Samarkand Hotel

... we, with my agreement, stay at his home.
A doctor friend is called to look at my leg. We all gather round in the living room. Plastic bags are fetched to put under my leg. No, it's not broken and the wound is dressed again with help from all and sundry.
Friends come to support Rustam. His wife produces fantastic food for everybody and Ziyodullo, Abdullo and I share mats on the floor of a bedroom.

... yet more photos to be rattled off. As we'd gone in the warm evening light Sim and I were even more snap happy than usual – hopefully the photos here give some idea as to just how stunning this place was.

After our culinary adventures the day before we decided to go for the safe option and eat with a local family that our hosts at the Antica had recommended. We were promised good local food in a very Uzbek setting and we weren't to be disappointed. Setting off ...

... Holland, Belgium, UK and even El Salvador. (she was really lovely!!).

On to Bukhara tomorrow!

Cheers, Rick

Hi Pete here - Yes, the Hotel Antica in Samarqand is a lovely green oasis where we can hide from the 40 degree heat of the day. It was an extremely hot ride to the hotel and I was most happy to find working showers in our rooms - a rare commodity over the past weeks!

On our way to Samarqand, Rick and I got ...

... The owner is even travelling to New Zealand next year to speak at an International Indigenous Craft Conference in Wellington of all places.

The factory is so certain of the quality of the work that they will let you take carpets with you and pay for them later, or they will ship using DHL for $80 USD. You pay when you receive the items and are happy with them. So if anyone fancies a real handmade Persian carpet let me know and I will provide you with ...

Our First Day In Samarkand

Alan woke the next day to find that he too was suffering from Bukhara Belly. In fact he was so sick that I actually felt pretty good when I looked at him. Naim was keen to cancel our proposed stay in a yurt camp at Nurata in the Kyzylkum Desert and I hastily agreed. A night in a yurt camp in the middle of the boiling hot desert without proper toilets or access to any medical help sounded horrendous. I think Alan was too sick ...

... was expected to be a long day as we had to cross the border to Uzbekistan and we all know how long it can take and cycle 135kms in total. The headwind hadn't died down, on the contrary, it had increased power. At the border we had to wait for it to open and at 9am we made our way across to customs. After fighting of the locals, who don't know how to queue, it didn't take too long. We then had to walk to the Uzbek border and were in no-men's land for around 600 ...

... tradicionals districtes urbans en que s organitza la ciutat, i l aksakal ( literalment, barba blanca) en vindria a ser l autoritat moral, laica, que els regula. Als barris antics de la ciutat, les Mahalles son agradables punts de reunion del barri, petits espais arbrats i oberts amb la tradicional porxada de fusta d esbelts pilars, i vells al voltant de jocs de tauler, en la tupida trama de cases pati. La nostra mahalla es ...

... countries. For a report on the Gobi Race from a competitors perspetive, check out Rebecca's CNN assignment (CNN sent her to participate in and write about the race). Click here. Dean Karnazes, an endurance athlete from California also participated in the Gobi March. He kept a blog for runnersworld which you can read here. For videos and photos, check out the RTP website. After the Gobi March 2008 race, I headed back to Urumqui by car just in time to ...

... off-the-beaten-path restaurant recommended by the LP. We drank tea and ate laghman (soup) and nan (bread) along a river, and enjoyed the cool breeze from two fountains, which, after much repairs, started working halfway through our meal. The AfroSiab museum was just as beautiful, at least from the outside. I didn't get far inside before realizing that I didn't have my camera. (Quick note, the camera actually belongs to my friend Dario. I have had it since last summer when ...

... Before going to our hotel we stop for dinner, as it's getting late, at a traditional Uzbek restaurant, a largish building with a central courtyard, downstairs there are a number of seperate dining room of different sizes for private parties, while upstairs is a more open arrangement with low divans and carpets everywhere, the side facing the courtyard being open, all in all a most relaxing environment. After dinner it's on to our hotel for the night.