Pearls of Uzbekistan

We will devote this day to exploring Samarkand. We will visit its most interesting and important sights, you will learn about the fascinating and full of great achievements history behind each building. Samarkand is one of the oldest cities in the world. It was once the capital of the state of Sogdiana and was called Marakanda, and then was chosen as the capital of the empire created by the famous conqueror Tamerlane. We will visit the tomb of Tamerlane himself - the Gur-Emir mausoleum, the main Registan square, surrounded by three beautiful madrassas, the royal cathedral mosque of Bibi-Khanum, the architectural ensemble of Shahi-Zinda and the ancient observatory. You will also walk through the shopping arcades of the huge oriental bazaar Siab.

We leave Samarkand and go to Bukhara. On the way we will make a stop in Gijduvan, a city famous for its ceramics. We will visit the workshop of hereditary ceramic masters Narzullaevs, where they will tell us about the secrets of the craft and treat us to delicious kebabs. Upon arrival in Bukhara, you will check into a hotel and go on a sightseeing tour. Once this city was one of the most important stops on the Great Silk Road. Trade caravans flocking to Bukhara increased its wealth; majestic monuments of medieval architecture were erected here, which were perfectly preserved. We will visit the main symbol of Bukhara, Lyabi-Khauz Square, around which there are two madrassas and a Sufi monastery khanaka. We will also take a walk through the shopping district, which was created in the 16th century and is still in operation.

We continue to explore the fabulously beautiful Bukhara. You will see how Sogdian and Islamic styles are intertwined in the textured Samanid mausoleum, learn the legend of the wandering prophet Job in the Chashma Ayub mausoleum, capture the carved columns of the Bolo-Khauz ensemble and visit the monumental Ark fortress, which can rightfully be called a “city within a city.” And, of course, we will visit the Poi-Kalyan ensemble, the main symbol of Bukhara. A high minaret tower, a madrasah and a mosque decorated with skillful mosaics - you have probably seen these buildings in dozens of photographs from Uzbekistan. In the afternoon we will go outside the city, to the palace called Sitorai Mohi-khosa, which means “Like the Sun and Moon,” and to the Bahauddin Naqshbandi complex, which seems to embody the classic image of an oriental palace.

On the fifth day we will travel from Bukhara to Khiva through the Kyzylkum desert (“Red Sands”).
This is an incredibly picturesque path along the mighty Amu Darya River, among amazing landscapes. We will make stops to climb the sand dunes and take a look at the surroundings from the best observation deck. Traveling through the desert will allow you to immerse yourself even more in the atmosphere of the ancient East, and imagine yourself traveling with a trade caravan along the Silk Road. Upon arrival in Khiva, you will check into a hotel and go for a walk through the inner Old City (Ichan-Kala), where time seems to have stood still. This is an open-air museum surrounded by fortified walls and telling the history of the city and the region.

Khiva is a magical oasis in the desert, a city that is more than two and a half thousand years old. On its streets, the everyday life of the Middle Ages will come to life in front of you. We will look into the heart of the Old City - the Kunya-Ark fortress and into the Pakhlavan Mahmud complex that attracts pilgrims from all over the world, we will see the highest minaret of the city and the Tash Khauli Palace, in which the rulers of the Khiva Khanate lived. Khiva also houses the Museum of the History of Medicine named after the legendary Avicenna, the unique Juma Mosque with more than 200 carved wooden columns and one of the largest mosques in Central Asia. A kaleidoscope of colors and ornaments, different styles and eras - this city is like an amazing treasury where magnificent jewels are collected.