20th – 21th of September:
On the “street” from Kyrgyzstan to the first “big” village Murgab we did not see any car. We are driving mostly on asphalt not the newest but still quite good. Left of us is a long fence to China in the middle of nowhere. I wonder who would cross the border in this height, but I guess if you have something to hide you would try to cross here. But we just see mountains small rivers and even no sign of Jacks. There is not that much food in this desert like landscape. In the map Murgab looks like something big. But it is just a small village at the end of a green valley, a little bit less cold than at the Karakul. We change some money on the market where we still can feel a strong influence of the Kyrgyz culture. More than 50% are still Kyrgyz in this part of Tajikistan. The people are friendly and describe us the way to the hot springs we want to go. We just drive on some kilometres in the green valley. Here we decide to make a camp at the river. The mountains around us look like desert. Only at the bottom of the valley you find strong and hard grass. The soil is covered with salt again since water evaporates faster in this height.
Next day we go on and stop at a farmer’s house. He is Kyrgyz and drunken, but at least he can explain me the way. “Cross the bridge to left, go straight and left up the valley. After that come back and have a tea.“ Just 5 more kilometres a bad stony way and we are there. The valley narrows here and in the end is a small house in which two pools are. In front there is a Jurt and a green house with tomato and paprika. Even in this height but thanks to the hot springs. We meet our first Pamiri people. They are students and are born in Murgab. Now they just came back to their home town to celebrate the end of Ramadan. The pool I just filled with fresh water. The water is really stimulating and helps to heal the muscle pain of Kotomi. She was writing Blog the days before in the tent with her back in the cold.
In the bath I met Ismael. He invite us for Tajik Шорпо and tea. After this we go back with him to Murgab. On the way back his “Taxi” an old UAZ bus almost loses his wheel since it is just fixed with 3 instead of five screws and the car is heavily overloaded with people.
In his home or better in the home of his sister’s husband in Murgab we get to here his story. He is was married with Russian woman and also has two kids. He stayed in Moscow 8 years but he could not stand the heavy drinking of the people and also the drinking of his wife. He got divorced and now some kind of searching Single working from time to time in Russia. 3 month legally and after that illegally just paying some bribes to the police if they catch him. Later we recognise that Tajikistan is heavily dependent on the family members which working in Russia and sending a lot of this money back to Tajikistan to support there families.
We met his sister and husband who are working in the mountains for 4 months. He is working in the hunting business. In the area around here they hunt the wild and white Marco polo sheep. After four months mountain they just come back and have to prepare the house for the soon approaching winter in this freezing height of 3600 m. Self-made bread Нан, marmalade and Конфекты again. Some tapes of Tajik music with Queen in between. We go to sleep again thankful about the hospitality in Central Asia, this time at the end of the world in Tajikistan.
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