When you think of Samarkand, it conjures up images of an ancient city, with minarets and mauseleums, the center of Amir Timor’s power, an exotic location on the Silk Route, from where Babur was driven out and made his way to the tiny country of India to form the inconsequential Mughal Empire.
I had read about Samarkand in books and magazines and had been fascinated with it since I was eight years old. However, the Samarkand that I finally came to this morning is that of a modern city, with sprawling boulevards, modern storefronts, and internet cafes all over the place. The monuments from the bygone area can be found scattered across the city, preserved in their tiny enclosures, much like animals in a zoo. Music you hear is either Bollywood or Western pop/hip-hop.
Its been interesting walking around the city, especially after having been to more rural and p[rovincial cities in this trip. At first you are a little dissppointed, after the innocence and unspoilt beauty of the small towns and villages where some had never seen a tourist before, to a big city which could be in any part of the world. But once you adjust to that, Samarkand can be a pretty remarkable city to explore. The kebabs are wonderful, the streets immaculate, and people are distant, but friendly.
In the days preceding Samarkand, we had a wonderful time in the deserts and pastrureland. We spent one night in a yurt camp in the desert run by a former Czech colonel who believes in having his guests consume the same quantity of vodka as one does water. While it was a campsite, the facilities were luxurious, and included a blanket and running water in the yurts (traditional dwelling).
The next day was however, brilliant, as we headed out to a lake that was the result of a dam breaking about thirty years ago, took a swim and sunbathed (a post on that will come up later when I can hook my computer to the net), and then headed into the middle of nowhere to camp the night in verdant pastures, and were greeted by the nomadic shepherds who seemed to live life the same way for the past thousand years or so. Tehy loved getting their pictures taken and made me promise to send it to them by post. I will write mor ein detail about that camping experience as it was truly heavenly.
Am in Samarkand for another day and then off to Tashkent for a couple of days and then that would be the end of this absolutely wonderful trip- two weeks have just flown by!
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