My English teacher buddy Karen and I plan a Jeep excursion from Ulaanbaatar to the Gobi Desert to learn about the old Mongolian way of life...
If you’re looking for a cuisine with continental flavor spiced up with an Ottoman/Central Asian touch, trying some Macedonian food will satisfy your cravings. Macedonian cuisine is like a big melting pot where the ingredients
Uzbekistan - Cuisine & Food: What kind of food does Uzbekistan eat? What is the most popular food in Uzbekistan? List of main Uzbek dishes with photos
When the great hero and general, Alexander, who was as great as the god Apollo and Zeus, left his troops here, he asked them to stay here in this land without changing their Hellenic beliefs…
Uzbekistan - Cuisine & Food: What kind of food does Uzbekistan eat? What is the most popular food in Uzbekistan? List of main Uzbek dishes with photos
Get detailed information on Nagaland tourist Places & nearby sightseeing attractions. Here are the 9 Best Tourist Destinations to visit in Nagaland.
************************** Click Here to View the Main Index ************************** "February 2014……"The Pakistani Taliban have announced an "armed struggle" against an indigenous tribe and Ismaili Muslims in the picturesque northern Chitral valley, calling on Sunnis to support their cause in a video…..The valley was once dominated by moderate Ismailis and is also home to the Kalash, a polytheistic people who claim descent from Alexander the Great and who have maintained separate cultural traditions in the predominantly Muslim country."……http://www.theguardian.com/global/2014/feb/13/pakistan-taliban-video-warning-chitral-valley "February 2014……The Kalash people of Pakistan were found to have chunks of DNA from an ancient European population. Statistical analysis suggests a mixing event before 210 B.C., possibly from the army of Alexander the Great."…..http://www.nytimes.com/2014/02/14/science/tracing-ancestry-team-produces-genetic-atlas-of-human-mixing-events.html?_r=0 The Kalasha of Chitral….. Kalasha (Kalasha: Kaĺaśa, Nuristani: Kasivo) or Kalash, are a Dardic indigenous people residing in the Chitral District of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. They speak the Kalasha language, from the Dardic family of the Indo-Aryan branch, and are considered a unique tribe among the Indo-Aryan peoples of Pakistan. Total population…….ca. 4,100 Chitral District, Pakistan Languages: Kalashamondr….Urdu and Pashto as second languages Religion: Kalash Religion, Islam Related ethnic groups:Nuristani "History contains references to "Siah-Posh Kafirs"……Alexander the Great encountered them….Siah-Posh (black-Robed) Kafirs was the former designation of the major and dominant group of the Hindu Kush Kafirs inhabiting the Bashgul (Kam) valley of the Kafiristan, now called Nuristan. They were so-called because of the color of the robes they wore. They were distinguished from the Sped-Posh (white-robed) Kafirs (sometimes also called Lal-Posh or Red robed) by reason of the color of their dress as also because of their language, customs and other characteristics. The Siah-Posh Kafirs (Nuristanis) have sometimes been erroneously confused with Kalasha people, though they are not directly related to the Kalash of the neighboring Chitral Province in Pakistan."…. "Racial Origin……Some earlier writers had speculated and propagated the myth that the Kafirs of Hindukush may have descended from the army of Alexander the Great. The Pakistani Tourist Bureau still continues to propagate that the peoples in the mountains are descendants of soldiers from the army of Alexander but Greek descent of Kafirs has been discounted by H. W. Bellew, George Scott Robertson and many later scholars…… However many other scholars do believe in the authenticity of this tale that the Kalash themselves claim as being descedants of Alexander's army. This list of scholars who propagate the Kalash's ancestry claim is true includes Sir George Scott Robertson, and Eric S. Margolis."….. "The neighboring Nuristani people of the adjacent Nuristan (historically known as Kafiristan) province of Afghanistan once practiced the same polytheistic religion as the Kalash. By the late 19th century much of Nuristan had been converted to Islam, although some evidence has shown the people continued to practice their customs. Over the years, the Nuristan region has also been the site of numerous war activity that has led to the death of many endemic Nuristanis and has seen an inflow of surrounding Afghans to claim the vacant region, who have since admixed with the remaining natives. The Kalash of Chitral maintained their own separate cultural traditions."….Newby, Eric. A Short Walk in the Hindu Kush. 2008. The Kalash people of Pakistan were found to have chunks of DNA from an ancient European population. Statistical analysis suggests a mixing event before 210 B.C., possibly from the army of Alexander the Great.….Circles show the apparent sources of DNA within the two parent populations, one European and one Asian…..http://www.nytimes.com/2014/02/14/ Connection with Kambojas………" The Kambojas are also described as a royal clan of the Sakas.