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Digital travel forums

For those interested, Ak Saj, the resident sage, likes to remind travelers that there are digital, non-commercial travel forums on Central Asia (named ‘Oxiana’) and the Caucasus (‘Caucasus’) that are a good supplement on the Thorn Tree. They have about 400 to 450 members, many of them residents or actively interested in the region.

For free subscriptions:
<oxiana-subscribe@yahoogroups.com>
<caucasus-subscribe@yahoogroups.com>

Now that we’re at it and even if it’s for the Subcontinent branch: there is also one on Bangladesh and Northeastern India (Assam, Arunachal Pradesh etc.) called ‘Jamuna’:
<jamuna-subscribe@yahoogroups.com>

The Karakoram Highway, often referred to at the KKH often gets asked about here although neither Pakistan nor China are included in the countries covered. No matter. The KKH border between Pakistan and China officially opens between May 1 and 15, at least this is the official stand and it usually works like that. But the Kunjerab pass is 4700 m high and so its actual opening depends in part on the snow. Thus as soon as it is accessible, it will be opened up, so forget any official dates in this part of the world, as no one will stick to those. This also means there is no reliable way to find out. You could ask a tour operator such as ALPINE TREKKERS in Islamabad, as they offer tours around there they might know: Ph#: 92-51-5593149. No guarantee they can help you though...

Afghanistan
visas
The Afghan embassy in London deals with visa apps very quickly - one to two day but they insist upon knowing where you work.

borders
You cannot cross Uzbek-Afghan border at Termez (friendship bridge) unless you are an aid worker and accredited journalist.

You CAN cross the Tajik-Afghan border at:
*Panj-i-Paion (aka Nizhnii Pyandzh, border open daily except Sunday, barge starts around 9:00 am) which can be reached from Kurgan-Tyube and Dusti (Tajik side) and Kunduz (Afghan side);
*Iskashim in the GBAO, which can be reached from Khorog (Tajik side) and Faizabad (Afghan side).

websites and online travel guides:
www.kabulcaravan.com

Kazakhstan
visas
You can no longer transit Kazakhstan with a valid Russian visa. You will need a Kazakh transit visa which is easily obtained if you already have your Russian visa.

Kazakh transit visa is available in Beijing in one day for 166rmb. Get to the embassy just before 9am on Monday or Thursday if you want a Kazakh visa. When you get there, if you look at all non European, make sure the guard knows you are a foreigner. Then around 9am they will call the foreigners in, despite there being Chinese citizens who will have been waiting outside since 7am (they have to wait 3 hrs on average!) You will be given a form (don't bother about the one on the internet, even though the questions are the same). You hand the form, your passport, a picture and a copy of your passort to the lady and wait for her to give you a reciept. Once you have this you have to go to a certain nearby bank of China (go to the Western end of the street the Embassy is on, turn left and take the first right, its the second building on your left) and pay your money and then return with the receipt to the embassy (just go to the gate, skip the line up). She takes the receipt and tells you to come back at 4:30pm. For non Chinese all visas are done the same day, with no express fees. At 4:30 you have to get in line (no skipping this time) and wait for (in our case) 1.5 hours until you get to the front of the line. Then they give you your visa.
travel
Contact Stantours www.stantours.com which is based in Almaty, and can make tailor-made trips according to your interests and is run by a German bloke (David Berghof).

Almaty
If you plan to take the train from here to Russia there are essentially two options. One is a very slow passenger train to Novosibirsk and the other is the direct train to Moscow which passes through Saratov which is worth a stop. The train schedules are listed on the CIS railway schedules site. Note that Moscow is Moskva and Almaty is Alma-ata 2.

crossing the Caspian sea by ferry
Aktau, Kazakhstan to Baku, Azerbaijan
Going from Baku to Aktau by freighter / ferry still seems to be possible, although they changed the ferry pier in Aktau port into a tanker jetty. The ferry does exist but it does not operate regularly on a schedule and should not be counted on unless you have time to kill. The ferry however does not seem to have a very fixed schedule but appears to sail more or less every week. So you have to call the harbour telling them the specific date you wish to travel and then they wil tell you when it will sail. They do not seem to be able to give information about the schedule a month or even a week ahead. So you'll have to do this when arriving at Baku.

