Uzbekistan, in the ancient cradle between the Amu-Darya and Syr-Darya rivers, is the most historically fascinating of the Central Asian republics. Within it are some of the oldest towns in the world, some of the Silk Road's main centres and most of the region's architectural splendours. Uzbekistan occupies the heartland of Central Asia, sharing a border with all the other 'Stans', which is one of the reasons why it considers itself the most important of the former Soviet Central Asian republics, and why it is increasingly fulfilling the role of regional gendarme.
The hell of it is, the republic with arguably the most to offer has the worst attitude towards visitors. Politically the old USSR is alive and kicking here, and for individuals not under the wing of the state travel conglomerate, Uzbektourism, travel tends to be an endless series of petty bureaucratic irritations and official hassles. Uzbekistan's government likes its foreign visitors in pre-programmed, obedient pods; independent travellers can expect to be on the receiving end of unwelcome official attention.
Facts at a Glance
Full country name: Republic of Uzbekistan
Area: 447,000 sq km (174,330 sq mi)
Population: 23 million
Capital city: Tashkent (pop 2.3 million)
People: Uzbeks (71%), Russians (8%)
Language: Uzbek, Tajik, Farsi
Religion: Sunni Muslim (88%), Christian (10%)
Government: Republic
President: Islam Karimov
Uzbekistan borders Turkmenistan in the west, Kazakstan in the north and east, and Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and a sliver of Afghanistan in the south. It's a flat, monotonous country about the same size as Sweden - over two-thirds of it, mostly in the west, is steppe and desert. The only relief is the delta where the Amu-Darya empties into what remains of the Aral Sea. In the east, however, Uzbekistan tilts upward towards the mountains of its neighbours, and this is where the country's life-giving rivers rise. Central Asia's greatest waterway, the Amu-Darya, forms much of the border with Turkmenistan and Afghanistan. The richest farmland (and, therefore, the bulk of the population) is nestled in gaps in the mountains, on the alluvial planes at their feet, and along the country's three big rivers.
To describe Uzbekistan as an environmental planning disaster would be understating things. Several programmes put in place in the Soviet era are still wreaking havoc on the country. In the 1960s, Soviet planners set out to increase Uzbekistan's cotton production through a system of vastly increased irrigation, which meant tapping the rivers flowing into the Aral Sea, in the north of the country. As a result, the sea has lost 75% of its volume and its area has reduced by half. The area's fishing industry has been destroyed, the climate has been perverted (there are four times as many rainless days as there were in the 1950s) and the resulting salination of soil and water as well as chemical residues from cotton farming have caused serious health problems in the population. Native flora and fauna have also been devastated. Irrigation projects in the steppes of Uzbekistan have also degraded the soil, polluted the water, and caused large-scale erosion, aridity and salinity.
Temperatures in Uzbekistan vary wildly, with 20°C (68°F) drops at night and dramatic differences between the deserts and mountains. Rain is minimal except at higher altitudes - what there is falls mainly from March to April and October to November, turning everything to mud. The lowlands can be quite pleasant from May to early June and September to early October. Midsummer is insane, with temperatures up to 40°C (104°F) in Tashkent, and 50°C (122°F) in southern Uzbekistan. In winter (January to February), daytime temperatures hover around -5°C to 10°C (23°F to 50°F).
The land along the upper Amu-Darya, Syr-Darya and their tributaries has always been different from the rest of Central Asia. Its people are more settled than nomadic, with patterns of land use and social structures that changed little from the 6th century BC to the 19th century. The region was part of several very old Persian states. During the 4th century BC, Alexander the Great passed through and married the daughter of a local chieftain near Samarkand. Under the Kushan empire, Buddhism took hold and the Silk Road brought peaceful contact with the wider world. Towns grew and the area became rich.
In the 6th century AD, Western Turks rode out of the steppes, bringing Islam and a written alphabet. When they moved on to greener pastures, Persia took over again, until Jenghiz Khan and his hordes rolled over the country. With the rise of the ruthless warrior Timur in the 14th century, Uzbekistan again rose to prosperity and Samarkand became a glittering Islamic capital thanks to his patronage of the arts.