…..Parts of Kafiristan (Nuristan) formed a portion of the Greek strapy of the Paropamisadae in the fourth and third century BCE. The people of the region were then called Kambojas and described as of mixed Indo-Iranian descent. Possibly, they occupied much wider area then and were gradually forced to their present mountainous fastnesses by the Muslim onslaught during medieval era. One of their dominant clans is still known as Kam or Kamoz, while the other is called Kamtoz, which remind us of the name Kamboja" …….The Kamoz tribe of Kafirs are fairly supposed to be the surviving representatives of the Kambojas of primeval Indian literature, a name with which scholars have connected that of Cambyses....In two other Kafir tribes — the Asphins and Ashkins (Ashkuns) — one is tempted to trace remnants of the Aspasii and Assaceni of Alexander's historians"…..Geographical Dictionary of Ancient and Medieval India and several other authorities note that the Siah-Posh tribe living in Hindukush mountains descended from the ancient Kambojas ." "The Kambojas (Sanskrit: कम्बोज, Kamboja; Persian: کمبوہ, Kambūh) were a Kshatriya tribe of Iron Age India, frequently mentioned in Sanskrit and Pali literature. Modern scholars conclude that the Kambojas were an Avestan speaking Eastern Iranian tribe who later settled in at the boundary of the ancient India. The Kambojas are classified as a Mleccha or barbarous tribe by the Vedic Inhabitants of India. Indologists believe that Kambojas have adopted Hinduism in a late Vedic Period."….In the Mahabharata and in Pali literature, Kambojas appear in the characteristic Iranian roles of horsemen and breeders of notable horses. "The Siah-posh Kafirs of the Hindukush ranges, who till recently were collectively known as Kamoges or Kamojis (Sanskrit Kambojis or Kambojas) are stated to have been a remain of a considerable ancient people among whom were original Kashmerians and a greater part of Badakshan and Kabol as far as Deggan tribes...and on the southern face of the higher ridges of Himalaya extending to an unknown distance...Though whole of their pristine population being subjected to Muslim conquerors in the Middle Ages, and having mixed with them, they have now lost their pristine individuality of national character but still among the Kabulis, in particular, it is still not infrequent to observe heads and figures that might serve for models to the sculptors who would portray a Jupiter or a Mars according to the refined idealism of the ancient Greeks. The Kafirs have oval faces, their brows are well-arched and the nose and mouth even more refined than the Greeks. They are still fairer, generally, with lighter hair and gray eyes. Blending with the nearest black-haired tribes, the ancestors of the Kamoges are believed to have given rise to ancient Persians and with the faired-haired on the north, they are said to have produced the handsome tribes of the Goths. The name Kamoges or Kamojis apparently reminds one of the ancient Kambojas living in Hindukush, Pamirs as well as in Badakshan. The Siah-Posh clans of Kams, Kamoz/Kamoges and Kamtoz, as stated above, are said to have descended from the ancient Kambojas "The physical characteristics of the Kafir Kamoges wonderfully remind us of the physical charactersitcs of the ancient Kambojs who have especially been described as exceedingly handsome race (Mahabharata 7.23.43). Ancient Kamboj princes have also been noted as tall like towers, exceedingly handsome and of gaura varna (See: Mahabharata 8.56.113-114; Mahabharata ; MBH 7.92.72-76), having faces illustrious like the full moon (Mahabharata 8/56/111), lotus eyed (Mahabharata 8/56/110-114), handsome like the lord-moon among the stars (Mahabharata 1/67/31). Even Ramayana calls the Kambojas as ravisanibha i.e with faces illustrious like the Sun ( Ramayana 1/55/2). Besides, there are also ancient references, Buddhist as well as Brahmanical, which speak very high of the beauty of the Kamboj women." "...the Kafir (Infidel) of the Sanskrit Kambojia are said to be Koresh from a people of that name (Kuresh Perian, and Keruch Rajput) known to have anciently inhabited these eastern districts of the Paropamisus of the Greeks" …… "The name Koresh or Kurush is said to be national designation of Kafir tribes north of Lughman; and it is not impossible that it may have been family name of Cyrus, king of Persia who was born in Cabul country"…..H. W. Bellew Aryan idols: Indo-European mythology as ideology and science, 2006, p 53, fn 109, Stefan Arvidsson, Sonia Wichmann - Social Science. The Káfirs of the Hindu-Kush by Sir George Scott Robertson War at the top of the world: the struggle for Afghanistan, Kashmir, and Tibet By Eric S. Margolis " An Inquiry Into the Ethnography of Afghanistan: Prepared and Presented to the Ninth International Congress of Orientalists (London, September, 1891) pp 35, 47, 87, 134, 141, 144, 195, Henry Walter Bellew - Afghanistan. The Káfirs of the Hindu-Kush, 1896, p 158, George Scott Robertson, Arthur David McCormick. **************************
On the crossroads of East and West, the Silk Road region holds hidden gems.
