Monuments to visit Uzbekistan

the "Father's Gates", or western gates, were the main gates of the city. They housed a bazaar and also hosted money changers. Destroyed in 1920, they were restored in 1975 by the Soviets along with the walls on both sides. It is generally by these very photogenic doors, with their adobe brick towers enhancing the turquoise ceramics of the Kalta minor, the "short minaret", located just behind, that the tourists begin their visit of the old city and buy the tickets.

Perched on a hill, the walls of Chilpik Kala dominate the desert steppe. Before being a citadel, it was mainly a tower of silence: a place where the dead were deposited according to Zoroastrian rites. The corpses decomposed in the open air, and only the bones were then recovered by relatives. It was built between the 2nd and 4th centuries, but was still used in the following centuries. The site can be visited if you go to Noukous, from which it is perfectly visible, on the left side of the road.

Of this fortified city dating from the ^IXth-XIVth centuries there remain imposing sections of wall and part of the apartments of the dekhan. Like immense sculptures, they stand in the immensity of the banks of Amu Darya, dominating the desert on one side and the forest of Bala Tugai on the other. In section, we can appreciate the construction technique of the walls, made of earth and bricks between which were placed layers of straw. A solidity which did not save the citadel from destruction, but which allows its ruins to still stand seven centuries later. If you go there in August, you might be lucky enough to catch a glimpse of the citadel's sole occupants: eagles nesting between wooden poles protruding from the walls. The primary purpose of these poles was to hang the condemned. This is a truly beautiful desolation, which inspired the sculptor Joldasbek Kumimuratov, the most famous artist of Karakalpakia and Savitsky's companion, who wished to turn it into a city of artists. Dreams are what they are, and the ruins remained abandoned. If you pass someone in the fortress, ask about the black rock outcropping behind the walls in the center of the citadel. According to knowledgeable observers, it grows year by year to a thickness of about five fingers apart. One of the mysteries of the desert... Anyway, Djampik kala is certainly one of the most beautiful of all the citadels and deserves the detour to reach it.

The highest building in Central Asia (375 m) was designed to withstand earthquakes up to Richter scale index 9. Erected between 1978 and 1984, it was inaugurated on 15 January 1985, and dominates the whole city of Tashkent, offering a beautiful view of the surrounding mountains. One can go there to admire the landscape at bird's eye level or eat Uzbek cuisine in the highest restaurant in the city! In the entrance hall, the mosaics are absolutely magnificent, made of semi-precious stones and marble.

The palace of Grand Duke Nicolas, the cursed and exiled cousin of the tsar, dates from the 19th century and was transformed for a time into the Pioneers' Palace, then into the Museum of Antiquities and Jewellery. Today it houses the reception rooms of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and is the residence of the State's prestigious guests. The magnificent building can be seen very well from the outside. A central space open on three sides is flanked by wings extending to turrets, all in light-coloured brick and enhanced by a beautiful garden.

A first site surrounded by sections of wall is called Little Gouldoursoun. The great Gouldoursoun is 10 km away. The fortresses controlled and protected the irrigation canals. A legend tells how the daughter of the dekhan who ruled the city fell in love with one of the enemies who were besieging the city and how she betrayed her own people by letting the army enter the walls. The unfortunate woman was then abandoned by her lover and the city fell into the hands of the enemies. The same legend is told in Mizdakhan, the ancient city near Nukus.

" The doors of Pierre ", or gates of the south, built in 1830 by Alla Kuli Khan. Arrival point of caravans coming from the Caspian Sea. The place is often deserted today, offering an amazing spectacle, especially in low season.

The "house of meditation and contemplation" was built in the 13th century by a Muslim traveller who came to convert the local population to Islam. His descendants turned it into a madrasa, where the grandson of the Sufi sage taught, and where the grandson of Tamerlan's father was educated. For this reason, the emperor, upon the death of his father, decided to make it the burial place of the master and his disciple. The madrasa was enlarged and transformed, and the two mausoleums were covered by two domes. The complex was later completed by Ulugh Begh.

The-door covered market, the typical architecture of the shops located at the intersection of the shopping routes, was closed to the public at the time of our passage. It is expected to reopen its doors in the near future and host national souvenirs and crafts stands. In contrast, the new bazaar is cruelly lacking in charm. Again, it was not opened at the time of our passage but the locations for some fruit and vegetable stands were already marked. It is lined with empty shops that should surely host souvenirs and craft shops.

