In the footsteps of the Silk Road

Description du séjour

Hébergement

Programme du séjour

• jour 1

  Flight to Uzbekistan

  

  Departure from France to Urgench, with a flight operated by Turkish Airlines (not included in our services). Overnight on board.

• jour 2

  Urganch – Khiva

  

  Departure for a full day devoted to visiting Khiva. Located in the heart of the Khorezm region, Khiva was one of the main slave markets of Central Asia, still in operation at the beginning of the 20th century. Fully restored, the old city offers visitors the appearance it had between the 18th and the beginning of the 20th century: a remarkable architectural ensemble, without equivalent in Central Asia. Visit of Itchan Kala, or “inner city”, which occupies the former site of the Khiva oasis, the last stop for Silk Road caravans on their route to the West, the desert of Turkmenistan and the Caspian Sea. It covers 26 hectares and is protected behind thick brick walls more than 12 m high. Itchan Kala is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. We will admire several sites there: Visit of Kunya Ark, or Koukhna Ark, the “Old fortress”, whose construction began in 1686. It was one of the residences of the Khans of Khiva until 1919. Inside, we will admire the Summer Mosque, the prison (Zindan), the Throne Room (Kourinich Khana), as well as mosques with magnificent blue and white ceramics and a mint. The Ak Cheikh Bobo bastion was built at an earlier time, as its construction dates back to the 12th century. It has a terrace from which a magnificent panoramic view opens over the whole city. Visit of the Tach Khaouli palace, or “Stone Palace”, built by Alla Kouli Khan. It was the main residence of the Khans of Khiva until 1880 and has more than 250 rooms. It is a true maze where Alla Kouli Khan and his extravagant entourage lived. At its center is a small courtyard, with an aïvan (veranda) with two columns, entirely covered with painted majolica tiles. It included the harem, the Reception Hall (Ichrat Khaouli), the Chancellery and the Court of Justice (Arz Khaouli). Visit of the Islam-Kodja medersa (1908-1912), with its minaret rising to 45 m, the highest in Khiva. Visit of the Djouma mosque (Friday Mosque), the main mosque of Khiva, whose 200 carved wooden columns evoke the ancient mosques of Arabia. It is located in the center of Itchan Kala, the “inner city”. A long blind wall, flanked by a minaret, serves as its façade. Visit of the Pakhlavan-Mahmoud mausoleum (1810-1825). Located behind the Djouma mosque, this monument rises: one of the most famous in Khiva. Visit of the Alla Kouli Khan medersa. It precedes a procession of buildings that all bear the royal seal of one of the greatest khans of Khiva. The gentle bubbles formed by the domes of the Tim of Alla Kouli Khan, also called "Palace Market", connect the inner city to the great bazaar, as well as to the immense Alla Kouli Khan caravanserai.

• jour 3

  Khiva – Ayaz-Kala/Toprak-Kala – Urgench – Bukhara

  

  Drive toward the desert to discover the fabulous desert fortresses of Ancient Khorezm: Ayaz-Kala, then Toprak-Kala. They are listed on the UNESCO World Heritage Tentative List. From the ramparts of the ruins of the Toprak-Kala fortress, one discovers, inside the citadel, the layout of the dwellings: a multitude of small rooms nested within one another. Some were adorned with monumental paintings among the oldest in Central Asia (2nd and 3rd centuries). Arrival in the afternoon at the yurt camp. Lunch under the yurts. Return to Urgench. Dinner in town. Transfer to Urgench airport and flight to Bukhara.

