Uzbekistan November 2023
Visited: Tashkent, Bukhara, Samarkand
Straight off the bat, Uzbekistan is a former Soviet republic in Central Asia. It is a landlocked country bordering Kazakhstan , Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgystan and has a population of 36M people. It is hot and dry in the summer with average temperatures around 40C and extremely cold in the winter reaching -20C (December - February). The two dominant languages are Uzbek and Russian. Very little English is spoken! The best times to visit Uzbekistan are April, May, mid-September through mid-November.
Visit Uzbekistan if you are keen to follow the Silk trade from East Asia to the West. Due to the Silk Route, Bukhara and Samarkand became extremely wealthy cities. You can't travel far in Uzbekistan without confronting their innate fascination with a Turco-Mongol conqueror who founded and ruled the Timurid Empire, Amir Timur until his death in 1405. Considered by historians to be a great military leader, he was nevertheless brutal, killing an estimated 1 million people throughout all his military campaigns. He is also know as Tamerlane or Timur the Lame as he had a limp in his right leg. Around 1363, it is believed that Timur tried to steal a sheep from a shepherd but was shot by two arrows, one in his right leg and another in his right hand, where he lost two fingers. Both injuries disabled him for life.
Some interesting facts about Timur: He has 43 wives and mistresses., many derived from the lands he conquered. He is regarded as a national hero in Uzbekistan. His monument in Tashkent now occupies the place where Karl Marx's statue once stood.
Uzbekistan is a former CCCP republic and Tashkent has ample evidence of legacy CCCP buildings alongside Islamic architecture.
Things you should know about being an Extreme Tourist in Uzbekistan (GMT + 5). The currency is the Uzbekistani Som. Roughly speaking as of November 2023, $1 USD = 12,500 UZS.
1. Is it tough to be a tourist is Uzbekistan?
Hell, no! Uzbekistan is safe and very tourist-friendly. There are 3 things you need to make your stay rewarding and stress-free. First, don't pay $100+ USD and stay in an international hotel. Get close to the Uzbek way of life and shop at your local Korzinka supermarket (korzinka.uz/en) for your groceries. Find a comfortable central Tashkent Airbnb apartment as your key hub for exploring Tashkent and the other outlying provinces. Second, download Yandex, the taxi-hailing app on your phone. Yandex taxis are super economical and you won't be scammed! Yandex works in all three destinations: Tashkent, Bukhara and Samarkand. Third, change a little money at the airport and make sure you have small denominations for everyday transactions. You'll need cash for all taxis. They never have change so use you small 10,000/20,000 som notes.
2. How do you travel around Uzbekistan?
.Use Yandex! The price of a Yandex taxi from Tashkent International Airport to downtown Tashkent is 20,000-25,000 som (Approx. $1.50-2USD). Without Yandex, expect to pay somewhere between 80,000-130,000 som ($8-10 USD). All taxis use the gas, propane (often referred to as 'Metan' as fuel. Travel to Bukhara and Samarkand was with UZ Railways. Download the excellent UZ Railways app. Uzbekistan has invested significantly in comfortable and high speed bullet trains in the last few years. The new Afrosiyob trains cover the three key tourist destinations: Khiva, Bukhara and Samarkand. Tashkent (Main Station - North) to Bukhara is 600 kms and takes just under 4 hours. Taskent (Main Station - North) to Samarkand is a 2 hour bullet train trip. Local bus travel is incredibly good value. Buses charge 2,000 som ($0.16 USD) in Tashkent and 1,500 som ($0.10 USD) outside Tashkent in Bukhara or Samarkand. The Tashkent metro cost just 1,400 som ($0.10 USD).
3. What food ideas are worth taking home?
- Unsweetened sour grape juice from unfermented, pressed, young unripe grape (often referred to as 'Guraob' in Uzbek, 'Koruk' in Turkish and 'Ab-ghooreh' in Persian).
- Buckwheat: The healthy low GI cereal that is a drop-in and a better tasting substitute for rice, bulgur wheat, couscous, quinoa or lentils. Use with cottage cheese and vegetables. Best with fried mushrooms.
- Ginger Tea: Fresh chopped ginger, lemon, mint, turmeric and saffron. Allow 20 mins for infusion on a stove and serve.
