Tuesday 24 September
We had an early start to catch our flight to Urgench and were up and out by 0530. We caught our taxi to airport - it was all looking good. Then realised we couldn’t see our flight on the departure boards. In fact there were no domestic departures. Panic set in. We were in the wrong terminal! It turned out that the domestic terminal was a taxi ride around the other side. We hopped in a cab and sped around to the right terminal kicking ourselves we hadn’t checked.
We checked in ok - you can't check in online with Uzbek Airway - and JC found some French tourists to chat to. It amazes me how he just switches from language to language. We also started to recognise tourists we'd seen the day before. Tashkent (and, by the extension most of Uzbekistan) is not an overly touristy place and we were often the only Caucasian faces on the metro.
The flight to Urgench was short and uneventful - the best type of flight. Although Urgench is a large town, we headed straight down the 30 km to Khiva as, according to the guide book, only “clueless tourist groups” stay in Urgench. It goes on to describe Urgench as “a flat, grey Soviet city with all of Tashkent’s faults and few of its saving graces”.
We spent the rest of the day exploring the ancient city of Khiva. Khiva is an ancient trading post on a side branch of the Silk Route. Established in the 8th Century the majority of the buildings now here were built in the 17th Century. Our hostel was within the city walls so we were in spitting distance of everything we wanted to see. For a 15 USD tourist ticket you got entry into all the mosques, Madrassahs and museums you fancy.
Our tickets also included entry to the highest minaret which was short but steep climb up and gave us great views of Khiva. All the stone steps were set very high apart so it was a good workout climbing them. They must have the fittest Imans around.
The Khuna Ark was magnificent. It contained numerous open courts from which the ruling Khan would receive guests, administer justice or pray. Some courts contained a round stone plinth on which a yurt would be erected in the winter. The temperature here varies from over 40 deg in the summer to below freezing in winter so all climates have to be coped with.
The beautiful blue tiles are individually painted. They seem to be cemented onto the walls and then affixed with a nail for security. Many of the tiles are numbered.
The throne room.
The tiling was amazing.
Khiva buildings date from the 16th century onwards. In 1968, during the Soviet rule, all of Khiva's buildings were designated museums. The most holy place, Pakhlavan Mahmoud Mausoleum, became a place where people were ‘invited’ to attend anti religious lectures, and another became a Museum of Atheism (it’s now a Zoroastrian museum). As the Soviet republic continued over the years, Khiva morphed from a spiritual place of learning to a historical site to be abandoned.
In 1990 Khiva became the first site in Asia to be awarded a UNESCO world heritage site and regeneration began. Buildings are being restored to their former state with tiles being replaced and plaster reapplied. This process was naturally expedited by Uzbekistan’s independence in 1991.
JC visited here in 2001 and saw no hotels, restaurant or tourist stalls. Now these sit side by side with the mosques and Madrassahs: like places the world over it has now become a tourist Mecca.
Silk weaving.
I loved the 16th Century Juma Mosque which contains two portals of natural light and appears like a leafless forest with its 117 wooden pillars, some dating back to the 16th century.
I worked out how to order Ruth friendly food today simply by ordering a side of veg and a side of rice. Beetroot and squash are in season so the veg is usually boiled or fried combinations of these with aubergine, onion and potatoes. It’s going to keep me fed along with nuts and fruit. JC is discovering a favourite called lagman - beef, veg and noodle soup.
We found a place for a decent sundowner. Sunset. Wine. The most awesome raspberry tea.
No comments:
Post a Comment