A volcano and some frogs.

Tashkent, Uzbekistan.  We are back in the rally!

George arrived at 1.30am  and sailed through customs even though he was laden down with 70kgs of car parts.  We went  straight to the garage where the car was waiting and the mechanics almost ready.  The plan had been to have the car stripped down and ready to receive the new box hopefully allowing us to leave with the rest of the cars at 7.00am.  In fact, they were still working on the Auchinloss's Rolls that had major problems and is very complicated mechanically.  Latest news is that they are on there way but probably wont catch up until Samarkand. Adrian stayed with the car whilst George and I went back to the hotel to meet Rupert as G had various bits for him too.  By the time all this had happened breakfast was starting and all the crews getting ready to leave were busy packing lunch boxes.  George was horrified that everyone was grabbing food from the buffet to take out.  I explained that I too had felt like that for all of one day and then I got over it.  The fact is that when we are on the road for nearly all of the day and food is not readily available, if at all you take something with you.  You have to allow for breakdowns too.  Everyone makes up sandwiches, fills flasks and grabs any fruit they can for the very long days.  In Almaty it was just good to be in a decent hotel and so the quality of the lunches was excellent.  But, poor George, as a newcomer to the rally,  was shocked.

The car was not reada to go until 1.00pm and so we bid farewell t George who was staying on for a few days to explore and set off in good spirits.  We had to cover over 700 kms before the overnight stop but we really wanted to catch up and so thought we would just press on until we got there.

Well, nothing is ever smooth for us is it?  We had a puncture not to far out, no big deal and carried on.  Then Adrian was having problems with the electrics.  This next bit is all a bit technical and so if I say things that don't make sense forgive me.  Adrian is still asleep and cannot help me!  So, there we were on the side of the road about 100kms from Almaty.  Adrian fitted an new alternator did various other things and off we set.  The car was still not right and so we stopped again.  A very smart Merc pulled up and two chaps who turned out to be from Kyrgyzstan got out to help.  They ran an export business and had excellent English; they also became yet more Guardian Angels and helped us enormously.  Much fiddling about ensued and still the car wasn't right.  They offered to escort us to a garage not too far away and so off we set.  It  turned out that the electrical chap had just gone home but one of the other mechanics would take us to his village.  So, off we set again with the mechanic in the Merc and with us following.  I think it was the same village that Borat came from, fabulous!  When we arrived at the man's house we were told that he had gone to the garage to see us!  It gets more Benny Hill everyday here.  Anyway, we waited and he eventually came back.  He was great and fixed the car in a  very short time.  Of course, the usual crowd appeared to see what was going on including two men who asked me through our two Kyrgyz friends if I had only one husband and did my husband have only two wives.  Much hilarity ensued when they said that they would be my two new Kazakh husbands.  I will post the pics later.  What a prize they both were I cannot wait to start my new life in rural Kazakhstan!  I'll just finish with the old one first.  So, off we set yet again having said huge thank yous and fond goodbyes to our new Kyrgyz friends.  We are constantly astounded at the lengths that total strangers will go to to help out.  It is quite humbling as I am sure hat the same would not be true at home, in England.

I could say that although late, we arrived in Shymkent and managed a few hours sleep before setting off for the border with Uzbekistan but I'm not going to, you need the full story.  The car was still not entirely right and Adrian was having problems getting to the bottom of it.  It was miss firing, and generally misbehaving.   WE went through an 18 km stretch of road in the dark that was truly horrendous.  Massive crates, some a foot deep or more and with sharp edges pock marked the road.  It was is someone had gone over it with a giant cookie cutter.  It was very slow going especially in a car that was sick.  We crawled on but at about midnight and still over 200kms from Shym we realised that it was all getting too dangerous.  we had not slept the night before, there were many lorries on the road throwing up dust, and it was getting harder to keep awake.  We decided to pull off and try to get some sleep in the car for a couple of hours before trying to catch up at the border.  We had been warned that it was a difficult crossing with many forms to fill, especially about the car and only available in Uzbek.  We needed to cross with the rally to get help with it all.

everytime we stopped., even in the dark and seemingly remotest place.  The thought of being woken up by yet more golden smiles was disconcerting.  We searched for a long time before finding a few trees and we hid behind them hoping that no one would notice us.  It worked.  we managed a couple of hours sleep and then set off again.  This time the battery was not charging properly and we had no lights.  We could have the side lights on, which are more like candles ,but that was all.. It was all a bit scary we tried to follow lorries etc but it was far from satisfactory and so we had to stop again and wait for it to get light.  So, again we set off.  Not too far down the line we had another puncture.  It was like a conspiracy against us!  We changed the wheel with the help of yet another person who stopped and took over from Adrian, more random kindness.  Adrian wanted to find a tyre shop as we had used both our spare wheels and to change a tube by the side of the road is difficult.    Our new friend with the golden smile explained in sign language where we could find a tyre place.  We found it only t discover that it did not open until 9.00 but we had to get it done and so were waiting.  Our tyre changing friend then appeared again and indicated that we should follow him.  He took us to another shop that was open and we had the repairs done.  We had been up for 5 hours and had travelled about 50kms.  We had over 400 to do to get to the border.  Then the radiator started over heating because of a leak.  A put some crystals in and filled it up.  It was till getting hot.  we stopped in a village and Adrian had to lower a bucket in a well to get some more water.  A first for him! We were getting anxious about getting to the border at all with he car. We had been warned that any car broken in Kazakhstan would not be allowed to be towed into Uzbekistan and so, if we could not get there under our own steam our rally would be over.  You can imagine the stress of it all especially coupled with no proper sleep for two days.

We limped on stopping every so often to fill the radiator, spray wd40 on bits that were getting wet from the leak and Adrian also adjusted the fan belt using a bit of cardboard.  Road side repairs are being done to all cars with odd things.  Adrian used a pair f my flip flops to cushion the diff when we were in Mongolia and other things I have heard of to facilitate things are the metal coil from a biro and the silver paper from a fag  packet!  But  I digress.  On we stumbled until about one mile from the border we saw an organisation car at a filling station.  Joy, oh joy.  We were back!  WE were in the very last group of cars to cross, after another four hour wait for formalities.

So, here we are in Tashkent.  A short 60 kms drive from the border.  It all looks much neater here than in Kaz.  Field after field of cotton growing whilst, just over the border in Kaz  couple of miles away all had been barren dust.  Tashkent, what we have seen of it, is a big bustling city that looks much more interesting than Almaty.  No time to see it though.  This morning we set off for Samarkand and a rest day tomorrow.  We will try to find a radiator repair shop there in the meantime we will just have to stop frequently to fill it with water.

Your intrepid motorist's continue their adventure, still smiling!