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Saturday, 16 September 2017

Unusual Uzbekistan

Last year this time I would not have believed you if I was told that I would be visiting Uzbekistan. But I have done it and so here I am with a tale to tell. Uzbekistan is probably not the highest priority on many travellers’ lists but it is worth a visit especially if you are a history buff and also if you love shopping, as there is enough to suit both tastes. Be warned though that in September it is still quite hot and it is not for the delicate darlings.
It all started with a WOW Sumitra newsletter informing me of their upcoming trips. Uzbekistan caught my eye as it looked a lot like Iran. The budget also felt reasonable. Altogether I felt I could do this one and so I contacted WOW with my endless questions. They were friendly and helpful. Thus began the long process of preparing for the trip. There is a bit of documentation work involved such as NOC from the employer or bank statements. But I did it all. Came September and I found myself all ready to go tripping.
I began my journey on September 3rd from Kochi airport. I had booked an afternoon flight for Delhi with a stopover in Hyderabad. I ate some uppuma (pre-booked meals) and soon found myself in Delhi airport. I took a pre-paid cab to the airport terminal T3 which was a bit of a distance away from T1. Since my passport was with WOW, I could not enter the lounge area and was stuck at the entrance with nowhere to go. Luckily I got a seat and I spend the time reading Twinkle Khanna’s Mrs. Funnybones. It kept me entertained and when I finished reading the book, it was time for our meet up.
I met some of the others in front of Gate 8. We were dressed in pink for easy identification. Once we were all there, we proceeded to the check-in area for our flight, with our WOW Buddy, Shreya. As we went through the process of check-in we got to know each other as well. Pretty soon we were seated in the plane and were on our way to our destination. The flight left 2 hours late and so we reached about 5 a.m. instead of the scheduled time.
I admired the early morning view from outside the airport. Our guide Was Anver and he greeted us with red roses.  I held on to mine quite happily. Once out suitcases were piled in and we had taken our seats, we left for the hotel. All the hotels we went to had free wifi in the lobbies. We checked in and soon fell asleep after a continental breakfast. My roommate was Bhishaka Ghose and even though we had not initially connected much, we soon became fast friends. Post lunch, we began our city tour.

Our first visit was to the Hazrati Imam complex, located in the old town of Tashkent. This was a once a madrassa – a place of learning and boarding for boys who needed to study the Quran and the Muslim religion. We walked around admiring the sights and I happily clicked away on my camera. Moreover, the complex has a rich library of oriental manuscripts. The world famous Quran of Caliph Uthman - Ottoman has been preserved here. Ottoman Koran is the primary source of Islam holy book that was written in the middle of VII century. We also came across several craftsmen and I snapped away of course. I also managed to buy some souvenirs, and yes I did bargain too.
Our next destination was the Memorial Complex of Repression. It was like a pretty garden with lots of flowers and some doves as well. The memorial is in place of those who died in Uzbekistan during the Soviet Union times – those people who fought for the independence of Uzbekistan and who were killed by the government. The location of the monument was near the Television Tower.

We saw the tower from the gardens of the memorial. Anver explained to us that the Tashkent Television Tower is 375-metre-high and is the 11th tallest tower in the world. The tower has an observation deck and a restaurant. . It is the tallest structure in Central Asia.
After admiring the tower and the gardens, we moved to our next stop – the Lal Bahadur Shastri Monument. Because of the extreme heat, most of us were not inclined to getting out of the bus and instead saw it through the bus windows. We learnt that not only was there a memorial but also a road named after Shastriji.

Our next stop was Independence Square. By now the temperature had cooled down slightly. So we ambled down Broadway Street looking at some of the shops and the mall. At Memory Square there were artisans busy painting away. I got my first taste of Uzbek ice-cream which was like any other ice-cream. It was a great refresher to our tired-out selves.
After the group met up we moved along to Independence Square. There we saw a picturesque
entryway with the national symbols and took pictures among the fountains. Anver explained to us the statue of the happy mother and then we proceeded to see the statue of the sad mother which was very moving. In front of the statue there burnt an endless flame. We also saw huge books made in metal, that contained the names of the country’s martyrs.
Following this we went back to the hotel to freshen up for dinner. Dinner was in a slightly noisy restaurant with dancing as entertainment. I thus got to see my first belly dance live. We enjoyed the food and the performances. There was also a laser light dance to wrap up the evening. After that it was back to the hotel for some much needed sleep.

