{"id":402,"date":"2014-12-19T08:58:03","date_gmt":"2014-12-18T22:58:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.wendywutours.com.au\/blog\/?p=402"},"modified":"2019-01-10T11:12:29","modified_gmt":"2019-01-10T00:12:29","slug":"review-samarkand","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.wendywutours.co.nz\/blog\/review-samarkand\/","title":{"rendered":"Traveller Review: Central Asia \u2013 Samarkand"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Samarkand is a truly remarkable place and its epicentre, Registan Square, is one of the most beautiful places in which you could spend time. It comprises a huge square surrounded by three medressas (religious learning centres) all built around 15th century but the ravages of time, lack of maintenance, war and earthquakes saw it badly neglected until the 1930s when the

Nothing I can say, even with accompanying photos, can explain the beauty of the architecture in Samarkand.<\/h2>\n

We think and say a lot about Muslims. 

Their scholars are renowned but unknown to us because we learnt under a “British” system. Nothing wrong with that but it was somewhat narrow. For example, today we visited an Observatory built by Mirza Ulugbek. He was the grandson of, and succeeded the great Timur – or Tamurlane as he is sometimes known. 

Ulugbeks Observatory, operating well before Galileo introduced the telescope, charted the skies very accurately. He accurately located and named about 1100 stars, determined the length of a year to within 58 seconds, etc, etc. He is regarded as one of the great early astronomers and thinkers yet we’ve never heard of him. I could go on but I’m sure you get my drift.  

Samarkand is full of mosques, mausoleums, medressas and Islamic looking buildings. Mainly built with mud brick and straw. Covered in plaster or mosaic tiling of a style and colouring that is alluring. It’s just an amazing sight.<\/p>\n

The interesting thing though is I have no emotional attachment to any of it.

The people are very friendly The children all wanting to say “hello” – they now learn English at school. Though that’s only a very recent introduction.