• jour 4

  Bukhara

  Bukhara was, in the 10th century, under the Persian dynasty of the Samanids, a leading Muslim religious and intellectual center, before being ruined by the Mongols, then restored by Tamerlane. It has preserved from its Arab, Persian and Turkic past a great deal of charm. Departure for a full day devoted to discovering Bukhara, whose historic center is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Visit of the Po-i-Kalon ensemble, or “pedestal of the Most High,” the religious center of Bukhara, the holy city. It is an architectural ensemble in the heart of the old city, which includes the immense Kalon mosque, with its large blue dome, and the Mir-i-Arab madrasa, with the Kalon minaret (12th century), the tallest of its time in the East, dominating the old city from the height of its 48 m. Very close by, a walk in the bazaar-caravanserai with forty domes. Behind the bazaar, visit of the Ulugh Beg madrasa, one of the oldest in Central Asia. Visit of the Magok-i-Attari madrasa, the oldest in Bukhara, built on an ancient Zoroastrian temple. Visit of the Samanid mausoleum, or Ismail Samani mausoleum. It houses the oldest building in Bukhara, preserved in its original state: the tomb of Ismail Samani (10th century), with dazzling blues. Visit of the Chashma Ayoub mausoleum, “Job’s Spring,” with its four domed rooms, dating from the 12th century. It is included on UNESCO’s Tentative List of World Heritage. Lunch in town during the visit. Visit of the Chor Minor, “Four minarets”: with its four domed towers, it is one of the most alluring and strangest buildings in Bukhara. Visit of the Lyab-i-Khauz complex. Located on the main square, it is composed of three buildings: the khanqah, the Nadir Divan-Begui madrasa and the Kukeldash madrasa. Visit of the trading domes, intended to house specialized merchants, which are part of the 16th-century civil architecture: the Tok-i-Zargaron, dome of the jewelers; the Tok-i-Tilpak Fourouchon, or dome of the hatters; and the Tok-i-Sarrafon, reserved for money changers. Visit of the Abdoullaziz Khan madrasa, a fine example of Islamic iconography: vases, flowers, fabulous birds, park landscapes.

• jour 5

  Bukhara

  Departure for a morning devoted to the last visits in Bukhara and its surroundings. Visit of the Ark citadel, symbol of the Emirate of Bukhara, which for more than a millennium was the fortified residence of the city’s rulers. It included palaces, barracks, the mint and the prison. Its original construction dates from the 7th century, but it was rebuilt in the 16th century as we admire it today. It was the residence of the emirs until 1920, when they were deposed by Russian forces. One enters the citadel from Registan Square, where executions and public punishments took place. Visit of the Bolo-Haouz mosque, “Near the Pool”. Facing the citadel, it has a splendid dome with carved stalactites. Its famous iwan is supported by 20 carved wooden columns. Visit of the Sitori-i-Mokhi Khossa palace, or “palace comparable to the moon and the stars”. Located near Bukhara, it was the summer residence of the last emir Saïd Alim Khan (1911), whose taste for Saint Petersburg, the Russian capital, had a great influence on the palace’s architecture. It now houses the Bukhara Museum of Decorative Arts. Visit of the mausoleum of Bahaouddin Naqchbandi. Considered the most sacred monument in Bukhara, it is the tomb of the city’s patron saint and one of the major pilgrimage sites. Three hajj to the tomb of Bahaouddin Naqchbandi are equivalent to a pilgrimage to Mecca. It is located a short distance from the city of Bukhara. This mausoleum is included on UNESCO’s Tentative List of World Heritage. Lunch in a local restaurant. Visit of a silk workshop. Visit of the Tchor Bakr necropolis. Located 5 km from Bukhara, in the village of Soumitan, the Tchor Bakr necropolis (1560-1563) was a burial place for the sheikhs of the Djuybarsk family. It consists of a series of mausoleums and tombs whose construction dates back to the 16th century. It was probably in this place that, from 970, Imam Said Abou Bakr and his three brothers, direct descendants of the prophet, were buried. It is included on UNESCO’s Tentative List of World Heritage.

• jour 6

  Bukhara – Vabkent – Gijduvan – Samarkand

  

  We leave Bukhara via the Royal Road to reach Samarkand – the capital of ancient Sogdiana. Stops along the way at the Vabkent minaret to see the tall minaret (39 m), dating from 1196-1198, whose decoration is characteristic of the architectural and iconographic “competition” that, at that time, animated the various Muslim states between Anatolia, Persia, Central Asia and Northern India, then at Gijduvan to visit the Ulugh Beg mosque (15th c.) and the family ceramics workshop of this trading town, especially known for its craftsmanship. Lunch at a local’s home in Gijduvan. Stop at the ruins of the royal caravanserai of Rabat-i Malik and at the sardoba (cistern) facing it. Arrival in Samarkand in the late afternoon.

