DISCOVER UZBEKISTAN

Hello my loves! I couldn't be more excited to share this post with you, Uzbekistan is such a beautiful country and I hope this post inspires you to pack your bags and take a trip there for yourself!

SAMARKAND

Dan and I spent a total of 6 days in Uzbekistan. We covered Tashkent, Samarkand, Bukhara and Khiva. We flew with Uzbekistan Airways from Singapore to Tashkent and the flight time was a total of 8 hours 5 minutes! From Tashkent, we took a train to Samarkand and it was time to explore! These ancient cities are listed as UNESCO World Heritage sites. We headed to Registan for the first day. Registan is soooo beautiful. The madrasahs, minarets and mausolems are so intricately built, some are still in restoration up till today.

Registan

 Pictured above is the Ulugh Beg Madrassah, it was one of the best universities built in 1417.

Registan has many courtyards, and we stayed till evening time to watch the lights come on. It was a completely different scene during the night, Registan Square closes at 8pm and I recommend staying till then!

Shah-I-Zinda

The Shah-I-Zinda is a necropolis that is still in continuous construction till today, it is one of the oldest historic sights in the world. The tilework is literally nothing I've seen before, I was completely speechless the whole time I was there.  The earliest mausolems date back to the 11th - 12th centuries, with only some of their foundations and tombstones surviving.

Gur-e-Amir

Our last morning in Samarkand, we headed to Gur-e-Amir to check out the architecture. This was a mausolem built in 1404. The tilework and the dome are particlarly beautiful, can you believe it's still so well conserved after all these years? As we had a train to Bukhara, we didn't go in to explore.

BUKHARA

Abdulaziz Khan Madrasah

 K.Komil Bukhara Hotel

 Can you believe that this is a hotel? We stayed here for a night and it was very affordable. K.Komil Hotel is also very near all the places we wanted to visit. Score! 

Chor-Minor Madrasah

Minutes walk from our hotel was the Chor-Minor Madrasah, you can pay to go up or you can just walk around it, inside the doorway entry is a little souvenir stall.

Miri-Arab Madrasah

Every Madrasah seems the same but they're ever so different, it doesn't get old exploring. Uzbekistan is extremely safe and the locals are the friendliest and kindest human beings ever. Even though they speak very little English (they speak in Uzbek and Russian), they will still try and have a conversation with you to find out where you're from and tell you more about their little shop. And while you're there, please take the time to get some plates! They're too pretty to resist that I ended up bringing home 15 plates. Every plate should have a signature behind it, as it is signed by the master who made them.

We only had a day in Bukhara before our 7 hour car ride to Khiva. On our way from Bukhara to Khiva, we drove by a massive sunflower field and we had to stop for photos. It is my first time seeing a sunflower field so you can only imgaine my excitement!

We stopped by 2 ancient fortresses along the way, Ayaz-Kala and Toprakkala.

And after 7 hours, we finally made it to Khiva! Khiva was our last stop before heading back to Tashkent to catch our flight home.

KHIVA

 Orient Star Hotel

We spent the last night watching the beautiful sun set over Khiva. Dan and I felt so sad when our trip was coming to an end, Uzbekistan made a huge impression on us and it will always hold a special place in our hearts!

And while you're still here, do watch our Uzbekistan video and don't forget to subscribe! 

Love, 

Amelyn