Flying from Baku to Aktau is very well possible but prices are somewhat higher for people outside the CIS. My latest information (winter schedule 2003-04) says that azerbaijan airlines fly on tuesdays and thursdays 22:30, saturdays at 02:05 and sundays at 23:05 with their Tupolev 134 to Aktau. Prices are 12610 tenge for CIS citizens ($93) up to 54120 tenge for foreigners ($400) depending on when and what you book.

crossing to Mongolia
There is no land border crossing between Kazakhstan and Mongolia. It is possible to fly from Ulgit, Mongolia to Kazakhstan. The Central Asia Tourism Corporation in Almaty indicates flights three times a week between Oskemen and Ulgit as of 1 Jan 04. No flights are shown between Ulgit and Almaty. You cannot get a kazakhstan visa at the airport. Visas are available in Ulan Bator.
Mongolia - Mission (Ulan-Bator) for Kazakhstan
Ambassador with residence in Beijing
Ulan-Bator, 6 mcr, N 95
tel: (9761)-312240 fax: 312204
email: kzemby@magicnet.mn

Kyrgyzstan
visas
Kyrgyz tourist visa express (3 days) at the Kyrgyz embassy in Beijing for 924rmb (embassy open from 2:30 to 5:30 pm).

postcards

trekking in the Tien Shan mountains
In general, this is comletely different from in Nepal. As a rule, you do not meet sheepherders en route except start and finish points of your trek (although there are plenty of them in some places, for example the Chong-Kemin gorge on the popular Almaty-Issik Kul lake route or the Northern ridges of Terskey Ala Too range). Some remote places, for example the Southern part of Terskey Ala Too and the gorges between Zailisky Alatau and Kungey Ala Too ranges are virtually unpopulated. So, "teahouse" trekking in Kyrgyzstan is unavailable - you have to carry everything on your own or switch to expedition-style trekking.
For more information, Igor, the black climber suggests that you take a look at his website: northern tien shan

crossing from China to Kyrgyzstan
Crossing the border between Xinjiang and Kyrgzystan should be no prob and is administratively much easier and cheaper at Uluqat/Irkeshtam west of Kashgar than at the Torugart pass.

Regarding the Pamir Highway/GBAO permit: it was recently posted that the GBAO permit can be given at the OVIR office in Murgab as of March (so no need to go to Dushanbe). But it is recommended that you check with Acted in Murgab: <murghab@acted.automail.com>

Bishkek to Tashkent
see below for the description Tashkent to Bishkek

Tajikistan
visas
According to the Tajik consulate website in Berlin, no LOI for Tajikistan is necessary for Citizens of EU, Japan and USA. It is unclear if this is true of all consulates or just this particular consulate. If you need an LOI for the Tajik visa, see www.pamirs.org. The visa must be obtained before arrival. They have only two consulates in Europe: in Berlin and Vienna.

postcards

+Samarkand to Penjikent to Khojand to Tashkent +
It is recommended to make this in three days/two nights with stopovers at Penjikent, Ura-Tyube/Istaravshan and look around in villages en route in the Zeravshan valley.

homestays and community-based tourism sites:
www.cbtkyrgyzstan.kg and www.kirgistan.info

Turkmenistan
visas
visa in Turkey
It is possible to obtain a transit visa for Turkm., in Ankara, Turkey. The consulate there wants to see the Uzbek visa, a completed application form, one photograph, 31$ and 7 days for processing time.

postcards

websites and online travel guides:
www.pamirs.org

Uzbekistan
visas

postcards

Kashgar, China to Andijon, Uzbekistan via Kyrgyzstan
Use the Irkeshtam pass into Kyrgyzstan. That pass connects Kashgar with Osh via the Kyrgyz village of Sary Tash. This route is serviced by a bus that runs every monday from Kashgar straight to Osh, and foreigners are always allowed on it. In Osh take a marshrutka (minibus) to the Uzbek border, which is just on the outskirts of Osh on the road leading to Andijan. The Kyrgyz-Uzbek border post close to Osh is named 'Dostuk' or 'Dostlik' if you are on the Uzbek side!

Tashkent to Bishkek
The drive is easy and will take about 15-20 hours and is quite beautiful. Take a cab from Tashkent to Andijan in the Ferghana Valley and cross into Osh, Kyrgyzstan at the Dostlik Border Post. The drive will take about five hours on a new road and with good haggling will cost 20-30 thousand soum (1000 soum = 1USD). Walk across the border and take another cab from Osh to Bishkek. The road was completely rebuilt last year and is in great shape. That should cost you 30-100 dollars depending on who you haggle with. Great mountain drive and well worth it.

