We aim to spend five months driving over 30,000km and travelling through 18 countries before we reach Singapore. From there we’ll ship our vehicle to Darwin to complete the final leg of the journey to Sydney.



Monday 16 August 2010

12th - 16th August - Samarkand, Uzbekistan


One of the oldest cities of Uzbekistan and in the world is Samarkand, established during the middle of the first century BC under the name Marakanda and later known as Afrosiab. It was the capital of the powerful state Sogd, the center of Emir Timur's great empire. The numerous monuments of Samarkand and its suburbs impress their beauty and splendor. The refined architectural shapes, intricate ornamentation, mosaics, blue-tile domes and facades are interesting for all who visit theses beautiful buildings.

Samarkand is situated in the valley of the river Zarafshan. It is the second largest city of Uzbekistan and is of the same age as the city of Babylon or Rome. The history of Samarkand is about 2,500 years old; it has witnessed many upheavals particularly during the times of Alexander the Great, the Arabic Conquest, the Genghis-Khan Conquest and lastly Tamerlane's. Hence, the culture of Samarkand was developed and mixed together with the Iranian, Indian, Mongolian and a bit of the Western and Eastern cultures. Majestic and beautiful city Samarkand has a marvelous and attractive power. Poets and historians of the past called it "Rome of the East, The beauty of sublunary countries, The pearl of the Eastern Moslem World".

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