Snow fall on the distant Pamirs greets me this morning, very scenic. A solo breakfast in the little kitchen room while the Dutch guys are having their breakfast in the lounge. My bf is huge(!) and consists of tea, coffee, butter, yoghurt, cream, 3 fried eggs, bread and jams- so delicious- I wonder what the Dutch are having, maybe something different to me? I seem to be getting amazing attention. I gave some gifts to Aunty yesterday as well as a tip (she waved the money away but I leave it with her anyway, she seemed really happy with the clothing, I had an extra merino tee and long sleeve tee that I thought would be great through the cold winter here. I gave Ben some more muselei bars and some Australian Bird playing cards). Its a leisurely pace this morning, I even read my book for an hour or so before Mohammeds Mum and the rest of the family to visit. Some more gifts are exchanged, I give Ms mum my yellow scarf (I
loved that scarf, I bought it in Iran, I think of it often!) and a bag, the pins and pens seem to go down well with the others. Big family farewell, lots of photos and we are off. Fantastic stay, I feel really energised, so pleased that M got to visit with his family and it was nice to drift for a day.
We drive 15 minutes before making a stop at the holy lake- Ak Balik, it is a seriously deep blue clear beautiful sight. Apparently excellent for fish throughout summer. M gives me 3 coins to toss into a rocky section on the side and then instructs me to plunge my arm in to search for treasure- the locals throw in coins, jewellery and keepsakes, up empty handed but with a frozen arm. M says- pity, youre not lucky, I disagree- I feel so incredibly lucky. More photos and we leave as a small group of dignitary types arrive. As we are driving there is a lone cyclist ahead- Im pretty sure its Dave! It is, I introduce M and B to my friend, Dave. They are a little bit surprised about how much I
Next stop according to the paper itinerary is the very ancient Chinese temple near Bashgumbez, about 9km off the Pamir Highway. It is fenced off but accessible (Ms secret spot), the caravanserai is silk road ancient with tombs and burial sites dotted around it. From here we drive back to Bashgumbez village to see a large abandoned observatory structure, Russian built, it looks to be built out of asbestos. Its current use seems to be as a volley ball court. Certainly stands out against todays vividly blue sky. Back in the car we head off road heading upward to the Kara Seky Pass (4500m). By 1030 we are very off road and into the land of the marmots- big, fat, honey brown rodenty things that pop up out of burrows before making a beeline for the next burrow. Cue David Attenborough and appearance of large raptors ready to pluck them from the sky... but all is well with the marmots today, the raptors fly away... empty beaked... M tells me about the many uses for dead marmots:they are skinned for their furthe fat from the flanks is
trimmed for making oil for the skin or used in a tonicthe meat is given to the shepherd dogs- it keeps them strong and healthy, and lastly,the tails are sold for decoration
Forty minutes later we have driven through 4400m. The landscapes are stunning- massive sweeping plains, the mountains and the intense blue sky, some distant snow on the peaks. Ten minutes later and were at 4660m. We stop to take photos - we have reached the pinnacle of the Kara Seky Pass... A sense of euphoria descends on the three of us (maybe its the altitude) and we decide that high altitude on such a beautiful day should be celebrated with some Pamiri high altitude dancing (HAD). Its fun but breathtakingly tiring at an extra 800m up from yesterday. It is all nicely captured on all 3 of our mobile phones (that HAD video gets dragged out almost daily for the rest of our trip, it is a great source of amusement to Bakaar).
