Tajikistan

Tajikistan Flag

Tajikistan may seem like it doesn't quite make up to standards but this is the misconception everyone holds when they have never visited this green paradise.



Tajikistan's Statue of Independence from the USSR
- 1991. Rumoured to be based off the Statue of Liberty
(Lady Liberty) in New York City.

Home to the Fenn Mountain Range, Tajikistan holds a higher ration of green farmland to desert over the other States in the same region. Perfect for the kind of outdoor and walking lovers and even its residents, the views you can get whilst on a walk out in these mountains is staggering. With their clear tops and clear blue lakes, there is no-one who doesn't fall in love with this small range located in central Asia and doesn't want to return.



Map of Tajikistan

The country claims the section of the Silk Road joining up Uzbekistan and China and so is the connecting bridge for these two pieces of the ancient road along its southern stretch of land. Unlike its neighbours, Tajikistan is one of the few countries along the ancient Silk Road to possess a mountain range. With its deep green valleys, mountains and clear deep blue lakes, there is little question as to why Tajikistan prospers from the trade industry. One such city is Hissar which brags the oldest fort madrassa dating back to the 11th Century when Alexander the Great passed through here searching for ways to expand his Empire and when Genghis Khan destroyed a part of the historical city.

Dushanbe's Central Park

Another notable city has to be Dushanbe, Tajikistan's capital and home to a population of over 802 thousand. As the name suggests when translated from Tajik to English, there used to only be a Monday market. Until the early 1900's, Dushanbe was a trading village which expanded and transformed into a city whilst under Russian rule when Tajikistan was declared a Soviet State. However, it wasn't until 1924 that Dushanbe was Tajikistan's capital. This city was also visited by Alexander the Great, yet there is little to suggest he did anything other than visit unlike the Russian emissaries who developed the city at a rapid pace when the city was known as Stalingrad in honour of Joseph Stalin before it regained the name Dushanbe in late 1961.

Persian Poet Radaki

A second notable renowned figure in Tajikistan's history is the Persian poet Radaki, who taught astronomy and was a translator of languages. He became so important, that the Tajik people dedicated a stature to him in Dushanbe's central park. A Statue of Liberty type statue on the opposite side of the Park is devoted to showing Tajikistan's independence as its own country from the USSR (United Soviet Socialist Republic) in 1991 is also a commemoration of her past.

When I first heard that I would be vacationing in Tajikistan, back in July 2016, I am not proud to say that I dreaded to go but that all changed when I first got my proper look at what Tajikistan had to offer the world. As everyone was aware, there was a military coupe in Turkey that very summer and I witnessed the events at At a Turk Airport in Istanbul first-hand. Without the means of technology and no media reporting the aftermath, Tajikistan, for me, became the holiday. The country allowed me to forget the stressful times I had been through very early on into my holiday and gave me the chance to relax. That is what Tajikistan lets its visitors do. The country, despite its faults, is very peaceful and relaxing for stressed lives and giving an escape route for pressured minds. As a hemiplegic forever worrying about my future prospects living in Britain, it did this very thing for me also. I was able to forget the worries plaguing me and just enjoy the scenery and inside knowledge of the country's history, as part of the USSR and as its own independent country.


Fenn Mountains - Tajikistan's prized
mountain range

As well as these extraordinary figures stood proud and tall for everyone to see, the Fenn mountain range is a sight to behold. Though tiny in comparison to the Himalayas to the south-west, the Fenn mountains are dotted with beautiful crystal blue lakes connected by a series of glacial rivers. This small range is perfect for those of us who prefer the outdoors and adventure. Though located in the western sector of the country, the Fenn mountains hold the secrets of years and eras past built into their pathways and river network. It is this mountain range which holds the magnificence of Tajikistan and allows it to flourish in terms of trade and population welfare.

Tajikistan should always be considered for a visit along the ageless trading Silk Road of Central Asia!

Uzbekistan

Uzbekistan Flag.

"A barren wasteland filled with desert sand and interspersed with poor and struggling cities" is usually the generally held view of how Uzbekistan is seen by the masses. But the real Uzbekistan couldn't be as far from the illusions even if it tried.

