Samarkand, Uzbekistan

Pa začnimo. Po pristanku v Taškent in medicinski kontroli kar na pisti sredi letališča, je sledila še 3 urna vožnja z najetim taxijem do našega prvega postanka – Samarkand-a. Ponavadi traja taista vožnja kakšno uro ali dve več, a mi smo tisto noč dobesedno leteli. 🙂 Čokat, dobrih 190 cm velik domačin, se ni strinjal z našim planiranim dremežem in tako je bilo kar nekaj časa za piljenje prvič govorjene ruščine. 🙂 Prve noči v Uzbekistanu oziroma Samarkandu smo preživeli v preprostem hostlu B&B Bahodir, ki stoji na idealni lokaciji, le nekaj minut hoje od svetovno znanega Registana. Če je hostel res preprost in še kako potreben že navadne metle in kakšne krpe, pa so njegovi zaposleni pravi ambasadorji uzbekistanske prijaznosti. Na trenutke mi je bilo namreč zaradi njihove pozornosti včasih že kar malo nerodno. Prvi dan v Samarkandu je bil epsko zimski – temperature pod ničlo, za piko na i pa še močno sneženje. Registan, ki je navadno, no – vsaj poleti, prepoln ljudi, smo imeli tako praktično le zase – okoli nas so tavali le zvedavi varnostniki, ki pa so nas zaradi naše ” odlične ruščine” vzeli skoraj za svoje – naslednje jutro so me tako še brezplačno prešvercali na nekatere zaprte lokacije, poleg tega pa povabili še na jutranji čaj v njihove sobane. 🙂 V Samarkandu pa je poleg Registana za videti še kar nekaj stvari – grobnice Shah i Zinda so nekaj posebnega. Super je obisk marketa Siab bazaar, kjer lahko kramljaš z nadvse prijaznimi domačini in sprobaš vse možne dobrote, ki jih prodajajo na tej tržnici.  V večernih urah je fantastičen Gur E Amir, res zanimivo pa je vandranje tudi po starem delu mesta, kamor turisti ne zaidejo ravno vsak dan.

* * *

Let’s begin. After landing in Tashkent at 2 in the morning we had to pass medical control first. After that we had another 3 hour taxi ride to our first stop – Samarkand. It usually takes an hour or two more, but our taxi driver was a fast one. 🙂 Around 190 cm big uzbek man did not agree with our planned nap and because of that I had time to practice my russian language for the first time. 🙂 We spent our first nights in Uzbekistan at the simple B&B Bahodir Hostel, which is ideally located just minutes away from the world-famous Registan. If the hostel is really basic and is in desperate needs for maintenance, then its employees are true ambassadors of Uzbekistan’s kindness. The first day in Samarkand was epic – temperatures below zero, with a heavy snowfall. Registan, which is usually crowded with people, was totally empty – only the security guards wandered around us, but because of our “excellent russian”, we had some privileges. 🙂 In Samarkand there are quite a few things to see besides the Registan – Shah i Zinda tombs are really special. It’s great to visit Siab Bazaar Market, where you can chat with super friendly locals and try all the goodies you can see at this market. Gur E Amir is fantastic in the evening, and you can always take a stroll around the old part of town, where tourists rarely go.