Lenin

Left 8.30 for Osh, the 2nd city of Kyrgyzstan where we went to the main square to see the civic centre, Uni and Lenin. Then we arrived at the border where we gave our drivers the tips and Olga said goodbye and cried.

At the exit place they were letting 5 at a time through. We got stamped and walked to the Uzbek area where we stood in the sun among 80-100 people thronging and pushing and shouting at the man who was guarding the gate. More and more locals pushed in further towards the guard. It seemed like we'd be there for hours as nobody was getting through. Locals kept shouting at us but we didn't understand that they were saying tourists should go through, till the Red Sea opened and we were all let through, with locals smiling and helping. A young German asked me what was going on so I said just join us.

After the passport bit we had to fill in forms about exactly how much money we were taking in and other details then take it to get stamped. After that luggage went through a scanner and I had to open my bag. He admired my vodka and asked about my medication and peered at my specs, then I got allowed to repack and our Uzbek guide was waiting at the gate.

It was a few hours through fertile agricultural land - apples, grapes, pears and cotton - before we reached Fergana where we stay tonight. The booking had gone wrong so some people had to go to another hotel as they didn't want to share a room. We have 3 beds in ours! The gardens are lovely and I've had a quick swim in the pool. We are not used to such luxury! This might be a police state but it is a lot richer than Kyrgyzstan- lots of new houses, better roads etc.

We just loved Kyrgyzstan and our excellent guide. It's a beautiful country, lovely people and fascinating politics and history - so different from anywhere we've been.