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12-02-09 14:58 #52All is not lost - I did run into a guy in the British Pub who said he arrived with a tour and had ditched them the day before. Don't know if he was BSing or not but who knows????
Originally Posted by DirkDingy
I would imagine the tour operators are pretty nervous though. In reality you can probably bugger off for a few days without dire consequences. The problem starts when you try to get back on the plane without your group. THAT could be a bit sticky......
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12-02-09 14:06 #51 Originally Posted by Jake993
Damm. I might have to book a full package tour and then just ditch the group..a buddy of mine did this before in Uzb when they closed the borders to Westerners a few years ago.
Anyway, good reports..will contact you when I manage to secure a visa.
Cheers,
DD
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12-02-09 13:58 #50 Originally Posted by Jake993
Damm. I might have to book a full package tour and then just ditch the group..a buddy of mine did this before in Uzb when they closed the borders to Westerners a few years ago.
Anyway, good reports..will contact you when I manage to secure a visa.
Cheers,
DD
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12-02-09 13:34 #49DD, Originally Posted by DirkDingy
Thanks for the kudos. I was beginning to think that NOBODY was reading the T-stan forum anymore. Not even Bez. And I even posted photos!!!!!
Truthfully, you need a business visa to get any kind of freedom in Turkmenistan. And even these days that means you need an invitation from a legitimate, Turkmenistan registered company or government agency. A colleague of mine who works for a multi-billion $ company was recently denied a business visa even though they have a local branch in Turkmenistan that employs dozens (if not hundreds) of locals. Go figure. Some may argue with me, but in this region, I think Turkmenistan is the last hold out of the old Soviet style bureaucracy. They deny applications of all kinds "for any or no reason".
As far as apartments go, you have to do it through personal contacts. There are plenty of elite level apartments for rent, but most of them want a multi-month contract. However, I do have a name number and email address of a real estate broker who speaks English and has access to good (furnished) apartments in A-bat on a night by night or week by week basis. Send me a PM and I will share.
Good luck,
Jake
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12-01-09 06:54 #48
Great Report Mate
Jakey,
What up? I am inspired to follow in your footsteps but it seems the only way a Yank can go to Turkmenistan is via group tour and with the restrictive hotel rules this is darn near a no-go. Can you please tell me more about how to rent an apartment without being tossed in jail? Spaceba.
Cheers,
DD
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11-19-09 02:15 #47
Back in A-bat. Trip #4
With he exception of two nights in Mary, I just returned from three weeks in Ashgabat. And being my fourth visit to Ashgabat I think I can safely say that I saw just about everything there is to see is Ashgabat in the mongering department. Just to recap the highlights of the various venues.
AK ALTYN
Considered the ultimate in Ashgabat late night entertainment, the Disco at the AK ALTYN hotel is the paragon of pussy in Turkmenistan's capital city. After three weeks of staying at the AK ALTYN, I can say with very little hesitation that I saw the highs and the lows of the place. The parade is quite predictable in terms of the girls who work at the Ak Altyn Disco. Since the disco proper does not open until 23:00, the action starts up in the Ambassador Lounge located on the mezzanine floor after about 21:00 on most nights. And BTW, the elevator on the mezzanine floor has been disabled so there is no way to get from your room to the Ambassador (and the Karaoke Bar beside it) without going past the front desk (and the front door security) and taking the circular staircase. For that matter, there is practically no way to get to your room from either the Ambassador Lounge or the Disco (located in the basement) without going past security. This is significant because the omni-present Okhranik (security dude) WILL charge your girl a fee go to your room. In fact, the fee is not a one time fee but $30 per hour if you can believe it. I most cases, the girls will ask your room number and will come upstairs to meet you at your room in 10 minutes. But before doing so they will seek out the Okhranik, pay him his tribute and he will, in turn, record her mobile phone number. This serves a dual purpose - first it allows him to call after one hour and inquire as to her whereabouts, and second it allows him to make sure everything is ok in your room.
There is rumor going around that the Ak Altyn shares the list of names and phone numbers with the local police. This can be a problem because I met more than a few girls at Ak Altyn disco who will not accompany you to your room if you live in the hotel itself. There are stories going around that the security in Ak Altyn cooperated with the police in the past and caused some trouble for both a girl AND a hotel guest resulting in his deportation. Is it true? Who knows? But the damage is done and some fo these girls (hot ones too) will only go with you if you live in an apartment or some other hotel. Some of the seasoned girls pointed out a blond in her late 20's who is purported to actually work for the police and engages in sting operations with certain hotel guests (supposedly Turkmen) and can make trouble. You have been warned.