Next morning, we rushed to get ready and prepare for departure to see the Chimgan Mountains. After a good continental breakfast, we boarded our bus. During our two-hour journey we stopped on the way at some roadside stalls to buy Uzbekistan chikki, sour cheese and nuts.
When finally reached the hills, we had to get into a chair lift. This seemed highly unsecure and Bishakha and I held on for our dear lives. We finally managed to jump off the chair in one piece at the arrival section. After enjoying the view and taking pictures, we came across a fence tied on which were tired all sorts of materials. Apparently if you tied something to the fence you would be lucky in love. I tried it out but I am not sure how lucky I will be. We finally all managed to get down in one piece.
Our next stop was the restaurant for lunch.  Following lunch we were given some free time to explore the Charvak Lake, which we did. We then returned to the hotel. Dinner was on our own. Bishakha and I did our own exploring of the streets a bit and decided on dinner at the restaurant.
Next morning, following a quick, early breakfast, we loaded our luggage and checked out of the hotel. We began our journey to Samarkhand.
We travelled by the bullet train – the Samarkand Afrasiyab fast train that left at 8am. It was a very comfortable ride. They even served free tea and biscuits on the train. Pretty soon we found ourselves getting off the train. Another bus awaited to transport us. We piled in and met our guide Rayhana.

Our first stop was at the Amir Temur Mausoleum. We wandered around taking more pictures. I came across a lady who tried to speak to me. Since neither of us could understand the other’s language, communication became a fun process. She gave me a peck on the cheek and took a picture with me.
The Amir Temur Mausoleum is where the great leader Timur is buried. He was an Asia conqueror who did much for building up Uzbekistan. One fact we noticed was that much of the historical sites are restorations, with very little of the original left behind unlike India or Iran.
We passed by the statue of Islom Karimov. He was the leader of Uzbekistan from 1989 until his death in 2016. He was the last First Secretary of the Communist Party of Uzbekistan from 1989 to 1991, when the party was reconstituted as the People's Democratic Party of Uzbekistan (PDP); he led the PDP until 1996. He was the President of the Uzbek SSR from 24 March 1990 until he declared the independence of Uzbekistan on 1 September 1991.

