– Cotton is the #1 crop of Uzbekistan but they are now moving towards growing wheat which is currently #2.
-Talib is the name for a student; taliban is the name for a group of students!
-We kept hearing the word “Emir” and “Khan”. What is the difference? They are both names for a ruler; an Emir was more commonly used in the Arab world whereas Khan was used in Mongolia and Central Asia.
-Why do mosques all have domes? It was for acoustics and to promote air circulation.
We are headed to another border crossing this morning, leaving Uzbekistan and entering Tajikistan. We were told that Tajikistan is not as developed as the other “Stans” so lower our expectations. Maybe that is why they do not get many visitors. The border crossing went smoothly, taking less than 30 minutes, and our guide, Furkat, hired a porter to cart our luggage across the “no man’s” land so it made our journey easy. The only glitch was our bus on the Tajik side was about 10 minutes late in arriving; it was a minor inconvenience.
Tajikistan has about 10.7 million people but it is growing. It declared its independence in 1991 but suffered through a civil war from 1992-1997. It is not was as well developed as the other “Stans”. Young people leave for better paying (2-4 x) jobs in Russia. Tajiks make up 86% of the population; 97% of the people are Muslims and Tajik is the official language but Russian is used extensively.
A very unusual rose in the hotel gardens.
Our journey today
At a rest stop we were curious about this trailer and animals headed to market.
Older cars have been converted to run on natural gas.
MIR paid a porter to haul our luggage across the border.
Our late bus coming to pick us up in Tajikistan.
Our first stop was the city of Khujand, the second largest city in Tajikistan. It’s origins have been attributed to Alexander the Great (329BCE) and Cyrus the Great of Persia (several centuries earlier). It was an important stop on the Silk Road.
“Zafar” was our local guide in Tajikistan.
Lots of fruit tree orchards along the highway. Mostly apricots.
Stopping along the highway where Furkat bought us apricots and cherries to have at lunch.
Look at all that local fruit! There were many roadside stalls selling the fresh fruit.
Remains from a 1992-1997 civil war that consumed this part of the country.
The school uniforms. Girls wear black skirts and white blouses. Boys wear black slacks and white shirts.
Each city seemed to have many flower beds lining their streets.
The Syr-Darya River flows through downtown Khujand.
Our luncheon resturant in Khujand.
This salad had potatoes, corn, peas, carrots and onions with a vinegar dressing. I had seconds!
Another excellent soup-tomato based in this case.
This was either beef or lamb. I do not remember, but it was darn good! The food continue to amaze me.
The fruit Furkat bought. He had the resturant carefully wash it to serve with our lunch. We all agreed that they were not as sweet as the fruit we raise in the USA.
Locals tend to eat at these tables. Luckily we did not have to try it as most of us would not be able to get up again!
After lunch we visited the Arbob cultural palace, built in the 1950s by the Russians and patterned after Peterhof in St. Petersburg. It is the site where Tajikistan independence was announced in 1992. It is now used occasionally for cultural events. Looked awfully expensive to maintain.
Entry area to the Arbob palace.
Walkway to the complex with a huge fountain.
View from the steps at some of the gardens.
White roses, meant to honor the cotton they grow here.
Main reception area inside the palace.
The large 800 seat auditorium.
Ceiling decor.
They use the venue for weddings now.
Part of the Arbob complex.
From there it was on to walk through the very large Panjshanbe Bazaar and some free time to explore the area on our own.
A huge enclosed bazaar.
Need some strawberries?
Dried nuts and fruit.
All sorts of different kinds of rice.
Spices, spices and more spices.
Eggs are not a problem here.
Sweets of all types for sale.
There were several guys doing shoe repair at the bazaar.
Need a soccer ball or wedding dress? Shops next to the bazaar are ready to sell you them.
The bazar is adjacent to the Muslihiddin memorial which includes a mosque, mausoleum and minaret.
Next was a visit to the historical Museum of Sogdiana which contained ancient artifacts and articles depicting Tajik history.
This rebuilt fortress is now the Historical Museum of Sughd.
They sure like massive doors!
Statue of Timur Malik, the governor of Khujand in the 13th century. He was unsuccessful in guarding the city against the Mongol invasion.
We had a local docent show us some of the more important artifacts. Needless to say there was not enough time to really appreciate what was there.
Impressive artifact for the 7-8th century BC!
Dinner was held in a local restaurant and we were only staying here for one evening before moving on.
The tiny (19 room) Khujand Grand hotel with no elevators and I was on the third floor! Luckily they handled my luggage.
My room was not well furnished but it sure was big and the AC worked and the water was hot. All is good!
For some reason restaurants seem to like having these heavy, upholstered chairs. Although comfortable they were hard to get in/out of them
Very flavorful potatoes.
Eggplant. I did not take picture of entree.
I went for a walk after dinner. Lots of families were out enjoying the mild evening.
