We somehow have developed keen interest to visit the Central Asian countries. In a span of 6 months we managed to visit 2 Central Asian countries, Kazakhstan first and now Uzbekistan.
Interestingly, both countries last name is 'Stan'. Okay, but the two nations are very different from one another.
My 4 day Tashkent trip was crammed and eventful. I am excited to share my experience through this blog.
A Look At Our Holiday Package:
No. Of People: 2 Adults
Travel Agent: Make My Trip. Even though, our tour package was booked by MMT; we had good local travel agents or ground co-ordinators and they were very cooperative, contact details given below.
Local Travel Agent :
1. Hilola Contact: +998 94 171 92 29 - Hilola was our local contact and was always happy to help me throughout the trip. She had a good command over English.
2. Ali Mardon Contact: +998 97 538 90 86 - Mardon was responsible for arranging the transportation part for our trip and I found him to be very amiable.
3. Visa: Indian travellers should get E-Visa for Uzbekistan which approximately costs INR 2,850 PP. Our package through Make my Trip inclusive of Visa.
URL: E-visa.gov.uz.
4. Duration: 4 Days & 3 Nights.
5. Cities Covered: Tashkent & Samarkand.
6. Hotels: Hotel BEK, Tashkent.
7. Flight: Uzbekistan Airways - Direct Flights from Mumbai & Tashkent.
About Uzbekistan: There are only 2 double land locked countries in the world i.e. - Uzbekistan & Liechtenstein, i.e. they are surrounded by countries that are themselves landlocked, which is unique.
Being rich in history and monumental cities, green fertile valleys and desert expanses, practically every part of Uzbekistan has something else to offer.
Most of the key attractions of the Silk Road are located in Uzbekistan, which was a key crossroads for merchants and travellers trading along the routes between the East and West.
Language: Uzbek and Russian. English is spoken the least.
I managed to reserve the window seats from Mumbai to Tashkent and the snow peaked Pamir Mountain scenery was breath-taking, a wonderful beginning to the journey.
Our flight from Mumbai to Tashkent was on time, we reached Tashkent early morning and did the immigration formalities which was speedy and smooth.
Tashkent is a fascinating city, with bazaars, metro stops, and shopping malls, etc. The city is well planned and organized with plenty of trees and large parks. I was really amazed by the city's developments.
Even though we reached the hotel early than the check-in time, we were given a room by the Hotel receptionist (M/s Victoria) who was very friendly and helpful. The hotel was nearby the Magic City, Next Mall, Seoul Mun Shopping Mall.
We were assisted by M/s Victoria to procure a local sim card from the Next Mall which was 15 minutes walking distance from the Hotel.
We hired a taxi via the Yandex Go application (very handy and cheap) to go to the Chorsu Bazaar.
A huge traditional bazaar where all essentials are available. It is massive, active, and full of locals buying their day-to-day essentials. Under the blue dome, they sell all kinds of food you can think of; meat, fruits, vegetables, pickles, dairy products, nuts, spices, and so many other things. It is massive and it’s not only the area under the dome but also some adjacent areas.
It was Chorsu Bazaar where we found one of the most wonderful Macadamia nuts, absolutely loved it!!
Magic City is an unusual entertainment center providing a magical experience to its visitors of all ages.
The park streets are constructed in the styles of world cities and the entry is absolutely free!
If you travel to Tashkent, you can't afford not to go to the 'Magic City'.
We began our day early since we had 3 places to cover.
Amirsoy is a Ski Mountain Resort, typically snowed in over winter. The day was fogged over, the mountain views were not distinct enough but it was a worthwhile outing with the cable car trip.
Chimyon is located to the northmost side of Tashkent. After Amirsoy, we went to the Chimyon Mountains, because of fog the mountains were not visible at all, i am sure on a clear day the landscape would be great. We did take the chairlift ride, it was so adventurous !!
Known as 'Char bagh' or "four gardens" in Persian. Charvak Lake is a lovely artificial reservoir in the Tien Shan Mountain range foothills.
The lake is very scenic. Pretty Airbnb cabins are being constructed close to the lake for visitors. A place worth visiting.
With the whole evening free, we strolled down to the Seoul Mun Shopping Mall. The shopping mall is another sight of interest which has plenty of restaurants; shops around and the entrance is free. A good place to hang around and click photos.
Tashkent to Samarkand is approximately 330+km and a day trip to Samarkand, it was only feasible by traveling through the Afrosiyob high-speed train, the train runs at a top speed of 250 km/h (155 mph). Our train from Tashkent was at 6:30 am and arrived at Samarkand in just over 2 hours.
Tip: Since the trains are nearly full, it is better to reserve your train tickets early.
Samarkand is one of the oldest cities of Central Asia, well situated on the fabled Silk Route from China, Afghanistan, Iran, India and the Caucasus, Samarkand flourished and became a significant hub of the Silk Road.
Samarkand takes a lot of resemblance from our Indian state of Rajasthan.
The visit to Samarkand was the best, the Indians are loved so much by the locals here; we have not felt that much love anywhere else while traveling overseas.
Gur-e Amir complex, in Persian meaning "Tomb of the King". It is adorned with domes and geometric designs on terra-cotta tiles in Persian architecture. The dome is constructed of turquoise glazed tiles, adorned with patterns and Arabic inscriptions meaning "God is immortal". The mausoleum is gilded from within and is the resting place of the great Timur and his family.
Registan Square is the core of Samarkand, one of the prettiest buildings I have ever seen.
With several points of entrance and departure, the Registan Square is so massive one can spend the entire day tour the entire building.
At sun-set the building appears even more enchanting, we missed seeing it because of our crunched up program for the day, but still we were lucky enough to see this work of art.
About Ulugbek: Ulugbek was not just a king of wisdom, but also one of the renowned astronomers of Central Asia during the 15th century. He constructed an observatory by his name in 1420.
The findings and research conducted at the Ulugbek Observatory were significant during that period since astronomers were able to forecast eclipses and determine the time of sunrise and height of a celestial object.
Tashkent city tour was scheduled for the last day of the tour. I have shared pictures of our Tashkent city tour.
Summary:
Our Tashkent tour was excellent, everything was fine as per plan and schedule. Weather in Tashkent was great during our tour.
English language is an issue but with google translator and reasonable internet speed one can manage conversations. The people were very friendly and hospitable to Indian tourists. A 6 day trip to Uzbekistan can be recommended to explore places like Bukhara and Samarkand in depth.
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