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Useful articles about trips, tips and service updates
Odina Mosque and Kok Gumbaz: A Walk Through Old Qarshi
Qarshi rarely makes it onto tourist itineraries, which is a pity: its centre keeps 16th-century mosques and an old brick bridge over the Kashkadarya, all easy to see in a couple of hours.
Dorut Tilovat and Dor us-Saodat: The Timurid Family Tombs
Where Timur's father and sons are buried, why Ulugbek built the Kok Gumbaz mosque and why the crypt prepared for the conqueror himself has always stayed empty.
The Savitsky Museum in Nukus: the Louvre of the desert
How a collection of Russian avant-garde came together in the heart of Karakalpakstan, what to see first and how much time to allow for the visit.
Chilpyk and Mizdahkan: ancient necropolises near Nukus
A Zoroastrian tower of silence and the hill of Mizdahkan: history, legends and how to combine both places in half a day from Nukus, unhurried and with respect for the shrines.
The fortresses of Ellikkala: Ayaz-Kala, Toprak-Kala, Kyzyl-Kala
A route through the desert fortresses of ancient Khorezm: which order to visit them in, where to sleep in a yurt camp, how much time you need and what to bring.
The Nurullabay Palace: Khiva at the start of the twentieth century
A khan's summer residence in Dishan-Kala with European stoves and Russian furniture: how to get there, what to see and how to combine the visit with a walk through Ichan-Kala.
Pahlavan Mahmud Mausoleum: The Patron Saint of Khiva
The story of a poet, wrestler and furrier who became a saint, the legend of a bout he chose to lose, and why his tomb is among Khorezm's most visited places.
Tash-Hauli: Palace of the Khans of Khiva - Harem, Courts and Tiles
How Itchan Kala's main palace works: the harem with five iwans, the court of justice and the festive courtyard with its yurt platform, plus what to look for in the tiles.
Khiva's Juma Mosque and Its 213 Carved Columns
What makes the columned mosque at the heart of Itchan Kala unique, how to tell thousand-year-old columns from newer ones, and when the hall looks its best.
Kalta Minor and the Islam Khodja Minaret: Two Symbols of Khiva
Why one minaret was never finished while you can climb the other up a hundred steep steps, and where the best view over Khiva really is.
Itchan Kala in One Day: A Walking Plan for Khiva's Inner City
A step-by-step route through the fortress: the combined ticket and what it excludes, where to climb walls and minarets, where to watch sunset and how to reach Khiva.
Bukhara Beyond the Main Sights: Magoki-Attari, Bolo-Hauz, Chashma-Ayub
The city's oldest mosque, sunk below street level, an iwan on twenty wooden columns and the spring of Job: three monuments that tourists reach less often.