The Silk Way: Khiva, Bukhara, Samarkanda. Travel in Uzbekistan

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Khiva
Arrive, accompanied by a beautiful sunny day, the eighth of March, the day of celebration of women here in Uzbekistan is so important that it be a public holiday. - The empowerment of women has become - and that shift is customary to burn piles of Cador quite sure ... I respect the fact bordering Afghanistan. Wandering among the city will meet many women, especially young people, dressed in an elegant, all eager to be photographed with us. Given the low season there are few tourists and hence we often stop to please. The girls wear the tiubetejka, the typical headgear decorated with coins. Our tour takes place exclusively within the walls of the old city, which dell'Ichon-Qala. Children who live in run unattended in the streets without any supervision by adults. Have fun in ways more varied, but the game seems to be preferred to be sliding down the walls as if they had a big slide. Once they see a tourist run the meeting, the largest to sell something, the little ones ask for bon bon and pen!
- Old Khiva is a city in the city - just think that people can only marry among themselves. Indeed, who marries a person who is not resident within the walls is forced to leave town and go to live outside. The old town is an open-air museum! Was not penetrated the architecture typical of the Soviet regime remained as a central Asian city. We are therefore nell'Ichon-Qala along its winding streets all day, visiting minarets, madrasas, palaces and mosques until sunset when the top of the minaret of Islom-Huja, which offers a view superba, Khiva, in light of the sunset, it seems really the most beautiful city in the world.
Bukhara
Before entering the town we visit the set of Chor-Bakr, whose two buildings, the mosque on Friday and khanaka, rising already visible from afar. A sort of preview of what we propose Bukhara.
Here are the brothers quanro Polo wrote of the city.
"[...] You come to a city called Bukhara, which is great and very noble. There is a market where falling all the expensive goods in India and China, with many precious stones, fabrics with many big and good, there are also abundant spices. There is therefore in that place a go this route of goods which is a wonderful thing to see. In each market day and all the squares are riboccanti men. Is impersonating everything. The merchants are numerous and plentiful goods. [...] "
Bukhara remained the same as that time!
Wander around the old town comes across to us in a real tangle of alleys and commercial minibazar. Markets covered in the characteristic (s Taqi) small shops opened in the cramped spaces in which the craftsmen working in dim light. In the courtyards, the incomparable beauty of the madrasas, in addition to small shops, markets are held daily. In all corners of pleasant melodies spread east, from who knows where, and the accompanying convulsive our purchases to buy one of the famous Bukhara carpets. Estimated at between a bazaar and madrasas, between a square and a mosque, we are running continuously from children, boys as Monelli Via Pal, thrown early in the vortex of life to learn the job. There are around until you conclude a sale, any appioppandoci junk. From an architectural point of view the most beautiful is the place where the Kalon minaret of the mosque and madrasas Kalon to Mir-i-Arab, the latter is still active, is a Koranic school. Following the visit we come to the fortress that is striking for its high walls, but whose interior is now in ruins. Finally, prisons, (Zindon) you can not do without indignation in the face of the photos of torture from prisoners and raccapricciarsi to view dell'orrendo infested pit of cockroaches and bugs bred specifically for torturing prisoners. In the well, were locked up and languishing Stoddart and Conolly.
Let us return to the square of Lyab-Hauz feature to the huge pool of water that can be found there and for the three buildings that will rise up: the madrasas of Nadir Divanbegi, the khanaka and madrasas of Kukeldash. At the statue of wise crowds of elderly people playing dominoes, the atmosphere and as such to that of an aggregation of our elders when they play at bowls. We arrived just a day or two people stop us on the street asking for Cris. Entire Bukhara, given the lack of tourists, knows of our presence in the city. Especially after having toured all the shops in the center in search of food and the right ingredients to taste, as far as possible, a real Italian dinner. Essential pasta and sauce, but these we brought from home. Hotel Amelia, of which we are guests, it becomes at least for one evening the best Italian restaurant, if not the only one, of all Bukhara. There are company Shuhrat, his friend Mansour and Back, the owner of the hotel. Bach is not his real name, but it is so dubbed by us because of his unpronounceable name Uzbek. Somehow knows Italian, at least what they have learned by looking Rai sat.
SAMARKAND
His mythic resonance, made immortal by poets, writers and travelers, is perhaps unique in the world. Samarkand is reminiscent of the "silk road" as any other city in Asia and more than any other city in the world brings to mind the trip.
The fame of the city is linked to that of Timur the lame, that Tamerlane, who was born in Kech, not far from Samarkand, in April 1336. Tamerlano, then, in 1369, chose as the capital of his kingdom.
When we arrived we attacked a strange feeling, to visit a legendary city, but known only to the magic of his name and in fact totally unknown. From the first s'intuisce impact immediately, however, that Samarkand is no longer that of a mythical time. Piove decide to divert you to leave out a visit to the city tomorrow, hoping for an improvement of the time. Shuhrat us to visit a carpet factory. The workers who work there are young girls have their hair and some collected a scarf on her head. Is juggling between invisible wires with a pace and during the weaving are kneeling in front of the chassis, chat and joke so much that it seems they are here for pleasure and not for duty.
The day following the day uggiosa no way obscures the Registan. Registan Square is superb with three of its four sides by a total of madrasas Ulugh-Beg, the Shir Dar and Tilla-Kari. The symmetry of the facades and elegance of proportion, together with green glazed tiles and blue create un'apoteosi colors. The geometrical motifs are only partially interrupted by the mosaics of the facade of the madrasas of Shir Dar which is an animal, a sort of lion. Everywhere, then, reproducing ornamental phrases in Arabic characters, fine mosaics and arabesques.
Samarkand is the Registan and the Registan Samarkand is the clang of the legendary city are all locked up here.
Retrace the "Silk Road" at the beginning of the third millennium is back with the memory formicolanti to the city of Khiva, Bukhara, Samarkand, customs and practices of different peoples, but especially to enjoy the culture of the reign of Tamerlane.