On the 15th of June at 2 AM TotalAdventure landed in Türkmenbaşy International Airport in Ashgabat Turkmenistan after a 5 hour flight from Istanbul. We were met by our guide and driver after we passed through very rigorous immigration procedures.

Turkmenistan is one of the world’s most difficult countries to visit. In order to be admitted one must travel with a guide . at all times while in the country, with very few exceptions. The first step is to contact a guide and plan an itinerary. The guide service then applies for a letter of invitation on behalf of the client. When ( and if ) the letter is granted it is sent by email to the traveler. We presented the above letter at customs and paid US $99 for each visa to be affixed in our passports. We then underwent fingerprint scans, iris scans and questioning, but no bag check. Although there are over 100 gates at the airport, we were the only plane on the ground ! Turlmenistan receives less than 7000 tourists per year.

Ashgabat is known as the White City, a monument to Saparmurat Niyazov the first leader of Turkmenistan. Assuming power upon the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. he ruled with an iron hand, and called himself Turkmenbashi, ” Father of All Turkmen ” Billons of dollars from the nation’s huge gas reserves were used to build extravagant monuments and palatial government buildings. To this day all cars in the city have to be white. Turkmenbashi named moths of the year after himself and other family members. Seeking distance from Russia, ballet and opera were banned, along with dogs.

Turkmenbashi even rewrote the Koran ( with the help of ghost writers as he was not very literate) into his own vision, glorifying Turkmen nationals and his place in their leadership. It was required reading for everyone . In order to receive a driver’s license ,certain passages had to be . memorized.

Turkmenbashi died in 2006 and was replaced by a former dentist Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow. He is very popular, appearing in all the newspapers every morning and on TV nonstop. Besides being a benevolent leader, he is a man of many talents, including race car driving, DJ, singer, author of many scientific journals, medical leader and expert horseman.

Turkmenistan is also keen on world records. Here, we have the world’s largest indoor ferris wheel !

Another Space Age Monument to the Supreme Leader. Turkmenbashi on the top rotating towards the sun.

Under A Stunning White Monument.

National TV Tower . Gurbanguly 24/7 !

Tuerkemnbashi Clock. His golden statue turns in the direction of the sun as it moves across the sky.

Turkmenbashi Mosque. $100 million to . build, with his inscriptions, rather than the Koran. Considered sacreligious , no one attends.

Ashgabat is located 10 miles north of the Iran border. We took a cable car up the Kopet Dag mountains into a No-Man’s land separating Turkmenistan and Iran. With a close up shot , we present an Iranian soldier on guard at his watchtower in Iranian territory. At that very moment . John Bolton was beating the war drums back in Washington.

An ancient Persian settlement on the Iran border.

The next day we drove North into the KaraKum Desert.

Our destination was Darvaza Gas Crater. In 1970, the Soviets were drilling for oil in a gas field and the entire rig collapsed into the ground, under which there is a virtually unlimited supply of gas. In essence Darvaza is a man made volcano.

The crater is visible from space. Please see the video above to watch the flames.

The Gateway To Hell.

Appetizers in the Desert. Caspian Sea Beluga Caviar , unobtainable in most countries, went for $ 40 for about a third of a pound !

Tomorrow Evening , June 10,2019, TotalAdventure Boards Turkish Airlines From Miami To Istanbul – After 3 days in Istanbul, we fly to Ashgabat, Turkmenistan. We will then tour Turkmenistan – the fabulous desert capital city and the Dharvaza Gas Crater. We move into Uzbekistan and follow the Silk Road – from Khiva to Samarkand and Bukhara. We’ll most likely stop in Almaty, Kazakhstan and finally up into the Tien Shan mountain range in Kyrgyzstan. TotalAdventure should be posting most days, except from areas with no electricity or telecommunications.

TotalAdventure Presents “Long Lost Laos” A Video Narrative Of Last Summer’s Voyage.

