Uzbekistan Unravelled

 

Uzbekistan is a land of mighty monuments – mosques, madrassas, mausoleums and minarets – many of which are inscribed in UNESCO’s catalogue of World Heritage Sites. These were mostly constructed between the 14^th and 16^th Centuries and have a signature façade of blue majolica tiles. Illuminated after sunset, they present a fabulous spectacle. The monuments are a photographer’s dream.

Amir Timur is Uzbekistan’s national hero and there are imposing statues of him in Samarkand and Tashkent.

But this post is neither about history nor architecture. Instead, it is about mundane stuff that may interest the middle-class Indian traveller.

e-Visa for Uzbekistan requires 3 working days and costs USD 21.5. It Is an incredibly smooth process.

The flying time is 3.5 hours. Uzbekistan is 30 minutes behind India (+5 GMT).

The local currency is Som. The coins come in denominations of 100, 200, 500 and 1000. The currency notes are in denominations of 1000, 2000, 5000, 10,000, 20,000, 50,000 and 1000,000. One USD fetches 12,500 Soms. One Rupee equals roughly 150 Soms.

Dollars can be exchanged easily almost everywhere at better than official rates. I spotted touts outside the airport ready to accept INR.

Easy to get e-sim at the airport. 80,000 Soms for 80 GB data with unlimited calls/SMS. The signal was strong almost everywhere in the country.

The capital, Tashkent, is connected with high-speed trains to Samarkand and Bukhara.

Both Tashkent and Samarkand have an efficient app-based cab – Yandex.

The climate was whimsical during the 3^rd week of May when I travelled. Cloudy mornings followed by brilliant blue skies in the afternoon. High single-digit temperatures in the morning rising to mid-20s by afternoon and dropping to teens after sunset. There were thunderstorms too. So, it would be a good idea to carry an umbrella or poncho.

There is no “vegetarian” food in Uzbekistan. Vegetarians should brace themselves for multiple rounds of green salad, large breads (Non), soups and boiled vegetables. The lentil soup was easily the best dish I had. But this misery is more than compensated by the abundance of fruits and dry fruits. Among them cherries pick themselves to go right to the top.

Tea is the national drink. But it is essentially hot water with a hint of some indistinguishable herb. Coffee is only available from machines in hotels and malls. It is rarely taken with milk and even the best hotels do not provide creamers in the room. My advice is to carry your own milk powder.

The real heroes of Uzbekistan are the common people on the street. Their love of India (Hindistan) and Indians is to be experienced to be believed. We were warmly greeted by “Namaste” wherever we went. The love for Indians extended across the ages. Hordes of school children piped “Namaste” on seeing us. Quite a few insisted on wanting to get photographed with us. Some elderly people were even slyly capturing us on video at various monuments. It did feel creepy at times. But to be fair, they readily agreed to pose for our pictures. One restaurant played Bollywood songs and we were invited to dance with them. The warmth and desire to help came across as genuine. I experienced this at a post office, a cinema and the Metro station in Tashkent.

Elderly women and most middle-aged women cover their hair under colourful scarves. Men wear skullcaps. Others dress modestly. There is a liberal sprinkling of active mosques among the sites of interest and appropriate dressing is important. Women should remember to carry a scarf to cover their hair at the drop of a hat.

The urban landscape is delightful with broad avenues and sidewalks peppered generously with flower beds and fruiting trees. The large pedestrian plazas give a European feel to the cities. The facades of buildings are a happy blend of communist monotony and oriental embellishment. The vestiges of Soviet Union linger in the form of signage in Cyrillic. I heard some guards muttering “spacebo” instead of “rahmat”. The standard of living appears to be good. Over ten days, I encountered only one woman begging.

Uzbekistan is a shopper’s paradise for Indians, primarily because the Rupee can go a long way. Silks and ceramics are the obvious things to buy. But it would be a shame not to return without tons of dry fruits. They are available in abundance at throwaway prices. Walnuts, for example, are priced at ₹300-400 per kg. Haggling is a must and knocking 20% off the quoted price is de rigueur.

Last word. Most public toilets are in “Indian Style”. Maybe it is time to shed the label.