Ashgabat: The Cleanest Yet Strangest City in the World

After leaving the Gates of Hell, we headed to Ashgabat, a journey of about three and a half hours with some sightseeing along the way. It felt like a waste to visit only the Gates of Hell, so we decided to explore one of the cities we had wanted to see. Our impression was that while Ashgabat is the cleanest city in the world, it is also quite a strange one. Tourists stay in New Ashgabat, which is not a residential area, so there are very few people around. Even at tourist spots, it was just us, creating an eerie scene where it felt like we were the only ones left in a giant city, reminiscent of a story from 'Tales of the Unusual.' The massive buildings, all made of white marble, and the cars, which are either white or close to white, added to the eerie atmosphere. Despite the lack of people, there were cleaners everywhere, and from 8 PM to 5 AM, the entire city was illuminated with lights, making it the cleanest and most comfortable city to stay in, yet truly a strange one.