4. Do many locals speak English?
Russian is the main foreign language taught in school and is widely spoken in Uzbekistan. Not many people speak English.
5. What essential stuff do I need to bring to Uzbekistan?
Visa credit card. Both visa and mastercard credit cards are widely accepted in good establishments. But do carry some cash with you as not all places accept foreign credit cards.
6. Can you recommend any restaurants?
Don’t expect to eat well when travelling, especially if you go to a landlocked country and you are vegetarian. The quintessential national dish is plov (often written as 'pilaf' or 'pilov'). It is a fragrant rice dish mostly served with meat such as lamb or beef. Many Plov restaurants do cook the rice and meat separately so vegetarian options are available. Vegetarian plov usually contains green or yellow peppers, raisins, onions, chickpeas and barberries. It is normally served with Chap Chak bread, pickled vegetables and the fresh and cool Ayran yoghurt drink (combined with greens such as dill and cucumber). Expect to pay around 80,000 som ($6 USD) per person for an immersive plov experience, Uzbek-style.
Other Uzbekistan dishes include hot samsas (triangular pasties filled with savoury minced lamb), dumplings and of course, Uzbek bread such as Chap Chak.
High on the list of any Uzbekistan recommendations are the following classic food outlets
Tashkent:
B&B Coffee House - Beans & Brews - Chill-out Café with croissants close to the French embassy. Restroom is scrupulously clean and the brownie cake and cherry pie are excellent. Location: 25 Istikbol Street (Google Maps: 874P+3G Tashkent). Rating: 8/10.
Eco Café - Vegan/vegetarian restaurant. Helpful place to chill and relax. Make sure you try their unsweetened ginger tea. Location: Olmachi 37 (Google Maps: 8898+7Q Tashkent). Rating 8/10.
Book Café - Cosy, easy-going cafe. Location: 8, Istikbol Street (Google Maps: 875J+5X Tashkent). Rating 8/10.
Roni Pizza Napoletana - Location: 8 Istikbol Street (875J+4X Tashkent). Rating 7/10.
Pie Republic - Relaxed ambience, nice food, super service and great prices. Location: 33-34 Shakhrisabz Street (Google Maps: 876P+7X Tashkent). Rating: 7/10.
Café Florya - Close to the Hazrati Imam mosque and offering great cheese and Vulcan cake desserts. Location: 24 Abdulla Kadiry Street (Google Maps: 87G2+G6 Tashkent). Rating 7/10.
Khalva Book Cafe - A place to chill and relax with Tea and cake. Location: Ул. Бахауддина Накшбанда, Bukhara, (Google Maps: QCC9+WC Bukhara). Rating 8/10.
The Plov Restaurant - Great place for vegetarian plov, Noticeable aniseed used in the plov. Highly recommended. Google Maps: QCMG+MCH, Bukhara. Rating 8/10.
Magic Fruit Almond Shop - Ideal shop nr school No.4. The place to go to buy all your nuts and fried fruits. They can also vacuum seal the dried fruits. Ideal for raisins and dates. Don't leave Bukhara without visit the Magic Fruit Almond Shop. Google Maps: QCGJ+HG Bukhara. Rating 9/10.
Samarkand:
Mahalla Plov Restaurant - The place where locals have lunch. A super find on Navoi Street. Google Maps: MW8W+FC7, Navoi Avenue, Samarkand. Rating 9/10.
Karimbek Restaurant - National Uzbekistan dishes on offer. Options are limited for vegetarians. But the salads were very fresh. Google Maps: JWWP+VM Samarkand. Rating 7/10.
Blues Bar - Somewhere different in the evening for a drink. Food is mostly fried. They claim to have pastel de nata as a dessert but this is definitely not pastel de nata. It resembled Napoleon cake. Note that, at the time of the visit, Blues Bar only accepted cash. Google Maps: MW2X+9JH, Amir Temur St, Samarkand. Rating 6/10.
Chocolate Pastry Café - A nice cafe to chill and have dessert in the evening. The menu offers sweetened Ginger Tea with sugar syrup but ask for the unsweetened Ginger Tea. This cafe is located close to the Movenpick Hotel. Google Maps: MX26+97Q, Shohruh Mirzo Street, Samarkand. Rating 8/10.
