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Central Asia, 17 September - 18 November 2009

Ron and Ellen and Amir Timur (Tamerlane), Tashkent, Uzbekistan, September 2009

Central Asian Border Crossings, September - November 2009

Central Asian Border Crossings
31 December 2009
Afton, Virginia, USA
This report is just about border crossings between Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan and is intended to be of help to budget travelers who many stumble across the report looking for information on crossing the borders in the region. I wanted to figure out how to travel between the countries cheaply and have put this report together to help others do the same. Unless you intend to travel cheaply, this report may seem rather long, dull, excessively detailed and not very interesting.
Keywords: Borders, crossing, cheap, hassles, tips.

Border crossings, part I, Ron and Ellen together

Our first border crossing was our initial arrival in Almaty from Frankfurt, which seemed perfectly normal to us, clearing passport control without much wait, turning in forms, picking up luggage, being waved through the "nothing to declare" line.
Next we had an easy border crossing via land between Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan when we took the minibus from Almaty to Bishkek. We got out of the bus (with our luggage) on Kazakh side, went quickly through customs and passport control, walked across the bridge, went quickly through passport control to enter Kyrgyzstan, reloaded luggage and got back on same mini-bus. No lines, no hassles.
The third border, however, when we arrived in Tashkent, Uzbekistan via air from Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, was a whole different matter. Our friend Bob warned us that arriving on an international flight in Tashkent reminded him of arriving in Russia back in the 1960s and 1970s, so we were somewhat (but only somewhat) prepared. People as individuals are very polite in Uzbekistan (young people frequently gave us their seats on a crowded bus or tram), but in other situations that politeness disappears. Going through passport and customs at the airport when we flew in from Bishkek was a total mob scene. There are no lines, and everyone is in one big mass, pushing and shoving and squeezing around wherever they can to get to one of the two passport control windows. With his diplomatic passport, Bob was able to meet us in the luggage claim section, after passport control but before customs. Incoming travelers have to fill out a form with the usual name, address, passport number, purpose of visit, type of visa, length of stay, etc, along with a declaration of all money in any currency you are carrying. This form is in Russian only, so it was a good thing Bob was there to tell us what to put in each box (and to tell a couple of other international travelers who did not know Russian). Then all the baggage had to go through an x-ray machine to come into the country, and the customs forms had to be checked. This was another mob scene of pushing and shoving. There were multiple international flights arriving at the same time, including one from Moscow, which meant Uzbeks who had been working there were returning with mounds of luggage and stuff they had purchased, all of which made the customs officials very suspicious. It took us two hours of being mashed and shoved by the crowd before we finally made it to the x-ray machine and the customs agent and got through!
After three weeks in Uzbekistan, we were ready to cross another border, the land crossing from Uzbekistan to Kazakhstan as we began our return trip to Almaty for Ellen to fly home. On Friday 16 October we left Bob’s house at 9, took a taxi to the closest metro stop, took the metro to the opposite end of town to Sobir Rahimov, the most southern point on the red line, where you get minibuses and shared taxis, took a minibus to the border at Yalama between Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan, arriving at the border at 11. There is a border crossing 20 km from Tashkent, but for some reason we never understood (if Bob told us a reason we have forgotten), foreigners (i.e. anyone not either Kazakh or Uzbek) are not allowed to cross near Tashkent and must go to this other more distant border crossing. So you take the bus to Yalama, get out of the bus and walk across the bridge to the Uzbek passport control and customs, go through that, walk a bit further and then have to go through the Kazakh passport control and customs. There was no problem going out of Uzbekistan, but coming into Kazakhstan (with all the folks from Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan as well as probably Uzbeks and Kazakhs) was in the same league as going through incoming customs at the Tashkent airport, about an hour in a small room in the midst of a pushing and shoving crowd before being admitted by the guard through the single doorway to the customs and passport desks (the same doorway that people exiting Kazakhstan were coming out of). The Kazakh customs people did open our suitcases and make a cursory pass through them but nothing major. The things they were most interested in were the chapstick and bottle of pills (Excedrin, Tylenol, Advil) in Ellen’s purse. Then passport control (where you have your photo taken), then x-ray the luggage, and you are done.
