Where is Khorog. What is dangerous Khorog? Attractions and interesting places of Khorog and surroundings

For competent information, the high-altitude horror was the most criminal city in the USSR. It is certainly clear, considering where the city is territorially ( try Find on the map), but at the same time is not very clear, since the "sacred and inviolable border of the USSR", as is known, integrined primarily for the residents of the USSR ...)

01. The city, surrounded from all sides of the high mountains, is located at an altitude of 2,200 meters. At current times, this is the capital of the Mining Badakhshan Autonomous Region as part of the Republic of Tajikistan.

02. Lives here as in the fairy tale Pamir Tajik on citizenship and ethnic pampitution on origin ( population about 30,000 people).

03. Dushanbe - far away ( 525 km). Afghanistan - close ( meters 150 from the city border). Those snow peaks in the center and there are Afghanistan.

04. Live in Khorog generally not bad, perhaps best on the Pamir ( true worse than in the time of the USSR, but this later).

05. The main and only sight of the Alpine Botanical Garden. It seems the highest high in the former USSR, and the second after Nepali in the world.

06. Here in the midst of the earliest, a little late spring. Garden as a garden? Do not tell me.

07. It begins at a height of about 2250 meters and rises along the slope almost up to 2400 meters, occupying the area of \u200b\u200bmore than 624 hectares.

08. The peaks of the local mountains almost all year round are covered with snow. Because of the mining relief, the microclimate in different parts of the garden differs very different from each other: in the north of the park ( higher) is cooler, in the south ( lower) A drying climate.

11. Even in difficult nineties, at the height of the Civil War, a group of scientists was successfully worked in the Botanical Garden, scientific work was carried out.

12. For the existence of the project ( since 1940 officially) More than 30,000 varieties of plants were tested here. According to some reports, the current collection has about 4,000 species.

13. What struck me in the garden is absolute purity and deserted. We have not met a single visitor, not a single employee in general. You go among the mountains and beautiful plants alone with you. Class! Only at the exit from the garden, we met a bored guard of the local state residence of President Tajikistan ( here he prefers to stop in those rare moments of visiting Khorog).

14. If short and exccoo, then Horog looks like something.

15. GBAO occupies about 40% of the total territory of Tajikistan, but a little less than 220,000 people live on its territory ( about 3% of the population) and it's far not the most prosperous region countries. Today, here the lowest incomes per capita, while the highest prices ( remote distance and hard to accessibility affect). Here are the most bad roads ( if you can call them). There is no established transport link here, civil aviation is practically not flying on a regular basis ... But it was not always. For example, in the Soviet period, regular aviation report reached 24 Yak-40 per day (flew mostly in Dushanbe, naturally)!

16. In Soviet and post-Soviet times until 2005 ( the year of the final withdrawal of Russian border guards from Tajikistan), Pamir residents had a number of advantages in various spheres of life. Because of the border zone, large military units were quartered here. And with them all the advantages that the state supplied a military contingent, from infrastructure improvements ( electrification, telephonization, regular aviary, etc..) to decent food supply. In addition, most of the local population had a permanent job and a stable salary ( double coefficient, due to the high mountains during the USSR, and a well-paid contractual service as part of the border troops of the Russian Federation). Therefore, the conclusion of the Russian border troops from the territory of GBAO has become another extremely negative factor in the relations of Pamir residents with official Dushanbe.

17. Probably everything would be worse if it were not for active financial and humanitarian (especially during the Civil War) Support for the Aga Khan Foundation ( i already told about him, I will not repeat). It is due to the action of this fund, slowly but the reconstruction of the Pamir tract is underway. The problems of stable feeding and filtration of drinking water were solved. Solved problems of power supply and heating ( khoroganskaya HPP reconstructed). Moreover, the Horog energy is now divided into neighboring regions of Afghanistan.

18. Probably on the same funds are reconstructed and the city park of Khorog, in which we tried a little ( 16-19 photos).

19. It's great here.

20. Another factor that I was pleasantly surprised in Khorog is the presence in the city of three (!) Full universities! This is 30,000 people! Khogogan State University, Branch of the International University of Central Asia, where education is mainly in English, and the Lyceum of the Aga Khan Foundation. Somewhere I heard that in the Soviet period in terms of education for 1000 people, GBAO ranked first in the USSR ( i do not know the truth or not, but curious).

