DISCOVERING MY FIRST 'STAN : SAMARKAND, UZBEKISTAN

Welcome to part two of my Uzbekistan adventure! If you missed the first part, please check it out HERE. The first part was all about the Bukhara. This post is all about the second city that we visited, and this was the ancient city of Samarkand.

Samarkand was a lot bigger and a lot more modern looking than Bukhara. In fact, I expected it to be a little more ancient looking as it is one of the most ancient cities of the world. Of course the old and historical sites are there but the whole feel of the city just did not have that old world charm that Bukhara had.  Despite that, Samarkand didn't have any shortage of interesting sites to go to though. It's known to have architectural masterpieces and is also the "town of blue domes" and it's entered in UNESCO's list of the World Heritage.

Our first stop was the Gur Emir Mausoleum. Amir Temur, also known as Tamerlane was a great conqueror who made Samarkand the capital. Here he built grand buildings with these trademark blue domes you see all over Uzbekistan, buildings with beautiful mosaic patterns and intricate details. Gur Emir Mausoleum was where he was buried and we actually saw his tomb. The inside of the mausoleum was so decadent and filled with beautiful intricate details. The walls were even in a kind of marble which was opaque! 

Next site was the most anticipated of them all : The Registan. (Don't you think this name invokes some sort of connection to greatness? I dunno, I just feel it does!) The Registan is one HUGE square comprised of many more of those blue domed buildings. And minarets of course. If you remember from my Bukhara post, Uzbekistan is also known for its Minarets. (A minaret is like a tower by the way). Each building at the Registan square had its own courtyard (square within a square???). These courtyards were filled with tourist shops but despite that, each of them were so pretty and unique and oh so picturesque. You can see the colored mosaic patterns up close and they made such a beautiful background to any photo. 

Another highlight is the Shahi-zinda. I think this was one of my favorite sites. It is actually a necropolis filled with tombs and mausoleums of important people in Uzbekistan’s history. One of these tombs is of of Ibbn abas – cousin of the prophet Muhammad. The Necropolis looked like a mini city – structures were colorful and again with those beautiful patterns. Once again I opted not to pay the camera fee and I highly regret it. The only photos we have are taken with my sister’s go pro camera (which reminds me - I must steal some). Lesson learned in Uzbekistan : always pay the camera fee because everything inside is always so picture worthy. 

We also visited Tashkent street and their local market. After three days in Samarkand, we rode a bullet train back to the capital Tashkent. The bullet train was pretty amazing. It was so new and modern and the inside part reminds me of the interiors of a newly built airplane.

Samarkand was truly interesting. There were blue domes and minarets everywhere – a staple in Uzbekistan but I never got sick of taking photos! It was all so picture perfect! Next post up is on Tashkent. See you guys then!

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