We'd spent over a week and close to a thousand dollars getting our car's head gasket replaced in Uzbekistan, but although we were now back on the road, we faced a handful of new mechanical issues, just as we were about to cross into Tajikistan and embark on the roughest part of our journey yet. We couldn't really afford to spare any more time at the mechanic, however, so we essentially crossed our fingers and hoped for the best.
On this episode of Far From Home, we set out on the Pamir Highway, a 600 mile stretch of mostly unpaved and mountainous road that's considered one of the most spectacular and potentially dangerous routes in the world.
If you really want to get a sense of what these roads were like,
check out these amazing aerial shots a Russian blogger captured using a drone!
Along the way, we caught some beautiful views of Afghanistan, just across the river!
We also had an interesting roadside exchange with the Tajikistan highway patrol, but using some of the tips we'd learned to avoid paying bribes, we thankfully managed to escape relatively unscathed.
Then our car problems start to catch up with us again.
Our radiator is overheating, it's getting dark, and we're alone in the middle of nowhere.
Listen to episode 16 to find out what happens next.
I'm thrilled to announce that episode 11 of this show ("Turkmenistan: Just Plain Weird") just received a silver award in the 2017 North American Travel Journalists Association Competition.
Finally, for those of you audiophiles wondering what kind of recording gear I brought on my trip, check out this profile of my podcast that Tascam featured recently on its website.
Thanks for listening!
Photos by Drew Gurian