The Ak Altyn Disco differs from the other discos in Ashgabat (the Grand Turkmen (located in the Grand Turkmen Hotel) and the Florida Disco (located upstairs from the British Pub) in that it really is a bit of a melting pot. During the week you will see the usual working girls, but on the weekends (Fri, Sat, Sun) you will see a plenty of non-working girls and couples come to the Ak Altyn Disco to kick up their heels. This really makes it much more interesting as it's not just a bunch of piranhas eying each other up and down and pouncing on the first unsuspecting gringo who walks in (not that there's anything wrong with that). There are more then just a few who come to dance and look for love so the dynamics between the pros and non-pros can be quite electric. After three weeks though, it became pretty routine and it was fun to watch the same girls work the room night after night. What was really funny was that after 10 days or so, they came to recognize me as well and knew my usual spot at the bar. It was fun to watch the process unfold while deciding whether or not to be part of it on any given night. After a few "appointments" the girls convinced me that paying the Okranik was a was a waste of money (especially by the hour) and convinced my and my colleagues that it would be better to accompany the girls home to their apartments and continue the party there. This was a tricky maneuver because strictly speaking it is illegal for a foreigner to visit a girl's apartment for the purpose of sex and is technically punishable by deportation. Oh dear. But by exercising the proper care, it did not take much to ensure you were not being followed and in most cases it was MUCH more fun coming home with the girls than playing "beat the clock" in your hotel room with the Okhranik. Not to mention cheaper. For the most part, the girls in Ashgabat are not greedy and are happy to take $75 for an hour and $100 for the night as long as they don't have to share with security. All in all, it was a MUCH more pleasant experience. Of course it does mean that you have to find you own way home in the morning but just about every cab driver knows all the hotels and will take you there for 5 Manat ($2). Unless you are at the President hotel and then it will cost you 10 Manat.
Both the Ak Altyn Disco and the Ambassador Lounge and Karakoe are licensed to stay open until at least 4:00 AM. On weekends they will be open until 7:00 AM. I don't care much for Karaoke but I did rather like the Ambassador Lounge. The food is not bad and the drinks are pretty reasonable unless you are drinking whiskey and then you are screwed. Local beers like Baltica are pretty cheap as is the local vodka which is quite drinkable. The imported Russian stuff is pretty pricey as is the whiskey and imported beer like Tuborg. Effes from Turkey is not too bad btw. the thing that blindsided me was the price of tonic water. It made the cheap local vodka pretty expensive in the end. It offers a bit of contrast to the thump, thump, thump of the disco and more of a range of music. Somewhat more sophisticated girls too. A little less aggressive and a little more conversational.
BRITISH PUB
Great place to hang out. Good atmosphere, decent pool table (not really) and reasonably friendly staff. Again, if you drink the local beer and vodka it can be pretty affordable but the imported stuff gets pricey quite quickly. After 21:00 most nights you get the usual cast of characters (working girls) who eventually migrate over to either the Grand Turkmen across the street, the Florida Disco upstairs or the Ak Altyn after midnight. I should point out that the British Pub does have an great outdoor patio in the summer which serves as the disco when weather permits. Again, the crowd seems to be primarily working girls except in summer when locals come to enjoy the warm nights and the music.
GRAND TURKMEN
Located directly across the street from the British Pub, the Grand Turkmen (formerly a Sheraton property) has two establishments worthy of note. The cocktail lounge on the mezzanine and the disco in the basement. The cocktail lounge on the mezzanine is depressing. the girls are like robots and will not move out of their chairs for less than $150 for one hour. No exceptions. Thee seems to be a pretty well established pecking order and hierarchy amongst this much is a bit goofy. Three drinks and I was outta there and down to the disco. The disco in the basement is a meat market. the girls are all working and the guys are there to get laid. Period. End of discussion. Not mystery there fellas. Rates are pretty standard at $120 to $150 for a hour if you are staying at the hotel and negotiable if you have somewhere else to go. I am led to believe that the Grand Turkmenis not quite as bad as the Ak Altyn when it comes to security but I can't really substantiate that. Girls range from very nice looking to downright homely. Turkmen girls, Russian girls, plus a few Uzbeks and Kazakhs just for variety.
PRESIDENT HOTEL
The President hotel is much more out of the way than the other two hotels mentioned previously. While it does not have a disco, there is a cocktail lounge piano bar on the top floor. the night that I went it was scary. There was not one girl who did not speak very good English and not one under the age of 30. If they were not all hookers I would have thought I was in a Cougar Town. Yikes!!!!!! I managed to stay for about 30 minutes and had to get out of there. I must confess that I did not get any price quotes but I suspect that the $150 (including the $30 house fee) rule was in effect. I would suggest that unless you have the misfortune of staying at the President Hotel that you not bother going.