• jour 7

  Samarkand

  

  Departure for a full day devoted to visiting Samarkand. Samarkand was an essential trading center on the Silk Road, at the crossroads of the great caravan routes coming from China, India, Siberia, Persia and Byzantium… Capital of Sogdiana in the 4th c. BC, it was taken by Alexander the Great, destroyed by the Arabs in the 8th century and by Genghis Khan in the 13th century, before regaining glory and prosperity under the reign of Tamerlane in the 14th century. The historic center of Samarkand is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Registan Square, the official center of the Timurid empire, is the most grandiose monumental complex in Central Asia. It was, in the 15th century, the commercial, craft, cultural and religious center of the empire, the heart of Tamerlane’s capital. It consists of three madrasas: Ulugh Beg, whose enormous size is balanced by the elegance of its forms and the beauty of its mosaics; Sher-Dor, whose every square centimeter is covered with richly colored decorative motifs; and Tilla-Kari, whose façade features two rows of balconies with windows with pierced panels. Visit of the Bibi-Khanoum Mosque, named after Tamerlane’s favorite wife. Walk through the picturesque Siab bazaar, renowned for its dried fruits and flatbreads. Lunch in a local restaurant. Visit of the Gur-Emir Mausoleum, tomb of the great conquering emperor Tamerlane. “Gur-Emir”, whose translation means “the Tomb of the Sovereign” (of the emir), was erected in 1403 on the order of Amir Timour. Opposite Gur-Emir is the Rukhobod Mausoleum, which housed the remains of one of Tamerlane’s spiritual masters. Visit of the famous Khovrenko cellar, a wine and cognac production company. Tasting of local wines and digestifs.

• jour 8

  Samarkand – Tashkent

  Samarkand is one of the oldest cities in the world. Its magnificent monuments strike with their beauty and the harmony of forms and proportions, the finesse of the lines of arches and domes... At the start of the day, visit of the Ulugh Beg Observatory (15th century), intended for the observation of the sun and the stars. Ulugh Beg carried out calculations of the length of the celestial year. The difference with contemporary years is less than one minute. Visit of the archaeological site and the Afrosiab Museum, one of the greatest monuments of Samarkand. The archaeological elements discovered during the excavations of the site are exhibited in the Samarkand History Museum, located in the eastern part of the site. Visit of a silk paper manufacturing workshop. Lunch in the factory garden. Visit of the necropolis of the “Living King”, Shah-i-Zinda, and its 20 mausoleums from the Timurid period. Shah-i-Zinda is one of the most important architectural ensembles of Samarkand, because it reflects almost all the currents of the region’s architectural schools over the course of its history: the ensemble was built between the 12th and the 20th century. Transfer to the station and boarding aboard the Afrosiab high-speed train, which will take you to Tashkent, capital of Uzbekistan, one of the largest cities in Central Asia.

• jour 9

  Tashkent

  The city of Tashkent has a certain charm with its wide tree-lined avenues, its parks and its Russian-style wooden houses, echoed by the brick houses of the old Uzbek town. Visit of the old town: visit of the center of Islamic civilization including the Barak Khan madrasa (16th century), the Kaffal Chachi mausoleum, the Djami mosque and the Quranic museum. The latter houses the library where the Quran of Osman is kept, the first written Quran, a true treasure brought back to Uzbekistan by Tamerlane. Then, we will head to the Koukeldach madrasa, still in operation, located in the heart of the old city. Stop at the large Tchorsou market. Lunch in a local restaurant. Continuation of the visit of Tashkent and discovery of the new city: Independence Square, the Navoï theater and Amir-Timour Square. Visit of the splendid Tashkent metro. It is unique of its kind in Central Asia; each station is sumptuously decorated according to different themes: cotton, the cosmos, the Uzbek poet Alicher Navoï, etc. Visit of the Museum of Applied Arts, located in the former residence of the Russian diplomat Polovtsev.

• jour 10

  Tashkent (departure)

  Breakfast at the hotel. Transfer to the airport.