I've mentioned before that Tajikistan has a lot of mountains -- some of the highest in the world! -- and I told you about an avalanche that made it impossible for people to use the roads. The high mountains, unpredictable weather and poor roads mean that traveling around Tajikistan can be very hard. Thankfully, traveling inside of Dushanbe is really easy -- so it kind of balances out.
In Dushanbe and other big Tajik cities, people usually travel in marshrutkas, which is a Russian word meaning 'route.' A marshrutka is a car, van or bus that travels a certain route all day long -- similar to a city bus, with two differences. Unlike city buses, marshrutkas aren't owned by the government, but by their drivers or local companies. Another difference is that marshrutkas will stop anywhere along their route to pick up or drop off passengers. Marshrutkas are cheap -- it only costs 30 cents or so to travel from one end of the city to another! -- and they are very efficient, because drivers try to fit as many people as possible in their cars.
But in villages, the most popular way to get around is by donkey. People here love their donkeys, because they are so reliable and hardworking. Donkeys can carry very heavy loads.