NISSA - The Nissa hotel is currently closed and undergoing a renovation.
CITY PUB
This was my first visit to the City Pub which is located just west of the British Pub. Much smaller than the BP, it is quite cozy and more of a Sports Bar. I will confess that the few times I was there I did not see any working girls...... but that can be a good thing sometimes. BTW - the food at the City Pub is great. They do a very nice Sea Bass and their burgers are MUCH better than at the BP. On weekend they play live Jazz so that's kind of cool.
KAPET DAG
A new place in town, Kapet Dag is run by Maxim the former manager of the British Pub. i think we managed to steal the excellent Indian chef as well because the BP no longer serves Indian cuisine and the Kapet Dag does. Hmmmmm - coincidence? I think not!!!!! Kapet Dag is technically three bars in one. Kapet Dag, the Lizard Lounge and some Pub that I can't remember the name of. Collectively Kapet Dag, it's the hottest bar in town with good food, good drinks and VERY nice looking girls. Most of which I suspect to be non-pros but I think it's just matter of time until the classier "rabotnitsa" make their way over. Keep your eye on this place for sure. The only negative is that Kapet Dag closes at midnight. Being a new establishment they do not have the coveted 4:00 AM license that the British Pub has. But I suspect tit's just a matter of time with that as well.
So where to go? It's up to you. If you want the usual meat market, then the disco at the Grand Turkmen or the Florida at BP will do just fine. But I think the more interesting pickings after midnight will be either at the British Pub or the Ak Altyn hotel (disco or Ambassador). The choice is yours.
PHOTOS.
OK Bez - I owe your these photos from last trip. These are three typical Turkmen girls. The younger two are from Mary while the older one is a local A-bat girl. All working girls from the Ak Altyn, none will stay at the hotel for fear of security. Interesting situation. Fortunately, I had an apartment last time so it was not a problem. Bez - I owe you an apology. In the harsh light of the flash in the "morning after the night before", these girls are not as radiant as they were 8 hours earlier. Now I know why you strive for flashless photos. But they are good examples of local girls. Use your imagination.
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09-15-09 15:25 #46
Ashgabat
Turkmenistan is quite expensive compared to a few years ago, cost of living has increased a lot for the locals.
I stayed in the Grand Turkmen hotel in the city centre this time and there seemed many more tourist parties staying than previous years.
I didn't go in the mezzanine bar at all as I find the girls' attitudes very professional there, and as reported before they won't budge from $150, of which $30 goes to the hotel security who know all the girls and monitor their time.
There's plenty of availablity in the disco in the basement, which is too loud for my taste, but opens late with a few diehards there after 3am. Across the street in the British pub, the parade of lovelies starts around 10.30 to 11 pm and the place closes 2.30 am or so.
The good news that short term, i.e. monthly, apartment lets are possible to find now and the girls are happy to drop prices if no security surcharge is involved. An acquaintance was quoted 200 new manat (approx $75) for a trip to his apartment. Another guy just did the business in a dark corner of the outside disco and saved another $2 for the taxi fare/tip!
I'm glad to say that the "fat disease" hasn't reached Turkmenistan, in fact all of the girls look very lean and mean.
Photographs are tough to get, I even saw a guy grabbed by the bouncers for taking cellphone photos of a catfight in the bar.
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08-25-09 07:03 #45
You have some photos? OK, lets see? So far, there is not yet one in the gallery.
PLEASE share YOUR photos. Originally Posted by Jake993
As PoorSoul gave us tons of bragging, but ZERO fotos from his 2 months in Tosh-K.
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08-14-09 06:32 #44
Great stuff Jake!
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08-12-09 16:00 #43Luka, Originally Posted by Lukasek
You bet - huge difference in price between the capital and ANYWHERE in Turkmenistan. Security takes about half so these girls don't get much.
To answer your questions:
1. All women are beautiful in their own way
No seriously - it's a hard question to answer. Pure Turkmen girls can be gorgeous. Just as beautiful as the ethnic Russian girls. They tend to be quite slender with smallish breasts with very dark hair and pale skin. There are also some girls who appear to be Turkmen but are more dark complected with more Asian features. These girls have more Uzbek blood and even Mongolian or Chinese. The local Turkmen guys took great pains to point out the pure bred Turkmen from the mixed blood. I have some photos and will show some examples.