21. Otherwise, the city is like a city. I will not say that it lives here simply, but life seems to be settled.

22. In one of the local restaurants ( and maybe in the only city in the city, I'm not sure yet) Where we dined, we were the only carriers of the Russian language. A variety of foreign speech came from all sides. At the same time, all the present foreigners were not like tourists, rather on commoded employees of international organizations ( whether a university, or the Aga Khan Foundation, DR.).

23. Through the city passes the mountain river Gunt, which, in the city, the city flows into Pyanj.

24. On the horizon just place the place of the Gunta in Pyanj. Well, for Pyanjam, already Afghanistan.

25. If you carefully look at the GBAO card, or even the USSR, it is easy to notice that in addition to Afghanistan area borders with China ( a little away from Khorog, closer to the Murgab district, we still have to go there). So, mainly from China to Khorog comes today the supply of food and various lots. As I assume, in the opposite direction, transport goes empty. In the post-Soviet period, a whole business was established for the supply of cigarettes, clothes, and anything in Afghanistan and China. I wonder what realities in the Soviet period? Was the boundary of such a "sacred and inviolable"? Or were the influential groupings who made the "Soviet business" on the border? A good question, but I do not have a response to him. I remember only a promising cheeper of the competent sources, with whom we took place an informal conversation, including on this topic.)

26. Mountains that come close to the city are also the main source of danger in the local areas. Alas, here we are often landslides, the gatherings of the village streams and other elemental troubles.

27. What is there on the score of the crime I spoke? I do not know how in the USSR, but today tourists feel pretty calmly and comfortably in Khorog. We walked in the evening, walked after the sun climb, no one was interested in us, it was noticeable that we were accustomed to tourists in the city, and stopped paying attention to them.

28. The central street of the city, or in the old man, or it is fundamentally called Lenin Street ( somewhere on the road from the city and the leader of the proletariat). On the right, the main market and the "bus station". It is from here in the morning passenger SUVs in Dushanbe, Ishkashchestan and other cities of GBAO, Tajikistan, and even in Kyrgyz Osh.

29. In the days when we were in the city ( 4-5 May), traces of preparation for the holiday of Victory on May 9, who in Tajikistan carefully honors.

30. Opposite Victory Park ( on the previous photo) Another monument, if I correctly understood, the friendship of two nations.

31. Any traces of the Civil War (including acute aggravation of 2012), we did not notice either buildings or in persons of passers-by, nor in any visible strengthening of paramilitary units ... there was a common civil life small, but quite a pretty regional center.

32. Maybe only a little bit lucky with the weather, it was pretty cool.)

Before him. In this case, your acquaintance with GBAO, how else is officially called this region of Tajikistan, will certainly begin with its capital, Khoroga. Most likely, you will come up there late in the evening, and in the morning you will open unusual landscapes ... as well as international tourists.

Khorog.

Despite inconvenience with transport, Pamir is a very popular direction. So the lack of hostels and breakfasts (the last - three dollars, a lot for Tajikistan) you will not have. In one of the hostels we met with the grandfather of his mistress, Ali Mohammad Rajput. Grandfather spoke in pure British English: as it turned out, he is a doctor of science, professor, author of the book about the life and work of the famous missionary of the 11th century Hassan Ibn Sabbach. Grandfather lived and worked in Birmingham, and today it is at the Pamir Aga Khan, the spiritual leader of Ismailith, about which we wrote before. In turn, Aga Khan and other Ismailis are so popular both on the Pamir in general, and in Khorog, that you often meet in the mountains of the inscriptions created by Pamir, to welcome them at the next arrival.

Sunday Khorog, as he appeared, is a extinct city. Even the dollar exchange rate on Sunday is 10 kopecks below. Most of the few cafes do not work, like the infocenter.

Life is boiling only in the Central Park, where you can swim in a small pond.

Healing source.

We still decided not to sit pants and went to the neighboring village (in the direction of Dushanbe, not far from the airport) drink therapeutic water. The source is considered so healing that all coming drinking from one pile bus - Microbes do not live in such water! Some legend is connected with the source about how water from under the ground, water, details, alas, do not remember.

Seeking a thay from the neighboring source of wood, returned back to Khorog on the first minibus (working towards Dushanbe), on the third minibus from the Khogoga Bazaar went to the Botanical Garden. From the final stop, it was necessary to protrude about 15 minutes. There were no ticket offices on the way and some workers were asked for a receipt several times, we paid, they did not give the receipt.

Botanical Garden

good at once for several reasons. Firstly, this is the highest-mountain botanical garden in the CIS, which causes not only the specifics of plants in the garden, but also beautiful views of Pamir and Khorog.

