Turkmen pride!!!!!

Presidential Palace Square. About 10:30 AM and totally vacant!

My journey across the Turkmen desert may have come to an end, but my time in Turkmenistan had not. There was still a full day of activity ahead of me and since there were no activities planned until mid-afternoon, I had a few hours of free time.

Leaving the hotel without my guide was a liberating feeling since I had been kept on a tight leash the entire week. First stop on my solo walking tour of Ashgabat was Presidential Palace Square. I had seen the presidential palace from my hotel balcony but had not had a chance to see it up close and personal.  

Presidential palace

Mutcharad, my guide, had told me that I was strictly prohibited from taking pictures of this lavish over the top residence. I hated to go against Mutcharad but since he was not around and there weren’t any police nearby, I decided to splurge on the forbidden fruit and shoot at liberty. The palace was absolutely gorgeous, a gigantic building with a gold domed roof. But, what else would you expect for the “President for life”, little house on the marble square?

I continued my walking tour around the Ashgabat city center shooting at will ……..until a soldier with a semi-automatic rifle jumped out of nowhere and yelled at me to stop shooting! Knowing this was a military state/dictatorship I figured I better not mess around and slowly backed away. At that point I felt it was best to return to the safety of my hotel while I was still ahead or better yet not in custody.

A Turkmen carpet with a portrait of the president

On my way back to The Grand Turkmen Hotel I stopped in at a carpet shop to see about purchasing a Turkmen carpet, a souvenir I was hoping to buy before I left the nation. I quickly decided against it when I found that in order to “export” a Turkmen carpet one needed to obtain a “license”. And, not to mention the prices were absolutely sky high.

I got back to my room with about an hour or so worth of free time left. This gave me the chance to catch up on some tasks I had been putting off. As I packed my bag the phone rang and on the other end was Mutcharad saying he was in the lobby waiting for me.

The Turkmen national coat of arms.

Our first stop of the day would be a Turkmen horse stud farm outside the capital in the foothills. These magnificent horses serve as a national emblem and are a source of great pride in Turkmenistan. One can spot them on just about anything from billboards to artwork to the centerpiece of the national coat of arms.

The star Turkmen horse giving us a show

Once we arrived we were met by a Turkmen horse breeder who gave us a tour of the farm. All the horses were absolutely beautiful and one can easily understand why the nation is so proud of this beautiful animal. The horse that really stuck out to me the most was a horse named Obama. Yes, that's right, he was named after US President Barack Obama. In 2009 the horse was given as a gift to commemorate the new American Embassy Staff in Turkmenistan. After a meet and greet with one of the stud farm’s stars (I guess he used to be a top racing horse) it was time for us to leave and head for the caves!

"Obama" the Turkmen horse