Around this time, certain Mongol tribes took the name Uzbek. In the 14th century they began moving south, eventually conquering Timur's empire. By 1510 they had control of everything from the Amu-Darya to the Syr-Darya, and they have maintained control ever since. In the early 18th century the khan of Khiva asked Peter the Great of Russia for aid in defending his land against Turkmen and Kazaks, stirring the first Russian interest in Central Asia. However, by the time the Russians got around to marching on Khiva, the khan no longer wanted their help and massacred almost the entire army. Apart from a few minor forays, the next major Russian excursion was made in 1839 by Tsar Nicholas I, who was eager to prevent British expansion in the area, but the mission was not a great success. Twenty-five years later the Russians again made a serious move on Uzbekistan and by 1875 the region was theirs.
After the 1917 Russian Revolution, the Bolsheviks proclaimed the Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic of Turkestan, despite the fact that most Central Asians defined themselves not by country, but as ethnic Turks or Persians. In October 1924, Uzbekistan was declared, although it changed shape and size many times in the following decades. For rural Uzbeks, Soviet rule meant forced collectivisation of their farms, and a huge shift to cotton cultivation. For the intelligentsia it meant devastating purges.
The first serious non-communist popular movement was formed in 1989 to speak out on cotton farming and the use of Uzbek as an official language. Although (or because) the movement was very popular, it was not permitted to contest elections. After Moscow's 1991 coup, Uzbekistan was declared independent, and its Communist Party changed its name but retained everything else. The party's leader, Karimov, has held onto power ever since, largely because genuine opposition groups are still not allowed to contest elections. In fact, since independence his power has grown and dissent has shrivelled, thanks to restrictions on travel, political activism and publishing, the introduction of a virtual police state, and the ever-present threat of violence. Officially Uzbekistan is a multi-party democracy, but in reality opposition groups are terrorised out of existence. In the 1995 elections, Karimov ran unopposed.
Uzbek men usually wear sombre colours, except for the bright-coloured sash which older men use to close their long quilted coats. Nearly all wear the dopy, a black, four sided skullcap embroidered in white. Uzbek women are fond of dresses in sparkly cloth, often worn as a knee-length gown with trousers of the same material underneath. One or two braids indicate a married woman; more braids signify a single woman. Eyebrows that grow together over the bridge of the nose are considered attractive and are often supplemented with pencil for the right effect. Uzbek is the official language of Uzbekistan, though Russian is still the language of government and academia and Tajik is spoken in Samarkand and Bukhara.
Central Asian food resembles that of the Middle East or the Mediterranean in its use of rice, savoury seasonings, vegetables and legumes, yoghurt and grilled meats. In northern Uzbekistan meals often consist of pilafs, kebabs, noodles and pasta, stews, elaborate breads and pastries. Subtle seasonings and fancy sweets distinguish the cuisine of southern Uzbekistan. Tea is ubiquitous, usually served without milk. Despite their Muslim heritage, most Uzbekis drink alcohol, at least with guests. If you don't enjoy hard booze (commonly vodka), make your excuses early.
By far the biggest Central Asian holiday is the spring festival of Navrus (New Days), an Islamic adaptation of pre-Islamic vernal equinox or renewal celebrations, celebrated approximately on the vernal equinox (21 March). It's a two day affair consisting of traditional games, music, drama festivals, street art and colourful fairs, and one of the best places to get in on the fun is Samarkand. Ramadan, the month of sunrise to sunset fasting, is observed with little fanfare in most of Uzbekistan, and travellers will still find plenty of food available. Qurban, the Feast of Sacrifice, is celebrated with the slaughter of animals and the sharing of meat with relatives and the poor.
In May of even-numbered years, Tashkent hosts a film festival which features celluloid style from Africa, Asia and Latin America. Samarkand hosts the Children's Peace & Disarmament Festival every 23 October - celebrations revolve around the International Museum of Peace & Solidarity, a remarkable collection of memorabilia. The Nukus' Pakhta-Bairam harvest festival, held in Karakalpak in December, is one of the few places in the world where you'll see a game of ylaq oyyny. In this Central Asian form of polo, players hit a goat carcass around the field - Prince Charles would fit right in. If that gets the adrenalin flowing, you can also check out wrestling, ram fighting and cock fighting.
If you're travelling with a friend, staying in modest hotels, eating in budget restaurants and travelling by bus or train, you can get around Uzbekistan for US$30-40 per day. Unfortunately, you'll often have trouble finding a cheap place to stay and will have to settle for a pricey tourist hotel, so a more realistic budget is around US$50-60 a day. Hiring cars and doing excursions will add significantly to your expenses. You should also take into account that foreigners pretty much always pay more than locals.