Chorraha Cake & Bakery - Clea with a wide choice of pastries and cookies. It's a 10 minute walk from the Bibi-Khanym Mosque. Google Maps: MX6F+8XQ, Imom Al-Bukhoriy St, Samarkand. Rating 8/10.
7. The alleged curse of Timur?
Timur is buried at the Gur-e-Amir mausoleum in Samarkand. Timur's body was exhumed from his tomb on 19 June 1941 and his remains examined by the Soviet anthropologists Mikhail M. Gerasimov, Thee examinations confirmed that Timur was lame and had a withered right arm due to his injuries. It is alleged that Timur's tomb was inscribed with the words, "When I rise from the dead, the world shall tremble". It is also said that when Gerasimov exhumed the body, an additional inscription inside the casket was found, which read, "Whomsoever opens my tomb shall unleash an invader more terrible than I". Three days after Gerasimov began the exhumation in Russia, Hitler invaded the Soviet Union. Stalin was superstitious, so Timur was re-buried with full Islamic ritual in December 1942, 1 month before the Soviet victory at the Battle of Stalingrad (thought by this time the German army at Stalingrad was already fully encircled).
8. What are the main dishes in Uzbekistan?
First and foremost, food is cheap in Uzbekistan. Remember that it is a land-locked country so avoid the fish. Restaurants are typically half price compared to those in Europe. Here are the main UZ dishes:
Hot samsa - Triangle pasties cooked in a tandoori clay oven called a tundir. Always served with meat.
Mantis Dumplings - Similar to Chinese dumplings. November is pumpkin dumpling season and often served with smetana (sour cream).
Shashlik - Meat Kebab - grilled meat on skewers.
Plov - Fragrant rice dish served typically with meat.
Bread (referred to as 'non') - Chap Chak bead, otherwise known as water bread. Very light and soft bread sprinkled with sesame. On the flip side, the classic Smarkand bread is the round, dense Galaosiyo bread. Each load weighs more than 1 Kg. The bread is fabled in Uzbekistan to last up to 3 years and the flour and water recipe is at least 1,000 years old. The Chap Chak bread is delicious and should only be bought direct from bakeries scattered through the cities. I wouldn't bother buying the round Galaosiyo Samarkand bread. However, if you really must, buy it from the stall at the Samarkand railway station. The bread is freshly made by the family and clean. They do not touch the bread with their hands. Do not buy the Samarkand bread from tourist sites, guides or bazaars. The bread is old and dirty.
Nuts and Dried Fruits: Uzbekistan is famed for its almonds, raisins and prunes. You'll always be confronted with a range of different qualities. The highest quality almonds should cost you 150,000 som ($12 USD)/kg. High quality raisins are around 65,000 som ($5 USD)/kg and the best dates cost around 160,000 som ($13 USD)/kg.
Tea is widely available. Expect to buy a pot of tea (5 cups) in a cafe/restaurant for 25,000 som ($2 USD).
9. Uzbekistan Mobile Calls?
Buy a mobile sim card at the airport. As of November 2023, an UZ Cell sim card costs 100,000 som ($8 USD) for 12GB data and 130,000 som ($10 USD) for 22GB data.
10. How do I change money in Uzbekistan?
You can exchange USD and EUR in bazaars but I recommend using the FX at the bank, NBU (National Bank of Uzbekistan). They offer the best rates and have the least queues. NBU is the largest bank in Uzbekistan and has many branches in key locations. The Revolut Bank credit card gave me the best FX rate. Rates were typically 3-5% better than using cash at NBU.
11. When is the best time to visit Uzbekistan?
Spring (March through May) and Autumn (September through November)
12. Why are there so many Chevrolets in Uzbekistan
In 2008, General Motors and the Uzbekistan government entered into a joint venture to form GM Uzbekistan and mass produce Chevrolet branded cars for the local market. Together with Daewoo brand, which is owned by Chevrolet too, Chevrolet dominates the market with 95% market share. As soon as you land in Tashkent, you can't help notice white Chevrolets everywhere.
