Tashkent - first impressions of Uzbekistan

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In Tashkent you cannot forget the Soviet past, I was taken back to being 18 again and living in Hungary.... it made me realise how huge the Soviet Union was, the reach from Europe into Central Asia. The buildings are angular affairs, tumbledown in the case of the appartment blocks, swish in that of the government buildings. with wide treelined boulevards. It is actually a lot more pleasant than I was expecting... made even better by the lack of cars on the road. I was skipping across with ease instead of taking my life into my hands as every time in Iran.

The metro in Tashkent puts the London tube to shame... it is huge, ornate and marble lined, it tells the story of the surrounding city. Built as a nuclear bunker, you aren't allowed to take photos, but will try and find some postcards. You do get stopped on the metro - was expecting this. But luckily the guards just wanted to see my papers and then sent me on my merry way.

One day I was taken around by a lovely Uzbek woman Iroda, who is an English teacher at the University... we visited the Independence day festivities celebrating 17 years of freedom from Russian rule. I was expecting big parades, but all I saw was a carnival like atmosphere in the city parks, with music and dancing. I met her through an Uzbek friend I made on Couchsurfing, Halima.

I ended up staying at Halima's house one night as she was keen I saved my money, bless her! It was fascinating staying in an Uzbek home. She had a courtyard garden full of fruit trees and redcurrant canes. She used the latter to make a sweet fruit jam used pulping one part fruit to two parts sugar. The result was too sweet for my liking, but I was impressed upon how healthy and good for curing colds to cancer... well maybe not cancer! Halima is a feisty granny who works advising companies where to invest in the textile industry. No flies on her. She is a couchsurfing chattist as she calls it!

I was expecting so many more people to be doing Ramadan, but certainly you can hardly notice it... what was funny were the little children doing a Ramadan kinda trick or treat! Chanting out songs saying I know you have money in your pocket and food on your table so we wants it! There are also special food that people eat made of breadcrumbs and sugar and also of egg white, which looks like uncooked meringue. This latter apparently lines the stomach so that people can fast all day.

The people are a fascinating mix, you see in their faces traces of swirling nomadic tribes which have crossed this land for millenia. Some look Mongolian , some Chinese and some have Indo-Iranian features. In Tashkent the women dress Russian style and this means glitz! Killer heels, bare flesh and flashing gold. I did see one woman dressed head to toe in it, and I envied her that I could not get away with it on a summer's day in Covent Garden, or not without a few stares.... Talking about gold, there is a fashion here for Jaws' teeth... in that the whole upper row, or more of gold teeth. Slightly disconcerting when you see it the first time. The President (read dictator) Karimov has actually tried to ban them, trying to force people to change to porcelein dentures... but that does not seem to be having much affect. He thinks it looks unwestern, and puts people off. In this case I can't say I blame him!

I visited a couple of museums while I was there, the Amir Timur Museum was a banquet of kitsch telling you about his just rule rather than his murderous tendancies... which ran to millions of dead 60,000 in Isfahan alone.

The history museum was also interesting. It had some fantastic early Buddhist sculptures. What is annoying is that you are meant to pay extra if you take photos in museums in UZ - this just seems like a big ole scam to me. Often I just say no, and then take them anyway (will I go to hell, for this)?

I stayed in Rovshan Hotel - email [e-mail] - single was $35 - not bad room - nothing special though, but they have Aventour tourist agency in the courtyard, which is useful. It seemed the cheapest thing could book from UK which I felt like staying in. Always like easing myself in gently to a place. But after two nights of "luxury" that's enough!

From there I got a train called the Sharq to Buchara, seven hours, easy. Was in economy seats and these were great. No need to pay more. Cost about 13USD... I was not sad after talking to people had missed Khiva.. there is always next time, and it does seem a bit disneyfied for my liking a bit too artificial. I do like my history real - to move me in some way.

Before I left also popped into the French cultural centre dealing with central asia history www.ifeac.org they were really helpful and was able to photocopy a couple of really useful books about the Samanid period I am interested in. They are the only European centre in Central Asia dealing with this...

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