Day 17 Bukhara, Uzbekistan

Today was a full on assault of sightseeing around Bukhara. One way or another, we pretty much saw in varying levels of detail, all of the main sights. And I’ll tell you; that is no mean feat, because there are so many mosques, madrasahs, minarets and forts. Plus all the stalls selling locally made handicrafts, which of course proved to be a huge distraction to the female contingent. Not good news for me, as I was already frustrated by the snail’s pace at which we were moving. I’m already looking forward to our free day tomorrow when I can go at my own pace, and get off the beaten track. Beyond that, there’s not much of a narrative to tell. So here’s where we went, and what we saw:-


Char Minar -



Char Minar.(above) Tucked away down through alleyways, and some distance from the area for attractions. It used to be a gatehouse to a larger Madrassa. The name literally means four minarets. Built in 1809.


Ismael Somani Mausoleum -



Ismael Somani mausoleum (above).Built in 905, it is the oldest Muslim monument in Bukhara.


Chashma Ayub Mausoleum -





Chashma Ayub Mausoleum (above) - located next to the city bazaar. Dates back to the early 13th century.


Bolo-Hauz Mosque -






Bolo-Hauz Mosque (above). Still a functioning mosque, that used to be the Emir of Bukhara’s place of worship.


The Ark Citadel -




The Ark citadel (above). The oldest structure in the city, dating back to the 5th century. Partly restored with superb, imposing angled walls. A Royal town within the city.


Zindom Prison -


Zindom Prison (above) - the place where British officers Colonel Stoddart and Captain Connolly were held in a “bug pit” before being executed following a botched mission to reassure the egotistical megalomanic Emir of Britain’s good intentions in nearby Afghanistan in the 19th century.


Abdulaziz Khan Madrassa -








Abdulaziz Khan Madrassa (above) - unlike most of the other ancient buildings in Bukhara this has not been fully restored. Rather run down with big cracks in the masonry, and peeling paintwork. Despite this, it had a very genuine feel to it.


Kalon Mosque and Minaret-














Kalon Mosque and Minaret (above) - when it was built in 1127, the 47 metre high minaret was the tallest building in Central Asia. Kalon means “great”, so both the huge minaret and equally big Mosque certainly have the correct moniker. They were extremely strict on the dress code. Shorts at knee level were not allowed, so I had to wear a natty little skirt.


To cap the day off in the finest style, I skipped the tedious carpet place and headed straight for the Bukhara Arena to indulge myself in what can only be described as “floodlight porn”. And I have to say, it was very hardcore. A magnificent example of Soviet style. Not only that, I found an open gate and got to sneak inside, where local youngsters were doing their athletics training. A couple of girls clearly wanted to practice their English so we chatted for a while. Delightfully friendly and unaffected.






A free day tomorrow. Yippee!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Caucasus again

Image
Twelve months on from my first visit to the Caucasus region I’m heading that way again. Last time it was Azerbaijan and Georgia. This time it’s Georgia, and the perceived bad boy of the region, Armenia.     The one on the left is particularly popular with some of our thickest flags flyers! Why? You may ask. Well, the main reason is that I’m continuing my quest to have visited as many countries as I am years old. Current score on that front is 65, albeit by the dubious counting method of including countries that no longer exist. There are 3 of those; West Germany, Yugoslavia and Hong Kong. A more dubious methodology would include 2 more – Guernsey (could it count as a country?), and Kazakhstan, which I have skirted into on a vehicle, but have never actually set foot there. Anyway, for the sake of argument I’ll include the 3 “ex-countries”. So, the score sits at 65 which means I’m bang on target. Nevertheless, with another Birthday later in the year, I’ve got the chance to...
Read more

7th and 8th May – Getting to Georgia and a walk around Tbilisi

Image
Let’s start with a positive. The joy of a late afternoon flight leaving Heathrow meant that it was a breeze checking in and getting through security. The good people at Lufthansa weren’t striking this week (unlike 2 weeks ago when they nearly wrecked a boy’s football weekend in Bavaria) so, excuse the pun, I was off to a flyer! Ever since my truncated trip to Turkmenistan, I’ve become very wary about lack of sleep. As my onward flight to Tbilisi was effectively overnight, I took the opportunity of a very reasonably priced upgrade to Business Class for the flight from Munich. After about 17 free bottles of Franzischaner Weissbier, and several plates of free food in the Business Lounge I staggered onto the plane and slept like a baby until our 4am touchdown in Tbilisi. Alright, alright just 2 beers and a bowl of soup! And I didn’t sleep like a baby either. However, I did manage a couple of hours kip which undoubtedly helped. Obviously, in my less than deep slumber I dreamt longingly of...
Read more

Monday 11 May – Return to Tbilisi via Stalin’s birthplace

Image
I was awoken at 5.30 by the sound of heavy rain outside. By the time I eventually got out of bed an hour later it was still hammering down. Hardly ideal conditions for the challenging drive through the mountains and back down to Tbilisi. Also a timely reminder as to how lucky we had been with the excellent weather yesterday.   I was genuinely concerned about the journey back to Gudauri. Will there have been more snow and avalanches? Will there be hordes of HGV’s stuck on the perilous roads? Could the police have simply closed the roads? Well, I’ve no idea how they manage the traffic on this essential route but our journey up to, and over Jvari Pass (c7,000feet) was trouble free. Yes, it was a bit slow due to snow and ice, but we barely saw any vehicles coming in the opposite direction. We did pass a few queues of lorry's parked on the side of the road each stretching over a mile.     A few hundred metres past the peak of the pass we stopped at the Georgia/Russia Frien...
Read more