Uzbekistan

Day 8 May 20, 2023 Bukhara Uzbekistan

Today we tour the old city. The bus took us near the Friday Mosque. Since this one is actively used they don’t allow us to enter. One of two ponds is located in front. At least some greenery surrounds the area.

Across the street is the entrance to the fort. Much of it has been restored and has been designated a UNESCO site. The climb to the entrance is fairly steep but smooth. Lots of people are visiting today. Numerous school groups also. The king or khan had lived here. We saw his throne, stables and prayer space. Not sure where living quarters were. The school children love to say hello and talk to you if they have time. You can get a nice view of the city from here.

Outside the fort are lots of golf carts, bicycles, pedal carts and scooters for hire. Some are in use. They look like a great idea. No idea the cost.

Then we took a relatively long walk in the sun to a madrasah and mosque. The madrasah is equivalent to a university so the graduates do get a bachelor’s degree. Small number of students and limited subjects. We were not allowed in so that the students would not be disturbed. Across the courtyard was a mosque. This one was no longer in use so we could enter. It is being restored which is probably why we could visit. This is primarily an open courtyard. The walls are decorated like so many of the other buildings.

Back out and across the street to a rug factory. We watched some of the ladies working. They range in age from 18-40. They make wool, camel hair and silk rugs. Some of the rugs have different patterns on the two sides. This is done by workers on both sides working at the same rate on the same row. Lots of rugs are for sale. They range in price from a few hundred US dollars to hundreds of thousands US dollars. No one in our group made a purchase. Business must be good however because they were not pushy.

Next stop was a blacksmith shop where they made extremely sharp knives. They also had various stork scissors. We purchased one of the larger scissors for $20. Probably paid too much since they are available in several places.

We took a brief stop at a spice shop. They gave us some herbal tea that was quite good. The Indian ladies in our group were most interested in items but made no purchases. We didn’t either since we had bought some in Egypt.

Then off to lunch. This was a much better lunch than some. Dessert was chocolate lava cake with vanilla ice cream. Some of the group got a little crazy. Two of the guys had a shot of vodka. After lunch five of our group tried a hookah. One of the group successfully blew a ring. The rest just kept getting silly. Everyone laughed so hard.

Back to the hotel for a short rest before heading out again at 5 pm. At least this avoids the worst of the heat. Today’s high was in the low 90s with very little breeze.

This time we visited a painter of miniatures. He is one of the best in the country. This is also a school so lots to see and purchase. No sales today.

Then on to a puppeteer. Interesting how he made them. Lots of different ones were on display. He demonstrated how they were used by playing music the puppet could dance to.

We stopped at the Jewish Synagogue but it was closed. We went next door to a Jewish house. Some Jewish people still live here. We saw a school where they teach Hebrew. Somehow the various religious groups get along.

A statue of a man riding a donkey is in a nearby park. This is a famous statue. You can tell where it has been rubbed many times. Supposedly good luck if you rub the tail. We did give him a rub. He was something like a Robin Hood. Now it is illegal to sit on the donkey.

Then to a local dance and fashion show. A band of about 12 musicians played while the entertainment changed from dancers to fashion models. The costumes on both were terrific. Oh such vibrant colors.

Now we are on our own. We elected to try the local pizza. The guide took us to a place where we ordered two and should have only ordered one. We had a chicken pizza and a supreme pizza. Where oh where is Flying Pie. We brought half of each one back to the room. We had a really nice waiter who spoke a little English. A party for someone was going on in the area.

Rob used Pocket Earth to get us back to the hotel in the dark. We got there very successfully. Then Connie wrote the blog and Rob removed his stitches from a minor event from home.