YeinJee's Asian blog

Asian Culture, Lifestyle and Entertainment

Turkmenistan

Wedding Palace in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan

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Photo of the Wedding Palace in Ashgabat, the capital city of Turkmenistan. The eleven-storey building is a civil registry centre. It’s constructed by Turkish company Polimeks and opened in 2011.

Wedding Palace in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan

Besides registration of marriage and other civic services, the “palace” has wedding halls, banquet rooms, and a hotel. It also has boutiques and shops that provide essential items for a proper wedding.

The cube on top has the form of an eight-pointed star on each side. The star is a common Islamic geometry pattern; it’s also the background of the national emblem of Turkmenistan. The shiny “ball” at the centre of the cube depicts planet earth, not sure what’s the hidden meaning behind that though.

Interesting architecture regardless. It’s a mix of traditional and futuristic elements.

Myahri – Aýterek Günterek Turkmen MV

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Turkmen music video for Aýterek-Günterek (lit. moon tree, sun tree). Couldn’t find much info about the song but it’s a recent release. Sounds pop-ish with unique Central Asian flavour, decent piece.

The singer Myahri (full name Mähri Pirgulyýewa) seems quite popular in her home country, famous for singing some nationalistic songs. She made her showbiz début in 2007 when she’s a teenager.

Turkmenistan door to hell

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Video of a burning gas crater in Darvaza, Turkmenistan. Locals call it Door to Hell or Gates of Hell.

The diameter of the crater is about 60 metres, and its depth around 20 metres. It has been burning continuously for the past few decades.

The phenomenon is not all natural though. There are a few versions of the event, but in general a failed gas exploration caused the ground to collapse in the 1960’s or 1970’s. The engineers set the place on fire to prevent poisonous gas from leaking to nearby towns, which was a logical decision at that point.

They probably expected the gas to burn out within a few weeks, but it’s been on fire after all these years. Thanks to the accidental “effort”, the place becomes a spectacular attraction for travellers nowadays.