Wanderings in Uzbekistan - 3 - The Silk Road - Bukhara

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We start our journey across the Kzyzlkum desert, from Khiva to Bukhara, 450km of sand and scrubland, which will take 9 hours. The first 200 km is on a recently-made smooth dual carriageway but after this we bump and bounce our way along a rough, frequently potholed road and eventually arrive in Bukhara shaken but not quite stirred!!

We have our evening meal in the hotel, which is one of our worst meals so far, and unfortunately several of the group, including both WanderingPeter and Alison are struck down with a dose of "Bukhara Belly" which curtails our exploration of Bukhara somewhat.

One or other of us, however, does manage to see the wonderful Kalon Mosque, the Kalon Minaret (1127), demonstrations of the famous Bukhara carpet weaving and a meal at the house of a miniaturist master painter, who produces wonderful detailed works of art.

We also visit the dome-covered bazaar, where there are numerous small stalls and shops selling all the usual tourist merchandise, together with the heady scents from the spice stalls - what a delightful experience. The gold-toothed sellers add a hint of the unusual and they were very keen to take some of our Uzbekistan Soums from the great pile of notes we received when changing one USD 100 bill!

The above-mentioned meal aside we have been pleasantly surprised by the food - most of which has been delicious - starting with small dishes of vegetable salads - beetroot, carrot, cauliflower etc, followed by a soup, and then the main dish of stuffed vegetables, Plov - the national rice-based dish with raisin, nuts, carrots and meat - or a meat casserole. Each meal has much the same format but have been very tasty. Our guide has done well and generally has picked fantastic authentic, atmospheric restaurants for us.

We are now fully recovered and spend the next day travelling to, the highlight of the tour, Samarkand.

Accommodation - Asia Bukhara Hotel

Weather - Hot, sunny & blue skies 28c

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Comments

[David Smith]

Sorry for mentioning food!!
But our Claret teams are doing well. Have a beer on me. The photos are fantastic and hope you find the silk

[Helen and Bob]

Usbekistan
Sorry to hear that you had bad tummies but it doesn't sound as if it held you up too much. It sounds like such a fascinating journey, the pictures are wonderful. Xx