[SAMARQAND] Budget and Itinerary

THURSDAY: 18 May 2023

126*FA (Bukhara - Samarkand) - 90,240.00

Hostel Heartland (2 Nights) - 274,584.24

Yandex (Train Station - Downtown) - 15,500.00

Ani Market (Groceries) - 30,000.00

UZS410,324.24

[SAMARKAND] Registan and Necropolis

I liked Samarkand more than Bukhara, and I don’t know why. I mean, both are captivating alright but perhaps it is Samarkand’s versatility that I admire? Tashkent is all modern with some hints of its Soviet past. Bukhara, on the other hand, is old. Like, you guys adjust to it being old rather than the other way around. Samarkand feels like it is happy to compromise and wants to prove that it can be both. My first impression of the city was just the right blend of Tashkent and Bukhara.

[BUKHARA] Budget and Itinerary

MONDAY: 15 May 2023

Uzbekistan Airways (Tashkent - Bukhara) - 552,599.47

AirBNB (3 Nights) - 782,558.69

Yandex (Airport - Downtown) - 13,500.00

Alkoshop (Groceries) - 103,000.00

Halva Café (Grilled Chicken w/ Fried Rice + Coke) - 93,150.00

UZS1,544,808.16

[BUKHARA] Hello, Silk Road

Bukhara has always been expected to be the highlight of this Uzbekistan itinerary. Tashkent fulfilled the expectation of being the capital city with all the creature comforts and modern vibes. That’s why I thought that Bukhara would no longer surprise me, yet it still did. It has been a pleasant surprise, though, because it does live up to its reputation of being a city museum of sorts, where much of the wonders of the ancient Silk Road seem to have been preserved and manage to coexist with modernity.

[TASHKENT] Budget and Itinerary

SATURDAY: 13 May 2023

Uzbekistan Airways (Almaty - Tashkent) - 1,258,308.47

AirBNB (2 Nights) - 687,976.20

Ucell (SIM + 20 GB) - 50,000.00

Yandex (Airport - Downtown) - 15,500.00

Big Star (Groceries) - 42,630.00

MeatMe (Carbonara + Pepsi) - 140,000.00

UZS2,194,414.67

[TASHKENT] Welcome to the Capital

I was expecting Tashkent to be yet another Soviet era fossil, pretty much like Bishkek, but what I got was something halfway between Almaty and Astana. I guess this is the direction most ex-CIS capitals take, which is to beef up the city with grandiose monuments and buildings which is perhaps just the right thing to do to flaunt that post-commie progress. Unlike Bukhara and Samarkand, though, the city has lost most of its Silk Road related historical sites to an earthquake that leveled it in the 60’s.