In addition, in the garden you can eat for free to fruits - uryuk and cherry in our case. We were pretty crashed there.

True, on the way back the minibuses in the direction of the city was no longer there, so they drove on the traveler. But looked like local played football.

Other attractions

Khorog - Afghan Consulate, issuing visas, apparently, in his own mood (and to Afghan, only the bridge go), as well as the Sabbath Afghan market.
In general, the whole life of the city is spinning around the Khogogan Bazaar, which you will fall, if you follow one of five bridges through the mighty river Gunt.

We have no photo of the market, but the valuable information has been preserved. First, in the bazaar you can buy the National Hat-Pamir, knitted socks "handmade" and other souvenirs. And secondly, cars are departed from the bazaar to nearby villages: to hot sources of Garm Chashma, in the direction of Dushanbe and even, if lucky, at Murgab. The next morning we took advantage of this service to continue our journey through the Pamirs, going to.

In Tajikistan, the city is located in Tajik, who is the administrative center of the Gorno-Badakhshan region. In addition, it is considered the first city, where it is worth starting walking through the territory of a large Pamir path. In 1932, Horog was officially recognized by the city. Since the city is in a deep canyon, it is perfectly protected from cold temperatures and strong winds in winter. And summer, as a rule, here is dry and warm. Over thirty thousand people live in this city. Read the story here.

Modern Khorog.

To date, Khorog became the center of management, education, transport and trade. The best educational institutions in the country are working here, so residents of Khorog are distinguished by a high level of education. In general, Khorog is a green and beautiful city where poplars grow, and on the outskirts of the city you can see traditional Pamir houses. In recent years, several guest houses and hotels have been built in the city, as well as a lot of restaurants, where you need to try Tajik cuisine. What are the attractions in.

Basically in the city build typical buildings for this region, which are something average between the Soviet style buildings and traditional Pamir houses. In the city center you can see completely Soviet buildings. But if you go along the river, then a large number of colorful and amazing Tajik houses are built on the hills. Since the city is located on the way of the Pamir tract, every year the number of tourists arriving in this city is growing, of course, significantly affects the economic growth of Khorog.

In Khorog, there is a botanical garden that in the east. This famous Pamir Botanical Garden is the second in the world at the height of the location. It is worth noting a unique garden flora, which was brought from all over the world. After all, the processes of plants acclimatization in local conditions are constantly carried out in the botanical garden. Therefore, various shrubs and trees from different countries of the world have taken root here.

Caul-Cala is an interesting archaeological complex that is in thirty kilometers from the city on a high cliff. This complex is a fortress, citadel and two temples, or rather his remnants. Another interesting place is Mount Kuchilal, which is the field of famous Badakhshansky Lala, also called a noble spinel. At different times, this place attracted many travelers.

The city of Horog is the capital of the Gorno - Badakhshan Autonomous Region (GBAO) of Tajikistan. This small green town as if she was kept on sheer rock terraces, which smoothly descend to the very bottom of the deep canyon, where there are two rapid mountain rivers Gutht and Pyanj.

The city lies at a height of 2600 above sea level and has a population of 30 thousand people. These are mainly different groups of ethnic Pamir Tajiks, confessing Ismailism (Shiite Muslims).

Due to its convenient location, Horog is reliably protected by high ridges from the penetration of cold air masses and penetrating winds. In winter, there are no arctic temperatures of the highlands, and in the summer of the exhausting heat.

Automotive highway, Horog is connected with the capital of the country - the city of Dushanbe and the Kyrgyz Oshem, from which there is almost at the same distance. Also in the city there is a Horog Airport, which has a small park of the EN -24 aircraft, carrying out regular flights in Dushanbe and other cities of Tajikistan.

A settlement called "Khorog", which in the free translation means - "place with many spines", appeared in these places relatively recently, in 1895, to the abdication of the territory of Central Asia between Tsarist Russia and Britain. More than a century ago, a military barrid of Russian soldiers was sent to these places from Osh, who had a prescription to organize a border point on the border with an annexed opponent here.

The border guards came here not in vain, because the terrain on which Khorog is located is known since the time of the early Middle Ages. In the chronicle sources of the X century, it is mentioned that it was here that there was an intersection of numerous caravanways, which led from India and China to the front Asia, as well as to the coast of the Khazar (Caspian) sea.