Before it was a caravanserai, the building housed a madrasa. In recent years, it hosted a carpet and clothing market where many backgammon players met all day. At the time of our visit, the caravanserai was being completely renovated. It has reopened and now hosts a restaurant (not the best in the country) and some traditional music concerts. Nothing exceptional.

This small khanaka built at the very beginning of the th century welcomed the dervishes. The small mosque is surrounded by cells where, at the beginning of the century, studied and lived des.

The square courtyard of the Abd-i-Daroun complex is a true haven of peace, ideal for prayer and for the rest of the tourist exhausted by the heat and the kilometres. In the centre of the courtyard, in the shade of a few century-old trees, a pool reflects the mausoleum, the cells of the khanaka welcoming pilgrims, and the iwan of the summer mosque. The mausoleum of the Seljuq Sultan Sanjar was built on the site of the tomb of Abd-al-Mazzeddin, a 9th century theologian. The room of the pyramid-roofed tomb is the oldest part and dates from the 12th century, the prayer room dates from the time of Oulough Begh, early 15th century. The façade is decorated with geometric motifs, mixing bare bricks and blue glazed bricks. The khanaka also dates from the time of Oulough Begh. The summer mosque with its iwan with its ceilings decorated with geometric and floral motifs dates from the end of the 19th century and has once again become a place of worship. Very beautiful and ancient carved marble tombstones are gathered near the wall at the entrance to the cemetery. The Abd-i-Daroun complex is often confused with the Abd-i-Biroun mausoleum located on the outskirts of the city. Daroun means inside - meaning the city walls - and biroun, outside. It is said that Abd-al Mazzedin was a holy man, an ascetic who served as a judge of the inner city. His father, Abd-i-Biroun, who was sitting in the antechamber at the entrance to the room where his son was officiating, was buried outside the city.

The Nadir-Divanbeg Madrasa and the Summer Mosque were built around the mausoleum of Khodja Akhrar, a Sufi of the Naqchbandi sect who was a political and spiritual leader in the late 15th century. This ascetic, to whom many miracles are attributed, is today again venerated with great fervour. As in the Madrasa of Chir Dor, tiger-lions, which do not conform to Muslim dogma, adorn the entrance gate. Near the basin, the small minaret dates from the beginning of the 20th century.

The bazaar of Ferghana is worth a detour: it is the largest and busiest bazaar in the Ferghana valley, at least in the Uzbek part of the valley. The atmosphere is at its most intense on Sundays and the din is most deafening under the covered area. Like many bazaars in Uzbekistan, products such as meat and fish are concentrated under a single glass hall, and clothing and textile vendors each have their own small shop. Around it, the atmosphere remains more authentic. Bread, fruit, vegetables, always skillfully arranged..

To the west, on the road between the bazaar and the madrasa, the remains of the walls of the fortress of Denau rise up. They form an open arc over the Bayuntao Mountains, which block the horizon and the river below. Leaving aside the palisade, the relocation is justified more for the view than for the ruins of the walls. The walls are indeed liquefied by the rains and crumbled by the passage of tourists, children or cattle, and it is difficult to imagine their original size and extent.

On the right as you enter the Tash Khauli Palace, a corridor leads to the courtroom, or ishrat khauli. The black coach on display at the end of the corridor is a gift from Nicholas II to his eastern vassal, Khiva's last khan, Asfandiar Khan. He was suffering from a shameful illness and his doctor, who was supposed to be in charge of him, told him that the only way to cure himself was to eat virgins... He used to travel around town in this carriage, which the inhabitants had nicknamed "the black death". The courtroom is a square courtyard flanked to the south by a one-column iwan with decorations just as admirable as those of the harem, still the work of Abdullah Djinn, the genius who also decorated the Pakhlavan Makhmoud mausoleum.

Two places for yurts made it possible to receive guests in winter. A maze of corridors leads to the courtroom, or arz khauli. And for those who have not admired the majolica of the iwan in the harem or the reception hall, those in the arz khauli offer a breathtaking catch-up session. The court had two exits, one for the acquitted, the other for the convicted. The khan sometimes received guests in a yurt placed on a brick elevation in the middle of the courtyard. At the back of the courtyard, a small door leads to dark galleries where doors and columns recovered from several Khiva monuments are displayed in a jumble.

