2
10 Days
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Darvaza is one of the places that should be on the must-visit list of every serious explorer who likes to visit Earth’s most breath-taking sites. Darvaza is a gas crater the burning gates of which have been flaming for upwards of 37 years. The settlement of Darvaza (Derweze in Turkmen) is located in the Central part of the Kara-Kum desert some 260 km from Ashgabat to the north. On the way to Darvaza lies the Kara-Kum desert, withs its moving sands and its typical sparse vegetation of Saksaul, Acacia and Kandym bushes. The locals from Darvaza have given the burning crater a name that suits it well – The Door to Hell. And everyone who visits Darvaza agrees with the name and finds it appropriate. When you look inside the burning gas crater, you do feel like this is what the door to hell would look like. Seeing the door to hell with your own eyes, however is an experience like no other. You will have long stayed in awe after experiencing the viciousness of the fire within the gorge of the burning crater. The Door to Hell would be an amazing vacation experience for the adventurous wonderers.
This itinerary is for active tourists. Magnificent Geok-dere canyons are at tourists’ service where they can do a fascinating tour on Akhaltekin Horses which were called “Heavenly” by Geradot. The route will pass around undisturbed civilization of nature Nohur. You will get an opportunity to see the waterfall “Hurhuri”, mountains with “Moon”, cave of “girls”, taste of home cheese producing with old technology of ancient nomads and enjoy with superlative fresh fruits of Nohur. Then tourists will visit the unique underground lake “Kow-ata” that located inside of the cave in a deep of 60 m., which nourish with hydrosulphuric source. The water has a constant temperature +30, +37C. Chemical analysis has shown that water contains a complex combination of chemical elements – 30 have been found to date. Then the route will acquaint the tourists with real life of Turkmen village – Yerbent. (National Turkmen cuisine – plov, shorba in a fire, chorek, baked in tamdyr (oven from arable (clay and straw)) and visit the big fire Gas Crater in the heart of Garagum desert.
An Italian traveler Marco Polo was the first to mention the Turkmen carpets in the XIII century. In the XXI chapter of his book he writes: “The finest and the most beautiful carpets are made here and rich fabric of red and other colour are woven here”. Even if by the time of Marco Polo the Turkmen carpets had reached such fineness and beauty, it is not difficult to suppose, that the roots of carpet-weaving go far back to the earlier period of history, because a carpet is the result of creative work of many generations of nameless weavers from the people.
Tour to the excavations of Margiana (ancient country was Margush) will carry you to the 29th century B.C. Margush – is the ancient country, as it was proved as a new hearth of civilization. Tour itinerary includes visiting of Ancient Nisa – residence of Parthian Kingdom (III century B.C.), ancient city Abiverd (14th century), ensemble of “Seyitjemaletdin” mosque (15th century “Beauty house”) famous with it’s original portal, unusual for Turkmen – two interlaced snakes, “Maru-Shahujahan” (“Abode of Kings”), ancient Merv (Margiana Alexandrine 1st century BC – 18th). In ancient Merv presented various architectural monuments: Castle of Large and Small Gyz-kala (6-8th century), Mausoleum of Gyz-bibi (9-10th century), Mausoleum of Ibn-Zeid (12th century), Ensemble of Askhab’s tomb (15th century), Mosque of Yusuf Hamedani (16th century), Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar (12th century), Ancient settlement Erk-gala (5th cent.) with magnificent temple of Zoroastrism, as in legends where located “Gates into Paradise”.