It’s been 10 years since our last visit to Panama City and stay in the Casco Viejo area and we find it very much changed. There is a Starbucks now (but no McDonald’s- phew); the derelict building that once stood across the plaza from our hotel is now a beautiful condo; the hamburger joint where we unknowingly risked food poisoning for what we recall one of the best hamburgers ever is long gone; and good, inexpensive restaurants are everywhere.
There are housing bargains to be had here, rentals seem abundant and reasonable, they use the US Dollar as legal tender, and supposedly the health is very good and cheap. Hummmmm, a haven for the next four years?
Off to see the Miraflores locks on the canal (again) today. A real marvel of engineering.
Up early today to see a lot more sites in Bukhara (and maybe beat the heat – NOT). AC in the room didn’t work last night – I think we got the room cooled down to 85 degrees. We were ready to face the 104 degree day today!
First stop was the the Ark of Bukhara. The Ark was initially built and occupied around the 5th century AD. In addition to being a military structure, the Ark was essentially a town that, during much of the fortress’s history, was inhabited by the various royal courts that ruled over the region surrounding Bukhara. The Ark was used as a fortress until it fell to Russia in 1920. It currently houses museums covering the Ark’s history. The museums and other restored areas include an archaeological museum, the throne room, the reception and coronation court, a local history museum, and the court mosque.
Just across the street from the Ark is the Bukhara Tower (originally named the Shukhov Tower) and the beautiful Bolo Hauz Mosque. The Bukhara Tower was originally built as a water tower in 1929. The water tower burned in 1968, was abandoned, but an elevator was added the 1990’s and it became an observation tower until the elevator failed. In 2018 the tower was reopened with the help of some French investments and was renamed the Bukhara Tower.
The Bolo Hauz Mosque was built in 1712 and was used as a Friday mosque when the Emir of Bukhara was subjugated under Bolshevik rule in the 1920s. The columns made of painted wood were added to the frontal part of the entrance in 1917, supporting the bulged roof of summer prayer room.
Exterior walls of the Ark.
A domed cieling in the Ark.
Mosaic detail in the Emir’s reception hall and courtyard.
We boarded a fast train in Samarkand this morning – destination Bukhara. Bukhara feels most like a Silk Road destination than the other locations we have visited. Perhaps beause it is smaller, or perhaps because we are staying in the old city and most of the preserved sites are within a short hike of our hotel. I will add – that a short hike involves walking in 100+ degree weather – even after 8pm at night!
Bukhara was a prominent stop on the Silk Road trade route between the East and the West, and a major medieval center for Islamic theology and culture. There are still hundreds of well-preserved mosques, madrassas, bazaars and caravanserais, dating largely from the 9th to the 17th centuries.
Nadir Divan Begi Madrasah
Magoki Attori mosque
I just love the domed ceilings
Toki Sarrofan dome ceiling
Toqi Telpak Furushon dome ceiling
The entrace portal of the Nadir Divan Begi Madrassah depicting The entrance portal has depictions of two simurgh carrying white deer, and a “man-in-the-sun” face
Mir-i-Arab Madrasah
Kalon Tower – Also known as the Tower of Death, as according to legend it is the site where criminals were executed by being thrown off the top for centuries.
Guri Amir is a mausoleum of Timor built in 1404. It fell into disrepair in the late 1700’s, and much has been restored since the 1970’s.
There is an interesting legend around “The Curse of Timor.” The tomb is inscribed with two warnings. The first states “When I rise from the dead the world will tremble.” The second says “Whosoever disturbs my tomb will unleash an invader more terrible than I.”
A Soviet archeologist opened the tomb two days before the Nazis invaded the Soviet Union. Apparently, Stalin believed the curse and ordered Timor to be reburied. The burial occurred one month before the Soviet victory at Stalingrad.
We then moved on to Registan Square, which was the heart of the original city of Samarkand. It is framed by three madrasahs (Islamic schools). They were built between the years 1440 and 1660.
The Sher-Dor madrasah is particularly unique, due to the depiction of tigers with suns on their backs.
This beautiful domed ceiling is actually an optical illusion – the ceiling is really flat.
We traveled by bus to cross the border into Tajikistan. It was a lengthy process. We had to cross on foot and be greeted by another bus in Tajikistan. From there we visited Panjakent, a former pre-Islamic Sogdiana civilization. There were ruins of Zoroastrian temples, a necropolis and residential area.
Following our visit to the ruins and a museum, we visited a local home/restaurant for lunch. I have no idea what these gentlemen were singing about, but the music was surprisingly good.
The border crossing back was just as long (and did I mention the temperatures were around 100 degrees?). We unfortunately lost one person in our group on the way back as her visa paperwork was not completed properly. She did manage to catch back up 24 hours later, phew!
One is not bereft of things to do or see in Samarkand.
After leaving the mausoleum complex we made our way to Bibi-Khanym Mosque, dedicated to Timur’s favorite wife.
Once again, we got to see exquisite tile work. Interestingly enough, the tile is fragile and gets replaced every thirty years or so.
Next door is the Siyob Bazaar where you can find everything from shoelaces to eggs to hand painted ceramics – but I was particularly drawn to the decorative breads.
We got caught in our only rain storm for the entire trip (a predecessor of some VERY HOT weather), and changed our itinerary to go to the Afrasiab Museum. Afrasiab was the original core of Samarkand. The museum houses artifacts of Afrasiab destroyed by Mongols in the 13th century.
We are not lacking in the variety of activities we have the opportunity to participate in.
The markets..
A ceramicists studio where you get the opportunity to see the unusual shape they make the dome tiles in. It was a family business. We found it interesting that the father studied for a while at Penland!
The Russians built the subway stations and they are amazing.
The people of Tashkent celebrate how they all came together after a catastrophic earthquake in 1966. Most of the historic parts of Tashkent were destropyed and the city was rebuilt on Soviet architectural styles. A memorial stone to the victims of the earthquake is located above the epicenter.
Tashkent is by far the largest and most modern city we will visit in Uzbekistan. It’s a great way to start to get a sense of some of the gems that await us. The blue green color of the domes should get a Pantone color named after it.
Ths Hazrati Imam complex has a library of oriental manuscripts and the Caliph Usman Quran. It is considered the only original manuscript of the Qur’on that has reached us. It has 353 parchment sheets. (No pictures were allowed.)
We also visited the State Museum of Applied Arts of Uzbekistan which is housed in the former palace of the Russian diplomat Alexander Alexandrovich Polovtsev Jr.