Uzbek - Tajik border scam
I recently had problems crossing the Samarkand-Penjikent between Uzbekistan and Tajikistan. I had a valid 7 day Tajik visa issued at the Tajik embassy in Ashgabat and a 4 year multiple entry Uzbek visa. When I attempted to enter Tajikistan I was detained by customs officers who first wanted to see my money then would not let me enter without being first turned over to a local travel agent. The travel agent offered me a half day tour of the area for $25 which I was interested in and accepted. It seemed evident that the customs officers would get a portion of my $25. I was also told that had I not already had a Tajik visa, I could have purchased a 1 day visa for $5 at the border. By the time the travel agent arrived to collect me, one of the customs officers and I had formed a friendship and we had started work on his English lessons. Upon my exiting the county my Taxi was forced to stop just so he could say good by and wish me well.

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While some people think the US Consular information sheets are very conservative regarding their travelers advisories, they do have other useful information. The UK and Australian governments have similar web pages.

Afghanistan
The Afghan embassy in London deals with visa apps very quickly - one to two day but they insist upon knowing where you work.

Embassy of Afghanistan to the USA

US Department of State Consular Information Sheet for Afghanistan

Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Afghanistan

Kazakhstan
Embassy of Kazakhstan to the USA and Canada

US Department of State Consular Information Sheet for Kazakhstan

Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan

Kyrgyzstan
US Department of State Consular Information Sheet for Kyrgyz Republic

Embassy of the Kyrgyz Republic to the USA and Canada

Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Kyrgyzstan

Tajikistan
Tajikistan does not have an embassy in the US, but has a mission at the UN: address - 136 East 67th Street, New York, NY 10021, telephone: [1] (212) 472-7645; 744-2196 , FAX - [1] (212) 628-0252; 472-7645

The consulate in Moscow and in Berlin have websites but neither appear to be in English. There are also consulates in Vienna, Austria; Minsk, Belarus; Beijing, China; New Delhi, India; Tehran, Iran; Almaty, Kazakhstan; Bishkek, Kyrgistan; Islamabad, Pakistan; Karachi, Pakistan; Moscow, Russia; Ankara, Turkey; Tashkent, Uzebekistan; United Stations in NYC.

The visa application form can be downloaded from the Zierer Visa Service website

US Department of State Consular Information Sheet for Tajikistan

Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Tajikistan does not appear to have an English language website.
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Tajikistan
42 Rudaki Ave.
Dushanbe, Tajikistan
Consular department (visa section), Room 2, tel: 21-43-77

Turkmenistan
Turkmenistan consulate in Washington

US Department of State Consular Information Sheet for Turkmenistan

Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan does not appear to have a website in English.

Uzbekistan
Uzbek consulate in NYC

US Department of State Consular Information Sheet for Uzbekistan

Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Uzbekistan

Please feel free to add to this and thanks to Ak Saj for his comments and suggestions.

Ruth

Edited by: Irene_Adler

Edited by: Trent_at_LP

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For online travel stories that give you an adequate pre-departure impression about Central Asia:

I recommend Pepe Escobar's 'Roving along the Silk Road' series in The Asia Times <www.atimes.com> and Simon Reeve's 'Meet the Stans' series on BBC News <www.bbc.co.uk/news>.

One 3-part series that should also be mentioned for the preparation/substance of your trip is a 3-part RFE-RL series <www.rferl.org> by Charles Carlsson: 'Central Asia: Early Travellers'. There are stories on the first western emissaries to the Mongols; the Swedish explorer Sven Hedin; and also on the controversial British archaeologist Aurel Stein. Interesting stuff, especially when you compare the impressions of travellers back then with your experiences today.
Happy reading !

Edited by: Irene_Adler

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Tajikistan has fully-fledged embassies in Brussels and Washington DC:

Embassy of the Republic of Tajikistan
Avenue Louise (Louizalaan), 362-365
1050 Brussels
Belgium
Tel 0032 2 6406933
Fax 0032 2 6490195
E-mail: tajemb-belgium@skynet.be

Embassy of Republic of Tajikistan
1005, New Hampsire Avenue NW
Washington DC, 20037
Phone: 202-223-6090; Fax: 202-223-6091
E-mail:tajik.embassy@verizon.net
The Embassy is open from 08.00 am to 06.00 pm, Monday-Friday.

