We escaped from the heat of Bukhara and we drove north into the mountains of the Nuratau-Kyzylkum Biosphere Reserve for a wonderful break in a village called Sentab. On the way we stopped to see the remains of a fortress built by Alexander the Great in the 4th century BC near the town of Nurata. All that still stands is a thick tawny-coloured sand wall that gives little indication of its history or legacy.
With the help of UN Development Program funding, several families in Sentab have set up ‘home stay’ type accommodation as part of a community-based tourism project. Sentab is home to about 250 families (2500 people). It is spread out along a river valley that has been inhabited for 2500 years.
Our place for the evening was run by a young Tadjik family that were wonderful hosts. Tadjik is one of the country’s four main languages and is of Persian origin. (The other languages -Uzbek, Russian and -are all part of the Turkic language group.) Our meals were served on a low table in a covered area next to the river, a short walk through an orchard from the guest house. We were treated to an evening of Tadjik dancing that Barney took to with all the zest of the local people.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b3AMpxOHJNs
The following morning we went for a hike up the valley and were passed by many nimble donkeys carrying overflowing loads of mountain grasses to feed the livestock below. The air was filled with the scent of apricots. We were lead to a number of petroglyph sites and through the ruins of a smaller village that had been forcibly abandoned during the early Soviet days. The villagers were smiling and friendly, curious and shy.
We left Sentab just before lunch and at last found ourselves on the golden road to Samarkand.
Photos from Sentab...
 |
| Sentab |
No comments:
Post a Comment