Citadel in the heart of the inner city, Tash Khauli was built from 1831 to 1841. Behind high walls, the khan built this palace including an audience hall, the royal apartments and a harem. The Khorezm craftsmen were renowned for the quality of their decorations and their woodwork; the iwans of the harem, as well as those of the judgment hall and the audience hall, are the best illustration of their perfect mastery. From 1841, the "stone palace" became the main residence of the khan of Khiva.

«Giant doors», or eastern doors built between 1806 and 1835, are the oldest in the city. A vaulted passage to 6 domes leads to the old town. Left of the gates, facing Ichan kala, was the slave market. In a retreat, in the niches on each side of the corridor, the slaves who had tried to escape were chained while waiting for a fatal fate: it was in front of the market that the convicts were beaten or killed from 1840.

Armin Vambery tells how, during his visit in 1863, the surroundings of Khiva were populated by "khauli", which he describes as dwarf fortresses shaded by tall poplars and surrounded by fertile fields. Of these numerous mini-fortresses, only Chadra Khauli apparently remains, with its original architecture perfectly adapted to the unbearable heat of the summer months. A superimposition of iwan on three levels recovers all the draughts and makes it possible to monitor the surroundings as in a watchtower.

Located 2 km southwest of Uzs, the summer palace of Muhammad Rakhim khan was built at the end of the th century. It is a set of three courses subtly decorated with blue and so majoliques of iwan behind which are the apartments, as in the palaces of Ichan kala. The palace also features a summer mosque and a winter mosque. A large pool brought freshness to the whole. Although years old, the summer palace, like Nouroullah Bey's palace, is already equipped with European windows. Just next door, we visit the residence of Islam Khodja, with architecture that is also characterised by European influence.

These gates, the most impressive of the city, take their name from the village where the 1873 treaty was signed attaching the Khiva Khanate to the Russian Empire. They are located in Mustakillik street, next to the palace of Nurullah Bey. They consist of a single passage flanked by two more graceful turrets beautifully decorated with blue majolica. It is in fact a total reconstruction, made by the Soviets in the 1970s from archival documents.

Built in the 19th century, they are located in Palvan Kari street which starts from the eastern gates of Ichan kala. Although their architecture is reminiscent of the Ichan kala doors, their appearance is much more massive and free of any colourful decoration. Between Palvan Darvoza and Koi Darvoza stood a large bazaar where animals, horses, sheep, camels and slaves were sold. Even today, a bazaar is still held in Dichan kala, still very colourful, but fortunately the goods have changed.

Leaving Ichan kala through the east gate, the bazaar is on the left and two minarets stand in line with the gate. The first is the Sayyid Niyaz Shalikarbey Mosque. The complex was built between 1835 and 1845, making it one of the oldest minarets in Khiva. Its flared top, decorated with small niches carved into the structure to give relief to the decorations, resembles more the minarets of Registan in Samarkand than the other minarets of Khiva. A little further on, the Palvan Kari minaret yields 3 m to the first with a height of 21 m. More recently, it was erected in 1905 and is named after the rich merchant who undertook its construction and that of the adjacent madrasah and mosque. With a simpler architecture than the previous one, it seems more massive and its crownless imposing. Looking towards Ichan kala, one can see the impeccable alignment of the two minarets of Dichan kala with the minaret of the Friday Mosque in Ichan kala.

" Double doors ", or northern doors, built at the beginning of the th century.

Andijan's bazaar is reputed to be one of the largest and busiest in the region, especially on Sundays. It is only during the cotton harvest that its alleys remain deserted. The best thing to do is to come by late morning. You will then have plenty of time to get lost in the miles of stands. You will find absolutely everything you can imagine but it is especially the fabrics section that is worth the detour for those of you who wish to bring back adras and atlases at a good price. Here, as elsewhere, we negotiate dry.

To the east of the park, around the Mullah Kirghiz Madrasa, this bazaar is held every day, in a very oriental atmosphere. Sunday is the most vibrant market day, especially in the morning. There are no particular specialties in Namangan, but the bazaar is still a good place to find knives from the neighboring village of Chust, whose steel is very famous, as well as the know-how of the craftsmen. For the rest, one will find as everywhere else the stalls gathered by brotherhoods: bread, vegetables, meats, tools..