Edited by: Irene_Adler

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The Tajik embassy in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan:

Karadarinskaya str., 36
Bishkek
Kyrgyzstan
Phone: +996-312-51-1464
Fax: +996-312-51-1464
Email: tojsaforat@exnet.kg

According to one poster:

Quote

---

I just ran down to the embassy a few days ago. no LOI is needed, at least for us Japanese passport holders...it costs about 40/50 USD for 1 week and 2 weeks respectively. and it would take 3-4 business days. they moved to Karadarinskaya 36. you can take Trolley #17 from downtown to Svanderiyev and just go east on Svanderiyev until it comes to end. tel. 51 14 64.

---

Edited by: Irene_Adler

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Useful links for Afghanistan:

The Survival Guide to Kabul Excellent city guide
Ariana Afghan Airlines National airline with schedules and online booking

Daily news:
Afghan Online Press
E-Ariana
Afghan News

Weekly news and articles available by email:
Institute for War & Peace Reporting
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty

From the Aid community:
Reliefweb
Integrated Regional Information Network (Daily & weekly email options)

Afghan maps:
Afghanistan Information Management Service
Perry Castenada Map Collection

Edited by: Irene_Adler

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What do I need to know about getting a Uzbek visa in Bishkek?

1). it takes 4 business days to process.
2). you need to bring a copy of your passport and photo.
3). you do not to have to give them your passport
4). you do not need a LOS/LOI if you are from the US or most European countries (the UK, Germany, Italia...)
5). after 4 business days, you go back to the embassy and they will give you a visa.
6). it costs 20 USD (I don't know why, though).
7). they tell you to bring a Russian translater with you, if you do not speak Russian. but the process is so simple, unless you have a specific question, you should be all right without one.

*since it taks 4 Business days, if you drop it off on Mon, you get it back on Fri, where as any other day, from Tue to Fri, you will be forced to spend a weekend here.

**if you can somehow fillout an application form, sign it, and have someone else drop it off at the embassy a few days before you get into Bishkek, you won't have to waste that much time...

***there is only one officer there and if you get there late in the morning, you might end up waiting for hours before allowed to enter. so get there early.


Edited by: Irene_Adler

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There are two main routes between Almaty and Bishkek:

1) The most direct and popular one is via Kördai on the Bishkek-Almaty route; buses and vans go from the Sairam bus station on the far end of Töle Bi köshesi. The van ride takes about 3 hours.

2) A much more scenic route via Kegen and the Karkara valley and namesake hemlet about 230 km east of Almaty. I think you should plan more than two days for this trip, and take in the interesting Charyn canyon (where you can camp) and stop at the Karkara valley en route. We camped two nights along a river in the Karkara valley and spent one night with the cheerful Kyrgyz border guards at Sang Tash.

We took public transport to Kegen from Almaty’s Sayakat bus station near Almaty's main mosque. The bus ride goes east along the A-351 and the junction of Kökpek as far as the town of Kegen, where you’ll arrive in the mid-afternoon if you set off from Almaty around 7:00 am.

If you stop at the Charyn canyon (about 40 km before Kegen; it's called 'Charyn sai' in Kazakh, 'Charynskoe u-SHE-elie' in Russian), ask the bus driver to dump you at the beginning of the canyon (which is not too far from the A-351), and try to hitch from there to Kegen once you’re done. Alternatively, you can jump off at Kökpek and try to find a private vehicle there though it’s a dusty roadside village and there might not be too much choice.

Once in Kegen, you’ll have to negotiate private transport though there might be rural buses going to Karkara village. As far as I know, there is no cross-border public transport though I may be wrong here; we simply hitched a ride on a truck to Sang Tash at the Kazakh customs post in Karkara.

From the first village in Kyrgyzstan, Sang Tash (where the legendary Timur Leng stone heap is), you can take a rural bus or shared jeep to the district centre of Tüp (pronounce: ‘tyoop’) and Karakol.

Edited by: Irene_Adler

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Places with more than one name (Soviet-era and post-1991):

A good PM-ed suggestion-cum-request by brother Dogwap:

"It seems a if there are at least two names for almost every city/village in the area. This is a problem when looking up a place on a map that is a few years old."

I made a name change list back in 2002 and still have it on my laptop so here it is. I only list ‘real’/full name changes not the many names that have been ‘de-russianized’ but basically sound the same
in their new form (eg. Alma-Ata > Almaty; Uzgen > Özgön; etc.). First comes the Soviet-era name(s), then the post-1991 one(s).

