Thread Starter
TS
What about the lamb shashlik, Kevin??!!
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International (Europe/Japan/Southern Hemisphere) 2024 Uzbekistan Trip Report
- Thread starter Mattadvproject
- Start date
What about the lamb shashlik, Kevin??!!
That too. And the economical beers. And pretty much the whole Uzbekistan experience.
Thread Starter
TS
26th Feb - Samarkand
Uzbekistan high speed train - on the 26th Feb, we took the high speed train from Tashkent to Samarkand for our guided tour around the ancient Silk Road city.
The Afrosiyob train takes about 2 hours to cover the 344km route which used to take 5 hours by car is now a very fast and efficient way to get to and from Samarkand. The cost of an economy class ticket is about $8 one way, so it's an absolute bargain.
The train is a Spanish Talgo 250 and the line was completed in 2011. In the future, they want to fully electrify the line and that will bring travel time down to only 1 hour and 20 minutes. Currently the train can reach speeds of 200kmph, but it could travel as fast as 250kmph when the line is fully electrified.
The train does continue on another 256km to Bukhara and that takes 1 hour 12 minutes. That line was completed in 2016 and eventually, the line will be extended all the way out to Khiva and then all the main Silk Road cities will be linked. That will be a huge upgrade for Uzbek tourism.
- Matt
Uzbekistan high speed train - on the 26th Feb, we took the high speed train from Tashkent to Samarkand for our guided tour around the ancient Silk Road city.
The Afrosiyob train takes about 2 hours to cover the 344km route which used to take 5 hours by car is now a very fast and efficient way to get to and from Samarkand. The cost of an economy class ticket is about $8 one way, so it's an absolute bargain.
The train is a Spanish Talgo 250 and the line was completed in 2011. In the future, they want to fully electrify the line and that will bring travel time down to only 1 hour and 20 minutes. Currently the train can reach speeds of 200kmph, but it could travel as fast as 250kmph when the line is fully electrified.
The train does continue on another 256km to Bukhara and that takes 1 hour 12 minutes. That line was completed in 2016 and eventually, the line will be extended all the way out to Khiva and then all the main Silk Road cities will be linked. That will be a huge upgrade for Uzbek tourism.
- Matt
Thread Starter
TS
Feb 26th - Exploring Samarkand and the ancient Silk Road
We met our guide Timur at the station (I had used Timur in 2022 and he was awesome) and he picked us up in a van with his brother driving. Our first stop in Samarkand was to the beautiful Gur-e-Amir mausoleum for Amir Timur, a Turco-Mongol conqueror and his sons Shah Ruk, Miran Shah and grandsons Ulugh Beg and Muhammad Sultan.
Construction started in 1403 after the death of Muhammad Sultan. When Timur died on a campaign to China in 1405, he was buried here also. It's a beautiful complex and an amazing preview of the architectural style of many other sites in Samarkand.
It's amazing that you can see places like this, on a ski trip.......
- Matt
We met our guide Timur at the station (I had used Timur in 2022 and he was awesome) and he picked us up in a van with his brother driving. Our first stop in Samarkand was to the beautiful Gur-e-Amir mausoleum for Amir Timur, a Turco-Mongol conqueror and his sons Shah Ruk, Miran Shah and grandsons Ulugh Beg and Muhammad Sultan.
Construction started in 1403 after the death of Muhammad Sultan. When Timur died on a campaign to China in 1405, he was buried here also. It's a beautiful complex and an amazing preview of the architectural style of many other sites in Samarkand.
It's amazing that you can see places like this, on a ski trip.......
- Matt
The visit to Samarkand looks like a great addition to a wonderful trip.
Thread Starter
TS
Registan Complex
Our next stop was the Registan madrasah complex, dating back to 1417. This is another beautiful site and is the centerpiece of all of the beautiful sites in Samarkand.
There are 3 madrasah that you can explore and they are Ulug Beg (1417 - 1420), Sher-Dor (1619 - 1636) and Tilya-Kori (1646 - 1660).
It can get extremely hot in Samarkand in the summertime and in winter, it's low season so the complex is relatively quiet. Local school children like to hang out near the entrance to practice their English with foreign tourists which is a rewarding experience. We had some lovely chats with them.
- Matt
Our next stop was the Registan madrasah complex, dating back to 1417. This is another beautiful site and is the centerpiece of all of the beautiful sites in Samarkand.
There are 3 madrasah that you can explore and they are Ulug Beg (1417 - 1420), Sher-Dor (1619 - 1636) and Tilya-Kori (1646 - 1660).
It can get extremely hot in Samarkand in the summertime and in winter, it's low season so the complex is relatively quiet. Local school children like to hang out near the entrance to practice their English with foreign tourists which is a rewarding experience. We had some lovely chats with them.
- Matt
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Thread Starter
TS
You certainly can, but please note, these are commercial trips that I run...... feel free to get in touch with me if that's something you are interested in.
Thread Starter
TS
Disco Lunch!
Stopping in for lunch, our guide took us to this grandiose Soviet building with an impressive foyer, which led into a large banquet hall with pumping, loud music playing. People were eating at large tables whilst others danced away.