On foot once out of customs and passport, we were trapped by the taxi mafia waiting outside the immigration point. There are no buses (except a large one to Almaty, which would presumably go when it filled), no mini-buses or marshrutkas, only taxis, and you are in the middle of nowhere, so, although you can negotiate some, they know they have you over a barrel. And of course you have to wait for the taxi to fill. So 5.25 hours after leaving Bob’s house we arrived at the Kazakh side of the border crossing 20 km from Bob’s house that we as foreigners are not allowed to use. Talk about going around Robin Hood's barn.... We arrived in Shymkent, our destination, about 7 hours after we left Bob's.
Ellen's departure from Almaty on the way home via Frankfurt was quick and easy, with the usually airport security x-ray of the luggage, and then passport check only. Arrival in the U.S. at Charlotte NC was far less hassle than Dulles in Washington DC, and Ellen cleared passport, picked up luggage, cleared customs, re-checked the luggage, and went through airport security for the ongoing flight to Charlottesville in 25 minutes total.

Border crossings, part II, Ron traveling solo (the report Ron said could not be distributed until he had crossed all borders and returned home.)

NB: what I write is limited to my personal experiences, and hopefully those that follow can add to the information based on their experiences.
When we originally arrived in Shymkent together from Tashkent the taxi driver from the border dropped us off at the Tourist Hotel which turned out to be inexpensive and offered good accommodations, and I will start there.
The hotel is on the east side of Repubiki, two or three long blocks south of the Fantasy World park. There is no sign but at the intersection there are lots of buses stopping. The Lonely Planet map indicates the Kolos Bus Station for Tashkent is 1K south off the edge of their map. Since the closest border crossing between Tashkent and Shymkent is closed to all except Uzbeks and Kazakhs, I didn't go to this bus station for info. Instead I took bus #5 to the Voxal (train station) and asked there for buses, shared taxis or mini-vans to Sariagash, a town we passed through in the taxi coming from the border. I also knew the next town would be Abay and then Yalama at the border and I was betting if I could get a mini-van to Sariagash, then I could catch another to Abay and then another to Yalama.
Bus #5 goes north from the Tourist Hotel and the road continues to bend to the east and eventually the end of the bus route goes around a small circle in front of the train station. A couple of helpful guys in front of the station where some mini-vans were parked pointed to some word on the side of mini-van #46 and kept saying Sariagash, and the driver confirmed that it went to Sariagash and that vans ran from early morning to afternoon.
So early on Saturday morning I took Bus #5, which is a large bus and has a space near the back door that could hold large backpacks or luggage and I don't think it would be a problem in the early morning. Maybe all day. The mini-van #46 put my pack in the back storage area and I got a seat in the middle of the van, pulled out my book and waited for the van to fill up before leaving. However, shortly, about half empty, it pulled out. A few minutes later it stopped and there was a conversation that I could not understand, but it was clearly indicated to me that I was to follow the young lady who had been in the front seat and said to me in English: "We go Sariagash". We walked a short way and turned, walking through a large gate into a large lot with a wide range of buses and vans. Perhaps this is the Kolos Bus Stop but I don't know for sure. The young lady spoke to some people and we got into another mini-van and she sat down beside me.
We got out of the van at Abay where she invited me to attend a wedding - which is a different story. I don't know if the van would have gone further, but I suspect it would have. To this point I had spent very little money. Bus #5 was 35T, Van #46 was 50T, and the mini-van to Abay was 350T. At 151T per US$ this is less than $4.