Kazakhstan
Tselinograd > Aqmola > Astana
Ust-Kamenogorsk > Öskemen
Semipalatinsk > Semej
Aktyubinsk > Aqtöbe
Dzhambul (city) > Taraz
Druzhba (on the Kazakh-Xinjiang border) > Dostyk
Guriev (Caspian port and oil town) > Atyrau
Shevshenko (Caspian port) > Aqtau
Leninsk (near Baykonur) > Töretam
Chernaevka (north of Tashkent on Uzbek-Kazakh) > Shibek Jolu

In 1997 there were plans to rename the northern cities of Petropavlovsk to Kyzyljar and Pavlodar to Kerequ but I never found maps carrying these names. I guess the the idea was carried off to appease the local Slav majority population.
Kazakhstan’s ‘oblysy’ (provinces) went through a major reshuffle and mergers in 1997-98 so older admin maps do not reflect the actual situation.

Tajikistan
Leninabad (city) > Khojand
Leninabad (province) > Sugd
Ura-Tyube > Istaravshan
Orjonikidzeabad > Kofarnigon
Tursunzade > Regar
Komsomolabad > Darband
Kalininabad > Sarband
Garm (district) > Rasht
Leningradskii > Mominabad
Nizhnii Pyandzh (on Tajik-Afghan border) >
Panj-i-Paion
Gorno-Badakhshan (GBAO) > Kuhistan-i-Badakhshan
Pik Lenina (Tajik side) > Kuh-i-Garmo
Pik Kommunisma > Kulla-i-Samani

In 1997, the southern ‘viloyati’ (provinces) of Kulyab and Kurgan-Tyube were merged in one province: Khatlan.

Kyrgyzstan
Frunze > Bishkek
Pokrovka (southeast of lake Issyk-Kul) > Kyzyl Suu
Ribachie (Issyk Kul port) > Balykchi
Prezhvalsk > Karakol
Teploklyuchenka (east of Karakol, to go to Altyn
Arashan) > Ak Suu
Bistrovka > Kemin
Pik Pobeda > Jenish Tau

In 1999, Kyrgyzstan got a seventh ‘oblast’ (province): Batken. Batken was previouly part of Osh.

Uzbekistan
As far as I know, there were hardly any major topographic name changes in Uzbekistan, at least for the major cities and larger provincial towns. Does anyone know any ?

Turkmenistan
Charjou > Türkmenabat
Krasnovodsk > Türkmenbashi
Cheleken >Khasar
Kerki > Atamyrat
Kushka > Serkhetabat
Kyzyl-Arbad > Serdar
Nebitdag > Balkanabat
Seraks > Sarags
Tashauz > Dashogus
Mary > Merv

In my experience, many if not most of the Soviet-era names listed above are still in day-to-day use among
the people, while others (Frunze, Tselinograd, ...) seem to have disappeared from use.

Xinjiang

Many towns and cities in Xinjiang have both an Uighur-Kazakh and a more recent Chinese name. Some
are simply ‘sinified’ versions of the original one, others are completely different. The examples I know of (first the comes the Uighur-Kazakh, then the Chinese name):

Ürümqi / Wulu’muchi
Kashgar / Kashi
Gülcha (on the Almaty-Ürümqi road) / Yining
Turfan /Tu’lufan
Börtalaj (on the border with Kazakhstan) / Bole
Kongurchak (on the border with Kazakhstan)/Tacheng
Yarkand / Sha’che
Qargilik (on the Kashgar-Khotan road) / Yecheng
Uqturpan / Wuchi

Xinjiang's Uighurs and Kazakhs will rarely use the Chinese names though.

I posted the list on the Oxiana forum too and got a number of name changes more (now included in this list). Thanks to all the Oxiana members who sent them in.

Edited by: Irene_Adler

9

Getting a Uzbek visa in Beijing

UZ embassy is located just behind German emb., Sanlitun. Phone n. visa sect. 0086 10 6532 3621 ask for Mr. Shokhrat. Business hours: Mon 10-12, Tue 9-11, Wed 9-11, Thu closed, Fri 9-11. You better check it before you go there.

For getting tourist visa LOl is required, 7 days - 55 US, 15 days - 65 US, 30 days 75 US
if you already have LOI , you can get visa in 3 days, if you pay extra 30 US you can get visa in same day. For getting the transit visa you don't need LOI but you can get it only if you demonstrate you already have an entry/visa to the neighbouring country you are heading to from Uz. Have fun. Saty.

