8:30 am. A speed train was there shortly after we arrived. The station is modern and clean. The toilets were clean but smelly. I was concerned about the smelly toilet since the first day of this journey. Just couldn’t imagine in this modern era people still shit in a hole. I didn’t want to revisit that again because for a long time we struggled to make our toilets clean and hygienic.
This speed strain is modern and comfortable; a thumb up to Uzbek. For 270,000 som (about RM90.00) we can finally pull a breather and rest.
One day in Tashkent was not enough to explore the city but we would come back to this place later. I walked around in the afternoon to the poor and dusty part of this old town. The mineral water cost 5000 som at a sundry shop. Nearby a makcik were selling bread with cabbage filling. Her son manned the traditional oven right there and the baking smelled heavenly. The bread cost 6000(RM2) a piece and the best one I have ever tasted. Later on I had pilav with horse meat , some meat, eggs and meat wrapped in grape leaf for dinner. It was so tasty and rich; somehow I forgot the food from home that was still filling up the space in my luggage.
Our accommodation was in Suzuk Ota; a complex of residences, a mosque and mausoleum. This was built in the era of Timur Lane. The mosque was not as big as the ones in Turkey but big enough for the local people. The interior also was not as lavish but beautifully decorated with intricate wooden frames . As I joined the Friday prayer, the security was tight and the police was everywhere. Sometimes you will appreciate more for the thing that you have taken for granted when the joy and freedom were not there. The tension was high, the silence was eerie and I left with a lump of fear in my chest.
As we drove to the train station, the morning sun was so beautiful and the summer cool was still there before it dispersed in a few hours. The roads were wide and well designed. It has a bus lane, pedestrian walkways and endless line of daisies on both sides. The foreign brands on the buildings shows how foreign investors came and built the economy of this country. The healthy investment climate keeps the country growing and developed a platform for a modern society.
Since the ancient times during the height of Persian Empire, this place was famous with knowledgeable people and natural beauty. On the way to Samarkand, I hope the train will take me to its glorious past that was narrated handsomely in the history books.
