmenbashi was the leader of Turkmenistan up until a few years ago, and then his dentist took over. If that sounds strange to someone in America, imagine how the Turkmen people felt under his “rule”, if you could even call it that. Turkmenbashi’s career as the leader of Turkmenistan was defined by his erratic behavior and totalitarian approach to leadership. As he lived in splendor and enjoyed the high life, his people suffered greatly. He is regarded by the global community as one of the most corrupt and unreasonable leaders in history. He renamed the days of the week to his liking, changed each month’s name to the name of someone in his family, and all the while watched as his people starved and struggled, only to claim that the situation was their fault. Upon his death in 2006, his dentist stepped in to rule the country. So far, his dentist has proved to be almost a crazy as he was. His legacy exists only in the faces of emaciated children, poor families, and his ridiculous projects. What is one of the more famous of these “projects” he commissioned as president? He ordered the construction of a resort, complete with a pool, air conditioning, a theater, and luxury suites. The intended clients? Horses. To sum things up, what would Turkmenbashi say if you told him he was involved in cruelty and corruption? “That’s for the birds, or rather, it’s for the horses.”
Afghanistan: Extreme Danger Zone
It is recommended by the US State Department that all American travel to or through Afghanistan cease entirely. The situation there is being called “critical” for a multitude of reasons. Terrorist attacks; kidnappings, bombings, and drug-related violence are only some of the issues that contribute to the unbalanced state of things in Afghanistan. It doesn’t help that foreigners are specifically being targeted by the terrorists, putting any non-Afghan in an immense amount of danger. In fact, things are so bad that even the US embassy in Afghanistan cannot and will not help you if something happens to you in the wrong area of Afghanistan. For these reasons, I have decided to cut Afghanistan from my itinerary, avoiding this dangerous situation entirely and hopefully emerging from my trip safe, happy, and best of all, alive.
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