It was quite the scene for a Tuesday lunchtime and a little confusing, admittedly...... We were seated and given the 30-plus page menus. There were a lot of options and it was all very inexpensive. I chose their largest steak and that was only $6 or $7. Quite the deal!
We had a lovely lunch and then on the way out, @krystalgalaxy1 got into a little dance off with some of the local lunch party ladies. It was fun to watch and a very memorable stop for lunch. Great times!
- Matt
Stopping in for lunch, our guide took us to this grandiose Soviet building with an impressive foyer, which led into a large banquet hall with pumping, loud music playing. People were eating at large tables whilst others danced away.
It was quite the scene for a Tuesday lunchtime and a little confusing, admittedly...... We were seated and given the 30-plus page menus. There were a lot of options and it was all very inexpensive. I chose their largest steak and that was only $6 or $7. Quite the deal!
We had a lovely lunch and then on the way out, @krystalgalaxy1 got into a little dance off with some of the local lunch party ladies. It was fun to watch and a very memorable stop for lunch. Great times!
- Matt
Thread Starter
TS
Yes, it's a real shame you missed that part of the trip, Samarkand is an amazing experience. I do want to head further west to explore Bukhara and Khiva as they are supposed to be even more beautiful. Samarkand is the second biggest city in Uzbekistan and has a lot of newer development surrounding the old sections but Bukhara and especially Khiva, are older and more original, apparently.
Thread Starter
TS
I think old foundations that were only partially restored.....
Thread Starter
TS
More to see!
After lunch, we still had a lot of siteseeing to do! Next up was the Ulugh Beg Observatory, built in the 1420s by the astronomer Ulug Beg. It was destroyed in 1449 when Beg was assassinated and was later rediscovered in 1908 by a Russian archeologist.
Next, we went to the Bibi-Khanym Mosque, constructed in 1399 by Timur, when Samarkand became the new capital. Unfortunately, despite its grandeuose design, structurally, it was not sound and slowly started to fall apart. By the late 16th century it was no longer viable to keep restoring it and it fell greatly into decline.
During an earthquake in 1897, it was fully ruined and the local inhabitants plundered the remains. It wasn't until the Soviet times that restoration of the complex began and that is an ongoing process.....
- Matt
After lunch, we still had a lot of siteseeing to do! Next up was the Ulugh Beg Observatory, built in the 1420s by the astronomer Ulug Beg. It was destroyed in 1449 when Beg was assassinated and was later rediscovered in 1908 by a Russian archeologist.
Next, we went to the Bibi-Khanym Mosque, constructed in 1399 by Timur, when Samarkand became the new capital. Unfortunately, despite its grandeuose design, structurally, it was not sound and slowly started to fall apart. By the late 16th century it was no longer viable to keep restoring it and it fell greatly into decline.
During an earthquake in 1897, it was fully ruined and the local inhabitants plundered the remains. It wasn't until the Soviet times that restoration of the complex began and that is an ongoing process.....
- Matt
Thread Starter
TS
Our last stop in Samarkand!
Saving the best till last! For our final stop in Samarkand, we visited my personal favorite site, the Shah-i-Zinda mausoleum complex. The turquoise arrays here are stunning and walking down the narrow passageways with beautiful buildings on either side, is not to be missed!
Some of the interiors of the tombs are breathtaking, with massive domed, ornate ceilings. This was an amazing way to finish off our trip to Samarkand and our time in Uzbekistan. We departed on the 5:37pm train back to Tashkent and arrived at 7:53pm. Then it was time to re-pack my bags before heading back to the US the next day via Istanbul and London.
- Matt
Saving the best till last! For our final stop in Samarkand, we visited my personal favorite site, the Shah-i-Zinda mausoleum complex. The turquoise arrays here are stunning and walking down the narrow passageways with beautiful buildings on either side, is not to be missed!
Some of the interiors of the tombs are breathtaking, with massive domed, ornate ceilings. This was an amazing way to finish off our trip to Samarkand and our time in Uzbekistan. We departed on the 5:37pm train back to Tashkent and arrived at 7:53pm. Then it was time to re-pack my bags before heading back to the US the next day via Istanbul and London.
- Matt
Thread Starter
TS
Feb 27th - Flying home
And that was a wrap for the Uzbekistan trip, but not an end of the blog as I still have a lot of content to add (edited ski photos and videos of the skiing). On the 27th, I began the long journey back to the US. I had booked two separate flights; one from Tashkent to Istanbul and then Istanbul to Denver via London Heathrow. The check-in at Tashkent can be a bit chaotic, with multiple security checkpoints to go through, so arriving 3 hours early is strongly recommended.
I was expecting some troubles at security for my airbag (BD JetForce) as one of our guests who departed earlier said he had had an air canister confiscated and a lot of questions about his AlpRide bag (he was traveling with two airbags!). Everything went smoothly until the final x-ray machine after clearing immigration and after a few questions, I was allowed through without a hitch. I just told them it was a special backpack for skiing and they seemed to understand.