The next day I took a shared taxi with three other people to the border at Yalama which cost 400T, less than $3. I walked through a gate and down a path to the passport control building. There were a bunch of people waiting and I just stood at the back of the line. A guy in an nice uniform walked down the steps and to the back of the line and started talking to me. Of course I could not understand his words but he was clearly indicating if I was willing to pay he could move me to the front of the line. My reply (in Russian) was that I didn't understand him. He tried a couple of more times and then left. Next a guy not in uniform came down to me and with a little more English again explained if I would pay I could go through fast. I declined, backed up a few feet, pulled out my camera to take a picture hoping to catch him in the picture. He quickly moved back to get out of the picture and left. In a few minutes another guy in uniform called me (the American) from the top of the steps, called me up to him, said no pictures and motioned me through where I was processed through fairly quickly, leaving all the Tajik guys still standing there.
There was a short way to walk before reaching the Uzbekistan border. There were perhaps more than a hundred people waiting in small groups. I think most of them were Tajiks and I saw several ladies with handfuls of customs forms and I couldn't get one. So I walked up to the front of the line to see if I could get copies of the form. At the gate people were just standing there so I just stood there also. A young pushy guy come up and I understood him to be saying for a fee he could get me through fast. Again I declined to understand and just stood there until one of the Tajiks told me to just walk on up to the gate. I got close and then the pushy guy pushed a woman through to the front, and she wanted me to join her. I could not understand the reasons, but I declined and she went on through with the pushy guy. Finally some of the people were allowed through and I walked up the path to another building where a group waited for the door to open. Other Tajiks came up and pushed ahead and I found it difficult to hold my place. Eventually I got inside and the pushing and breaking ahead continued. There were three windows but only one ever had anyone working, and he would go and come. So I just tried to hold my place and wait. Then one of the Uzbek guards came out and started yelling and forcing people to get in line. Some people he pulled out and sent outside to the back of the line. As the mob was being forced into a line I thought I would be forced back out through the door so I held my passport up and towards the guard. He saw it and motioned me to get out of the line and stand at one of the empty windows. Finally he took my passport and disappeared with it for a while, then gave it back. Later he appeared at the inside of the window and asked for my passport again and finally stamped it and waved me through. I then went to the customs area where I had to fill out the customs form which included listing all the money I was traveling with. The woman I recognized as being helpful when we went through before handed me two copies of the customs form in English. I had notes about the amount of Kyrgyzstan, sort of knew how much US I had and guessed at what was left of my Kazakhstan money, and since there were only three lines on the form I left off the Uzbekistan amount. My bag went through the scanning machine and the guy took my customs form. He wanted to see my US money and he wanted to count it. Afterwards I moved to the side to put my pouch away and counted my money. I am not sure but I tried to recreate the exact amount I had and believe he may have palmed a $50. But I went on without making a scene.
After clearing the border crossing I noticed that there were concrete barriers in the middle of the road to separate the incoming and departing traffic. There was a taxi who had come down the wrong way and was waiting for passengers close to the border but I continued to walk looking for how the Tajiks caught a ride on the their border but never saw anything and kept walking. There were about 100 trucks waiting to cross the border. On my side there were another 50 or so just parked facing away from the border, just sitting there. There was a fork to the left about midway but I kept to the road with all the trucks and never figured out where the Tajiks went. Finally I reached the main road between Tashkent and Samarkand.
There were a couple of taxis around and drivers that would have loved driving me to the Tajik border and were of no help in finding a shared taxi. I walked up the ramp and at the top was a bus stop and there was a small mini-van parked there. We talked and he drew a map and explained that the road to the border left the main road at Sirdario and he would take me there for 2000 S, around $1. When we got to a fork he turned left and later pulled over and called someone. Then another taxi arrived and offered to take me to the border as a private cab but I declined. There was a lot of confusing talk with him then he took me to pick up a lady who could speak some English, and it appeared that she wanted to be my guide and translator, so it kept getting more expensive. Finally he dropped me off on the road and I tried again to find a bus, van or shared taxi but all the taxi drivers did not want to help. Finally a guy wrote on my paper Sirdario, Culistan, Xavast and Penjikent and then drew line and wrote "Bys" and said bus between each of the cities and pointed to a place on the side of the road were there were some others waiting. Later he returned with a large map and showed me the some of the cities. I couldn't see Penjikent because the details were only for Uzbekistan but I could see Sirdario and Culistan. A bus came along and he said that is the one so I got on. It was the nicest bus I have seen on this trip and cost me 1000 S, $.50 (yes, that's 50 cents). From Culistan I took a shared taxi to Xavast for I think 5000 S, $2.50. And then a taxi to the border for another 5000 only to find that the border was closed. Not that it was too late in the day, but it was closed all the time - at least to foreigners. Wrong border. I should have gone from Culistan to Bekabad. which was the old road to Khojand, but still open for crossing. The taxi would have taken me for $30 but it was getting late and I thought the border would be closed so I went back to Culistan and caught a shared taxi back to Tashkent.
