The allure of the Silk Road for many is to take the path of adventurers and travellers like Marco Polo who followed its network between the Mediterranean and China and visited places mentioned in the lives of Alexander the Great, Ghengis Khan and Tamerlane.
For us, the architectural heritage with stunning Islamic tiling and intricately decorated mosques, madrasas and mausoleums is the biggest attraction, so we’ve focused our visit on Uzbekistan, home to Samarkand, Bukhara and Khiva, all great cities on the Silk Road and all filled with architectural treasures.
Uzbekistan is a doubly landlocked country in Central Asia, with mountains and steppes but comprised mainly of arid desert. A former Soviet republic, it retained a highly authoritarian regime after independence in 1991, but a change of president in 2016 has now made travel here more accessible. We will be arriving in the capital Tashkent and look forward to seeing the more recent remnants of Soviet rule before catching a flight back in time to Khiva, our most remote destination.
The train will then take us 1100km along the Silk Road back to Tashkent. We’ll be staying in guest houses, hoping there will be vegetarian alternatives to the national dish of rice and mutton called plov and with 10,000 Som to the £, feeling like millionaires. Chris is eager to play with his new Oly 12-100 Pro lens and back-button focus, whatever that is! There’s no rush, so we have plenty of time to soak up the atmosphere, take photos, browse in bazaars, drink tea and enjoy the sunshine …
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