Day 8 (July 6, 2023): Samarkand

We woke up this morning and were, like, “Uh, we are in Uzbekistan.  Pinch me to make sure it’s real!”

First things first, in case you need a refresher on exactly where this “stan” is located (as we certainly did), it’s a land-locked country right in the heart of ‘stan territory.  The capital is Tashkent, in the east of the country, near the Kazakh border, and the country’s population is 35 million, just shy of Canada’s population.  It was under Soviet rule until August 31, 1991.

We were at breakfast in the Courtyard by Marriott hotel, as soon as the restaurant opened at 6:30AM and, after a quick bite, hopped in a cab to the main train station to get the Afrosiyab (the name of Uzbek’s high-speed and ultra-modern fast train service), which pulled out at 7:28AM sharp and arrived in Samarkand exactly on time at 9:36AM.  What a stunning ride!

We checked into the brand-new Hilton Garden Inn shortly after (thankfully, they let us check in early, which is rare in this part of the world) and we slept for an hour before heading out.  We had an objective of visiting Samarkand’s top three sights today, and we managed to hit them all:  (1) the Registan; (2) Bibi-Khanym Mosque; (3) Gur-e-Amir Mausoleum; and the Shah-i-Zinda.

The worry about visiting Uzbek has been the extreme summer heat, with temps that can routinely hit the mid-40s and higher.  But today hovered around 30, and there was often a breeze, so it was perfect for getting around.  The dress here is uber conservative.  Most women either wear traditional Islamic dress or else a dress that falls beneath the knees.  And shorts for men are almost unheard of.  So a long skirt for Pam and long pants for me, were the order of the day.

To position Uzbekistan among the neighbouring ‘stans.

Tashkent’s beautiful train station.  And talk about clean!  We have never seen such a litter-free city and a spotless station and train.

The Afrosiyab, Uzbek’s modern high-speed train.

Our first-class seats were $14 each.  Imagine!  And talk about spotlessly clean, incredibly comfortable, wonderful service.

And we were even served a snack. Ahem, notice the brand name on the coffee package.

These mountains mark the border with Tajikistan, to the south of Uzbekistan.

Typical agricultural land and views along the two-hour route from Tashkent to Samarkand.

Rolling into Samarkand.  

The Samarkand train station.

The very new Hilton Garden Inn…

…where, yet again, we were met with amazing perks and kindness, including this refreshment tray as a welcome gift to go along with our upgraded room.

The view of residential Samarkand from our hotel window.  Note the line of seemingly never-ending apartment blocks in the distance.

When you book a taxi with the Yandex Go app in Uzbekistan, you get a notice that your cab will be a (insert car colour) with licence plate # such-and-such.  Well, the problem is, literally 80% of the cars here are white!  So it can be like finding a needle in a haystack.

The Registan:

Our first stop of the day was the piece-de-resistance of all of Central Asia:  The Registan, which is perhaps more impressive than the Taj Majal.  “Registan” translates to “sandy place” in the Tajik language.  It contains three buildings called “medressas”, all of which have taken knocks from numerous earthquakes.  From left to right:  Ulugbek Medressa (the original building, completed in 1420);  Tilla-Kari (‘gold-covered’) Medressa (completed in 1660);  and Sher Dor (‘lion’) Medressa (completed in 1636).

Close-up view of the Ulugbek Medressa.

Close-up view of the Tilla-Kari (‘gold-covered’) Medressa.

Close-up view of the Sher Dor (‘lion’) Medressa.  Further below, you will see the lions above the arch, hence the name.

For comparison, this is what the Registan looked like in the 1930s.  One good thing the Soviets did was to restore it to its original glory.

The amazing dome of the Tilla-Kari (‘gold-covered’) Medressa.

The interior beams of the Ulugbek Medressa.

A huge Quoran written in calligraphy, inside the Ulugbek Medressa.

These interpretive figures show the importance of the study of astronomy at the Ulugbek Medressa.



The lions above the entrance to the Sher Dor Medressa.

One last view of the Registan, from the outside gardens.

We took advantage of a costume opportunity at the Registan to have some fun!


Newlyweds, having their photo taken at the Statue of Islam Karimov, first President of the Uzbekistan Republic.  He led the country out of Soviet rule from 1989 until his death in 2016.

Bibi Khanym Mosque:

The Bibi Khanym Mosque is another of the top sites in Samarkand.  It was once one of the Islamic world’s largest mosques, which pushed contemporary construction techniques to the limit.  It partially collapsed in an earthquake in 1897, but was rebuilt by the Soviets in 1970.

Main gate of the mosque.

Enormous marble Quoran in the courtyard of the mosque complex. Local folklore has it that any woman who crawls under this will have lots of children.

Calligraphy adorns the interior of one of the buildings in the complex.

The Bibi Khanym Mosque from a distance, to show its size.

The state of the Bibi Khanym Mosque in the 1930s.

Pam was hopefully to get a ride on this camel to beat the heat.

Bibi Kahnym Mausoleum, built in the 14th century, home to five tombs.

Mausoleum to Islam Karimov, Uzbekistan’s first president.

Shah-i-Zinda:

Our last stop of the day was the amazing Shah-i-Zinda mausoleum complex.  It is one of the most sacred sites in Uzbekistan.  As you can see from the map below, if it essentially an avenue lined in the most intricate and beautiful mausoleums.  There are a total of 44 tombs here.

The steps to the start of the Shah-i-Zinda avenue.

What follows are photos of some of the mausoleum which impressed us the most.

Note the intricate design of the mausoleum.  Yet, the tomb itself, as was the case throughout the complex, is very plain.

For the common person, burial is quite simple, as per the cemetery adjacent to the Shah-i-Zinda.

We had a wonderful dinner at the Hilton’s restaurant.  Pam had veal in mushroom sauce, on a bed of creamed potato, and I had a sesame chicken with vegetables.  And, of course, some Uzbek dumplings called ‘manti’ to start!