Temur Lane's Birthplace

With its conspicuous tidiness and its silent, unoccupied hotels lining the cobblestone roads, Shahrisabz Park (Complex? Square?) feels eerily nice but antiseptic. After a successful day of seeing the bits and pieces of Samarkand, our next stop was to drive over the mountains to a town called Shahrisabz, the birthplace and summer palace of Temur Lane (aka Temur the Great, Temur the Lame, etc.) 

Somehow we managed to find parking and walked between tall walls adorned with turrets, like we were about to be transported into a Renaissance Fair chock full of wenches, jesters, and knights. Instead, we were flanked by wedding parties, Mike Tyson's Punch-Out Arcade game players, and battery-powered extended-cab golf carts to shuttle people from one of the park to the other. 

It seemed like a lot of people, but because the space was so huge we had endless social distancing as we walked past the remains of the 65 meter towers- which we could see while still descending the mountain road leading into town. Beyond the towers was Temur himself, extra imposing on his pedestal. He watched over the brides standing in their hoop-skirt dresses and their tuxedo-tailed men posing for their wedding album. On the day, the kids counted 20 newlyweds. 

We walked past trees carefully planted in straight lines, fake boulders, and immaculate gazebos guiding us to the turquoise domed mosques on the other side. The biggest thrill was watching local kids play on the walls outside of one. They spoke no Russian, we spoke no Uzbek, but we managed to learn a few names while they chased each other, totally ignorant of the fact I was afraid they'd miss a ledge and crack their skulls open.  

Two long rows of hotels/hostels waited for guests on either side of the complex and there were many shuttered restaurants. Only a few convenience stores were open in this utopic flatland where I hangrily bought oranges, chips, and smoothies .  Thankfully there were two bathrooms (out of six) in service. I paid 1,000 som (10 cents) to use a real toilet and another 1,000 to use a Turkish one later on. No soap, no tp, no problem. 

On the way out of town, we passed a few stores of interest: wedding dress rentals, sporting goods, and chandeliers. It's just not an Uzbek city if these aren't in abundance.

Aspirational Plans to see the Samarkand Sites

The Registan of Samarkand was once the public square where citizens gathered to hear officials make announcements and sometimes conduct executions. It is surrounded by three madrasas that were THE place to study not just Islam, but also poetry, astronomy, science, art, and philosophy from the world's great teachers back in the day. Though the schools have long since closed, the tiny doors inside each madrasa house souvenir shops and old women who sweep the stone floors clean. The madrasas are spectacularly tall, old, and exquisitely tiled and Mark was giddy as he wandered the empty squares, taking photos from every angle he could manage. He posted far superior photos than mine on his Schlink Shots blog: https://schlinkshots.photo.blog/2020/11/29/samarkand-and-around-thanksgiving-2020-393917-6n-665832-3e-ish/

There's more to Samarkand than the gorgeous Registan. We visited the somber Guri-Emir Mausoleum which seems to breathe life despite being a sacred burial spot. The tomb of Saint Daniel is an unusually long extra tomb, built to accommodate his magic leg that grows a bit longer every year. We visited President Karimov's tomb and his passed family members, the Ulugbek Observatory, and the ancient site of Afrasiyab - the original Samarkand that flourished before the Mongol Empire. Unfortunately the museum we tried to visit was closed but we did get to meet the Museum Director who showed us a short video that told the story of three painted partially preserved murals that were discovered on walls thousands of years ago. 

Seeing it all in one day isn't an unreasonable ask, but it was only accomplished because we had two amenable kids who enjoy (or at least tolerate) our love of walking. I'd guess that normal people do it in two days. 25,000 steps and 8 hours later, we returned to the b&b too exhausted for dinner settling on wine, canned pineapple, smoked cheese, and cup-o-ramen, and a few episodes of Brooklyn 99 to polish off the day.

