Samarkand

To everyone who gives me *that look* when they ask me where I’m going for holiday and I say Uzbekistan, let me put things into perspective. Uzbekistan received 6.6 million tourists in 2023, which is ranked right below Australia (7.2mn) globally, and above Taiwan (6.5mn), Ireland (6.3mn), Brazil (5.9mn), and Philippines (5mn). So really, I should be the one giving you the look for giving me the look. 

tashkent train station
Early morning train to Samarkand from Tashkent train station
tashkent train station
Afrosiyob high speed rail

Anyway, this is setting precedence for how many tourists (more specifically, tour groups) there are in Samarkand, the jewel of the Silk Road. I won’t fill this post with angst (edit: oops), but this is the most irritated I’ve been by them, ever. So quick tip: go early to Registan Square and Shah-i-Zinda for some peace and quiet, and also for your photos. 

registan square
Registan Square
registan square
Probably what you're here for
registan square
Giving you all the shades upfront
registan square
Light show at 8pm
registan square
Inside the madrasah at Registan Square
registan square
bling bling
registan square
Ceiling art
registan square
Better than Rome?
shah-i-zinda
Shah-i-Zinda
shah-i-zinda
Is the name of the other place you keep seeing on instagram
shah-i-zinda
You're welcome
shah-i-zinda
But beware of the tour groups

I cannot recommend Hotel Dilnura enough if you’re visiting Samarkand. We had a view of Amir Temur Mausoleum right outside our window. I found out on the day of visiting the mausoleum that Amir Temur is in fact what the West knows as Tamerlane, who is only the greatest conqueror in history after Genghis Khan. Amir means commander/leader, while Timur is his name. The Persians called him Timur the lame due to his injuries, which then morphed into Tamerlane. This guy founded the Timurid dynasty, from which the Mughals descended from. The Mughals famously built the Taj Mahal in India, which was in turn specifically inspired by the architecture of the Amir Temur Mausoleum. Don’t need to go to the Taj Mahal, just see the original here. 

amir temur mausoleum
View from our room at Hotel Dilnura
amir temur mausoleum
Take my money, all of the $45/night (shared between 2 pax)

The curse of Timur. Timur’s tomb is inscribed with two warnings that read “When I rise from the dead, the world shall tremble”, and “Whosoever disturbs my tomb will unleash an invader more terrible than I”. Soviet archeologist Mikhail Gerasimov opened the tomb on 20 June 1941. Two days later, the Nazis invaded the Soviet Union. Then Stalin ordered Timur be reburied. A month later, the Soviets won the battle of Stalingrad. Not spreading conspiracy theories, just educating facts. 

amir temur mausoleum
Amir Temur Mausoleum
amir temur mausoleum
Before the tour groups came
amir temur mausoleum
Tombs of Amir Temur, Ulugbek and others
amir temur mausoleum
The details really blew up the original size of the pictures

Samarkand is very walkable, but you have to use 2GIS instead of google maps. Google maps didn’t register a freaking bridge that literally cuts across the highway that gets you from Bibi Khanym mosque/ Siyob bazaar to Shah-i-Zinda in 5min. I followed the highway and took 30min instead.

bibi khanym mosque
Bibi Khanym Mosque
bibi khanym mosque
Sry can't go into the history of each attraction, it's too much
siyob bazaar
Siyob Bazaar is right next door
siyob bazaar
Beware: prices are marked up two times for tourists
siyob bazaar
Giant cauliflower and melons
siyob bazaar
Who needs genetic engineering when you have Uzbek soil
hazrat khizr mosque
See that bridge that Google maps missed?!
hazrat khizr mosque
Leads you from the bazaar straight to Hazrat Khizr Mosque
hazrat khizr mosque
Which is beside Shah-i-Zinda
hazrat khizr mosque
Uzbekistan's first President, Islam Karimov, is laid to rest here in his hometown

Like I mentioned in the Tashkent post, I don’t think the museums here do a good job in showcasing their greats. In particular, the tiny Ulugbek memorial museum and observatory barely scratches the surface of his achievements. Ulugbek was Amir Temur’s grandson and a legendary astronomer and mathematician. In 1437, he calculated the length of a year with an error of 25 seconds- more accurate than Copernicus’ estimate (error of 28 seconds) 80 years later. He calculated the Earth’s axial tilt to be 23.52 degrees- more accurate than later measurements by Copernicus and Brahe, but more astoundingly, precisely matching today’s accepted figure. His trigonometric table of sine and tangent values are accurate to at least 8 decimal points. How is he not better known to the world?!!

ululgbek museum
Ulugbek memorial museum
ululgbek museum
I ran out of patience to take Ulugbek's statue without tourists

Ulugbek was prematurely killed by his bastard son en route pilgrimage to Mecca. His son also killed his brother (Ulugbek’s other son) a few days later, but then was himself killed 6 months later in a plot hatched by other Amirs for being such a bastard. Ulugbek is buried alongside his grandfather Amir Temur (and some others) in the Amir Temur Mausoleum. 

manti
Hooray! I missed manti
shashlik
Shashlik

Not saying that if you found none of this interesting and are in Samarkand just for the aesthetics that I would respect you less, but that’s exactly what I’m saying. My heart sinks when I see “influencers” “discover” Central Asia and the best thing they can say about it is they enjoyed the vibes, the endless views, and the bumpy car rides. You are in the midst of 2000 years of history which facilitated everything from the silk trade to the spread of Buddhism and the plague which led to 50 million deaths in Europe. These lands were walked by the Mongols, Persians, Greeks, Ottomans, and least importantly Marco Polo. Fucking act like it.

summary

 

Hi! I am Joey, a University student from Singapore, attempting to show my appreciation for the world’s most powerful passport by literally milking its visa-free benefits one country at a time. I describe my travel budget as shoestring and travel style as audacious.

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