You'll have little luck with anything other than cash in Uzbekistan. Although a (very) few places change travellers' cheques, you shouldn't rely on them. US dollars are by far the easiest to exchange, with Deutschmarks the second most popular. There's not much point taking really big notes, as there are so many counterfeit ones floating around that many people won't take them; reconcile yourself to carrying a huge wad of US$10 bills. Oh, and make sure they're crisp, new ones too, or no one will touch them. Uzbektourism hotels in tourist centres take major credit cards, and you should be able to get a cash advance in Tashkent.
There are a few top-end restaurants where a service charge of 5-10% is added to your bill, but tipping is not common in Uzbekistan, and runs contrary to Islamic ideals of hospitality. Bribery, on the other hand, is very popular, but if you choose to use it remember you are pushing up prices for those who follow you. Bargaining is expected in markets - the asking price for food will be pretty close to the selling price, but for handicrafts expect a more substantial reduction.
The Uzbek capital, once the fourth largest city in the former USSR, is Central Asia's hub and has better international flight connections than any other city in the region. That said, it's not a picture-postcard destination. Thanks to a huge earthquake in 1966 and the subsequent enthusiasm of Soviet planners, little remains of the city's 2000-year history. Most visitors agree that Tashkent is the most Soviet city in Central Asia and it's said that many of the region's anxious Slavs who won't or can't return to the Motherland are moving to the relative cultural security of this city since it is still at least half Russian-speaking (if not Russian).
It's worth taking a stroll around the remnants of the old town, eski shakhar. This maze of narrow dusty streets lined by low, mudbrick houses, mosques and medressas (Islamic academies) seems to have been spared by Soviet planners to show what things would have been like without the glories of socialism. Kukeldash Medressa is a grand 16th century academy undergoing restoration, whose plaza overflows with worshippers on warm Friday mornings; the tiny 15th century Jami mosque nearby was used during the Soviet era as a sheet metal workshop. Chorsu Bazaar, a huge open market beside Kukeldash, draws crowds of people from the countryside, many in traditional dress.
What Tashkent lacks in old things, it makes up for in big museums about them. The Museum of Fine Arts has a fine collection of the art of pre-Russian Turkestan, including Zoroastrian artefacts, serene 1000-year-old Buddhist statues and Sogdian murals. The Museum of Applied Arts opened in 1937 as a showcase for turn-of-the-century applied arts, though the building itself - designed in traditional Tashkent style - is more interesting than its contents. There are other museums devoted to History (always with a capital 'H'), antiquities, literature, geology and railways. For a bit of light relief, check out the Navoi Opera & Ballet Theatre, the venue for some of the world's cheapest classical opera and the only Soviet building in Tashkent with anything approaching a personality.
No name is as evocative of the romance of the Silk Road as Samarkand. For most people it's as mythical as Atlantis or as remote and legendary as Timbuktoo. The reality, as usual, is harsher, but not by much. The sublime larger-than-life monuments of Timur, the technicolour bazaar and the city's long, rich history work a special kind of magic, though outside the historical core is a sprawling Soviet-style city with few redeeming features.
Most of Samarkand's high-profile attractions are the work of Timur, his grandson Ulughbek and the Uzbek Shaybanids, who between them made the city Central Asia's economic, cultural and intellectual epicentre in the 14th and 15th centuries. Almost everything of interest is in the sun-dried old town, whose layout has remained unchanged since this period.
The centrepiece of the city and one of Central Asia's most awe-inspiring sights is the Registan, an ensemble of majestic, tilting medressas offering an overload of majolica, azure mosaics and vast, beautifully proportioned spaces. The gigantic congregational Bibi-Khanym Mosque nearby is powerful and shapely, even in ruin, and was the jewel of Timur's empire. It's a victim of its own grandeur, since it was once one of the Islamic world's biggest mosques and pushed construction techniques to the limit; slowly crumbling for centuries, it finally collapsed in an earthquake in 1897.
The most moving of Samarkand's sights is Shahi-Zinda, a street of tombs mostly belonging to Timur and Ulughbek's family and favourites, including one said to be that of a much revered cousin of the prophet Muhammad. Though disfigured by donation boxes, the tombs are decorated with some of the city's finest majolica tilework. The best live show in town is the main bazaar around the Bibi-Khanym Mosque. The kinetic, colourful main farmers' market is a regular Tower of Babel, and full of the dresses and shawls, hats and turbans, of just about every ethnic group in existence in the region.
