Adkhamjon Janobiddinov
Located in Central Asia, the Republic of Uzbekistan is very famous for its beautiful culture and ancient history. While deciding on a travel destination, people think about different factors, some people like enjoying beautiful nature, while others are keen on historical places. In this article, we shall discuss 7 reasons why Uzbekistan should be your next travel destination.
Fascinating Architecture: Uzbekistan is very famous for its ancient mosques, madrasas and mausoleums. Visitors can see different architectural monuments constructed in different eras. For instance, Timurid architectural monuments in Samarkand and Shakhrisabz. Samarkand was the capital of the Timurid Empire. There are many beautiful historical monuments in the city that date back to the Timurid era. Furthermore, tourists can enjoy visiting historical monuments built under Khiva Khanate in Khiva city, or other constructions from the Emirate of Bukhara. Since, cities in Uzbekistan were on the Silk Road route, they were quite developed both economically and architecturally.
Khiva city, Uzbekistan
Colorful Culture: Uzbekistan is known as one of the most diverse countries of the world. More than 130 ethnic groups and nations are living happily as one family in the country. Beautiful Uzbek traditions, traditional costumes really fascinate foreign tourists. Holidays like Navruz are celebrated across the country. Hospitality is a big part of Uzbek culture. Aforementioned, Uzbekistan was located in the heart of the Silk Road. It hosted numerous passing caravans. Therefore, hospitality has become natural for Uzbek people. People are very traditional, still many people prefer to shop in bazaars rather than supermarkets. I would highly recommend visiting some of the famous Uzbek bazaars like Chorsu bazaar in Tashkent or Siab bazaar in Samarkand. You will surely be impressed to see the atmosphere there.
Amazing Nature: For nature lovers, there are lots of mountainous and beautiful destinations to travel. For instance, Charvak Reservoir is very famous as “the pearl of Tien Shan Mountains” and Aydar lake is a nice place to spend time. Nuratau Mountains, Urgut Mountains, Pulatkhan Plateau and Zaamin National Park are best places for those who are passionate about visiting mountainous places. Furthermore, Kyzyl-kum desert is a nice place to experience nomadic life: riding a camel and staying in yurts. The Aral Sea, which was once the 4th largest lake in the world, is visited by many tourists annually. Tourists can do fishing, visit ship graveyards and enjoy the beauty of the Aral region.
Photo: Kyzylkum Desert
Delicious Food. Every single country has its own traditions, and national dishes are one of the most important parts of a nation’s customs. There are a million types of foods around the globe but it is hard to find one which tastes like Uzbek food. In most parts of Uzbekistan, especially in rural areas, people eat at home. However, in the main cities there is a growing restaurant culture, and plenty of places to eat out. The popularity of Uzbek food is growing abroad, too, and in most Asian countries there are Uzbek restaurants now. Plov is the most famous Uzbek food. It is similar to Indian biryani, and is made of rice, meat, and carrot. In Tashkent, there is a place called the Plov Center. This is where the largest amount of plov is made each day. Manti, chuchvara, norin, lagman…there are many more types of dishes in Uzbekistan. Every Uzbek food has a different taste It is hard to imagine Uzbek food without Uzbek bread. There are a lot of types of bread in Uzbekistan, all of them are so tasty!
Handicrafts: Handicrafts are a big part of Uzbek culture, even in 2019 “The first International Kokand Handicrafters Festival” was held in the city of Kokand. The festival brought the most talented artisans from all over the world and let them show their work to their colleagues and Uzbek people. Silk weaving, ceramics, carpet making, paper making, embroidery are main crafts in the country. In Uzbekistan, each region has different types of crafts. For instance, Samarkand paper is very famous, Ferghana Valley is famous for its blue ceramics and silk weaving.
Ancient Settlements: For those who are passionate about how people lived in the past, ancient cities, there are many archaeological settlements across the country that date back to ancient times. Visitors can see how cities were developed and the earliest examples of architecture. For instance, Afrasiab hills in Samarkand, Kyzyltepa settlements in Surkhandarya where the first temple was built or Sarmish-say gorge.
Soviet Architecture: As we know, Uzbekistan is considered as one of the post-Soviet countries and there are still a lot of buildings from the Soviet era. For instance, Massive Hotel “Uzbekistan ” in Tashkent. Also, the marvelous Tashkent metro was built during the Soviet era. It is known as the first metro in Central Asia and each station has its own unique beauty, architecture. In Karakalpakstan, there is a museum called “Savitskiy ” (Nukus Museum of Art), it was established in 1966 and the museum has about 90000 items, mostly paintings and archeological objects and other artifacts that talk about Karakalpak culture. Thus, tourists can also enjoy exploring Soviet buildings in Uzbekistan.
– The writer is a citizen of Republic of Uzbekistan and can be reached at thisisadhamjon@gmail.com
