Silk Road Trekking Dispatch
August 1, 2009 – The Entire Team is Together on Ancient Streets of Samarkand
Now just one day before we depart for the Tajik border and the adventures that wait for us on the other side, our entire team is finally together. Jim Slattery arrived by train from Tashkent in the morning. Alex Zuazo has also joined up with us. In addition 16 BAI mountain staff arrived by bus from Tashkent this afternoon. Tomorrow our entire contingent will drive to the border, clear customs and immigration together and make our way to the Fann Mountains. By my best count now these are the passports that we will present to Tajik officials at the border: Canada, United States, United Kingdom, Holland, Spain, Australia, Uzbekistan, Russia.
For today we had one more day of fascination and learning along the Silk Road. Our hotel is at the center of ancient Samarkand sites, across the street from the statue of Tammerlane, the national hero of Uzbekistan. The architecture, space, people of this city kept us fascinated as we walked about with Rustom and Alex. Back at the hotel our duffel bags with mountain gear waited in our rooms for final organization, but the fabled sites of Samarkand kept us out all day.
The geometry of Samarkand captivates
The streets are quiet, a few local people, no international tourists other than us.
We began our day with a visit to the observatory of
Uleg Beg, the 15th century “Astronomer King”
In shady spots, Rustom continued his lectures, stories and anecdotes that have enlightened us so greatly these past days.
Samarkand is Rustom’s home, his love of this place and depth of understanding for its complex past is rich.
Left: Captain Alex left his bus and accompanied us on our walks, looking for good vantage points for photography.
Right: Kathy walked Samarkand’s streets with a sense of wonder; there were surprises at every turn.
Jim arrived eager to join us even though his travel
from Washington to Moscow to Tashkent and
Samarkand had been nonstop.
The climate here is cooler than Tashkent and Bukhara, but the large trees all about still provide welcome shade.