Time to fire up the old blog again!
A new trip is almost here!
In just under 2 weeks, I’ll be embarking on a month long adventure to the Five Stans.
What the heck are the Five Stans, you might ask?
Well, read on…
The Five Stans
Way across the globe, in the middle of Central Asia, lie the Five Stans.
They are: Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, and Tajikistan.
Yeah, yeah, there’s two other countries that end in “Stan” but I won’t be visiting those but, honestly, visiting Pakistan and especially Afghanistan have been on my radar for a few years now.
But for now, I’m just focusing on the Five Stans, you know, the safe ones to visit.
Is it safe though?
Good question!
I mean, you hear a weird sounding country that ends in “stan” and you get all these negative images in your head of everything going on in the Middle East.
Well, despite being in close proximity to the Middle East, the countries are actually part of the former Soviet republic.
Their religion, their culture, and their daily life are all vastly different from countries in the Middle East.
Instead of conflicts, there’s political stability, low crime rates, and warm hospitality.
In fact, it’s been over 30 years since there was a war or even an internal conflict in the region.
So, yeah, it’s safe.
A trip 3 years in the making
Here’s the thing you need to know about me – I’m always dreaming of places to explore.
If I’m not on a trip, I’m planning a trip.
When I said earlier that Afghanistan was on my radar, I wasn’t kidding. I’ve looked up stuff about Iran, Iraq, and Afghanistan.
I’ve researched South and Central America, African safaris, and island hopping in the South Pacific.
Just before heading out on my trip to the Balkans three years ago, I was also looking up stuff on the Five Stans and came to learn about the World Nomad Games.
The Nomad Games started in 2014 and take place every 2 years in different countries in the region.
It’s basically their version of the Olympics with participants from over 100 countries competing in nomadic sports like wrestling, archery, and horse racing.
I mentioned it to my friend Nathan who I was traveling with at the time and, without any hesitation, said he was up for coming on the trip.
Of course, he’s not a crazy traveler like me and these trips aren’t cheap so I delayed my original plan to visit in 2024 for two years.
And here we are!
It’s 2026 and the Nomad Games are happening again and we’re going!
Of course that’s only for a week. The rest of the time there’ll also be cool adventures like camping in a yurt overnight and learning how to train an eagle.
And let’s not forget the unique history and culture of the area.
Oh, and the mysterious country of Turkmenistan and the Gates to Hell.
Oh my God! I can’t wait to go out exploring again!
Just 12 days to go!