We proceeded to Registan square with its three huge Madrassahs: Ulughbek, Tillakori & Sherdar and Afrasiyab Museum. The Registan was the heart of the ancient city of Samarkand of the Timurid dynasty. The name Registan means "Sandy place" or "desert" in Persian. The Registan was a public square, where people gathered to hear royal proclamations and a place of public executions. It is framed by three madrassas (Islamic schools) of distinctive Islamic architecture on three sides. It is by virtue of these buildings, preserved on the territory of the city, Samarkand was included in the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2001. In the past, one could see many trade rows around the square, where artisans and farmers were selling their goods. All main roads of Samarkand led to Registan where it was always noisy and lively. These buildings – the Registan and other wonders of Timurid Samarkand – were the result of the coming together of craftsmen and builders from across the empire in the late 14th century. Their influence would likewise range far, and shape the character of distant cities.
The three madrassas of the Registan are: the Ulugh Beg Madrasah, the Tilya-Kori Madrasah and the Sher-Dor Madrasah. They were erected by two rulers at different times.
The Ulugh Beg Madrasah, was built by Ulugh Beg during the Timurid Empire era of Timur. Originally the Ulugh Beg Madrasah was a two-storied building with four domed darskhonas (lecture rooms) at the corners. It was the first erection on the Registan Square. On the outside, the building, located on the western part of the square, was done in the form of a rectangle; inside there is a square yard with entrances to the student cells (approximately for 100 people) and learning rooms. The façade of the madrassa looks out on the square, completed with two tall minarets in the corners. Special attention should be given to an exquisite interior of the building. Glazed bricks create beautiful ornaments on the yellowish laying of the walls. The madrassa portal is adorned with patterns of ten-pointed stars symbolizing the sky, and astronomy.
In the 17th century the ruler of Samarkand, Yalangtush Bakhodur, ordered the construction of the Sher-Dor and Tillya-Kori madrassas. The tiger mosaics on the face of each madrassa are interesting, in that they flout the ban in Islam of the depiction of living beings on religious buildings.
The Tilya-Kori Madrasah was not only a residential college for students, but also played the role of grand masjid (mosque). It has a two-storied main facade and a vast courtyard fringed by dormitory cells, with four galleries along the axes. The main hall of the mosque is abundantly gilded. Tilla Kori means “gilded”.
In 1612, Yalangtush Bahadur was appointed the emir of Samarkand. Being a ruler of the city, he decided to construct another madrassah on the Square of Registan opposite the building erected by Ulughbek. According to the project of architects, the new madrassah was supposed to be located on the eastern side of the square and be a mirroring reflection of existing building on Registan. However, the exact mirroring concurrence did not work as the architect did not take one peculiarity into consideration – 200 years have passed since the construction of the Ulughbek madrassah, and the building had shrunk into the ground and the level of the square itself had risen to 2 meters. In the result, the new madrassah turned out to be taller.
Upon construction, the madrassah was named in honor of the ordering party. However, the name did not find its usage among people, and the building was renamed to Sher-Dor. The name comes from the images on the portal: two big golden tigers carrying a sun on their backs and heading after white fallow-deer were adoring the entrance. Sher means tiger (lion) and the name is translated as “adorned with tigers”. It was this plot that later became a national symbol of Uzbekistan. This symbol is even visible on their currency today.
However, in 1918 Samarkand faced changes. The Soviet rule prohibited activity of any madrassah as religious schools. During this time, erections endured many natural damaging factors: earthquakes, harsh weather conditions. The larger part of the cladding of the building and the painting décor were lost. Nevertheless, it was the Soviet rule that had given the order to restore the entire Registan and give it the status of the significant historical monument on the Great Silk Road.

We came across a teacher’s room which displayed how it would have looked like in ancient times, complete with students and teachers. And we also came across more people who wanted to take pictures with us. There was a small museum and we visited it as well. The courtyard was quite pretty too. We wandered around again and came across a student’s room display. It was hot though and a tired bunch left Registan to move onto the next place – for lunch.
Post a heavy local lunch, we continued with the city tour. Since most of us were tired out, only some of us went up to see the Ulugh Beg Observatory. On the way we came across a bride and groom who came to pose for pictures here.

This observatory was built in the 1420s by the Timurid astronomer Ulugh Beg. It is considered by scholars to have been one of the finest observatories in the Islamic world. The observatory was destroyed by religious fanatics in 1449 and rediscovered in 1908. The Ulugh Beg Observatory Museum was built in 1970 to commemorate Ulugh Beg.
There was a statue of Ulugh Beg around which we posed first before beginning to explore the museum. The observatory was extraordinary and we marveled at the preciseness in such ancient times. We also came across a chart at the museum that showed that Akbar, Aurangazeb, etc. were actually descendants of Amir Temur. The museum had displays of the observatory which helped us understand it better.
Our next destination was the Shahi Zinda complex. Despite the heat, we pushed on. It was worth the climb up the stairs. Apparently, if you counted the steps going up and down and got the same number, your wish would come true. Hopefully mine will.

