August 4, 2011
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The Silk Road (Sort Of) Overland
Wednesday 3 August 2011
Today, it’s exactly a month since I arrived in Istanbul to start my Silk Road trip. I’ve seen many unique and amazing places over the past month, but I’m wondering if today doesn’t beat them all. The sheer number of absolutely beautiful, totally jaw-dropping sights have been overwhelming. No wonder the publishers of my guide book The Silk Road (Discovery Channel) have chosen the city wall of Khiva for their front cover.Our first stop, the Summer Palace, which is a 10-minute walk from the western gate, stopped me in my tracks before we had even begun. Huge rooms with stunning wall paper, ceilings and the most intricate tiled storage heaters I’ve ever seen made this slightly off-centre museum absolutely worth it.
The Khuna Ark with its stunning Summer Mosque (extremely colourful ceiling) and throne room, was another highlight. As were the Juma Mosque (reminded me of the mosque/cathedral in Cordoba) and the Islom-Hoja Minaret (which we climbed, all 118 winding steps).
When we left Khiva late afternoon for the train station in Tortkol – which is in the semi-independent Uzbek province of Karakalpakstan – I felt a bit dazed and thought that my 13-hour overnight train journey to Samarkand was quite timely. I need a bit of time to digest what I’ve seen before I’m faced with the Silk Road giant and focus point Samarkand.
The train to Samarkand and Tashkent arrived right on time (originating somewhere in Russia) and lo and behold it had A/Cs! The stinking factor for the loo was above average, but it could have been worse. The train was not overcrowded, and the conductor – who is called something that rhymes with Dubrovnik in Russian – was proactive and kept the carriage neat and tidy.
When I get off tomorrow morning, Bahrom, Sevara and Inoyat will stay on the same train until they reach Tashkent in the afternoon and I’ll be on my own. Thank you Bahrom for being such a fantastic travel guru for Uzbekistan!