2. Turkmenistan is a country where the predominant religion is Muslim. IT IS NOT AN ISLAMIC REPUBLIC. People practice the religion in much the same way Catholicism is practiced in Western Europe; more of a suggestion than a law. Some are devout and do not believe in sex outside marriage and others.... well, you know whet I mean. Just like Italy is predominantly a Catholic country - it does not stop girls from going out and having a good time. The one thing is that hotel management insists that out of respect for local custom, all Turkmen girls who are "working girls" must be OUT of hotel rooms and off the premises before 7:00 AM unless they are employed by the hotel in the restaurant, laundry, etc.
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08-12-09 13:34 #42
Jake thanks for your report about one state with almost no report at all.
Strange enough how price vary from a not so cheap, for the place, 150$ for 1 hour till 75$ for 6 hours out of capital.
Two questions:
- how do you rate the beauty of local the girls VS the russian ones ?
- you did not mention, but it's a muslim country, did you notice it ? Cause it seems girls are very easy to find and into to have fun too.
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08-08-09 16:05 #41
Great Report Jake
Great Report Mate
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08-08-09 14:54 #40
Spent two weeks in Turkmenistan in July. Aside from the fact that they lost my luggage for two weeks it was an interesting time. I visited both Ashgabat and Mary so I got an opportunity to compare the two places.
ASHGABAT
This was my third trip to Ashgabat and this time I stayed in the AK Altyn Hotel. It’s the former the 4 Points Sheraton located a little off the beaten track more to the West side of town. While it’s only about $3 taxi ride to the British Pub, it’s a good 20 – 30 minute walk. And baby it was HOT. It was over 40 degrees C every day and I think one day we saw over 50. The AK Altyn has decent rooms although it’s the usual twin single beds in a superior room. On the mezzanine there are two bars; one called the Ambassador and another across the hall which is a Karaoke bar. Both open at 8:00 PM and stay open until 5:00 AM and sometimes later depending on the mood of the management. The Ambassador Lounge manager is named Vadim and he’s a great guy. Looks like a tough guy but if you start talking to him he’s great. He’s ethnic Russian and speaks almost no English. Down in the basement there is the AK Altyn Disco Bar. BTW – AK Altyn means White Gold in Turkmen referring to the important cotton industry in Turkmenistan. The disco gets going around midnight and runs strong 7 nights a week until about 6:00 AM.
I got the distinct impression that the AK Altyn was the beneficiary of the recent closure of the Nissa Hotel. The word is that the Nissa is closed for renovations and will reopen next year. Now the AK Altyn is crawling with working girls. And it is all over the map in terms of quality. BUT – the basic rate in the AK Altyn is pretty much set by security. This applies to the bars and the disco. And the rate is $150 for about 1 hour. After one hour and 15 minutes you can expect you visitor’s cell phone to start ringing in earnest.
I tried out a few girls the first week who were all Turkmen. What I was not really ready for was how cavalier they were about unprotected sex. They were quite happy to go bareback unless you brought it up and even then it was sort of like, “oh – I suppose so if you really want to”. Very strange attitude. I have a feeling it has to do with the fact that there are so few foreigners coming through and perhaps HIV and STD is not that much of a problem…… yet. The funniest episode was with a dark haired Turkmen girl named Yasmin. We were going at it doggie style when she pull me out of her pussy, yanked off the condom and insisted that we go anal bareback and that it would be ok. “Excuse me sweetie, but I think we have some issues to discuss here”. It’s one thing for BB vaginal sex but BB anal? Just a little too risky for my taste. It was all I could do to get out a condom and comply with her wishes. When we were finished she went on and on about how much she liked anal and quizzed me about why no bareback – strange. Talk about life on the wild side.
MARY
After a few days in Ashgabat I headed down to Mary (pronounced Ma-ree). BTW – if you need to go to Mary, take the plane. Do not drive. It’s like the highway of death. I very nearly met my maker both ways. Terrible road with pot holes and deep ruts from heavy trucks. They are working on it but the progress is slow. And Turkmen drive llike maniacs. Passing on the right, passing on the left - who cares? Anything goes.
Mary is a very interesting little town (city) of about 300,000 souls. They tell me it's the car capital of Turkmenistan. If you want to buy a used car in Turkmenistan, Mary is the place to come. Go figure. Appartnely they are imported from Dubai and arrived first in Mary. The best deals on cars are in Mary.
