ONWARDS TO BUKHARA

19th - 21st Apr 2025

Yes, you're telling me! More mosques, madrassas, minarets and mausoleums!

Off on the 19th in a 20 carriage train from Samarkand for the 2.5hr journey west (250km) to Bukhara. The weather in Samarkand had turned wet, cold and miserable. A good time to escape! Again, the information in the station was non-existent, the sign-boards were not working and, again, the rather dour 'functionaries' (with a particularly bolshy lady at the ticket desk) on duty were abrupt and unhelpful (in contrast to those at all other local amenities). All the 'bolshies' must get sent to run the railway stations. Fortunately I found a helpful Russian tour guide who guided me and a couple of equally baffled Italian tourists to the correct platform.

The journey was perfectly comfortable and with only one intermediate stop at Navoi. We arrived at the town of Kagan, the local station about 15kms east of Bukhara town, at 12.15pm where the weather was also a bit grim. I could have used my useful Yandex-Go app to get a taxi, but was offered a lift by two Russians in their taxi which was (almost) equally cost effective. The journey into Bukhara was down a straight road bordered by very ugly monolithic Soviet style buildings. After dropping off the Russians I arrived at my hotel, a small and delightful place called 'Hotel Yasmin', conveniently situated in the 'old town' area amongst a maze of quaint narrow streets and was greeted by the charming and most helpful manageress, Zarina. She was a star!....and a decent room with all mod-cons for about £30pn, breakfast included. The interesting thing about all these places, and many other establishments, is that the front doors are always unlocked and the foyer here was often unattended with no sign of 'surveillance' or alarms. The staff tended to stay in the kitchen area at the back of the central courtyard. Plenty of 'stuff' could have been stolen (and probably would have been if in UK), but this doesn't seem to happen in this country. They are a trusting and trustworthy lot!

A very basic map of the 'old' town.

After a decent meal in a small local restaurant (Old Barn Restaurant) I took a wander. 

This town, another stop on the 'Silk Road', is a tourist magnet. Many tourists, mostly on 'guided tours', come from Russia, Italy (especially), and other European countries including UK. 

Right: The Lyabi-Hauz (Hauz means 'pool'), a central plaza built around the pool, with swans and fountain and is surrounded by restaurants and mulberry trees. In olden days these pools, and there were many of them then but not now, and canals provided drinking water, washing facilities and places to gather and gossip. The water wasn't changed often in those days and consequently plagues and water-borne diseases were rife. The average 19th century Bukharian is said to have died by the age of 32 (I read)! I dined here on a few occasions.

Left: By the side of the pool is a curious statue of some giant riding a donkey. Or maybe it is just a small donkey? It attracted people, normally children, to climb on and sit in the saddle.

Right: Tourist street signs, as in many Uzbek cities, are sponsored by Coca-Cola!

There is a tourist information 'shack' near the Lyabi-Hauz which proved particularly useless.

Shown below, in no particular order, are some of the places I visited.  All of them are within easy walking distance around the Old Town area. Left: The Maghok-i-Attar, Central Asia's oldest surviving mosque and, supposedly, the town's holiest spot. This survived the Mongol invasion by being buried in sand. It was only dug out in the 1930s. It now also houses a museum displaying 'Bukhara' carpets. Actually, with an entrance fee, it didn't look particularly interesting so I didn't bother going in.

Right: The area outside features the excavations of the 12th century town which have been deliberately left exposed.

Left: All around the streets and alleyways are the ubiquitous stalls and markets selling 'stuff for tourists'; carpets, clothes, jewellery, hats, pottery etc. I really don't know how they all manage to sell enough to make a profit.

Right: I can't recall why this group of children assembled to have their photo taken!

Left: Impeccably dressed schoolchildren watching a lady make and paint little models.

Right: More colourfully attired ladies about town.

Left: The Kalon Minaret, and attached mosque. This magnificent minaret (155ft high) was built in 1127 by the ruler at the time and features 30ft of reeds stacked underneath as primitive 'anti-earthquake' proofing. It seems to have worked as many other buildings in the area were destroyed by various earthquakes. Genghis Khan was so impressed by this minaret that he ordered it spared while his troops ransacked the rest of the city. It was somewhat damaged by Soviet General Funze's 'Red Army' artillery in 1920, as was much else in the city, but subsequently restored (hence noticeable patches).

Right: The entrance to The Arc, at the north-west of the Old Town. This fortress was a royal 'town within a town' and occupied by the Emirs of Bukhara from the 5th century up until 1920 when it was bombed almost flat by the Red Army. It is about 80% in ruins but several impressive 'rooms' have been restored near the entrance area.

