A Stone throw away from Afghanistan
The barren vistas of the Bartang valley finally start to change along the river Pjanz, which separates Tajikistan from Afghanistan. ‘We rode for days without seeing any other color than variations of brown and grey. The only green we saw was on this eerie rock face with moss and weeds on it – it looked like some ancient weeping spirit of the mountain, desolate and forgotten – everything else was bone dry, rocky and dusty. Eventually, the road began to run along the river, and the landscape changed a little, it was greener and more cheerful. Afghanistan was literally only a stone’s throw away on the other side – I tested it, I threw a stone across it and hit Afghanistan. Oddly enough, the Afghan side seemed nicer: we saw little towns, small river beaches, guys playing football – it looked a lot brighter than the Tajik side’, - says Paul.
Crossing into Afghanistan wasn’t an option though – all the bridges were gated and guarded by heavily armed Tajik military.
Travel Story: Egle Gerulaityte - ASIA