A short trip to the village of Qazlaq

Hello to all my dear friends and fellow travelers in the wonderful WorldMappin community! 🌍✈️

I hope you're all doing great and that your journeys are filled with unique experiences and unforgettable moments!
I'm truly happy to be here with you, and I'd love to share one of my short but memorable trips with you.

A little while ago, I decided to go on a one-day trip with a few of my friends to spend some time in nature.
Our destination was a small village located in a tropical region.

The village of Qezlaq, a peaceful and untouched corner of the Darghaz region, is where I recently traveled with some friends.
I don’t know if you've ever heard of it, but it’s truly worth seeing.

The atmosphere there is unique—especially since it’s in a tropical area—and its nature is so different from what we see in colder regions.

What I really loved was the simplicity and serenity of life in Qezlaq. People live happily, far from the hustle and worries of city life.
We enjoyed hot tea under the shade of mulberry trees, tried fresh local bread with village-made cheese, and soaked in the energy of nature.

If one day you feel like visiting a peaceful, charming place, I definitely recommend you check out Qezlaq.
Sometimes a small village can be just as full of wonder as an international trip.

We had decided to go to Qezelagh and see the Div Cave up close. The route we chose passed through the heart of the mountains — a winding path with steep climbs, where every step revealed a new view. From a distance, the cliffs rose like massive stone walls, and the cool breeze that blew through the mountain trees eased our fatigue while fueling our sense of adventure. The further we went, the more the silence and grandeur of nature revealed themselves, until finally, we gradually arrived in Qezelagh, excited to finally see the Div Cave up close.

This strange mountain that you can see in the photo rises from the ground like a natural tower. When I looked at it up close, I was amazed at how nature could create such a masterpiece. It's as if a professional sculptor had been working on it for thousands of years!

The sky became really beautiful in the later hours of that day - bright blue with fluffy white clouds scattered across it. The contrast between the blue sky and the earthy, brownish colors of the mountain was truly stunning.

What caught my attention the most were the layers visible in the rock. It seemed like each layer told the story of millions of years of Earth's history. It's probably the result of long-term erosion by wind and water that gave it this conical shape.

The surroundings also had a beautiful mountainous landscape - low hills and open terrain that gave me a special sense of peace. It was an amazing place for photography and nature exploration.

This was the entrance to Devil's Cave in Ghazlagh, and it was truly exciting! When I approached it, I felt like I was entering a mysterious world!The dark and large cave entrance nestled within these colorful rocks was really stunning. The different colors of the stone - from earthy and brown to orange and gray - seemed to create a natural painting.It was interesting that several small trees had grown right in front of the cave entrance. It was as if nature itself had placed a guardian for this historic site. The scattered stones around the cave also added a special atmosphere to it.Inside the cave was completely dark, and one couldn't help but wonder what secrets were hidden in the depths of this cave. Its name "Devil's Cave" made it even more thrilling! There must be many stories and legends behind this name.It was truly an unforgettable experience!

I asked the local villagers about this Devil's Cave. One of the elderly men told me that they've been calling it Devil's Cave since ancient times. He said children were afraid to go near it because they thought a devil lived inside!A woman also mentioned that in the old days, people believed they could hear strange sounds coming from it, especially at night. Of course, now we know it was probably just the wind passing through the gaps in the rocks.One of the local young men said he'd been inside several times, but it's not very deep. He told me you can only go about 20-30 meters inside before the path gets blocked.It was interesting that everyone said no one has ever found anything special inside throughout all these years, but they all agreed it's a very strange and mysterious place. One of them even mentioned that sometimes bats fly out of it.

From the path to Qazlaq village, I managed to capture just these few photos for you. I have to say that this route was really tiring and the exhaustion bothered me a bit. I wanted to take more photos and capture different views, but I was feeling a bit unwell and couldn't find enough energy to continue.However, I tried to choose the best angles and capture the beauty of this area as much as possible for you. The nature there was truly breathtaking, and it was a shame that I couldn't capture more of those moments.I hope you enjoy these images and that I've been able to convey the sense of beauty of that place to you to some extent.God willing, for the next trip I'm planning, I'll have better conditions and be able to bring you a more complete collection of photos.Until the next fruitful journey, which will definitely be with more energy and better preparation!Goodbye friends.

text & photography: @azamsohrabi