Cycling the Pamirs - Tajikistan 2018 : Dushanbe

I had that customary yet disorientated feeling upon waking in Dushanbe.

There was a vague memory that I'd just spent 18 hours in Dubai after first meeting up with travel buddy "Kiwi Pete" before our flight to Dushanbe.

A quick check confirmed that memory to be correct with Pete still asleep in our palatial Dushanbe hotel and thankfully in his bed and not mine !

24 hours later we'd met up with just about all of the arriving team making a total of 3 Dutch, 2 Kiwis, 2 Aussies, 1 Czech and 8 Brits - all with a hugely diverse background but a shared passion for hard core cycle adventuring !

Together we hit the streets in the stifling heat (near 40C) to see how far this former Soviet City had come. Despite plenty of austere looking buildings there was evidence of a push into the 21st Century with a modernisation agenda that included town houses and expensive looking multi story apartment buildings !

Dushanbe with a population of nearly a million has had a huge population shift over time with most Russians moving out and the Ethnic Pamirs back in after the country became independent in 1991.

It may be a dated city but Dushanbe is surprisingly pleasant with a good green belt, friendly locals, obliging traffic police and a lifetime President who looks down at you from the hundreds of larger than life posters placed around town !

With our sightseeing over it was off to our Hotels Politburo style room to discuss our trips itinerary and obvious safety issues following recent events. The meeting passed without problem with team members indicating that they were happy with the planned arrangements which includes leaving Dushanbe with a Tajik Soldier to the entrance of the GBAO (Autonomous Area).

With the meeting out of the way it was time to enjoy some local food, a mandatory cold beer or two and take in some creature comforts before tomorrows journey into the unknown !