Bukhara, Uzbekistan

The Lonely Planet said you need two full days to see Bukhara, so we were excited about our second day, given that our first day was pretty cool.

First, though, we went back to our favourite viewing spot for pics of Kalon Minaret with the morning sun. Had a tea to justify going into the restaurant.

Chatted with a couple traveling with two young kids. They were going east to west through the Silk Road cities (the more common direction) and said that after seeing the Registan in Samarkand, the size of the structures in Bukhara was a little less impressive, although still cool to see. So, maybe it’s lucky that we’re going west to east (a result of us visiting Turkmenistan first).

Many of the tourists we’ve seen have been local or from the region. We haven’t seen too many foreign tourists, just a few groups from France, Germany, Spain, and Russia. Of the more independent foreign travellers, we’re starting to see the same people in town to town, which is also common in countries where there’s a gringo trail that everyone follows.

After our tea overlooking the Kalon, we walked to the sites just east of our hotel. We passed through the main square, Lyabi-Hauz, where most of the hotels are clustered. It’s accessible by bus which makes it easier for tour groups. The Amelia Boutique Hotel is in the middle of these hotels. It was our first choice when we booked back in December, but it was full. Based on the location, though, we’re glad we didn’t get in, and instead ended up at Komil’s.

The route to Char Minor, the main site on our list today, was through winding residential alleys. About five minutes in, we arrived at Char Minor and were surprised at how small it was. It had historical significance as a gatehouse to a former medressa (although compared with some of the other sites here, it wasn’t overly impressive). It was nice, but I wouldn’t rate it in the top four things not to miss in Bukhara, as the Lonely Planet does.

By now it was 11am, and we had seen all that we wanted to see in Bukhara. We still had the rest of the day and most of tomorrow to kill, as our train for Samarkand wasn’t out until late afternoon. Tomorrow’s forecast for Samarkand called for sun and then rain for the next few days. So, we decided to book a taxi for early morning the next day so that we’d have the afternoon of good weather in Samarkand.

Had lunch at a random place close to the second covered bazaar. It was one of the better restaurants we’ve eaten in Uzbekistan (and I don’t even know what it was called :( ).

Then, we did some souvenir shopping, grabbed a double espresso on a patio and people watched, and generally whiled away the afternoon. Made a reservation for 8pm at Minzifa (the place we couldn’t get into a couple nights ago).

Towards 7pm, walked by the clothing store to pick up Heather’s order, and then on to the Kalon Minaret for a beer and our last view of the square. It was busier this evening (a big tour group from Spain also discovered the spot!), but we got the last table on the top floor patio.

After sunset, walked over to Minfiza for dinner. It was still packed at 8pm. The food was pretty good.

Got back home and packed up as we were leaving early the next morning for Samarkand.