Global Wanderer

23/4/25 – 25/4/25

I arrived in Samarkand in the afternoon, on the Afrosiyob from Bukhara. After a long trip through Pakistan and Afghanistan (and the two nights I had spent in Uzbekistan so far having been rather busy), I was feeling a little exhausted – a comfortable bed and 2 nights relaxing in Samarkand awaited, though!

That evening, I met up with Dale again, who had been exploring Samarkand whilst I had been in Bukhara – we discovered a bar near Registan Square that was playing videos from Triple J’s ‘Like A Version’ – how funny! Walking around the Registan that evening I was again greeted with enormous crowds – it is amazing to see how much tourism has increased! There is even a big sign that has been erected proclaiming Samarkand as the ‘World Cultural Tourism Capital’.

‘World Cultural Tourism Capital’ – Samarkand

The following morning, intent on having a ‘cruisy’ day, I wandered down the street to the local Russian Orthodox church, that of St Alexius – it is always interesting to stay in a different area of a city when you return, as you almost always get a completely different view of the place!

The Church of St Alexius

As this time around, I was located in the south-east of the city, I was significantly closer to Gur-i-Amir, the mausoleum of the infamous Amir Temur, than I had been on my previous visit to Samarkand in 2022. During that visit, the beautiful dome on the mausoleum was undergoing restoration work – I was happy to discover that now, in 2025, that work is complete, and the complex is now free of scaffolding!

The mausoleum of Amir Temur – the Gur-i-Amir complex

Located across the road from the Gur-i-Amir complex is an enormous statue of Amir Temur, looking out across the tree-lined University Boulevard. Surrounding the statue were a number of university graduates having their photos taken – it seemed that it was graduation season in Samarkand this week!

Amir Temur standing guard over University Boulevard

At the other end of University Boulevard is an interesting sight – a Chinese garden! Complete with a statue of Confucius, the garden contains water features, a Chinese gate, and some shady spots perfect for relaxing in Samarkand’s brutal midday heat. I’d never even heard of it before, but stumbled across it by chance – what an interesting find! This capped off my brief Samarkand adventure, as the following morning, I headed to the airport and bid farewell to Uzbekistan – although I am sure I will return!

The fascinating Chinese garden I came across in Samarkand