Samarkand, Feeling Great

I'm feeling very well here. Sleeping well, dreaming lots. No aches and pains, despite not doing yoga, mostly because there isn't enough floor space in my room. 

The weather during the day is hotter than I expected - in the high 20s. The temperature  goes down to low teens at night, so it is always comfortable for sleeping. 

I have suitable clothes for these temperatures, but I also have too many clothes for colder temps, and of course they take up a lot of space. With all the stuff I'm buying, my suitcase is bulging dangerously. 

Travelling in a group of 12 women is working out fine. We are mostly teachers and librarians, but we also have one pediatrician, one stay-at-home mum, and one woman who worked for the CIA!

This is my favourite snack- local walnuts and figs that I bought at the market very inexpensively.

Yesterday was another great day in and around Samarkand. We visited a workshop where they make paper from mulberry bark. This blouse is made of that paper. 

Here is a bit of the process.

An old Soviet vehicle, a "Moscowich 412"

Naturally dyed silk. I bought a blue skein, dyed with mulberry blossoms.

This woman is embroidering a suzani with all naturally dyed silk thread.

We ate at the home of that woman, and her husband, the potter. Their young sons, of 12 and 14 years, did all of the serving and clearing away. I was very impressed, because they seemed to have such a great attitude - no rolling eyes or muttering. 

They served mulberry jam to stir into our tea. What a great idea! It added a delightful flavour. 

We visited their pottery studio.

They also had grapes drying - making scrumptious raisins which were part of our lunch.

Completed pot above and just starting the pot, below (I am having trouble getting photos in the right spots)

We see lots of old Ladas.

The market is in the village of Urgut. Over those mountains, 120km to the south, is Afghanistan. 

This woman indicated with her fingers that she is 70, and was delighted to know that I am 71. She hugged me and said we are "padrugas", sisters. I bought the decoration she is holding.

This woman is demonstrating card weaving, which is used to make woven bands for trim, belts, etc. I bought some of that too.

Cynthia and her friend. Note the gold teeth. Maybe I should get that done, just on my two front teeth, the chiclet, and it's partner, which don't match very well.

The woman in the middle requested this photo. She was quite excited that everything I was wearing was red, and everything she was wearing was gold. 

Shoe repair. 

Check out these unique zippers. I was going to buy one, but they were so cheap, the guy just gave it to me. 

A fabric shop. Apparently people come from far and wide to buy fabrics for special occasions.

An Uzbeki dollar store. 10 000 som equals about $1.

Those same mountains, with Afghanistan on the other side.

One evening we ate at a cafe, which had the mist fabulous cakes.

I am gradually getting my eating under control. I don't have to taste EVERYTHING, nor eat everything that is served to me. Having always finished everything on my plate, it is a hard habit to break, but I'm doing it. Otherwise, I would have come home looking like an Uzbeki dumpling. 

In an hour or so we are taking the bullet train to Bukhara for more adventures. 

Samarkand, so far

We left Tashkent on the bullet train, arriving in Samarkand 2½ hours later. The terrain was quite flat, mostly farmland. We saw greenhouses, orchards, vineyards, mulberry trees for the silkworms. Uzbekistan is third in the world for silk production, cows, and crops for feeding the  animals. 

In a roundabout way, Vokzal (Vauxhall) has come to mean "railway station", due to a misunderstanding when Russian diplomats were visiting London. 

School children performing at the madrasa. That little girl could really belt it out.  

A photo shoot for a special occasion.

Lunch with our group. The food continues to be fantastic, and lots of variety. There is always delicious fresh bread of various types, usually served in flat round loaves. Then there are salads of beets, cucumber/ tomato, even a delicious bread salad. Sometimes soup - lentil is most common. Spicing is subtle, but delicious. Then when we think we can't eat more, comes the main course - shish kebab, or chicken, a lamb. Sometimes a type of baklava for dessert. To drink, lots of tea, sometimes fresh cherry juice, and last night we had a salted yogurt drink. 

Examples of bread at the Samarkand market.

More kite-flying.

My roommate, Theresa and I lucked out with a pretty fabulous room at our guesthouse.

View from our window. We hear doves in the morning, which have a more beautiful voice than doves at home.

Renamed coffees.

Three women who wanted photos with us. The woman on the left is one of many we've seen with a full set of gold teeth, but she's not showing them in the photo.

Modeling a fabulous embroidered coat. 

We visited the Ulugbek Observatory which was built in the 1420s by Mirzo Ulugbek, one of Timurlane's grandsons. He developed a very accurate sextant and astrolab. 

Our guide Mirza, is named after this guy,  Mirzo Ulugbek who developed the study of astronomy.

This is plov, the national dish. It has many variations, but this one has rice, lamb, veg (the yellow are sliced carrots) and quail eggs.

Visiting an award-winning silk carpet weaving studio - no child labour, very comfortable work conditions, decent pay, and bonuses for exemplary work.

Hanging silk to dry.

Undyed silk. 

Referring to the paper pattern for the very detailed design. 

There are over a thousand knotted silk threads per square centimetre in some of these carpets. Two in our group bought expensive carpets, which are being shipped home. I bought a smaller, simpler wool kilim. 

We went to an entertaining (but kind of cheesy) costume and dance performance.

This is Cynthia, our tour organizer, and Mirza, our tour guide.

This is poppy country.

We went to the village of Kokdala, to a small weaving place of woolen kilims, family run.

Woman weaving with natural colours of wool. She is comfortable straddling the warp, unsupported!

This 11 year old girl goes to school in the morning, and weaves in the afternoon. She said she enjoys weaving.

Grandma is spinning wool on a drop spindle.

The tapestry style looms are made of rebar.

Adobe type buildings, with coorugated metal roofs, held down with rocks (same as in Bhutsn)

Woman teasing wool for spinning.

Three of the young weavers.

Tomb of Timurlane:

Outside a shop, this little girl was very serious about her food preparation. 

One more day of Samarkand coming up.