There are daily flights between Tashkent and Samarkand. Otherwise it's a five hour bus or train ride across the flat, dry 'Hungry Steppe'. Buses run between Samarkand and Tashkent, Bukhara, Dushanbe and Almaty.
With buildings spanning 1000 years of history and a thoroughly lived-in city centre that hasn't changed much in two centuries, Bukhara is one of the best places in Central Asia to catch a glimpse of pre-Russian Turkestan. After Samarkand's luminous mosaics, Bukhara's universal brown is a bit of an optical anti-climax. But since most of the city centre is an architectural preserve - and includes a massive, royal fortress, plenty of former medressas, a number of ancient public baths and the remnants of a once-vast market complex - who can complain about a mere colour scheme?
There are over 140 protected buildings in the city, but the pick of the sights are Labi-hauz, a 17th century plaza built around a pool; three domed bazaars; the 12th century, 47m (154ft) high Kalan minaret, once the tallest building in Asia; and the mausoleum of Ismail Samani, the town's oldest structure (completed around 905) and surely one of the most elegant in Central Asia.
Although certain carpet designs originated here, the famous Bukhara rugs so highly regarded in the West are actually made in Turkmenistan, which was once part of the Bukhara khannate. They may not make scintillating carpets, but the locals are much friendlier than residents of Samarkand and Tashkent, something which may equal the pull of the sights if you've been in Uzbekistan for any length of time.
Bukhara is the terminus of a train service which extends to Samarkand (six hours), Tashkent (12 hours) and Nukus (20 hours). There's also a weekly train which goes to Almaty in Kazakstan. Tashkent is also accessible by bus or air (two hours).
Legend has it that Khiva was founded when Shem, son of Noah, discovered a well here. The town certainly existed by the 8th century, as a minor fort and trading post on a Silk Road branch to the Caspian Sea and the Volga. In the early 16th century Khiva was made capital of the Timurid Empire, becoming a busy slave market and pivot of the khanate for the next three centuries. Until Russia finally wrested the region from Timurid grasp in the 19th century, even the boldest hearts feared encounters with these fierce tribesmen and their desert territory. Nowadays, Khiva is benign. It's a mere 35km (22mi) south-west of Urgench - a dull town that gave the world algebra - and you pass nothing more scary than cotton bushes and fruit trees.
Contemporary Khiva is a distinctly odd place. Its historic heart, unlike those of other Central Asian cities, is preserved in its entirety - but it's so squeaky-clean that all life has been squeezed out of it. Even among its densely packed mosques, tombs, palaces and medressas, you need imagination to get a sense of its former bustle and squalor. However, Khiva's visual surprise, after Samarkand's blue and Bukhara's brown, is the use of turquoise tiles, and at least parts of the Ichon Qala - the walled inner city - remain lived in and are disheveled enough to subvert the city-museum atmosphere.
Morning and evening are the best times to see Khiva. The town's highlights include the fat, turquoise-tiled Kalta Minor minaret, the Kukhna Ark fortress, the 218 wooden columns of the Juma Mosque, the sumptuously decorated Tosh-Khovli Palace, the Islom-Huja Medressa and its lighthouse-like minaret and the exquisitely tiled and highly revered Pahlavon Mahmud Mausoleum. Frequent buses bump and grind between Urgench and Khiva. Urgench is a handy 16 hours by bus west of Tashkent; flying cuts journey time to three hours.
Flying is the least edifying and arguably the least safe mode of transport in Uzbekistan. Domestic flights are very much no-frills - you'll need to pack your own lunch - and have a long way to go before meeting international safety standards.
The bus is the best bet for getting between towns cheaply. There are big long-distance coaches which run on fixed routes with fixed stops, and they're relatively comfortable. Regional buses are less comfortable and far less reliable. Private minibuses cost more and go faster - often hair-raisingly so. There are frequent connections between Tashkent, Bukhara and Samarkand. Taxis cost a little more than buses, but can be more comfortable, and they're more likely to take you to out-of-the-way places.
Lower class train travel is the cheapest way to get around, which also makes it the most crowded method. You'll get plenty of attention from your fellow passengers. Trains are slow, the windows are so dirty you won't get much in the way of a view, there's no such thing as a dining car and you run a reasonable chance of getting mugged.
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