I have arrived into this new destination, full of anxiety, exhaustion, and with a nervous system in complete disarray. I take the time to try and decompress, even just a little bit. Over the next week, several small walks close to home is all I can muster. These are purely with the purpose of gathering food. Then its back to my cave I crawl. These are my first impressions of Samarkand Uzbekistan with that mindset.
Walkable
With wide sidewalks and tree lined streets, this city is wonderful to walk around. One must be aware at all times of the deep, uncovered ditch that seems to be beside every sidewalk, but other than that, very safe and even stepping grounds. Crossing at a light is easy, traffic obeys the rules. Crossing at a zebra with no lights, keep your wits about you.
Clean
There are garbage cans everywhere and the people use them. I see very little trash laying about if any. Behind my Airbnb is a large communal garbage bin and that does overflow with debris, but the streets, sidewalks and public places are exceptionally clean.
Friendly
People are full of smiles which is so lovely to see and feel after my airport experience. I stop to purchase goodies from a street stand and the vendor and other customers are really lovely to interact with. Shop keepers are friendly too, not overtly, but they are warm once you say ‘As-salamu alaykum’ and offer a smile.
Green
There are many many green spaces and parks, its so lovely and refreshing to see this in a large established city. Boulevards lined with trees; small and larger parks filled with fountains and the fresh smell of new spring growth fills the cool air.
Culture Shock
Everything is different here. There is the national language of Uzbek, but when I use that in my translation apps, hardly anything translates correctly. At the grocery store, I find it best to use Russian to get a close idea of what the food product might be. There is a real mix of ethnicities too and most people are able to speak four languages.
The old soviet architecture and images, mixed with the centuries old Tajik structures that are absolutely breathtaking is a fascinating combination. Add to that mud brick houses, street vendors with wonderfully curious products and loads of people, and it’s an incredible curiosity that slowly grows within me, to see more.
I have been dreaming of visiting Uzbekistan for years now. It only took one photo of a massive tile covered building, to get me hooked. As I slowly try to recover and heal, I look forward to getting out and into the city to explore. So far, Samarkand is everything I had hoped and so much more.
