Shakrisabz Uzbekistan:
The House of Timur
I’ve been to Shakrisabz before, but with a new camera and lots of free time in Uzbekistan I thought it might be worth a go. Then I saw a magazine article about the Katta Langar mausoleum outside of town, and I was sold.
Shakrisabz is famous (in Uzbekistan) as the birthplace of Timur, once the conqueror of most of Central Asia.
Shakrisabz is also, it seems, famous as a photo-op for newly married couples in front of the giant Timur statue in the center of town.
Like so many old cities in Uzbekistan, the architecture is amazing.
Old Timurid mosque, mausoleums, and minarets galore.
The superstar of the show, though, is just behind that giant Timur statue. The ruler’s old palace has mostly disappeared to time and development, but two walls of the main entryway still tower over the town.
Of course, if all that architecture gets you down: a man’s gotta eat! As always in Uzbekistan, there’s a great colorful market full of smelly spices and friendly faces.
Uzbekistan… another beautiful country worth visiting.
I needs more exposure, for sure. Its legendary old cities have jaw-opening beautiful sites.
Oddly, Uzbekistan probably gets the most tourists of any country in Central Asia. They’re the most visible here, at any rate, geriatric Germans and Italians being whisked one tour busses from one ancient city to the next. I think backpackers would love it more than they expect, though. Culturally this is one of my favorites countries to wander through anywhere in the world.
props for taking the path less traveled.
was there last year. would def revisit
I live just one country over from Uzbekistan, but it feels as if I haven’t been there in ages! Perhaps its time to get a visa and head back that way sometime in the next few months?
lol “1 country over” can be many diff places, considering UZ is 1 of only 2 doubly-landlocked countries in the world.
tadjikistan?
yeah man.. nothing beats the UZ tomatoes and huge mulberries. shit.. almost forgot about the best dish of all.. naryn horse meat broth!
Don’t forget the cherries! Dear me, the fresh cherries, a bag from the bazaar every afternoon and none left by nightfall.
Nope re: Tajik, I’m in Bishkek.
true that.
pretty good korean style dog meat stew too.
any good horse meat foods in kirgistan?
Couple of different dishes that use it, but for my money the horse sausage is the best of them. You never made it through Kyrgyzstan while you were in the region, then?
oh казы is the shiznit! though ive become meatless since i visited.
no, i just did a quick 3 day jaunt to see a friend in tashkent, with a side-trip to samarkand; on my way from the philippines to russia.. with a 2 hour visit to beijing.
BUT.. for whats its worth (nothing), there are THREE kirgiz restaurants in chicago. went to 1.. awful beyond repair. happens. but the food was all uzbek, except for like 2 dishes.
I think must me a points/miles traveler, with a route like that. There’s meant to be a good Tajik chaikana in Denver or Boulder or some major city in Colorado, but the only decent Central Asian food I’ve ever personally had in the US was the stuff I cooked myself!
guilty. that was some of my finest mileage work. crossed both oceans. made countless memories.
well.. the undisputed epicenter of central asian food (of which uzbek is by FAR, for various reasons, the most dominant) is in queens, NY.. aka Buharlem.
“tandoori” on 99-04 63rd road has a REAL tandoor. samsa. lagman.
“salut”, 2 blocks away, has sheep testicle kebabs… pretty good. at least not any worse than the sheep dick wrapped around a skewer uyghur street food in beijing.
i could go on forever
I haven’t made any good mileage plays in years. I’m tempted by Korean being able to book Garuda now, I’ve had East Timor in the back of my mind for years and that seems like an easy way to get over there.
I shouldn’t be surprised to hear things like this exist in NY, but constantly am. I bet sheep ball shashlyk wouldn’t be terrible if cooked correctly.
count me in for timor leste & west papua if youre looking for a proverbial partner in crime. id like more exposure to SE asia & oceania. did the andaman sea & north cambodia this past may.
yeah, big boohar jewish community in queens. good balls. just keep in mind theyre closed on saturdays if you do plan a visit.
find me on spacebook if youd like.. facebook.com/casanovik