Passing through the bazaar

Uzbekistan is nut country

View from Ulugbek Observatory

Sher-Dor Madrasa on the Registan

Courtyard of Ulugbek Madrasa

Nightly 6pm light show

Steps of Guri-Emir Mausoleum

Women must cover their heads before entering

Guri-Emir Mausoleum and adjacent cemetery

Guri-Emir Mausoleum

Getting to know the Uzbek roads

Panoramic view of Zarafshan Mountains on the way to Shahrisabz.
Credit: Mark

With over 2.3 million people living in the capital, I shouldn't ever be surprised about hitting traffic, but I am. Only I don't just "hit" traffic, because the jam packed streets are always that way. Instead, I am forced to jump in like a round of Double Dutch when I see my entrance.  We navigate often incorrect maps of cooked and uncooked spaghetti noodles and get honked at for obeying traffic lights - even though there are cameras everywhere. Expensive tickets are regularly issued for speeding and running red lights, but that seems to stop no one. Often a turn lane becomes 5 or 6 lanes. If there's space, they will fill it. But I don't mind so much because Uzbek drivers, though they drive aggressively, are not threatening like drivers in America. I'm not afraid someone is tailgating me because they are angry and seeing red. They are tailgating because that is how it's done.  

All the same, I was relieved to be on the open road when we drove to Samarkand, the country's second biggest city. It's located about 4.5 hours south on the M39, a highway which eventually becomes a left hand-turn near the border of Afghanistan. We drove past huge expanses of hazy, winterized farm land where remnants of harvested cotton blew in the wind and fruit trees stood naked. The road side vendors had seasonal produce like gourds, apples, pomegranates, and potatoes, but also some suspiciously non-seasonal, like watermelon and grapes. Others sold jugs of red gel fuel, salted carp, honey, and huge jars of kurt - dried and salted cheese gum-ball sized spheres (size varies).  They keep well in the heat and pack well. One could argue they are an ideal road-trip food - indeed kurt was a staple for anyone traveling along the Silk Road back in the day.

Since this was our first time making a trip with our 20 year old car, we weren't exactly sure how far a tank of gas would get us. Along the way we passed a gas station that had 30-40 cars waiting their turn. Then we passed many more stations packed to the point that cars were lining up along the highway (off-ramps are not exactly a thing, but more of a split from the road). Was there a gas shortage? Should we be worried? We didn't really have a backup plan nor any idea where the next station would show up along the way. 

It turns out that many cars use methane gas around here. Big red tanks are installed in the trunks of the cars and they get filled like one fills a propane tank. According to the manager of the vacant b&b we stayed at, explained that the reason for the long lines was because big cities like Tashkent and Samarkand utilize huge quantities of methane for heating and fueling, thus reducing the pressure power of the pipelines outside of the city. Less pressure means it takes a lot longer to fill tanks.

We made it to Samarkand without issue, but realized quickly we'd need to plan for a benzine gas stop somewhere in the city. This proved to be surprisingly hard even after receiving directions to the nearest station.  A lot of them were either closed or out of business, and Google maps didn't do its magical job. It tried, but often led us to dead ends or roads that didn't exist at all.

Once we found gas, we were able to drive to a town called Shahrisabz, the birth place of Temur Lane located on the other side of the Zarafshan Range. Though the mountains are only about 6,000 feet in elevation, several feet of snow had already blanketed the houses and land while Fog and ice dominated the potholed road. We took advantage of 4WD but many brave tiny sedans blew past us on the hairpin turns. Getting on top of the fog meant fabulous blue skies, fresh air and views of sprawling mountains. I couldn't figure why I was in such a good mood.

I think any decent travel guide and blog should always mention that mountains nearly surround Tashkent and Samarkand. Granted, both cities are so smoggy that it is difficult to see them on a regular day, but we had no idea that we'd see them. It was a nice surprise and even better to be in them.

Zarafshan Mountains outside of Samarkand

Making our way to Shahrisabz

 Methane Gas Station

Sleepy cotton fields

Alleyway to our B&B in Samarkand

Pomegranates will brighten anything in this haze