4 weeks ago
9
Snowmobiling at the Amirsoy Resort are (from left) Irvin Uy, Paolo Planas and Abi Obis.
If you have been following this space, you may know by now that I am a proud mother of two who sometimes asks my kids to share their travel experiences here. Daughter Gabbie is 23 years old and has written about her experience attending Taylor Swift’s “Eras” tour. Paolo, 19, is a certified travel adventurer and the next paragraphs are about his most recent trip.
Paolo’s goal is to visit 50 cities outside the Philippines by the time he’s 20. To pay for this costly plan, he has for years been setting aside chunks of his Christmas and birthday cash, allowance, and the money he makes buying and selling NBA cards. To date, he has visited over 40 cities and last week went to Uzbekistan.
Why Uzbekistan? Paolo and Gabbie have a friend named Irvin Uy who works there as Oishi’s deputy director. Oishi is a Filipino company that makes potato chips, prawn crackers and candy, and it turns out that they have a factory in Uzbekistan that is owned by Carlos Chan, brother of Bench’s Ben Chan. During his research, Paolo learned that Uzbekistan is a fairly affordable city to visit, so he committed to a trip. According to him, a tourist can live on less than P2,000 a day there, a figure that includes accommodation and food. Paolo also wanted to go during the winter season when the temperature hovers between 10 degrees in the daytime and -0 at night. Best of all, airfare is lower: his ticket cost P40k when it would normally go for more than P50k.
Paolo and Irvin enjoy ‘heaven on earth’ in Uzbekistan.
Uzbekistan is located in Central Asia and was part of the former Soviet Union. It is in the middle of the Silk Road, the ancient trade route that linked China to the Mediterranean. Three hours behind the Philippines, Uzbekistan has a population of roughly 36 million and its capital is Tashkent. And though Philippine passport holders need a visa to enter the country, visa application is done online and costs between $20 and $50 depending on the visa type. According to Paolo, visa approval takes three to five days.
Paolo at the Hazrarti Imam Complex.
After classes ended on Friday, Feb. 7, Paolo left for Kuala Lumpur (KL) that evening. He then spent the night at an airport hotel in KL to catch his flight to Uzbekistan via Batik Air the next day. The flight to Tashkent took eight and a half hours from KL. He arrived Saturday night, 10 p.m. local time, and checked in at his Airbnb (a spacious one-bedroom apartment with all the amenities that cost him only P1,000 a night). After freshening up, he and Irvin went out to soak in Tashkent’s Saturday nightlife. Paolo enjoyed his night out because he found the Uzbek women to be “very pretty.”
The following day, Sunday, Paolo was all keyed up and eager for the trip to a ski resort, where he was joined by Irvin’s other colleagues from Oishi. As a group, he and newfound friends Abi Obis and Adrian Ong rode on snowmobiles and got on one of the highest cable car rides in Asia. Paolo compared its peak to “heaven on earth,” where the clouds are almost within reach and the snow was white as powder. To him, it was a surreal experience seeing snowcapped mountains.
Amirsoy Resort, which is a 90-minute drive from Tashkent, is Swiss-designed and has chalets typical of those that you would find in any luxury resort in Switzerland. He describes the place as an “absolute, out-of-this-world experience and hidden gem,” and says it is a must-visit for anyone visiting Uzbekistan.
Though tired from the amazing trip the day before, Paolo decided to make use of his last full day, Monday, exploring the city center of Tashkent with Irvin and Abi. He found the city very complex and said that it had the perfect blend of modernity (shopping and bougee dining options), stunning architecture and rich historical charm. They started the day off in the famous Besh Qozon restaurant with a hearty meal of the richly-flavored “plov,” the national dish made of rice pilaf, beef, and loaded with vegetables. They then headed for the city’s famous monuments such as Tashkent TV Tower, Hotel Uzbekistan and the Hazrati Imam Complex to take lots of pictures.
When he came home, Paolo raved that Tashkent is now his favorite city in the world, and he is keen for us to go there. With his convincing powers, not to mention the wonderful stories and photos he shared, I am sure it will just be a matter of time before we make the trip as a family.