Vietnam Voyage Is A 23 minute excursion from Saigon to DaNang  by air, from DaNang to Hue by train and then from Hue to Hanoi by air. TotalAdventure explores the main sites of the 4 historic cities with culinary adventures ,such as cobra snake in Hanoi.

The TotalAdventure Team flew Qatar Airways from Miami to Saigon (HCM) Vietnam .On the way we had an 8 hour layover in Doha. On the way back we stopped over for two days. The above video is a compilation of the two visits.

Qatar is the wealthiest nation in the world, per capita. But tradition prevails in the desert lands outside of Doha.

It’s a 13 hour flight from Miami. 15 hours going back.

Right off the plane from Bangkok , we went riding the high sand dunes south of Doha. You can experience the adventure in the video above.

We went right dawn to the waterway that separates Qatar from Saudi Arabia, other than the narrow land bridge. The border between the two US Allies is currently closed. That’s a Saudi Army post about 3 km in the distance.

Back in the city , we went to Souk Al Waqif.

A delicious lunch of Sheep’s Head.

And Foul – a delicious Fava Bean stew.

Modest, yet colorful fashions.

Saffron and other exotic, expensive spices for sale.

The Architecture is Amazing.

Qatar Grand Mosque .

Al Zubara Fort.

It’s hot outside in July. That’s 117 F !

TotalAdventure would like to Thank Mr.Ahmed Nasser Al Rayes , Chairman of the Al Rayes Group for making our excursion in Qatar so flawless, exploring the majority of the country in a very short time. The Al Rayes Group owns 83 companies ,and is a leader in tourism investment.

TotalAdventure returned Bangkok for the first time since 1995 ! It’s our final stop in Southeast Asia before going to Qatar later this evening.

Wat Arun – The Temple of Dawn !

One Night In Bangkok……

Hello Thai Restaurant owners in the USA . THIS is Tom Young Koong – not the watery tasteless stuff you serve. And it costs 150 Baht !

Angkor is truly a Wonder of the World, even if it was not listed as one of the originals.TotalAdventure spent three days exploring, though several weeks would be needed to visit all the areas that are still being explored.

Europe was in the Dark Ages when this huge city was being built.

These rivers were navigable.

Time takes over.

Lost In Time.

Angkor Wat – Main City.

Intricate Details On All Structures.

June is a great time to visit, as the winter tourist hordes have vanished, but real monsoon has not yet begun.

Eternal Path.

Eternal Guardians.

A local guide and driver accompanied us to Laos’ Far North to the Luang Namtha district

The Akha and Hmong tribes occupy much of the region. Unfortunately for outsiders, few wear tribal costumes anymore.

A Reclining Buddha.

Bulls graze by the roadside.

The cuisine is delicious.

And unusual. Here we have some fresh Bat.

And cooked Rat.

Monks and Novices cross the rice paddies.

An 80 minute flight on an Air Lao prop plane. We received our visas at the airport and it was off to sleepy Luang Prabang on the Mysterious Mekong. It’s a “city” of pagodas and wats , and a beautiful ride up the Mekong to visit the Pak Ou caves.

On a Sacred Mountaintop.

Lord Buddha Gazes Over All.

Serenity is soon to end , as China connects Laos to the outside world by high speed rail that will run from Kunming to Vientiane and onwards to Bangkok and Singapore, or westwards to London, for that matter.While the USA build walls and excludes outsiders, China is building the Belt and Road Initiative uniting countries from Southern Africa to Eastern Asia and all points in between.

The Gateway To Pak Ou.

Just before we left Hanoi on Saturday, we dined on King Cobra at the Hung Snake Restaurant.

As we can see in the video above, the snake is killed and the heart removed. The beating heart is offered to those who would like to partake. The snake is prepared in many different ways.

Red blood and green bile are infused into cheap vodka for a “snake wine” meant to improve virility.

Accompanies by excellent ice cold Hanoi Beer.

Cobra Soup.