Left: There is a walkway around the mostly derelict upper fortified walls, affording good views over the city.

Right: Including, of course, the inevitable souvenir stalls...

Many of the important rooms such as the royal apartments, stables, the harem quarters, coronation court have been restored, plus displays of important artefacts such as a giant whip and the original padlock used to secure the Ark gates. Too many photos to show here.

Left: The 'Throne Room' featuring the recently ennobled 'new' Emir of Bukhara with his ceremonial sword. A proud moment!

Right: The place was surrounded by tourist buses.

Nearby is the once infamous Zindon prison. Left: This has a display of instruments of restraint and torture.

Right: A photo of two Englishmen; Colonel Charles Stoddart and Captain Arthur Conolly. This makes for an interesting story. I copy it at length.

In 1839 Colonel Charles Stoddart arrived in Bukhara on a mission to to reassure the Emir Nasrullah Khan over Britain's invasion of Afghanistan. But his superiors, underestimating the Emir's vanity and megalomania, sent him with no gifts, and with a letter not from Queen Victoria (whom Nasrullah regarded as an equal sovereign) but from the Governor-General of India. To compound matters, Stoddart violated local protocol by riding, rather than walking, up to the Arc. This  piqued Nasrullah who threw him into jail where he was to spend most of his time at the bottom of the so-called 'bug pit', a 25ft deep well, in the company of assorted rodents, scorpions, cockroaches, other scaly creatures, lice and much 'ordure'. Plenty of 'rations' then?

Captain Conolly was despatched in 1841 to try to secure Colonel Stoddart's release, but the paranoid Emir, believing it to be part of a British 'plot', tossed Conolly in jail too. In June 1842 after the disastrous British retreat from Kabul (reminiscent of the recent US/UK debacle!), convinced that Britain was now a second-rate power and having received no reply to an earlier letter sent to Queen Victoria, he had both men executed. They were dragged out of the bug-pit and, in front of a large crowd, to the sound of drums and reed pipes from atop the fort, they were made to dig their own graves before being beheaded. 

Despite public outrage back in England, the British government chose to let the matter drop. Furious friends and relatives raised enough money to send their own emissary, an oddball clergyman named Joseph Wolff, to Bukhara to verify the news (he must have been either very brave or very stupid). According to a historian, Wolff himself only escaped death because the Emir thought him hilarious dressed up in his full clerical regalia!

I am impressed by the way these folk managed to travel and communicate over such vast distances without the aid of modern systems. London to Bukhara is 5099kms as the crow flies (see notice in tower below).

Left: The infamous deep 'bug-pit' which has been preserved (minus the wildlife) below this grating. Not the most comfortable accommodation and with few mod-cons. There are some coins at the bottom. I was worried I might drop my phone down it!

Right: Back on the 'square' in front of the Arc I decided to give this camel (a Bactrian GTX?) a test drive. 

Left: I also tried this 'mini' version. Not so satisfactory. More hair than substance. I was loaned the furry hat.

Right: Built in 1718, the 'functioning' Bolo-Hauz mosque, opposite the Arc's gate, which was the Emirs' place of worship.

Left: Along the front of this mosque are very elaborately carved wooden pillars. There is a decent café behind which I made use of.

Right: Near this is what was the water tower which supplied the Arc. It has now been converted into a 'viewing' platform with a lift to take you up to the platform, and a restaurant on the floor above that. 

Left: A view of the Arc from the tower.

Right: ....and over the city to the south.

Left: and a 'useful' sign on the edge of the platform, looking west, to tell you how far you are from London.

Right: To the west of this is a large 'amusement' park featuring all the usual stuff, ie. big wheel, roundabouts, dodgems etc.

Left: On the eastern edge of this park is the Ismail Samani Mausoleum. This, completed in 905 AD, is the town's oldest Muslim monument and, according to my guide book, one of its most 'architecturally interesting' with walls over 2m thick. It houses the remains of  Ismail Samani, the founder of the Samanid Dynasty, plus his father and grandson. It was subsequently buried under silt before being resurrected by the Soviets in the 20th century.

Right: The catafalque inside. Plus cleaning lady. How interesting!?

Left: Further to the west is a large lake. Partly surrounding the northern side of the park are what remains of the ancient outer city walls....some of which are being restored.

There are so many more mosques, mausoleums and madrassas and I will try only to feature those of significant interest!

There are no 'Oirish Bears' that I have discovered so far! 😒

More to follow from Bukhara when I get my act together........stand-by.