Navruz Festival, Oriental New Year

Trip Description

Accomodation

Stay program

• day 1

  Paris - Tashkent

  

  Flight to Tashkent.

• day 2

  Discovery of Tashkent

  

  Welcome at Tashkent airport by our team, then transfer to the hotel for breakfast. Next, discovery of the Uzbek capital, located at the crossroads of the "Silk Road" and the "Golden Road" coming from Siberia. With its open-air markets and parks with vegetation typical of the region's oases, visit to the Museum of Applied Arts, located in the sumptuous residence of Prince Polovstev. This museum mainly houses rich collections of traditional Uzbek crafts. Next, discovery of the old city and the colorful Chorsu bazaar. Overnight at the hotel.

• day 3

  Tashkent - Samarkand

  

  Morning transfer to the railway station to take the high-speed "Affrossiyob" train to Samarkand. Arrival and check-in at the hotel, then city tour. Samarkand was the hub of trade on the Silk Road; caravans came from China, India, Iran... It was the main city of ancient Sogdiana and still preserves its fabulous glazed domes, as well as its brightly colored walls and mausoleums. First, discover the Shah-i-Zinda necropolis "Living King"; it is an alley that climbs up the Afrossiyob hill. It once led to the gates of the ancient city. It is in this alley that, in the 11th century, the mausoleum of Qassim-ibn Abbas was built. Later, other tombs and mausoleums were erected around it. But during the Mongol invasion, only the mausoleum of Qassim-ibn-Abbas was spared. Next, visit the Afrossiyob Museum, then the Ulugh Beg Observatory, built in 1429. Ulugh Beg worked and taught there with 70 mathematicians and astronomers. In 1710, a museum was inaugurated in honor of Ulugh Beg and it preserves copies of the sultanic tables and their translations. After lunch at the typical Karimbek restaurant, continue the visit towards the Bibi Khanum Mosque, which Tamerlane had built in 1399, naming it after his wife. You will then arrive at the largest square in Central Asia, Registan Square. Its name means "sandy square" in Persian; it is bordered by three madrasahs: that of Ulugh Beg, that of Tilla Kori, and that of Sher Dor. Dinner at the "Platane" restaurant. Overnight at the hotel. Duration of visits: all day.

• day 4

  Samarkand - Village of Kounghirot - Samarkand

  

  Departure for the small village of Kounghirot; stop at Konigil where we will visit a silk paper workshop. Discovery of the entire manufacturing process, from raw material to finished work. Then continue to the village of Kounghirot where we will be welcomed by a family preparing for the Navrouz festival. Together with them, we will watch the preparation of Soumalak, the main traditional dish made for this event. We will then taste various spring dishes. Discovery of the village and participation, together with the villagers, in the Navrouz festival, with demonstrations of traditional songs and dances from the region. Return to Samarkand at the end of the afternoon and dinner in a local restaurant. Overnight at the hotel. Duration of visits: the whole day.

• day 5

  Samarkand - Navruz Festival (2nd day of the festival)

  

  March 21 is the Navrouz festival, the Oriental New Year, the day of the spring equinox. In the central park of Samarkand, it is together with the people of the city that we will discover the ancestral traditions of Central Asia, where folk costumes and dances mingle with wrestling matches (kourash), cockfights, culinary competitions, as well as the famous bouzkachi, a spectacular equestrian joust from ancient times. We will also taste traditional dishes prepared only once a year for this event. After lunch in a local restaurant, the city tour continues with the Nodir Devonbeji architectural complex, the Ishratkhona mausoleum, built in the second half of the 15th century by Tamerlane. Ishratkhona became the burial place for the women and children descendants of the Timurids (the people of Tamerlane). The discovery of Samarkand continues with the holy site of Kodja Abdou Daroun, a true haven of peace with its gardens and large pool surrounded by tall trees; then arrival at the mausoleum of Saint Daniel, whose body Tamerlane brought back from Persia around 1400 and placed in this mausoleum which today bears his name. Dinner in a local restaurant then return to the hotel. Duration of visits: The whole day. Note: Even though the date of Navrouz is set for March 21, this festival lasts for a week. In Samarkand, this event often takes place earlier (either the 18th, 19th, or 20th). It is impossible to know this date precisely; it is decided three days in advance, depending on the weather! This is why the program may undergo some adjustments so that you can fully experience this festival; at that time, the visits to the caravan cities will all be respected, but perhaps in a different order than mentioned in the program.

• day 6

  Samarkand - Shakhrisabz - Samarkand

  

  Departure for Chakhrisabz, the ancient Sogdian Kech located at the foot of the Zerafshan mountains. Chakhrisabz saw the birth of Tamerlane in 1336. This superb small town, with its colorful bazaar, is also full of palaces and mausoleums. Visit of the White Palace, also called Ak Sarai (14th century); the impressive remains of the palace offer a huge entrance porch with sublime faience. Also discover the Kok Goumbaz mosque (1436), so named because of its superb blue dome; visit the Khazret Imam mosque and the Gumbazi Seidan mausoleum. Gumbazi Seidan was built by Ulugh Beg in 1437 for his family. It is square in shape and strangely resembles the mosque facing it. Lunch at the family restaurant "chez Alicher" then return to Samarkand. On the way, stop at the village of Arabbandi to visit a family that makes traditional kilims (carpets). Dinner with locals then return to the hotel in Samarkand. Duration of visits: the whole day. Note: It may happen that, on the road from Samarkand to Chakhrisabz, we come across the famous equestrian game called "Bouzkachi"; if so, we will attend, as neither the places nor the dates of this ancestral game are decided in advance. But during the Navrouz period, there is a very strong chance that this game will take place in this area.