I stayed in a little hotel called Hotel Margush. Very nice little place with single rooms for about $40 a night, double for $60 and a nice suite for $150. Both the single and double sported single beds. I quickly got the rundown on Mary and came to learn that it’s a little more conservative than Ashgabat and that a lot of the really HOT girls in Ashgabat come from Mary. They are quite reserved in Mary but when they go to Ashgabat – watch out. The first disappointment was that the disco closed at 11:00 PM. Not really much of a pick-up place in the sense that you have in Ashgabat. However, hotel security was quite obliging to arrange for a girl to come to your room. The charge was $75. The girl will come to your room shortly after midnight along with the security guy whom you pay. You get about 10 minutes to “interview” her and see if you like her. The security guys comes back and checks to see if everything is good. If you don’t like her, throw her back and he will try to find another. If you like her, you have until 6:00 AM at which time the girls MUST be out of your room. Heck of a deal. $75 for 6 hours. The one who arrived at my place (named Gulya) who was Turkmen (of course) and about 24 years old. Certainly not her first rodeo as she knew what to do and was quite skilled. Lotsa fun. At about 5:50 AM the next morning, we got a “wake up call” from security. She quickly dressed and was out the door where a different security guard escorted her out the door. Needless to say, hotel security treated me like a “stud” for the rest of my stay…… perhaps I should have ordered two girls.
BACK IN ASHGABAT
Ok – tactical error right from the start. Because our schedule was a bit dodgy, we neglected to make a firm hotel reservation for the return to Ashgabat from Mary. Bad plan – there was some sort of Medical conference in town and EVERY hotel room in the place was booked . Even the two star hotels were full. It was bad enough that the Harvest Festival took every available seat on the plane so we had to once again ride the “highway of death” , now I had to find some place to stay. Luckily, my local contact had a friend who owned a fully furnished apartment for rent which was very close to the AK Altyn Hotel. This turned out to be a real bonus because I could easily walk to the AK Altyn and when it came time to get some “take out”, I told the girls that I had an apartment and we were not subject to the strict rules of the hotel, the attitudes changed dramatically. All of a sudden the price and the length of engagement became quite negotiable and flexible. The promise of food and booze gave way to a party atmosphere and it was no trouble at all to lure two girls home for a pajama party for $100 each. They stayed until I kicked them out at 11:00 AM when they ate and drank me out of house and home. Poor me.
One thing that the apartment afforded me was the opportunity to visit a local bar called “Iceberg” or “Ice-berk” as referred to by locals. It’s sort of a local beer garden with beer and vodka flowing in copious amounts with plenty of shasklik available. The atmosphere was superb and despite the fact that I was the ONLY American there it was like I was not even there. No one paid any extra attention and I was allowed to blend in. The locals were friendly with the ethic mix being about 70% Turkmen and 30% Russian. At about 10:30 PM, the local action started to arrive. Now this was interesting. The “rabotnitsi”(working girls) were arriving in all ages, shapes and sizes. They ranged from 18 to about 35 and from skinny mini to round and chubby. Something for everyone. Because it’s in a quasi residential neighborhood, the Iceberg Bar closes at midnight sharp so if you want to take home a friend you have to move fast. Witnessing the local pick up scene was a hoot. From what I could gather, girls were going home for as little at $10 short time and $50 long time but my local friends were pretty sure that for me the prices would have been inflated and I would have to pay at least $75 for long time – same as in Mary. But let's be clear - these were no where near the same quality you might find at the discos. More like what you would see at Hot Dog (aka Boarhouse, Chesterfield's in Moscow) The key is dim lighting and alcohol. Unfortunately I had other plans that night and wandered down to AK Altyn Disco for a rendezvous with a tasty little Ukrainian gal named Olga that I had talked to a few nights before.
What was apparent was a very different attitude when in the girls in Turkmenistan when compared to Moscow or even Kiev. Very very few cases of little "money grubbers" and more like girls out for a good time and looking to make some extra money. In the discos on the weekends, the hardened working girls were more in the minority. I think I like Turkmenistan.
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07-27-09 09:32 #39
Nissa Closed
I was in Turkmenistan for two weeks and yes, the Nissa is closed for renos. Most of the girls seem to have migrated over to the AK Altyn in both the bar upstairs and the disco in the basement. Originally Posted by Mr More
Just got back to Moscow. Will write a more detailed report tomorrow.
Jake
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06-06-09 16:24 #38
Hotel Nissa Closing for Renovations
Just so you know the Nissa is closing sometime in June 2009. Rumored to reopen for government guests only in 2010.
The girls told me they are moving to the outer ring of hotels farther from the center. And to the new hotel opening next to the airport, really far from the center. Good luck!
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