Barney and I arrived in Tashkent after the 7.5 hour flight from Kuala Lumpur. There were too many clouds along the way to see much of the Himalayas, but we did get a good view of huge sand dunes that we think were in southern China. It was 34 C when we landed but it felt surprisingly cool because it wasn’t humid.
We were met at the airport and driven to the Hotel Uzbekistan – a four star Soviet-era colossus that was decorated with satin, silk and imitation Louis 14th furniture. Coffee was served in china demi-tasse cups with painted gold rims.
The tour didn’t start until two days after we arrived. We spent a bit of time over those two days walking around the city but I was more interested in getting some rest so we weren’t too ambitious. We discovered that Tashkent (population over two million) is a very green city full of well maintained parks, large spreading trees, and wide stately streets. Eighty percent of Tashkent was flattened in an earthquake in 1966 and the rebuilt city is lovely. I guess I was expecting ugly Soviet blocks of apartments and office buildings but what we found was a charmingly modern city, clean and beautifully laid out.
Crossing the street was something of a challenge. Drivers attack the street with an aggression that is a mix of drag racing and dodge’em cars. And U-turns are a common practice so we could never be sure where a car might be coming from.
Museum of Fine Arts had an absolutely stunning collection of textiles, paintings (older and modern), furniture, carved wooden and gypsum screens, ceramic bird houses, ornate embroidered clothing and musical instruments. Everything was beautiful displayed and had English labels. The museum far outshone the one we’d visited in Kuala Lumpur. I later learned that some of the collection once belonged to the Romanovs. We also passed by the Opera House on our wanderings - quite an imposing building. Tickets to full production operas only cost $2. Unfortunately it’s closed in June and July.
When we visited the Olay bazaar we were a bit intimidated at first by all the grim stern faces as we were used to the ready smiles of the Malaysians. However we soon found if we initiated the smile it was generally returned with a warm smile or a friendly nod. Many people have had their front teeth replaced with gold ones (replaced – not capped!) which adds a sparkle to any wide grin. Very few people spoke any English but we managed to negotiate the purchase of some pistachios, fresh apricots and small apples for our upcoming train trip. Later we also found a ‘department store’ that sold Uzbek silk at $6 per metre.
Uzbek currency is called 'sum'. There are 1500 sum to the dollar. We changed $200 and wound up with a ridiculous pile as the biggest bill is 1000 som (see the picture below. So if you buy something for 50,000 som, you have to count out 50 bills.
We spent our third day in Tashkent with our newly formed group – one New Zealander, 12 Aussies and us two Canadians – visiting some of the city’s mosques and medressas (religious school), the Museum of Uzbek History and the Chorsu Bazaar in a huge air conditioned bus. What a well travelled group we’ve found ourselves in. I think the youngest person is 50 and the oldest in his mid-70s. Our guide’s name is Rustam and he will accompany us on the Uzbekistan portion of our tour.
Pictures from Tashkent
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| Tashkent |
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