The flight to Istanbul went smoothly (4 hours) and I got some nice pictures as we arrived in Istanbul. As these flights were ticketed individually, I had to go through immigration and then pick up my bags before checking in for the next flight. I went to the premium check-in for Turkish and then we had a big kerfuffle over my ski bag. I had a two bag allowance (70lbs per bag) with United who I booked the ticket through and Turkish wanted to charge me for the ski bag. My friend Krysty had pre-paid for her baggage and they could not find it in the system, so there was a lot of confusion. It took about an hour to get it all resolved after they finally called a supervisor and they let me go without a charge. After doing some research, there seems to be a massive problem with Turkish trying to charge for bags from other airline's tickets.
It was a nice flight to Heathrow, this time about 3 hours. I got some great photos of Georgia and the Caucasus Mountains and Batumi coastline not long after leaving Istanbul. We arrived at Heathrow after 10pm and then headed straight to a hotel (Ibis Styles for about 70 GBP). Taking a taxi was easiest for the 10-minute drive (about 11 GBP and thankfully they take credit cards). I got a decent amount of sleep before heading back to Terminal 2 for the direct flight with United to Denver. I didn't have any bags to check as they were already checked all the way to Denver, but I did chat with the United agent at check-in about the situation in Istanbul with the ski bag and she said Turkish was supposed to honor the baggage allowance and they have had many complaints about this. She filed a complaint for me and said I should do the same when I returned to the US (which I have done).
Then it was an easy 9 hour flight back to Denver and a 2 hour shuttle bus ride back to Granby. I was pretty tired when I got back and it was easy to get to sleep that night! Here's a few photos from the flight.....
Flying into Istanbul
The heart of Istanbul and the Bosphorous River
The Republic of Georgia - The Lower Caucasus and then the Upper Caucasus. I've skied both ranges on my trips to Georgia.
I think that must be Mt. Elberus, on the Russian side of the Upper Caucasus
Crossing over the Batumi coastline in Georgia, over the Black Sea.
There's a lot more to come, so please keep following the blog.....
- Matt
And that was a wrap for the Uzbekistan trip, but not an end of the blog as I still have a lot of content to add (edited ski photos and videos of the skiing). On the 27th, I began the long journey back to the US. I had booked two separate flights; one from Tashkent to Istanbul and then Istanbul to Denver via London Heathrow. The check-in at Tashkent can be a bit chaotic, with multiple security checkpoints to go through, so arriving 3 hours early is strongly recommended.
I was expecting some troubles at security for my airbag (BD JetForce) as one of our guests who departed earlier said he had had an air canister confiscated and a lot of questions about his AlpRide bag (he was traveling with two airbags!). Everything went smoothly until the final x-ray machine after clearing immigration and after a few questions, I was allowed through without a hitch. I just told them it was a special backpack for skiing and they seemed to understand.
The flight to Istanbul went smoothly (4 hours) and I got some nice pictures as we arrived in Istanbul. As these flights were ticketed individually, I had to go through immigration and then pick up my bags before checking in for the next flight. I went to the premium check-in for Turkish and then we had a big kerfuffle over my ski bag. I had a two bag allowance (70lbs per bag) with United who I booked the ticket through and Turkish wanted to charge me for the ski bag. My friend Krysty had pre-paid for her baggage and they could not find it in the system, so there was a lot of confusion. It took about an hour to get it all resolved after they finally called a supervisor and they let me go without a charge. After doing some research, there seems to be a massive problem with Turkish trying to charge for bags from other airline's tickets.
It was a nice flight to Heathrow, this time about 3 hours. I got some great photos of Georgia and the Caucasus Mountains and Batumi coastline not long after leaving Istanbul. We arrived at Heathrow after 10pm and then headed straight to a hotel (Ibis Styles for about 70 GBP). Taking a taxi was easiest for the 10-minute drive (about 11 GBP and thankfully they take credit cards). I got a decent amount of sleep before heading back to Terminal 2 for the direct flight with United to Denver. I didn't have any bags to check as they were already checked all the way to Denver, but I did chat with the United agent at check-in about the situation in Istanbul with the ski bag and she said Turkish was supposed to honor the baggage allowance and they have had many complaints about this. She filed a complaint for me and said I should do the same when I returned to the US (which I have done).
Then it was an easy 9 hour flight back to Denver and a 2 hour shuttle bus ride back to Granby. I was pretty tired when I got back and it was easy to get to sleep that night! Here's a few photos from the flight.....
Flying into Istanbul
The heart of Istanbul and the Bosphorous River
The Republic of Georgia - The Lower Caucasus and then the Upper Caucasus. I've skied both ranges on my trips to Georgia.
I think that must be Mt. Elberus, on the Russian side of the Upper Caucasus
Crossing over the Batumi coastline in Georgia, over the Black Sea.
There's a lot more to come, so please keep following the blog.....
- Matt
Thread Starter
TS
Get 4 to 6 people together and you can have your own private group in 2025, if that's an option for you?
I've already made tentative plans (prior to this thread) with an old friend to check Jackson Hole off the bucket list next year, I pitched Uzbek to him and he's not crazy about the idea. It'll have to wait. Bummer.
Thread Starter
TS
Two very different experiences.....
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