The home of the Uleg Beg Observatory, the Samarqand Registans and Bazaar and Shakrisabz Mausoleums, Uzbekistan is one of the most understated former Soviet States in the region. It is also one of the most-sought after regions to travel if you are interested in its prime jewel and how things were transported from China to Europe. Where each Registan building or more specifically Madrassa or school; the Tilla Kari Madrassa in the centre with blue turrets, the Sher Dor Madrassa on the right depicting the ruler in a sun-like image next to a liger (which is supposedly a crossover of a tiger, lion and antelope), and the Uleg Beg Madrassa on the left but showing the ruler and swans in flight on a blue background, all boasting an illuminating blend of turquoise roof caps with decadent mosaic tiles from Tamerlane's era, the Uleg Beg Observatory holds the key to why Uzbekistan is placed on the map. The region is famous for its research into Astronomy and Mathematics.


Samarqand Registans -
Madrassas.

Uleg Beg
Observatory.

In the 14th Century, Uzbekistan's capital was its most populous city, Samarqand (Samakand). The bustling bazaars, the mosques and the Registrars make Samaqand Uzbekistan's crowning jewel for not only was it the city in the direct path of the old Silk Road, but it was also where Amir Timur (more commonly known as Timur the lame which was later shortened to Tamerlane) ruled the country during his reign as Emperor as his Empire stretched from the Black Sea into Central China and down as far as Delhi. To see these momuments continue standing humbles and honours the visitors simultaneously. Tamerlane stands proud over the city he built from the ground up, letting visitors and residents anew to experience the fruitful delicacies and labour on offer.

Timur the lame also known as
Tamerlane - Uzbekistan's greatest ruler.

The only other city on the same level as Samarqand is Bukhara, located in the South of the country. Mostly known for its pilgrimage sites and cuisine. Outside of the main city itself, the Bukhaara emir's built their summer palace, the Sitorai Makhi Khosa, which was built in 1911 by the last emir Alim Khan. Styled using a Russian contemporary after Alim Khan visited Russia, the summer palace was intended to be used as a guest house for the Russian Tsar, whom was executed before he could properly visit as well as being used to house the emir's 40 concubines (mistresses). However, the crowning glory of this city lay in its oldest part and the Ismail Samani Mausoleum. The Mausoleum is the oldest Islamic monument in Bukhara, having been built sometime in the 10th Century, and incorporates sogdian architecture and sassanid fire temples, although a perfect 10x10x10 cube like the Kaaba in Mecca. The mausoleum is an extremely holy site and as such was not destroyed by Genghis Khan.

Bukhara's Old City.

Located deep in the heart of Central Asia,  Uzbekistan shares its borders with other former USSR states with Krygyzstan to the north and its fellow Silk Road counterpart Tajikistan to the East. Whilst today, its capital city is Tashkent, its most famous is the nearest city over, Samarqand. Built originally in a similar style to the Eternal City of Rome in the 6th Century BC, Samarqand housed an Afrosiab Hill Fort and had grown into a large Sogdian city when Alexander the Great (who founded the great Egyptian city Alexandria and linked the Silk Road to routes along the countries of Northern Africa) seized and torched the citadel in a strike to claim the city and its wealth. However, by the 7th Century AD, Samarqand was once again primarily a Silk Road City.

Myself with my brother and mum
with my hemiplegia on show.

Map of Uzbekistan.

Two years ago, in July 2016, my family and I arrived in Uzbekistan, to do just that. The Silk Road had been on my parents bucket list for many years and so, with myself having finished my A-Levels, we decided on completing the central section of the ancient trading route. Everywhere I looked, there were bazaars (marketplaces) selling the traditional produce of the Silk Road such as spices, fruit and products like bags, intricately designed purses, though I will freely admit, the fruit and spices were the main attraction. However, whilst the summer sounds, in theory, like the ideal time to go, I would personally not recommend it unless you like the intense and high heat you will inevitably receive. As a hemiplegic, I found it increasingly difficult to wear my arm splint in the heat, so while I took it and wore it on most of the trip, I was forced to take it off and wrap my bare forearm in a light scarf or a long sleeved light shirt to protect my more vulnerable limb. I would however travelling in early Autumn or Spring when it is a little cooler.

Shakrisabz - the place where Timur and his
family were laid to rest for the final time. 

Home to these remarkable historical structures, Uzbekistan also proudly possesses the green marbled mausoleums at Shakrisabz where the Great Tamerlane and his family were buried for their eternal rest. Despite being in one of the ex-Soviet States, where central Asia gained of negativity, Uzbekistan grips its personal history and views it with an awe only seen before in Rome and Greece at their prime. In fact, it is one of the few countries whose history gives an insight into how its rulers and their people lived in times of peace and prosperity, but also war and unrest.

With these features, it is no miracle that Uzbekistan holds the crown into the amazing and awe-inspiring spectacle of the Amirs' era and the never-ending history of the Silk Road.