Three Observations

It's Saturday here and the temperature here is 93C and beautiful. I have three observations about Tashkent that will amuse no one but me.

First of all, this money thing is absolutely ridiculous. As I posted earlier, the largest note that the government prints is the 1000 sum note, which is currently less than a dollar. So exchanging even small dollar amounts leaves you with huuuuge wads of money that you must somehow carry around. But that has created a niche market for the young entrepreneur, a man-purse. It's not like the fabled manbag of Seinfeld fame, more like a purse with a gigantic handle. I thought I had snapped a photo of one but all I got was this dude's rear. But all the young wannabe mobsters have them.

Second observation. The Tashkent subway rules. Not only are they cheap at less than $0.20 a ride, the stations themselves are works of art, even more so than Moscow's fabled stations. Since they were also designed as nuclear fallout shelters, taking photos is strictly prohibited, but that didn't stop me.

And lastly, and more tragically, times are hard here in Uzbekistan. Really hard, with average salaries ranging around $25-35 a month. If you walk by the huge statue of Amon Timur most nights you can see one of the most heartbreaking results of this economic hardship, parents selling their daughters off for the night to strangers. I have unfortunately walked right by one of these transactions, in full view of the police. It's enough to make you wish for a crowbar and the fighting skills of Bruce Li.