Here lay the women related to Amir Temur. There was also a mausoleum for an unknown person. The name Shah-i-Zinda (meaning "The living king") is connected with the legend that Kusam ibn Abbas, the cousin of the Prophet Muhammad was buried there. Popular legends speak that he was beheaded for his faith. But he took his head and went into the deep well (Garden of Paradise), where he's still living now. The Shah-i-Zinda complex was formed over nine centuries and now includes more than twenty buildings.
After admiring the intricacies in architecture and design, we moved back to the bus almost completely exhausted and after more pictures with the locals. We slowed down near the Bibi Khanum mosque to take in the sight before moving onto the hotel. One thing I realized about the hotels was that as we moved further away from the city, the hotels began to get more localized and pretty. We checked in and had dinner on our own, outside the hotel. Following a quick shopping spree, we dragged ourselves back for some much required sleep.
The next day’s destination was Shahrisabz – a name some of us found difficult to remember. Our first stop was at a carpet weaving centre on the way. We explored the place, had tea and bread and bought carpets. I managed to buy a piece to use as a table runner. Watching them weave carpets was also rather interesting.
Shahrisabz is, above all, associated with the Ak-Saray palace. The overall layout, scale and artistic appearance of Ak-Saray can be reconstituted from the descriptions of contemporaries and eyewitnesses, as well as from the results of archaeological excavation at the site. According to written accounts, the palace consisted of several stately, living or service quarters, grouped around separate courtyards.
The architectural decor, featuring a wide variety of designs and colours, is particularly noteworthy in the artistic appearance of Ak-Saray. The various mosaic and majolica work in the niche of the portal is particularly refined and highly coloured. The delicately executed foliate ornamentation incorporates exquisite calligraphic inscriptions of mainly Koranic content, although secular ones are found too. The Ak-Saray palace is a grandiose piece of civil architecture.
We took one of the golf cart-like cars to travel to our next destination. On the way we stopped too take pictures of a statue of Amir Temur. We arrived at the Doruttilavat Complex and went inside Amir Temur’s mausoleum from the fifteenth century. On one of the several graves there, we were told, if you prayed with fervor, your wish would be granted. I didn’t test it out though. Afterwards, we travelled to Bukhara where we would be staying overnight. Dinner was again on our own, which I wish I could remember, but unfortunately my memory isn’t very reliable.

Next morning, after another continental breakfast, we moved towards the Bolo Hauz mosque. It reminded me so much of the palaces in Iran. Bolo-Hauz Mosque is the 17th century mosque, which was a place of prayer for the Emirs and their entourage. Bolo-Hauz Mosque is the only surviving monument in Registan Square, which includes a mosque, a minaret and a pool. The pool is the oldest part of the ensemble and is one of the few remaining in the ancient city; for the honor of this pool the mosque is called Bolo-Hauz (children’s pool).  In the water of the pond one can see a reflection of the colorfully painted ayvan – a gallery with colonnade – and of the minaret. Since it was a Friday and prayers would be held there in the afternoon, we changed itinerary and went there in the morning.
Next on the list was the Samanids mausoleum. It is located in a park outside Bukhara. The mausoleum is considered to be one of the most highly esteemed work of Central Asian architecture.  It is the resting-place of Ismail Samani - a powerful and influential amir of the Samanid dynasty. In addition to Ismail Samani, the mausoleum also houses the remains of his father Ahmed and his nephew Nasr, as well as the remains of other members of the Samanid dynasty. We spend some time here taking pictures and buying souvenirs. I got a book of local embroidery known as Suzani, for mum. As we were walking to our next destination we came across some souvenir shop and I stopped to buy a pair of earrings.
We then continued walking to the Chashma-Ayyub complex. Its name means Job's well, due to the legend in which Job (Ayub) visited this place and made a well by striking the ground with his staff. The water of this well is still pure and is considered healing. The current building was constructed during the reign of Timur. Despite the heat we walked around admiring the architecture and snapping away with our phones and cameras.
We also visited the Ark of Bukhara. It is a massive fortress that in addition to being a military structure, encompassed what was essentially a town that, during much of the fortress' history, was inhabited by the various royal courts that held sway over the region surrounding Bukhara. The Ark was used as a fortress until it fell to Russia in 1920. Wandering around in the heat had become our thing and we promptly did the same here too.