13. Should I buy from bazaars in Uzbekistan?
The simple truth is that foreigners pay 2-3 times more than locals. This is compounded by the fact that the quality of nuts and dried fruits in the bazaars is inconsistent at best. My advice is to not buy anything in the bazaars. Bizarrely, fruit is better value and higher quality in regular supermarkets.
14. Random cultural places to visit in Uzbekistan?
Tashkent - Chorsu Bazaar. Although the market is the best known market in Tashkent, situated in a large dome building with a diameter of 350 metres, it reeks of blood and is essentially the meat and dairy market on the ground floor. Nuts and dried fruits are sold on the 1st floor balcony. The quality of nuts and dried fruits is highly questionable. I bought figs that were old, dirty and inedible. The vendors are also quite aggressive. Enjoy the experience but don't be tempted to buy anything at all at the Chorsu Bazaar. Rating: 4/10
Tashkent - Institute of the Sun: 45 km east of Tashkent in the Parkent District. Classis CCCP architecture in the mountains around Tashkent and at an altitude of 1,100 m. It is essentially a solar oven concentrating sun rays from 62 heliostats (mirrors measuring 7.5 x 6.5 m) to a parabolic concentrator, 42 metres high to a furnace with a diameter of 1 m. The purpose of the institute is primarily to study the impact of high temperature (up to 3,000C) on novel advanced materials. The facility was once a military institute but is now open to all foreign visitors. There is no need to book an appointment. Just turn up and ask for an English speaking tour guide. Return cost of a Yandex taxi from Tashkent with a 2 hour wait at the Institute was 250,ooo som ($20 USD). The English-speaking tour guide was 110,000 som ($9 USD). Rating 9/10
Bukhara - Hamman Bozori Kord: Only just worth a visit. Cost is 400,000 som ($32 USD) per person for the 45 min full massage and peeling. To be honest, the massage was very average, simple and expensive. On the flip side, it is set in an impressive 14th century historical bath. The building is a little run down, not so clean but worth a punt if you have never had a Hamman massage. Rating 5/10
Bukhara - Moschea Bolo-Khauz Mosque: Built in the 18th century, it is often referred to as the 40 pillar mosque. It sites right next to the entrance of the Ark of Bukhara. The 20 wooden columns reflect in the ancient pond in front of the mosque to form 40 impressive columns. Rating 9/10
Samarkand - Gur-e-Amir Mausoleum: Built in the 15th century, it is the resting place of the revered Amur Tamir and his sons. As you walk into the Mausoleum, there is an inscription on the top of the door which translates as...'Everything good ends good'. Definitely worth a visit. In Bukhara, every cultural site has a typical entrance fee of between 30,000 ($2.50 USD) -50,000 som ($4 USD) per person. Rating 8/10
15. Where to stay in Uzbekistan?
The Airbnb landlord or hotel will need to register you with the Uzbekistan Department of Foreign Travel within 3 working days of your arrival. Although, you may need to show one registration form at passport control when you leave the country, don't worry too much if you have misplaced the registration document. Your details should be stored on their servers.
Tashkent - Use Airbnb and stay in central Tashkent. Kashgar, Kiyot, Oloy and Buyuk Ipak Yuli are recommended districts. Perhaps spend some time at the towering Soviet relic, Hotel Uzbekistan. This was the leading luxury CCCP hotel and residence of choice for all visiting international dignitaries in the 70s and 80s. Little has changed since it was built and it's location is right on Amir Temur Square, next to Amir Temur metro station.
Bukhara - Amulet Hotel
Location: 73 Bakhouddin Nakshbandi street, Buxoro 200118
Google Maps: QCFF+9X Bukhara, Uzbekistan
URL: http://www.amulet-hotel.com/
Rating: 7/10. Excellent location in a former Madrassah. Very atmospheric. Super breakfast. Only cash is accepted.
November Price: $42 USD a night for B&B in November '23.
Samarkand - Medina Hotel
Location: 53 Dagbitskiy k'ochasi, Samarkand Shahar, Oʻzbekiston
Google Maps: MX7C+XF Samarkand, Uzbekistan
URL: www.medinahotel.uz
Rating: 6/10. Perched close to the top of a hill, it has a great location within walking distance to Registan Square and other cultural sites. Great views from the breakfast dining room on the 5th floor of the hotel.
November Price: $75 USD a night for B&B in November '23.