Explore S.M.Rafiq's 1996 photos on Flickr!
Come to the Ice Festival in Mongolia, celebrated on the frozen surface of Lake Khuvsgul and enjoy a beautiful landscape and a unique cultural experience.
Tajikistan-Kyrgyzstan Pamir Tour from Dushanbe to Osh & Bishkek. Overland adventure tour on "Roof of the World" in Tajikistan & incredible Kyrgyzstan
Historically hometo the Zeliang tribe, Benreu village in the Peren district of Nagaland is the abode of clouds and rains. The average rainfall in the area is 2056 mm, making it one of the favourites of the Rain Gods in the country. Perched at a height of 1950 metres, the surreal Benreu faces the third highest peak of Nagaland, Mout Pauna. From a decent vantage point, one can see the shimmering rice fields in the foothills and the Teipuiki river dividing the glassy landscape into Nagaland and Man
China - The Uyghur people of Xinjiang. In Xinjiang, the western province of China, violent combats between the Uyghur people and the new settled Han Chinese people caused more than 150 deads in the beginning of the month of July 2009. Relations between Chinese authorities and the Uyghur population have a long and tense history. Uyghurs formed two short-lived East Turkestan republics in the 1930s and 40s during the Chinese civil war and the Japanese invasion. But China subsequently took control of the region, and Beijing has in recent years launched a campaign against Uyghur separatism, which it regards as a war on Islamic terrorism. It has also accused "hostile forces" in the West of fomenting unrest in the strategically important and resource-rich region, which borders several countries in Central Asia.
While much of Afghanistan has been roiled by near constant war since the American invasion in 2001, there are parts of the country that are still untouched by war. Frederic Lagrange traveled to one to meet people living on the edge and see the beautiful landscape.
We’ve been travelling in Central Asia for a couple of months now, and in particular, a month in Tajikistan. We love meeting and connecting with the local people of whichever country we’re in and Tajikistan has some fantastic people! It’s a magnificent melting pot of people from all over the region. What I find most ... Read more
Read our complete travel guide to Uzbekistan, including our recommendations for the best activities, food, accommodation, and more!
Venture into the world of nomadic living where you will have the chance to experience the Mongolian capital of Ulaanbaatar. Live with a local host family and get a taste for nomadic life on the Mongolian plains in Asia. Read more about this here.
Iranians celebrate the National Mount Damavand Day on July 4 to attract the public’s attention to the importance of mountains in the country’s history and nature.
The Karakum Desert, also spelled Kara-Kum and Gara Gum (“Black Sand”) (Turkmen: Garagum, Russian: Каракумы) is a desert in Central Asia. It occupies about 70 percent, or 350,000 km², of the area of Turkmenistan (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karakum_Desert).
Read our complete travel guide to Uzbekistan, including our recommendations for the best activities, food, accommodation, and more!
If you're wondering what to expect when traveling to Turkmenistan, here are some of the most exciting things to do in Turkmenistan.