• day 7

  Samarkand - Gijduvan - Bukhara

  

  Departure for Bukhara, the famous city that is one of the three emblematic cities of the Silk Road. Before reaching Bukhara, we will stop at the mausoleum of Ismail Al Bukhaiy, one of the greatest scholars of the year 870 AD; then we will make a second stop at Karmana to discover the remains of the caravanserai of Malik Robot and Sardoba, with its water source located on the caravan route. We will also visit the potter in the village of Gijduvan, to have lunch there and discover his craft in his workshop. We continue on the road to Bukhara, arriving in the middle of the afternoon; check-in at the hotel then first walk/discovery of the city. Two full days will be necessary to contemplate the 140 fabulous monuments of this caravan city. In the 10th century, it was an important Muslim religious and intellectual center under the rule of the Samanids. It was later destroyed by the Mongols and subsequently restored by Tamerlane. Discover this architectural evolution: Samanid, Seljuk, Timurid, then Shaybanid, which has left us this ocean of turquoise domes, slender minarets, madrasas, mausoleums, and mosques with imposing ceramic facades displaying every shade of blue. We will make a first stop at the Magoki Attari mausoleum, built on the remains of a Zoroastrian temple; it is the oldest mosque in Bukhara. Then visit the Tim Abdoullakhan madrasa, which is part of the Koch madrasas complex; its orientation is not towards Mecca but according to the cardinal points. Continue through the Toki Telpakfourouchon market (hatters' market), then through the money changers' market, Toki Sarrafon. Dinner in a local restaurant, overnight at the hotel. Duration of visits: the day.

• day 8

  Bukhara

  

  Morning discovery of the Samanid Mausoleum (11th century), the oldest building in Bukhara, also known as the Ismail Samani Mausoleum. Continue with the Chashma Ayub Mausoleum, also called the "Source of Job," reputed for curing skin diseases. Also discover the Water Museum. The visit continues with the bazaar, a set of merchant domes built in the 16th century, then arrival at the Bolo Khaous Mosque (17th century) and the Ark Citadel, formerly the Emir's residence. Lunch in a local restaurant (the tea house), then continue the visits with the Nodirdevon Begi and Koukaldosh madrasahs. Then discover the Ulugbek and Abdoulazizkhan madrasahs. Arrival at the Povi Kalon complex with its mosque, minaret, and Mir Arab madrasah. Dinner in town in a local restaurant, overnight at the hotel. Duration of visits: The whole day.

• day 9

  Bukhara

  

  We leave the city and go on an "extramural" excursion to discover the Bakhouddin Naqshbandi architectural complex, with the famous tombs of the Samanid dynasty and its 19th-century mosques. After discovering the summer palace of the Emirs, Sitorai Mokhi Khossa, we return to the city and then have lunch in a local restaurant. Depending on availability, we will certainly attend a Bukharan folk concert. Dinner in the city at a local restaurant, overnight at the hotel.

• day 10

  Bukhara - Khiva

  

  Departure from Bukhara and crossing of the arid steppe at first, then the red sand desert of Kizil Kum will impose its vast expanses on us, crossed by the blue waters of the Amu Darya river, formerly called the Oxus river of Alexander the Great. Arrival in Khiva at the end of the afternoon. Dinner and overnight at the hotel.

• day 11

  Khiva - Urgench - Tashkent

  

  The city of Khiva is the most isolated of the oases on the ancient Silk Road; today it remains intact. Khiva was one of the largest markets in all of Central Asia. The inner city, Itchan Kala, is now a true open-air museum where mosques, madrasas, mausoleums, and other caravanserais are revealed. Khiva certainly contains many monuments, but it also has a unique architectural complex in Central Asia. Ancient traditions are still present there, and the visitor, upon entering Khiva, is suddenly propelled into another time, the era of mirages and miracles. The pink clay ramparts that surround this legendary city once sheltered many scholars such as Avicenna, the great physician and philosopher, or Al Khawarizmi, the father of logarithms. Discover the truncated minaret of Kalta Minor, which raises towards the sky the intricate pattern of its predominantly blue ceramics; the Djuma mosque, which rests on its 218 finely decorated wooden columns; the Tach Khaouli palace, with its famous harem that truly reflects the opulence and extravagance of the potentates of the time; the ramparts of Kounia Ark and the ancient citadel that overlook the museum-city and its monuments. Continue the visits with the Pahlavon Mahmoud mausoleum, the Islamkhodja madrasa with its minaret, the bazaar, the Koutloug Inak Mourad madrasa and the residence of the Khans: Kukhana Ark, as well as the Khoudoyberdi Devonov museum, the first Uzbek photographer. If time permits, dinner outdoors, at the tea house, in the superb setting of the Kalta Minor minaret. Then transfer to the airport for the flight to Tashkent, then check-in at the hotel.

• day 12

  Tashkent - Paris

  After breakfast, if the flight schedule allows, visit of the old town with the Koukeldash madrasa, which means "friend of the heart." This is how the trusted dignitaries of the sultan were called. It is the most important of the 23 madrasas that Tashkent houses within its walls. Next, discovery of the Barak Khan madrasa, the Kaffal Chachi mausoleum (Abu Shashi), doctor of Islam, philosopher and poet who lived from 904 to 979, and who was one of the first local Islamic prophets. You can also admire the Quran of Othman, one of the oldest copies in the world, which is housed in the mosque of the Khazrat Imam center. Lunch at the restaurant, then continuation of visits in the afternoon, notably with a walk and discovery of the Chorsu bazaar. After dinner, transfer to the airport then flight to France.