Edited by: Irene_Adler

10

Do I need a Border Zone Permit at the Kyrgyz border with China/Tajikistan?

Theoretically, you still need a Border Zone Permit (‘Propusk pa Granzona’ in Russian) when you go within 50 km from the Kyrgyz border with China or Tajikistan. The rule seems to be relaxed for places such as the Torugart Pass but the permit, which can be arranged in about 10 days' time by a trekking agency in Bishkek, could prove useful for passage in other border areas. Although we could not get official confirmation of this, a Soviet-era vigilante system whereby every adult civilian has the right to check your documents still seems to operate in the border areas. Should you be approached in this regard – as happened to us in Kara-Kulja east of Uzgen – ask to see the ‘ayilbash’ (village chief) and show your Border Zone Permit to him.

Source: http://www.lonelyplanet.com/letters/cas/kyr_pc.htm#Visas

One personal tip: once you have your permit, make a supply of, say, about a dozen of photocopies to hand out at police checkposts and, especially, hosts in border areas. It has already happened that villagers who were so kind to let foreign travellers camp on their ‘jailoo’ or stay at their houses were visited by the border police after that. So if they have a copy of your permit they’re much less likely to get trouble.

I had my border zone permits made by Novi Nomad in Bishkek and found that professional.


Edited by: Irene_Adler

11

The Kyrgyz embassy in Malaysia:

10-C, Lorong Damai 9
55000 Kuala Lumpur
Malaysia
Phone:(603) 21.63.20.12; 21.64.98.62
Fax:(603) 21.63.20.24


Edited by: Irene_Adler

12

Kulyab Tajikistan:

Tajikistan: Kulyab could be an alternative route to go from Dushanbe to Khorog. In fact, much transport to Khorog went via Kulyab when the M-41 Dushanbe-Khorog road was blocked off by rebel activity (until 2001) and landslides. The Kulyab-Khorog trip hugs the the Tajik-Afghan order for most of its length and can take as long as 15 hours.

Kulyab is a dead-typical ex-Soviet Central Asian province town and pretty much the power base of the present regime. Things to see there include the mausoleum of Sufi preacher Mir Said Ali Hamadoni. And near Vose, 18 km east of Kulyab, are the ruins of the citadel and settlement of Qulbuk (aka ‘Kurban Shahid’), the ‘capital’ of the Kulyab area between the seventh and the eleventh century.

The stretch from Kurgan-Tyube to Dangara (between Kurgan-Tyube and Kulyab) is nice. The road parallels the said railway and goes through some kind of savannah with pistachio groves here and there. At a certain moment you have good views on the cone-shaped Karatau hills that separate the Kulyab region form the Vakhsh valley.


Edited by: Irene_Adler

13

Getting into the spirit of Central Asia:

For some interesting pictures and postcards of pre-Soviet Central Asia, see Anahita Gallery's ‘Photo Central Asia.’

Another good photo website (with thanks to Anakin for helping me find it) showing contemporary Central Asia (Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan) is Possi's Zentralasientour. The photo's explanations are all in German but it's quite obvious to understand where the pics are taken, even if you don't read a iot of Deutsch.

Edited by: Irene_Adler

14

Police harassment of foreigners in the ex-Sovietistans is indeed not as bad as it was several years ago but it still happens (and keep also in mind that even if foreigners are targeted less, that does not mean that the locals are in for an easier time – on the contrary!).
As a general rule, women, older men and couples are much less of a target that younger or solo men though that depends on your attitude too. Places that have more police harassment than others are: bus and railway stations almost everywhere; Kazakhstan; Tashkent and especially the subway; and Turkmenistan.

Tips on how to deal with it:

A tough but jovial attitude. If you are perceived as a softie, arrogant and condescending or lose your temper too easily you’re in for a hard time. Their technique is mainly intimidation, much more than force. Actual police violence against foreigners is rare except in cases when the foreigner was drunk (you’re warned).
Always try to show a photocopy rather that the original passport when checked; never go anywhere with them out of public view; ask their ID too (an official ID is: ‘u-dos-to-ve-RE-nie’) especially if they're plainclothes; and avoid, or closely oversee, any body and luggage searches. Tip: regular police has no right to check the amount of money that you have; that’s the job of customs (‘ta-MOZH-nia’).

There are hardly any cases of police harassment of foreigners in Xinjiang, although the local Uighur and Kazakh population gets more that its share of it.

Edited by: Irene_Adler