Today we are off to our next destination in Uzbekistan - Samarkand. This evokes thoughts of the Arabian Nights and the Silk Route. We will now finally get to see some of the great monuments left over from when this area was at its peak during the days of the great trade routes across Central Asia. Breakfast is at 7 AM and we are ready to head off a bit after 8 AM. There are six of us carrying on from the previous leg and two are joining us here, so we are now a total of eight people.
It is a five hour drive to Samarkand and we drive straight there. The only stop is when we briefly have to pass through Kazakhstan territory and we pick up some local vodka at some street-side stalls. All they are selling is vodka and they must have over 50 types (and we are told that Kazakhstan vodka is the best in the former Soviet Union). We have to pick up a few bottles (and these are very nicely packaged in felt covered bottles).
We arrive in Samarkand at 1:20 PM and after unloading the truck and dropping off our bags in the very nice hotel, we head straight out to get some lunch. We have a relaxing lunch in a local place that serves the usual fare. After lunch we briefly go back to the hotel, and then head out to explore the town a bit.
We decide to head down to the market, but we first have to pass by the main monuments in this town - the buildings that surround The Registan. They are stunning, but we know that we will be coming back, so we head on. Along the way, we find additional stunning monuments, but we are able to get away with a brief glance before getting to the market.
It is a busy place and it is filled with food and other items. We wander through and people are very friendly, greeting us and chatting with us. We check out a few stalls and see what there is available. It is huge and covers a number of different areas on different levels.
Lars uses the local toilet and is glad that he does. He has to pay 25 som, and in the process of paying, notices that the man has a number of 1 and 3 som notes in his desk drawer. The man is happy to give those up to Lars (to collect), thereby not having to give the full amount due in change. Then we head back to the Registan to see how the buildings look in the light of the setting sun.
But first we stop off at the tourist information office. It is a bit of a hodge podge. Not very much information, a few stalls selling stuff and a bunch of students that are there to talk to tourists and practice whatever language they are studying. But it was very impressive the range of languages they were studying and how well they were doing. They had students that spoke English, German, French, Japanese, Russian, Spanish and a bunch of other languages. And they loved to practice with us. We spent quite some time there just chatting.
It is a great time to see the buildings in the warm glow of the sun as it sets. The light is not as harsh and the place is also not as busy (not that there are that many people there at any time right now). The multi-colored tiles that line the faces and domes of the buildings glisten in the warm light. It is magical.
Once back at the hotel, we have a quick wash and get ready to head out for dinner. The group grabs a number of local Lada taxis and heads off to another part of town to a restaurant that specialises in shashlyk. And does this restaurant have shashlyk - at the entrance there is a huge table just covered in different kinds of meat on skewers. It is a carnivores heaven and a vegetarian's nightmare. As we are all carnivores, we have a fantastic time and certainly stuff ourselves.
The place is filled with locals and they are also having a great time. There is music, and they are getting up to dance. Often, the men will be dancing together. One couple is up dancing with their young boy - he puts on quite a show for us. After a great meal, we return to the hotel around 10 PM.