Tajikistan

Stan number three. It’s another early start this morning to head to the Saryosiyo border and into Tajikistan. The drive from Denau to Dushanbe is 68 miles and on the way we visit Hisor Fortress.
The origins of Dushanbe probably stretch back 3,000 years, though the city grew under Soviet rule as the capital for the Tajik Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic, a part of the Uzbek USSR. Our city tour included Independence Square, the Samany Monument (dedicated to the founder of the Tajik Government), Rudaki Ave and the National Museum of Antiquities which is home to the largest sleeping Buddha in Central Asia. Lunch is in a rather grand looking place which only serves plov - a dish of rice, meat and thin strips of yellow pepper. Our hotel is the best one yet but an electrical fault meant we had to change rooms just as we were about to go to bed.

Himself also celebrated another trip around the sun today.