Short but intensive travels around Uzbekistan, the real heart of the Silk Road. Tashkent is a vibrant capital of whole central asian Region. Samarkand was a key trading point in the silk road in the past and now - and so it is centre for muslim education in beautiful Medressahs for many centuries. Samarkant was also the seat and capital of the empire of great empeor Amir Timur, a great nomadic empire that spawned all across central asia and far past its boundaries in its time. This was the last great nomadic empire, and with its fall came gunpowder empires.
From Samarkand I have travelled via Urgench to Khiva, an historic walled city build near an oasis in a desert. A true refuge for silk road travellers, incudes many mosques, medressahs and bazaars. And for many years a seat of independent powerful Khivan Khanate. From there I continue my journey to Bukhara, yet another refuge on a silk road and muslim education center. Competing for greatness with other cities, this one too served as a capital of powerful khanate, and later Emirate of Bukhara.
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From Samarkand I have travelled via Urgench to Khiva, an historic walled city build near an oasis in a desert. A true refuge for silk road travellers, incudes many mosques, medressahs and bazaars. And for many years a seat of independent powerful Khivan Khanate. From there I continue my journey to Bukhara, yet another refuge on a silk road and muslim education center. Competing for greatness with other cities, this one too served as a capital of powerful khanate, and later Emirate of Bukhara.