Since it was about noon, we went for the carpet show at Bukhara’s biggest silk carpet shop. We were served tea during the demonstration. I enjoyed watching the carpets displayed before us. Lack of luggage space prevented me from ordering some of the magnificent silk carpets they had. We went inside a room after the display, to watch the ladies weave carpets. After browsing through carpets, we moved on to the hotel. Following lunch, an exhausted two, decided on naps and lounging around the hotel. In the evening we went for dinner in a traditional madrassa converted into a hotel. We enjoyed some dance performances and fashion shows as we happily ate dinner. There were also shops to browse through around the seating area. We celebrated Ranjit’s birthday too with a cake and music. She treated us to drinks. Yours truly of course had cherry juice. After dinner, we rushed back to do some last minute shopping at the bazaars near the hotel. I got a couple of things and so did the others.
After breakfast, the next day, we drove for 6 ½ hours to reach Khiva. The first restaurant we stopped for lunch had no vegetarian options and so we went to a second restaurant. Here I snacked on French Fries, salad and bread. By the time we reached the Khiva hotel, it was dinner time.

As we were celebrating pink night that day, we all wore pink for the before dinner drinks. After taking pictures we had white wine/ juice. Your guess on what I drank. With drinks we shared our reason for picking this trip. After that some of us went off to eat the buffet while others remained in the pub to eat dinner there itself. After dinner I walked with Shehnaz and Taj a bit, before we retired to our rooms.
Next morning we had breakfast at the hotel and then proceeded to walk to the next site. There was a slight change in itinerary – we were checking out of the hotel only in the afternoon. Our guide met us at the hotel. His last name was interestingly Timur. He took us to the Ichan Kala, inner town of old Khiva. Unfortunately three of us got separated from the group and so we missed part of the tour. Blame our shopaholic selves for this. We finally managed to locate them with the help of a kind lady who lend us her phone and took us to them.

One of the places we visited next was the Juma Mosque. The mosque had 218 wooden columns supporting its roof – a concept thought to be derived from ancient Arabian mosques. Six or seven of the columns date from the original tenth century mosque. Our guide showed us how they had added a symbol of the cross to the original design. He also explained to us how the Imam could talk to the entire congregation without mike using an intricate use of pipes. There was also a heating system without using fire. It was lit using the reaction of calcium carbonate with another substance. We walked back along an old road paved with stones and still intact.  Since some of us were tired, we did not go with the rest of the tour and returned to the hotel.
We had lunch there. We got ready for checkout and then waited in the lobby till our bus arrived. Then we all piled in for our flight to Tashkent. The flight went fine and we got back to the hotel we had stayed in previously. Bishakha and I even got the same room from before. We all had a late night dinner and then hurried off for some much awaited sleep.
Next morning after breakfast we checked out of the hotel around 12. We Went to Alay Bazaar for some last minute shopping. There were dry fruits, vegetables, nuts, etc. at the bazaar. We shopped a bit and then had lunch at a restaurant there. Fries had become our staple vegetarian food along with salad. After roaming around a bit we boarded the bus for the mall visit.

At Samarkhand Darvaza Mall we split and roamed a bit. Bishakha and I went in search of a suitcase for her daughter. When it was after six, we all boarded the bus for the airport, ready to return home. At Delhi airport we all split and I took the plane to Kochi where I got into a pre-paid taxi to reach home. Thus ended some wonderful days of tripping.

7 comments:

Taj said...

Wonderful write-up could not have put it across better.wish you many more incredible trip and i hope will get to read it from you.Do keep it up.

There Is No Alternative said...

Thank you so much

The Traveler said...

Lovely write up Tina...may u travel n travel n post n post...cheers

There Is No Alternative said...

Thank you so muchhhhh

Unknown said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Unknown said...

You are so lucky to be able to travel around so much... And we are lucky to have you to take us with u through your blog...
Give more details of the food and drinks of the place u visit...

There Is No Alternative said...

I will try