The homeland of Hungarians' closest relatives the Uyghurs lies in Xinjiang Province, western-China. Despite China's bloody oppression of the Uyghur ethnic
Azerbaijan attempting to Eradicate Iranian-Talysh According to a highly disputed 1926 census, there were 77,039 in the "Soviet Republic of Azerbaijan" - a fictitious country made from stolen Iranian land. From 1959 to 1989, the Talysh were not included as a separate ethnic group in any census, but rather they were included as part of the Turkic-speaking Azerbaijani's, although the Talysh speak an Iranian language. In 1999, the Azerbaijani government again falsely claimed there were only 76,800 Talysh in Azerbaijan, but this is believed to be a gross under-representation given the political problems with registering as a Talysh. Some claim that the population of the Talysh inhabiting the southern regions of Azerbaijan is 500,000. [See Hema Kotecha, Islamic and Ethnic Identities in Azerbaijan: Emerging trends and tensions, OSCE, Baku, July 2006.] Talysh leaders have always asserted that the number of Talysh in Azerbaijan is substantially higher than the official statistics, perhaps as high as 800,000. See “Talysh”, in: Ethnologue.com http://www.ethnologue.com/show_language.asp?code=tly ; Reasons for the dispute around the number of Talysh in Azerbaijan: One Europe, Many Nations: A Historical Dictionary of European National Groups, by James Minahan, Greenwood, 2000, ISBN 0313309841, ISBN 9780313309847, p. 674 (viewable on Google Books). Obtaining accurate statistics is difficult, due to the unavailability of reliable sources, due to forced assimilation by Azerbaijan in an effort to ethnically cleanse speakers of Iranian languages, such as the Talysh. Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty have voiced their concerns about the arrest of Novruzali Mamedov, Chairman of the Talysh Cultural Centre and editor-in-chief of the "Tolyshi Sado" newspaper. He was arrested and tried in the court of 'grave crimes,' after the newspaper published articles showing well known Persian poet Nezami, and Iranian historical hero Babak Khoramdin as Talysh. "AZERBAIJANI AUTHORITIES ACCUSED OF DISCRIMINATING AGAINST ETHNIC MINORITIES: In a statement addressed to foreign diplomatic representations in Baku, Khilal Mamedov, who heads a committee to defend the right of Novruzali Mamedov, the arrested editor of the Talysh-language newspaper "Tolyshi sado," accused the Azerbaijani leadership of Turkic nationalism and of seeking to suppress non-Turkic minorities, including the Talysh, an Iranian ethnic group, day.az reported on July 10. He said the Azerbaijani leadership seeks to minimize contacts between the Talysh communities in Azerbaijan and Iran and to run Azerbaijan into a monoethnic state. Novruzali Mamedov was arrested five months ago and has been formally charged with spying for Iran (see "RFE/RL Newsline," February 20, 2007)." (http://www.hri.org/news/balkans/rferl/2007/07-07-11.rferl.html#11) Talysh -- an Iranian People at Risk By Fascist Policies in The Republic of Azerbaijan, which is land stolen from Iran: LINKS * ORIGINS OF IRANIAN PEOPLE * Do the Talysh and Tat Languages Have a Future in Azerbaijan * Azerbaijan's Talysh 'ancients' under threat - BBC VIDEO * Talysh Information Link
Read our complete travel guide to Uzbekistan, including our recommendations for the best activities, food, accommodation, and more!
This Nagaland travel guide provides detailed information to travel to the picturesque state that is part of the seven sister states in North Eastern India.
ken hermann and gem fletcher’s project ‘bökh’ is a short film and photo series which explores the culture of wrestling in mongolia.
Iranian cuisine or Persian cuisine (špaziye Irâni) is the traditional and modern style of cooking in Iran (formerly known as Persia).
In 1956 Jacques Dupâquier flew on to Tashkent, the center of the Uzbek autonomous republic. There he enjoyed the freedom and taking photos of the capital. “We traveled on an old plane which did not fly higher than 3,200 meters, and so we could watch for hours Soviet Central Asia. I made a couple of pictures through the window. At one moment we flew over a forced labor camp. The stewardess came out of the cabin, and warned us that taking photographs is prohibited here. Then she went back to the cabin, so I urgently took some photos. The official interpreter sitting next to us said nothing." These images show the shrinking outlines of the Aral Sea, the last remnants of old Tashkent and the traditional costume of their residents, the bazaar which shrank just like the sea and where Dupâquier took most of his photos. His pictures do not surpass the average tourist standard either here. But their value is in the fact that all this would disappear within ten years, following the rebuilding of the city into a sea of socialist housing estates and – as Dupâquier already noticed and emphasized it – the strong influx of Russian inhabitants and culture accompanying it. (via Poemas del río Wang)
Discover Turkmenistan in one week! Explore Ashgabat, visit the Gateway to Hell, find a reliable agency, and transportation options in this ultimate guide.