Tajikistan Wiggle and Shake

We left Tajikistan a couple of days ago and I'm happy to be in Tashkent, Uzbekistan for the more modern conveniences. I won't list the advantages of toilet bowls/seats/sinks that don't wiggle and shake, or having to wiggle and shake just about everything to get it to work. (I'm not talking personally here.) Tajikistan is a beautiful place of soulful, heartful, beautiful people (in often difficult circumstances) so the old wiggle and shake is just part of the dance of life.

Uzbekistan is only better because our hotel is fancier and we can pay high prices for food that we are more accustomed to eating. Otherwise, Uzbekistan's whole monetary system is about to collapse. Anyway, this post is about Khujand, Tajikistan. I'll get to Tashkent and Samarkand in Uzbekistan later.

First, This is currently my favorite picture from a day I spent wandering through the bazaar in Khujand.

People in their market stalls seem very open to just being with me and my camera.


The shoppers were cool and clear, too. Some days everyone is mugging for the camera, some times there is a communion.

I wandered up to the third floor of the giant bazaar building and found a sweatshop of seamstresses working in beautiful light. This is the corridor of the top floor hotel that seems to rent out rooms for sweatshops during the day and for sleeping during the night.
Here are some seamstresses in one of the rooms.

The bazaar itself was filled with wonderful still life studies.

And, of course, everyone was trying to sell me stuff.

This baker totally sold me on his wonderful bread made in a tandoor oven.
Here's an overview of the first floor of the main market.
Tomorrow we drive to Samarkand with an Embassy diplomat. She's coming along so we won't get harassed at checkpoints. You see, I don't have my passport. That's a long story that I'm not ready to get into. I have to wait 'till it plays out. You know, "Good luck, bad luck who's to say?"