Uzbekistan Pt. 2

Lorelei surveying the mud fort

We crossed back into Uzbekistan from Turkmenistan to see a couple places in the northern part of Uzbekistan. We went to Nukus specifically to visit a museum. It's an unusual museum in this random town in the middle of the desert filled with a world class collection of art mainly from the Soviet period. We had a great tour guide who made the visit very interesting.

Yurts on yurts on yurts

That night we traveled to a "yurt hotel," stopping to see another ancient, mostly eroded mud fort on the way (we saw baby snakes!). Yurts are what the nomads of the are live in. These were super nice yurts, built on concrete bases with a light in each yurt and plenty of carpets on the ground and walls and comfortable bed pads. The "hotel" was on a mesa in the middle of the desert, and it was breathtaking. I loved it. We met some of the other visitors, but mostly just enjoyed soaking in the sunset and then the beautiful morning light the next day. Definitely was one of the highlights of the whole trip for me. 

One of the many restored
 buildings of Khiva

We then visited Khiva, where we had an awesome local guide who I really liked. However, it was basically one big reconstructed ancient city. This meant that there were a ton of things to see and it looked cool, but it also felt really touristy and fake. Everything was too perfectly repaired- it didn't feel very ancient.

Family tats. We're practically a gang.

We went back to Tashkent and this second visit left me with a different impression as we visited more local and lively parts of the city, like the market. We also got tattoos! My sisters had been discussing getting a "sister tattoo" for a while. Something inconspicuous and small, but sweet with a good story behind it. We settled on four small dots on the inside of right ring finger. It took us a while to hunt down a place to get them, but we managed. My parents also got the four dots, but under their wedding bands. The sad news is that finger tattoos don't last very well since hands get so much use and the skin wears off. So mine is mostly gone by now, I think I'll have to get it redone. 

This is the point at which Selina left us to go back to work. Very sad. 

Details of what we did:

Day 9: Friday, August 16, Ashgabat-Dashoguz –Kalas (Uzbekistan)

·       early morning flight to Dashogus

·       Drive to Konye-Urgench: explore Turabeg Khanym Complex, Sayid Ahmed Mausoleum, Gutlug Timur Minaret, Sultan Tekesh Mausoleum, Kyrk Molla (Forty Mullahs Hill), Il-Arslan Mausoleum. Meant to be 2nd most important place to go on Hajj after Mecca. Busy with genuine pilgrims but not as spectacular as some of the other monuments and rather dusty and unkempt.

·        Border crossing. Arrived at empty border office as guards going on lunch break. 

·       Met by Bek

·        Savitsky Museum – worth the visit to see such a huge collection of Russian impressionists and other relatively unknown artists. Museum is expanding and the main reason why Nukus survives in this drought stricken region. Very close to Aral Sea (3 hour drive north). Spoke about going but couldn’t fit it in last moment and would need four wheeled jeeps.

·       Drive through desert with stop at striking and huge Tuprok kala mud fortress (saw small snakes)

·       Arrive at Ayaz Kala yurt hotel at sunset so miss viewing the yurt lifestyle during the day. Did see camels wandering around camp.

Day 10: Saturday, August 17, Kala-Khiva-Tashkent

·       Breakfast in yurt and coffee/watermelon/biscuits outside on rug overlooking desert –perfect- could have stayed all day

·       Leave yurt hotel

·       Arrive in Khiva –explore Ichan Kala with local guide Timor. Very good at his job. However, so much to see that difficult to remember all the sites looking back. Ichan kala was a little too perfect and felt almost like a fake Disney attraction. Very lovely though lacked the hustle and bustle of Bukhara as not a residential city.

·       Medreseh Mohammad Amin

·       minaret

·       Madre Niyaz Dayvoon Bege (toilet stop)

·       Khiva Square with majolica place

·       Kuhna Ark –Han reception

·       Lunch at Yasavol Bashi Restaurant (old bodyguard training center) (Bek pays?)

·       Mohammand Rakhim Khan Medreseh (Feruz)

·       Juma Mosque (213 wood pillars –fabulous!)

·       Caravanserai (door)

·       Harem (rectangular majorca all around large courtyeard) + Tash Hauli Palace

·       Slave market

·       + minaret

·       Kheivak Well

·       Islom-Hoja Medreseh and minaret

·       Museum of Applied Art

·       New State School

·       Pahlavon Mahmud Mausoleum

·       Khiva Silk carpet workshop

·       Wood Carving workshop 

·       Late flight back to Tashkent 

Day 11: Sunday, August 18, Tashkent-Khodjand (Tajikistan)

·       Abulkasium Medreseh and Handicraft Center 

·       Chorsu Bazaar – (bought more dried fruit, nuts and halva sweets –snacks very successful throughout the trip)

·       Everyone got 4 dot “sister tattoos" on fingers and my parents got them under their wedding rings.  However, we have found that the marks are already fading –apparently tattoos are very iffy if put on fingers because the skin comes off easily on the hand. We might have to have them redone.

·       Bek took Selina to airport to return via Bangkok to Singapore.

·       Drove to border 

·       Met by new guide Khusrov. Khusrov very likable and proud of his country and wanting us to love it. Had been on eco-tourism course in Washington DC and very enthusiastic about needing to improve tourism in Tajikistan)

·       Drive to Khodjand (I hour) with stop to see local wedding at a restaurant

·       National Tea House (another wedding taking place), Government meeting house, Somine Square with its huge statue, large crowds and wedding parties –all very vibrant and fun to watch.