I should have gone from the border crossing from Kazakhstan to Samarkand and taken a shared taxi from there to the border at Penjikent.
My friend in Tashkent knew that the next morning the Embassy car was taking someone to Khojand and he made the contacts so I could ride along, which I did. Well - can't get cheaper than free. But this doesn't help someone following me.
In Khojand I took a taxi at 8 am for $2.50 from the hotel to the station with shared taxis to Dushanbe for around $32. It would have been wiser to go the day before without packs and ask people about the price. It was quite a trip over the mountains to Dushanbe, arriving around 6 pm.
Leaving Dushanbe a few days later I took a shared taxi to Penjikent. I would again suggest you go the day before without packs and ask about the price. I was quoted 200 and agreed on 100, about $25. At Penjikent the taxi driver offered to drive me to Samarkand for another $25. But I took a taxi, one that stopped along the way and picked up other people, for $5 to the border and a shared taxi to Samarkand for 2000 S, $1, and took a shared taxi from Samarkand to Tashkent - to the front door of my friends home - for 20,000, $10.
Crossing the border from Tajikistan to Uzbekistan at Penjikent was very easy and there was very little activity. On the Tajik side I had to fill out a customs form which included declaring all my money. He just took the one copy and kept it. At the passport control there was a lot of questions that I didn't understand and they showed me some papers with the symbols for one of the telephone companies. I couldn't understand and the head guy was called and I couldn't understand him. He asked if I was a tourist and I said yes and he just waved me through. Thinking about the discussion I have decided that they must have wanted to collect my sim card for the telephone. Why I have no idea, but when I bought it they wanted a passport and visa before selling it to me.
On the Uzbek side I was given two copies of the customs form in English to complete, including declaring all the money I was carrying. Again there were just three lines which I used for Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan and US. When they collected the copies and stamped them, the guy kept asking me something and I finally realized he was asking me about Uzbek money. I pointed to the three lines and tried to ask him where I should put it. Finally I wrote 500,000 Five Hundred Thousand and he called over a lady and they had a conversation. She asked me to read her the written number which I did and she asked me something I couldn't understand and pointed to my backpack. I said yes and said it was a brick and indicated the size of the pile of money (6 inches) and everyone laughed and I was waved on through. I guess they could not figure out how I could carry a half million sum in my pouch or pockets but they didn't want to see if it was really in my pack. This was about $250 US.
The next border was the Uzbek-Kyrgy border on the way to Osh. I have difficulty figuring out where to get the shared taxis to Andijon, so ask and add to this information. From Andijon there are shared taxis to the boarder. There was no difficulty crossing out of Uzbekistan and into Kyrgyzstan. When returning I adopted a new method of entering Uzbekistan. I just avoided all lines and just walked up to the first gate where I was stopped by a guy with a rifle and I just handed him my passport. He looked at it and asked where I was from. I said the US and we waived me on through. I kept doing this and it seemed to work.
From the border I got a marshrutka to Andijon and then a shared taxi to Tashkent. The shared taxi was cheap and in Tashkent delivered me to my the door of where I was staying for no extra charge.
Making my last crossing from Uzbekistan to Kazakhstan going to Shymkent I made some additional notes.
