On the way out of Dushanbe we got a first impression on what we could expect with regards to the police. In the first few hours we were stopped 5 times and had to show our passports ... well, we only handed over our photocopies. First lesson learnt: never show your original passport! It worked in all but two cases. Some Tajik military checkpoints insisted on the originals. Our driver, Altynbek, explained that such stops would be daily business. Whenever a car - preferably a car with tourists - is stopped, the driver gets out, shows his documents and very often hands over a bribe. He said that this was the Tajik Polices way to earn money. These checkpoints accompanied us throughout the whole trip in the Pamirs. After a while it was getting really annoying.
Rolling hills and dusty roads surrounded Dushanbe. The further we got out of the city, the more donkeys could be seen and the worse became the road conditions. Many Chinese workers were doing road construction here and there. Donkeys and cows were standing on the roads. We passed them with more than 50 km/h but they didn't care at all.
Very soon did Afghanistan appear on the right-hand side and accompanied us for almost the whole trip. The difference between Tajikistan and Afghanistan was immense. While there were cars, heavily loaded trucks and roads on the Tajik side, only little trails for people and donkeys were on the Afghan side across the Pyanj river. The Pyanj river forms the border between Tajikistan and Afghanistan.
We stopped at a restaurant for lunch and we had our first Plov, a traditional rice dish in Central Asia. Leaving Dushanbe also meant leaving western toilets behind us. From now on pit toilets were common.
We stopped for the night in a homestay in Kalaikhum, which even had a hot shower. Our first hot shower in Tajikistan! Luxury!
