Turkmenistan is by far the strangest of the ex-soviet Republics. The late President Niyazov (aka “Turkmenbashi”) ruled as an absolute monarch, with a personality cult that would have made Stalin blush. Strange relics of his reign still dot Ashgabat.
 Arch of Neutrality The Arch of Neutrality is a 75 meter tripod tower, adorned with a 12 meter golden statue of the late God-King President Niyazov. The golden statue rotates through the course of the day, so that the God-King President is always facing the Sun and so that he dispenses his blessings equally to all points of the compass.
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Earthquake MemorialAshgabat suffered a devastating earthquake in 1948, killing perhaps as many as 100,000 people, including President Niyazov’s mother. But miraculously the infant Niyazov survived. The earthquake memorial, in a rather nice piece of symbolism, shows a bull tossing the earth in its horns. Writhing figures mark Ashgabat’s location. However, fear not, all is not lost! A dying mother lifts a golden infant, the future god-king President Niyazov to safety. (Alas!) |
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LeninThe local statue of Lenin is comparatively modest. It is however distinguished in having an impressive tiled plinth, in a Central Asian style with Lenin’s name in flowing Turkmenistan letters. |
| Ashgabad’s new city area has broad avenues of tall white “marble” apartment buildings. It clearly aspires to be futuristic, but it looks like a 1950’s vision of a Soviet Model City. I much prefer Astana’s more daring vision. |  |
 “The World’s Tallest Flagpole” |
 “The Great Plunger” |