To go to Shymkent from Tashkent, foreigners can not use the closest border crossing but must go South a good ways towards Samarkand, using the border crossing a Chinoz, than going back north again to Shymkent. What could have been a simple trip before now takes most of the day. I suspect this was done to somehow restrict easy trading between the two cities bringing in goods made outside of Uzbekistan. At least this is one rational that I heard.
From Tashkent take the metro to Sobir Rahimov, the most southern point on the red line. When you come up from the Metro look across the road and there is a sort of bus station - a row of Marshrutkas (small vans of from 10 to 15 passengers) under shelters and over the various slots for the vans are the names of the cities. Take the Marshrutka to Chinoz and tell the driver you want to go to the border (Yalama). They will drop you off at the intersection for about 2000 S ($1) where you can catch a shared taxi to the border barrier for about 500 S ($0.25) [When both of us went in mid-October, we got a marshrutka that took us all the way from Tashkent to the border.]
Walk by the row of trucks to the gate and show your passport to the guard at the vehicle gate. There were a few others waiting at the pedestrian gate. The guard at the vehicle gate looked at my passport and said I was an American (with the question in the way he said it) and I said yes, he opened the gate and I walked through to the first building but was waved on through to the border (perhaps the first building was for medical inspections). It was a long walk and at the next building I was also waved through. Perhaps this one was the medical, or customs inspections. There were five people being held there but I walked on through to the next building which was passport control. There were two or three people filling out custom forms. I asked for a form and was quickly given a copy in English, which I completed. When I presented them the guard quickly compared the one from my entry to the one for my exit, stapled them together and waved me through. My notes are not clear, but at this or just after I put my bags through an x-ray machine and got my passport stamped without incident and quickly. As I exited this building I looked across to the one on the other side of the road and could see lots of people inside and a group waiting on the steps outside. I then walked across an open area to the last Uzbekistan gate and was waved through by the soldiers carrying rifles. As I passed through the last gate I looked across to the other side and could see lots and lots and lots of people waiting, as I experienced coming back into Uzbekistan from Shymkent in my earlier report.
At this point I would say that it is very quick to get out of Uzbekistan at this border. Ellen reminds me that it was easy when we crossed together the first time. There was very little foot traffic and the trucks were moving slowly.
At the Kazakhstan gate I had to cross over to the left side of the road and show my passport and was directed to the large white custom building. There were about 10 people waiting on the one out of the three desks that were open. I waited in line to ask for an immigration card/form, then to the back of the line to file it out, then waited in line again to present it. Had to remove my glasses to have my picture made by a camera mounted behind and above the person working the desk (for picture recognition software?).
There was only one building for people entering and leaving Kazakhstan and only one x-ray unit which went both directions. I was pulled out and they wanted me to look at the screen and identify what was in the bottom of my pack - a rather large selection of small ceramic bowls. I tried saying ceramic, and tried showing with my hands that there were bowls and then said Merry Christmas which seemed to be understood and I was waved on through. Walked the last section to the final gate and this time I knew the drill. I just ignored the taxi mafia trying to get me into a taxi for Shymkent and walked over to a more run-down taxi with a couple people in it and asked about Abay. They invited me to join them and we waited for the fourth and left fairly quickly. Cost about 400 to Abay and another 400 for a marshrutka to Shymkent, a bit over $5.
From Shymkent there are buses that leave from a station across the street from the Train Station. They only run at night. There are several to choose from with a range of prices and accommodations. Seats towards the front cost more. Fairly inexpensive. The train is a more comfortable option.
From my hotel in Almaty, the hotel reserved a taxi to the airport (leaving in the middle of the night) and required me to pay the hotel in advance. When the taxi delivered me to the airport he wanted to be paid again. I suggest you get a receipt and make sure the taxi driver and hotel are clear on the arrangements. There was no problem when I refused to pay the second time, showing it was just a ploy for extra fare.
To finish this tale, I must say that of all the borders I have crossed in the world, the one from Shymkent, Kazakhstan to Yalama, Uzbekistan is, in my opinion, the worst border crossing in the world, now displacing the border from Puno, Peru going into Bolivia from the number one position.

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Last updated: 31 December 2009