From Dushanbe to Shahrituz (Shartuz) and back..
by ibrahimjon on Sep.04, 2007, under Adventure
Today early morning together with my colleagues we went to the southern part of Tajikistan to the town called Shartuz which is mostly called Shahritus. People say it is a city of salt. Shartuz or Shahritus is a combination of two words, the first part of which Shahr means – town and the word Tuz in Uzbek language means “salt”. I wonder whether this town is really the town of salt.
It is my second time of visit to Shahrituz and I found this town is an agrarian town where mostly people are involved in growing cotton, vegetables and gardening. People are really friendly and welcoming, and it was a great chance to see some places of interest, as well as enjoy seeing hand made small carpets that they make in Shahrituz. Next time when I will visit Shahrituz I will try not to miss a place which is called Чилу Чор чашма Chilu Chor Chashma which means Forty Four Water springs which are unique and very useful for human organs to heal. People from all over the country or even beyond of it visit Chilu Chor Chashma for treatment as I was told by a men who lives there.
September 5th, 2007 on 12:56 pm
Hi Ibrahim,
Shahrituz is an interesting little city; the journey there from Dushanbe is itself interesting; one can see how the landscape gets more arid the further south one travels, and the types of villages and homes in which rural Tajiks live. With the bridge from Afghanistan now open, I expect that the lives of people along the route will change, hopefully for the better. There is a clear need for investment and opportunities. Continued good luck with your work, with your blog, and with your travels! Terence
September 5th, 2007 on 2:04 pm
Salom Terence,
Thank you so much for taking time to drop some lines. It was great to see those landscapes, villages and welcoming people in Shahrituz.
The bridge between Tajikistan and Afghanistan will play great role in farmers and dehkans lives. Shahrituz is an agrarian district with lots of agriculture products, if people in that part will have their own factories to produce food like canning fruits etc. I do hope that soon foreign investment will be attracted to Shahrituz and other neighboring districts thanks to that new bridge.
By the way, Shahrituz is known with its delicious melons and water-melons. Last time I and my friends really enjoyed melons from Shahrituz.
Thank you so much for your comment and hope you are enjoying your time in Tajikistan!
~Ibrahim
September 7th, 2009 on 8:28 pm
It’s been awhile hope things are going well…
Just made some loans to people in Shahrituz through Kiva.
Hope it helps.