Toward the vanishing Aral Sea

Sightseeing in Tashkent: The old city  -  Barak-Khan madrassa (XVI c.) - Kaffal-al-Shashi Mazar –  Kukeldash madrassah (XVIII)  -  Museum of Applied Art  -  Square of Independence  -  The building of National Theatre of opera and ballet.

Arrival in Samarkand and check in to the hotel.

Transfer to yurt camp via Nurata.

Half day sightseeing in Nurata:  Brothers Khasan and Khusan Mosque  -  "Chashma" holy spring  - Namozgokh Mosque (10 c) which was reconstructed by Emir Abdullah in 1582  -  Sheykh Khasan Nuri madrassah (16-17 cc)  -  Ruins of Alexander the Great citadel.

Arrival in yurt camp. Accommodation in traditional Kazakh yurts with all the necessary equipment: showers, kitchen etc. Experience sandy landscapes, the flora and fauna of the Kyzyl-kum desert. Camel riding. Dinner around the fire with Kazakh akin singing. Overnight in yurts.

Transfer to Aydarkul Lake. Fishing, picnicking, swimming. Eat fried fish for lunch caught from the lake. Return to the yurts. Camel riding or relaxing in the peaceful atmosphere of the desert.

Transfer to Bukhara. Arrival in Bukhara, transfer to the hotel and check in.

Sightseeing in Bukhara: Sitorai Mokhi Khosa – “Palace of Moon and Stars” – summer residence of the last Bukhara Emir (XIX c)  - Bolo Khauz mosque  - Complex Bakhoutdin Nakshbandy (so-called Central Asian Mecca).
After lunch free time.

Sightseeing in Khiva: Ichan-Kala  –  Mohammed-Amin Khan madrassah and minaret (XIX c.)  -  Kunya Ark – Old fortress (XVII c.) - Pakhlavan Mahmud complex (XIV-XIX cc.)  - Islam Khodja madrassah & Minaret (1908) -  Jumma mosque (X–XVIII cc.) - Tash Hauli Allakuli-Khan Palace (XVIII-XIX cc.) - Bazaar.

Sightseeing in Nukus:  The Museum of Igor Savitsky Gallery, home to one of the finest collections of Soviet avant-garde art from the 1920s and 30s. Today the museum holds some 80,000 exhibits ranging from the Khorezmian art of Toprak Kala to Karakalpak cubism.

In the afternoon transfer to Muynak.

Muynak was once the largest port on the Aral, a finger of coast where a significant part of the Aral catch was processed and canned. Muynak is called “Cemetery of ships”. Reason to visit it is a macabre one: to witness the death throes of the sea and the dramatic sight of dozens of deserted fishing boats rusted at their moorings, submerged in sand, riding the crest of a sand dune, 100 km from the shoreline.

Walk on the Aral Sea coast. While walking an observance of the picturesque canyons on the cliff of the Ustyurt plateau and antique depositions of nomad Sarmatia tribes, wandering between the Aral and Caspian Sea in the VI-II cc. B.C.

Return to Muynak.

Sightseeing in Nukus: Some 15 km west of Nukus on the road to Kunya-Urgench, lie the holy sites of Mizdakhan and Yusup Ishan, two enormous cemeteries of several thousand graves which spill over the only two hills on the horizon, each like a mini Jerusalem on the steppe. The larger of the two, Mizdakhan, was once an important centre of handicrafts set on the trade crossroads to Gurganj, until it was destroyed by Tamerlane en route to larger things in Gurganj.

In the evening flight to Tashkent.

Arrival in Tashkent. Check in to the hotel.

Transfer to Chimgan Mountains. For heliskiing or trekking, windsurfing or simply a lakeside barbecue. The road from Tashkent follows the Chirchik river past hydroelectric dams and the modern city of Chirchik, famed for its chemical works. A right fork leads straight to Chimgan, or left to the town of Khodjakent, boasting Bronze Age rock carvings, tea houses and juniper forests. The dam holds back the stunning blue of Charvak Reservoir, built in 1982 at the mountain-girdled confluence of the Pskem, Koksu and Chatkal rivers. The road skirts high above the water until Bakachur, where villas and chaikhana attract weekend crowds. Twenty minutes drive from Bakachur is Chimgan itself, Uzbekistan’s winter sports centre. The name originates in the Turkic for “green slope”, justified by the poplar, maple, acacia and countless fruit trees. When it whitens, skiers flock to the three-kilometre-long Kumbel track. And hiking trails include Aksay and Kyzyldzhar peaks, the Marble river and Gulkamsay waterfalls. Walking around the surroundings of Chimgan mountains, lunch.
Way back to Tashkent.

2-3*

3-4*