Gradually, Khorog grown on the sheer mountain terraces, and over time they appeared here: the first to the Pamir school, then the medical point (the only area), and at Soviet power, Khorog has already gradually began to acquire the features of the modern village.

Today's Horog, it is a beautiful, green city with enlieves of huge poplas and bizarre-womb national houses on the outskirts. Located in a magnificent picturesque and colorful place, the city has long been a regional control center, transport, trade, and above all, education.

The small Pamir city is rightfully proud of its highest educational institutions, including Khogogan State University, a new branch of the International University of Central Asia and the Lyceum of the Aga Khan Foundation.

The local population is generally famous for its high level of education.

Khorog. - Located at the bottom of the deep gorge at an altitude of 2,200 meters near the location of the river Gunt to Pyanj (Panch), 525 kilometers from Dushanbe - the capital of Tajikistan.

Khorog is the administrative center of the GBAO - the Goron-Badakhshan Autonomous Region. In 1932, Khorog confessed to the city and now his population is 30 thousand people. Pamir tajiks live in the city - distinguished by appearance and in the lexicon from other Tajiks of the country. The population of Khorog confesses the religion of Ismailism. It is also important to note that the Khogogo people have always stand out in the republic with their highest intellectualism. Despite the location of the city in a closed mountain region, people lead an active lifestyle.

The city of Khorog today is developing a rapid pace: numerous public and private institutions, shopping centers, service points, hotels, internet cafes, restaurants (Tarakhon) are being built here.

Training in Khorog

As well as in the city there are modern higher educational institutions, including a branch of the University of Central Asia, Khogogan State University and the Lyceum of the Aga-Khan Foundation - the spiritual leader of the Ismail Prom.

The roles of international organizations in the development of the city of Khorog are very significant - the United Nations Development Program and the European Union has been developed and implemented, as well as the assistance of the Aga-Khan Foundation - incomparable.

Tourism in Khorog (Pamir) - Successfully develops from year to year, the number of tourists who want to visit the High-mountain Pamir with his pristine beauty, including the impressionable city of Khorog, is growing. For guests and travelers in the city have all the necessary conditions. In comfortably equipped hotels, tourists can relax and familiarize themselves with the life of the city.

Climate Khoroga - Stable, because of being in the deep canyon, the city is protected from strong winds and cold temperatures in the winter season, summer in Khorog is warm and dry.

Nature of mountain chorog - indescribable is beautiful and attractive. Looking at the snow-white vertices - the highest peaks of the Pamir Mountains, you can enjoy the clock, for example, Peak Mayakovsky, the height of which is 6096 meters, rises in the territory of Khorog, where the Ishkashim ridge is located.

Khorog Airport- It is the only air port throughout the mountain-Badakhshan autonomous region. The local airport connects the city of Khorog with the capital - Dushanbe, Kulyab and Kurgan-Tube. Several times a week passengers are transported on a small-sized screw aircraft. Also, Horog is connected with the roads of Dushanbe and Oshem.

Pamir Botanical Garden in Khorog - It takes 2nd place in the world in height, after the Botanical Garden of Nepal. Botanical Garden Khorog (Gods of Botany Horog) is located above the eastern part of the city at an altitude of 2320 meters above sea level on the preserved River Shahdar. The garden is gorgeous with its favorable climate, thanks to which rare species of plants delivered from other continents of the globe are well adapted. Specialists tirelessly behave on the acclimatization of plants in mountain conditions. Many trees and shrubs brought from Europe, America, Africa and Australia have already been rooted in the garden.

Cofir Cala - The archaeological complex is located 30 kilometers from Khorog on a high cliff in the village of Bohev. Couple Cala is a fortress with two temples with a radius of 9 and 11 meters. On each of them there are stone souffs along the walls, in the middle of the room there are foci and stone obeliski. In antiquity there was a socio-cult center Shugnon, associated with the generation of the Sun. The tradition of building round buildings has a character associated with the life rituals of the Sakian peoples of the East Pamir. After all, it is known that the ancient Saki worshiped the sun.

Kuchilal - Treasure Mountain

47 kilometers from the city of Khorog is elevated Mount Kukhilal. Accordingly, there is a location. There is a settlement - Cucchilal village. The mystery of Mount Kuhi-Lal is that it is a field of famous Pamir "Lal" - Red Ruby, is also known as Badakhshansky Lal. During research operations in Mount Kukhilal, about 500 ancient developments belonging to 8-11 centuries were found. Sources indicate that at that time, by order of the king, the locals mined Balashi in Mount (Rubins).