Thursday, May 23, 2024

Samarkand














Morning train ride to Samarkand. There were Indians on the train eating makhana, made me miss India. I guess the kids felt the same because as we got off and were heading to lunch they requested Indian food . We were in luck as there was a 5 star rated Indian restaurant right next door , Dostana . I think it’s the longest Savik has gone without eating Indian food, he was so happy. I wanted to decease the rating as it took a very long time for the food to arrive and then we got the wrong order but Savik loved it all and said to give it 5 stars! I don’t think he can give anything less than 5 stars, it stresses him .

Then we walked around a park where heading to an Orthodox Church which is back to functioning as a church after independence. Savik drank water from the water station, Jeevan then used Google translate for the sign next to it - it was holy water. Savik instead of feeling blessed felt his throat was tightening up! Aanya drank some too after that for the blessings.


We then explored the nearby university areas, interesting statues, leafy walkways and colourful fountains before heading for some ice cream . 

There are so many mulberry trees along the way, laden with fruit free for picking. The only hard thing is when you pull a branch down so many rain down on you and the ground. We saw a family put a large scarf down to catch them all, clever!


We continued exploring and passed the memorial for tigers - two gigantic tiger statues in memory of tigers that roamed Central Asia but are now extinct in the region.


Last stop Registan square, it’s jaw dropping beautiful. Majestic in size, intricate in design and colour and had us looking at it in awe. We sat on the stairs for ages just admiring it. Unfortunately for us there is an event occurring on the 26th so the centre is marred with a stage and screens . We will be back here tomorrow for an in depth review with a guide. 


While sitting on the stairs and walking around we have been asked for so many photos with the locals. They love Bollywood movies thereby love Indians ! Feeling very much like celebrities.

We ended the night at a restaurant that had the best service, Dostana could definitely learn from from them. We were seated by a waiter who spoke English, soon after getting the menus a waitress came to help us translate and shortly after food arrived. Delicious and speedy, no wonder the place was filled with locals and tourists .  

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