Wanting the Iranian visa process to spin a bit faster
Well, it’s good news and bad right now:
Bad News
I received an email from my sponsors (Iranianvisa.com) that my application had been approved by the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, but it seems that this approval has not yet reached the embassy in Cairo. This leaves Kortney and I stuck in Cairo for a bit longer yet.
Good News
The lady at the Iranian embassy was wonderfully helpful and relaxed and helped my complete everything else that could be done now. She said that she’d keep an eye out for my code and email me when it comes through. Once it does (which could be as early as tomorrow) it will be issued that day.
So, it may not be all that long before we finally get travelling again.
Psychedelic Sufis and Spinning Tops
Kortney and I joined a girl we met on the felucca down the Nile for a free Sufi dance performance in Islamic Cairo. Although a little long (approximately 90 minutes) it was truly impressive to see a man spin to thumping instruments in a devotional state for over half an hour. Kortney said that she spied the singer weeping at one point and the strength of the performers’ convictions was very plain. On the whole, a great free show for those of you around in Cairo on a Wednesday night.
Too much time in Cairo
As Kortney and I are stuck in Cairo until we finalise our visa situations, I thought I’d write with some little updates.
I am still awaiting my visa code from the Iranian MFA, but expect that it should come in “any day now”. I also picked up the South East Asia Lonely Planet, so I can now sit down to some serious reading whilst we try to figure out the Egyptian washing machine at the hostel.
We’re also planning on seeing a Sufi dance show tomorrow night, so I best lay off the heavy Egyptian food in case audience participation is required.
Photo highlights from Kyrgyzstan
These photos are all from beautiful (and woefully underrated) Kyrgyzstan..
Altyn Arashan – Hot springs and wild goat for dinner
Karakol Valley 1
Karakol Valley 2
A Russian Orthodox church in Bishkek.
The trip so far (sans Photos)
Your correspondent has been very remiss of late, so I’ll try to summarise the trip so far:
Trip Restructure No.2
As I mentioned previously, Kortney and I decided on Egypt over Sri Lanka. As I still plan to head to Iran, it made more sense for us to stay on that side of the world. Having spent nearly a month here, it has been well worth it. Sri Lanka remains on the long term drawing board (perhaps to be included with India and Pakistan?)
I think everyone knows someone who has been on a Nile cruise / package holiday to Egypt, so I needn’t recount the thousands of sights in the country. However, Siwa, (a small desert oasis city) is easily my favourite place in Egypt. We went on a camel trek around the oasis overnight and dipped into some natural hot springs under the stars. If any of you do end up in Egypt, I can recommend the ranch owner we arranged our camel trek through as being very professional and someone who cares for his animals very well.
Wait, WHERE are you now?
Cairo has been home for over a week whilst Kortney arranges her working holiday visa to Australia and I await to enter the fray of the Iranian embassy for my visa. Our day today was spent navigating the ludicrous administrative turns of an Egyptian hospital in an effort to have Kortney’s chest x-rays released so she could attempt to speed the visa application process. Our later visit to the Cairo Mogamma building for visa extensions could be likened to futures trading floor in the Tower of Babel.
Uhuh… what about the in between bits?
Well, after Kazakhstan some of the highlights Kortney and I have seen/experienced included:
1. Trekking in the Karakol Valley in Kyrgyzstan;
2. Climbing in Georgia up to gorgeous isolated churches;
3. Brandy tasting at the Ararat Brandy Company in Armenia;
4. Amazing fruits in Turkey and Azerbaijan;
5. Sunsets over the Nile and natural salt deposits (Turkey)
6. More hot springs (and snow) in Kyrgzstan; and
7. Cafe Fakir (Karakol, Kyrgyzstan), Abdu’s Restaurant (Siwa, Egypt) and Koshary (Cairo, Egypt).
And Now?
Well, we plan to hang around in Cairo until Kortney has her Australian visa approved and I have my Iranian visa. From there, we’ll hang out on the beach in Nuweiba and then head over to Jordan (mostly for Petra of Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade fame) and finish in Dubai before Kortney heads on to Australia. At this stage, I’m still kicking on to Iran and South East Asia, but alternative suggestions are always welcome :-)
Long Awaited Update
Yes, I am a very slow correspondent (but you all knew that already, right?)
Anyway, I’m currently in Tbilisi (Georgia) after having spent some great time in hiking in Kyrgyzstan and travelling through Turkey. Kortney and I are planning on taking a train to Baku tonight and seeing Azerbaijan, Armenia and then on to…. Egypt!
The future? Destinations like Syria, Iran and Afghanistan are on the drawing board, as well as Thailand, Sri Lanka, Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos afterwards.
So, hopefully some cool photos on the way (pending non-donkey powered internet)…
First (and very limited shots) of Almaty
P1000767, originally uploaded by jlmoschner.
For those of you who have been clamouring for photos, a few are up on my flickr page.
More should trickle in if I can find a fast internet cafe in Bishkek.
Kazakhstan & News
What – No Photos?
Ok, bad news first – the internet is incredibly slow here and photos could be a bit rare for now. Which is a pity, as I’ve seen some pretty amazing sights already.
Almaty
Leafy Almaty is a mix of nostalgic Soviet autumns and vodka and red bull fuelled expansion reminiscent of Moscow. The dramatic mountains on the border with Kyrgyzstan make for a pretty impressive backdrop. I landed here on 4th and spent the next few days exploring the city on foot at a leisurely pace and quickly being reminded of the inadequacy of my Russian to do anything beyond order a meal, room or ticket.
I also attempted to hike up the small hill were the radio tower is, but got lost and spent the next five hours wandering around in the “untamed” suburban hills around Almaty. The streets were surrounded by gaudy mansions and construction sites. Quite a contrast to my crappy university dormitory at AUD 10/night with a suspect shower and no light.
Many of my fond memories from my Eastern European trip are returning: simple but filling food in almost empty cafes, packed trolley buses and pumping Russian music played without regard to the location or speakers. It’s not for everyone but it keeps things interesting and makes for great people watching.
Turkestan
I’m now in Turkestan after a long 12 hour bus ride to this rather interesting city. I spent the day organising a bus ticket to Astana for tomorrow afternoon and seeing the world heritage listed “Mausoleum of Rabigha-Sultan Begum”. A truly amazing sight and it was great to see it in a reasonably good state of repair and staffed by friendly attendants and locals who seemed genuinely interested in meeting visitors.
In this sense, the more Kazakh part of the country has been a bit more laid back. In the marshrutka (fixed route minibus – cheaper than a taxi but the best way to meet locals) today, the drivers had the passengers sitting in the front seat count the change for the other passengers. Shop attendants have also been quite friendly and don’t seem to let the isolation of the place get to them.
Plans & News
I’m heading out to Sauran tomorrow, which is a ruined city about 40kms outside of Turkestan. I’m sure some hard bargaining is ahead with the taxi mafia, but finding something that few people bother to see will probably make the following conversation I’ll have with the taxi driver worth it:
1. Yes, I’m from Australia;
2. Yes, we have kangaroos – no, most people don’t eat them/ride them/ride in their pouches;
3. Yes, <insert city/country name> is good;
4. Yes, so are the devushkas…
Also, my girlfriend Kortney will be meeting me in Bishkek, so it’ll be great to see her. From there, we’ll probably spend a month in Kyrgyzstan and see where the wind takes us.
Hope to hear from you all soon and I’ll reply when I can.
Jeremy
Octopus Returns
The octopus returns to his native land.
Sorry, it’s a bit of an in joke between myself and my students.
