Where in the world is Uzbekistan?

Uzbekistan. Central Asia. The Silk Road. Think Genghis Khan, Marco Polo and Aladdin and his magic lamp. Their second largest city, Samarkand, is one of the oldest continuously inhabited places on the planet. Deserts, mountains, grassy steppes, modern cities, spice bazaars and nomads. All in all it's an amazing and intriguing place. Magical and mystical with tons of history.

​We just returned from a fantastic exploratory trip to put together a Porterra trip there for next fall. One of my favorite parts was sleeping in a yurt (a nomad's tent) in the desert in the shadow of a 2500 year old mud brick fortress. The night sky was as bright as I've ever experienced in my life and it was so peaceful and quiet. The only sounds at night were from the camels meandering around our camp!

​Uzbekistan is a very safe place. It's an ancient part of the world, but they have only been a country since 1991 following the collapse of the Soviet Union. They are a constitutional republic and their current president is relatively progressive. I really wasn't sure what to expect but any reservations I had were immediately put to rest upon our arrival where we greeted with welcoming smiles from the immigration officials in the super clean, new and efficient international airport in their capital city of Tashkent. We found the local people to be welcoming as well.

Their cities, and indeed the entire country, were very clean. I really didn't see trash anywhere. No homeless, no panhandlers, and even the "aggressive" stall owners in the bazaars were tongue in cheek. Cars stop when you cross the street. School age kids, after hearing us speak, would bashfully approach just for the opportunity to practice their English with us. It was all so refreshing. Tourism is so new here. ​

​The food is great and very plentiful. Lots of meat, especially lamb, and lots of fresh salads. Uzbek wine is delicious too. We even found a brewery to tour!

So put Uzbekistan on your list and come with us next fall. You'll be glad you did. There's even a direct non-stop flight from New York straight to Tashkent. Stay tuned for dates and prices...

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