The wind of the Silk Road

Tour title: The wind of the Silk Road

Places to visit: Tashkent, Samarkand, Bukhara, Urgut, Shahrisabs.

Day 1: Tashkent - Urhench - Khiva (morning flight)
You will meet your guide at the airport of Tashkent and we will have a flight to Urgench from where we will drive to Khiva city. We will have a wonderful city tour in Khiva which is the oldest city of Uzbekistan. The main site of Khiva is Ichan-Qala inner city of Khiav surrounded by the walls. There are very old palaces, mosques, madrasahs, mausoleums, minarets, caravan-serais and bathhouses inside the small city. Ichan Qala became a unique city-monument and in 1969 it became a historical and architectural conservation area. There more than 400 dwelling houses and 60 architectural monuments. The important thing inside the city is Kunya-Ark fortress from 17^th century, which was built by Muhammad Arang Khan. Other sites are Kalta Minor minaret and Tash Khouvli palace which are incredible sample of 1830s. The night is in the hotel.

Day 2: Khiva - Ayaz Qala - Toprak Qala - Khiva
This day we will visit two more fortresses like Ayaz Qaka and Turpak Qala. Ayaza Qala fortress is an ancient castle of Khorezm and it was named after very famous warior-slave Ayaz who was also a Turkic folklore hero. This fortress is dating back to II century AD. Turpak Qala fortress was a royal city of the ruler of Khorezm named Artav. The name of the fortress means "clay fort" and Turpak Qala was built in 1^st -2^nd century AD and it was full of life until 6^th century. Many different occasions have left this city without any sign of life. After all we will return to Khiva for overnight in hotel.

Day 3: Khiva - Bukhara
This day we will drive to Bukhara city for the city tour. There are more than 140 monuments in the city, it's a "town museum from the Middle Ages. You will love to walk through the narrow streets of the city and visit the parks, monuments, gardens all of them are located not far from each other. On the way from Bukhara to Khiva we will cross a Kizilkum desert.  Also we will see a Amu Darya river which is the deepest river in Central Asia. There the rivers like Panj and Vakhsh which form this river and they flow into Aral Sea. In Bukhara we will have a free time. The night is in the hotel.

Day 4: Bukhara
This day we will have a full day tour in Bukhara, this city is very beautiful and fascinating. We will start from the palace of the Bukhara Empire called Citadel Ark which was built in 4^th century. Few dynasties of Bukhara Empire have lived in this Citadel. Then we will move to Samanids mausoleum which a treasure of architecture of 9^th -10^th century. After that we will visit Chashma Ayub well and Bolo-Hauz mosque which is known also as a mosque of forty columns. This mosque was built by the governor of Bukhara named Abu-Fayud Khan. Then we will walk to the shopping domes of Bukhara where we will see the souvenir shops and teahouses. Another madrasah will be on our list called Nodir Divan Begi which is also part of Lyabi House Ensemble which is a famous central site of the city. The last thing we will see today is Poi Kalon Complex which is a unique samole of architectural art of Bukhara with Kalon minaret, Kalon mosque and Mir Arab Madrasah. The night is in the hotel.

Day 5: Bukhara - Samarkand
This day we will take a train to Samarkand and will explore this wonderful city visiting the main sites. Samarkand is the second biggest city of Uzbekistan and is situated in the Valley of Zeravshan River. This is has the same age with the cities like Babylon and Rome. We will visit Registan square which is a symbol of this city and consists three madrasahs from 15^th -17^th century. Then we will visit Shakhi-Zindeh complex which is a collection of the mausoleums from 11^th -15^th centuries. This complex is also a p[art of UNESCO Heritage Site. Last thing to visit are Guri Emir and Bibi Khanim mosque this mosque was built in honor of Tamerlane's wife, he was inspired after his successful campaign to India. The night is in the hotel.

Day 6: Samarkand
This day we will still explore Samarkand city and will visit observatory of Ulughbek which was built in 15^th century. Ulughbek was a ruler of Smarkand and a good scientist who wrote a catalog called "Zidji Guragoni" in 1437 and there is information about 1018 celestial bodies. Ulughbek was killed by the order of his own son. Then we will visit a local Broadway area and can do some shopping in one of the souvenir shops or workshops. As every Asian city Samarkand has a market, in Samarkand its Siab bazaar where we can find Uzbek traditional handmade products and local sweets. Also we will visit a carpet factory, where we will see 400 women workers who create unique types of the carpet in traditional way. The last place in this tour will be a paper workshop where they produce silk papers. The night is in the hotel.

Day 7: Samarkand - Tashkent (transfer or train)
This day we will be transferred in Tashkent and will have a nice city tour with your guide. We will visit the main square of the city called Independence square. This square was built as a symbol of the victory over fascism in the Great Patriotic War. Then we will walk along the local Broadway which is between two squares, Amir Timur square and Independence square. In the afternoon we will move to the old part of the city with Chorsu bazaar and Kukaldash Madrasah. Another important site is Hast Imam complex which has few madrasahs, mosques and mausoleum. The main exhibit of this complex is Othman Quran copy from 8^th century. This Quran belonged to Othamn Ibn Affan who was one of the Caliphs of the Prophet Muhammad. Othman was killed by the people who didn't believe in Islam. On the pages of Quran we still can see the blood of Othman. The night is in the hotel.

Day 8: Tashkent - Chimgan Mountains - Tashkent
This day in the morning we will drive to Chamgan Mountains and will take a lift to thebtop of the mountain. On the top we will have a wonderful view to the surroundings and will have free time to enjoy it. On return we will stop near the Charvak lake which is an artificial lake and it's a place for passing the vacations for Uzbek people. And even people from the neighboring countries like to come to this lake. We will return to Tashkent in the evening for overnight.

Day 9: Flight
In the morning is transfer to airport.