Dushanbe

Dushanbe, the capital of Tajikistan, is a compact city spread across a valley floor at roughly 800 metres, ringed by mountains that are snow-capped for much of the year. The city's central boulevard, Rudaki Avenue, is lined with Soviet-era public buildings, a large national museum, and the base of what was for a period the world's tallest free-standing flagpole. The National Museum holds an important reclining Buddha statue from the Ajina Tepe excavations, providing context for the region's pre-Islamic history.