Tashkent is the capital of Uzbekistan and also the largest city in Central Asia.
Tashkent – The modern metropolis
Tashkent is the capital of Uzbekistan and also the largest city in Central Asia.
For many years, Tashkent has been the most important business and cultural center of the country, attracting tourists and businessmen from various countries of the world.
Tashkent has a large list of attractions. It will take several days to visit all of them.
Here everyone can create his or her own itinerary through the top attractions of the city!
Most time of the summer in Tashkent is hot, so do not forget about sunscreen and hats! Winter is mostly mild and snowless, but do not neglect warm things, it is so cool in the evening that you want to wear a scarf!
Walking along the streets of Tashkent, you can find many memorable things, ranging from small trinkets to huge memorable souvenirs. Most of the souvenir workshops are located in old madrassas and at Chorsu Bazaar. There you can find absolutely everything: crafts carved from wood, pottery, national clothes, and even knives and daggers forged in local forges.
Tashkent restaurants with their variety and the level of service can surprise any gourmet. In the city, you can find not only national cuisine, which in Tashkent differs in taste from the identical dishes in the other parts of the country, but also the best representatives of the foreign gastronomic industry. In Tashkent, you can try Uyghur, Korean, Chinese, Japanese, European and even molecular cuisine. However, the most delicious cuisine is naturally Uzbek! Did you know that in December 2016 pilaf was included in the UNESCO Intangible Heritage List? Now you know it! Come to see and taste the most delicious food in the world!
Tashkent is the capital of Uzbekistan and, concurrently, the largest city in Central Asia. In 2008, the archaeologists announced that the city is already 2,200 years old. One of the first mentions of the city was found in the chronicles written in the II century BC. In the ancient Chinese sources, Tashkent was called “Shi”, which means stone, and in the early Middle Ages, Shash or Chach.
Chimgan
One of the best destinations for ecotourism is a picturesque corner of our region in the Tashkent region – the Chimgan mountain range. The highest point of Greater Chimgan reaches 3309 m above sea level; near it the summit of Small Chimgan is located. Its height is 2097 m.
Alisher Navoi Grand Theatre
The State Academic Grand Theatre of Uzbekistan named after Alisher Navoi was founded in June 1939. This is one of the leading operas and ballet theatres in Uzbekistan. The theatre has the rich history full of significant events.
The beginning of the history of the theatre was led by the People’s artist of Uzbekistan Muhiddin Kari-Yakubov, when in 1929, under his leadership, concert and ethnographic ensemble lovers created a professional theatre, the dance group of which was headed by the famous Tamara Khanum.
The premiere of the first folk Opera “Buran”, staged in 1939, had a success among audiences and critics. Afterwards other operassuch as “Eugene Onegin”, “Gulsara” and ballets – “Coppelia”, “Red poppy”, “Don Quixote”, “Ballet dancer” were staged there.
The theatre is located in the centre of Tashkent on Islam Karimov street. The building is surrounded with a beautiful park with a great number of ornamental trees and a dancing fountain.
The auditorium has a parterre and two tiers and can accommodate up to 1,440 people. The walls are decorated with gilt ornaments and light paint.
The theater’s international projects comprise the organization of such events as the Tashkent Bahori Opera and Ballet Festival, a Festival to honor of the 150th anniversary of Giacomo Puccini as well as participation in the foreign staging of such operas as “the Tsar’s Bride”, “Love Drink”, “Bohemia” and many others.
The State Museum of the Temurids History
One of the must-visit attractions in Tashkent for every tourist is the famous Timurids History Museum.
It was opened in 1996 in honor of the 660th anniversary of the outstanding commander Amir Timur, also known worldwide as Tamerlane.
The three-story rounded building of the Museum is framed by a dome in classic Oriental style. The interior is richly decorated with marble, unique paintings, and gold leaf. On the walls of the halls, a fresco depicts the life of Tamerlane, as well as paintings that convey the atmosphere of those times. The highlight of the Museum is a crystal chandelier with a height of 8.5 meters, which consists of 106 thousand pendants.
The Museum’s exhibits tell visitors about the history of Uzbekistan during the reign of the Timurid dynasty. The Museum has more than 3 thousand exhibits. Here you can see jewelry, clothing, musical instruments, tools and other items of the middle ages. A copy of the Osman Koran, the Holy book of Muslims, is kept in the Central hall.
In the Museum you can also see numerous correspondence of Tamerlane and his descendants with the monarchs of European countries, paintings depicting the great commander, various miniatures and models of famous monuments built in our country by the Timurid dynasty.
The State Museum of History
Located in the center of Tashkent, the State Museum of history of Uzbekistan is one of the first museums in Central Asia. Opened since 1876.
The Museum displays more than 250 thousand old objects, finds and artifacts that allow you to learn the history of the peoples of Central Asia who inhabited the territory of Uzbekistan, from the Stone age to the present day.
Here you can find a statue of the Buddha of the I century, found in the Surkhandarya region, a bronze Saka goat (IV-V centuries BC), decorated with animal figurines, ancient ceramics, fabrics, coins, works of art, historical documents, photographic materials and other exhibits that allow Museum visitors to get acquainted with the ancient civilizations of the East and learn the most important epochs of the history of our region.
The Memorial Complex of Sultan Uwais Karani
Uwais Ibn Amir al-Karani is a highly respected figure in Islam and Sufism. He lived in the time of the Prophet Muhammad (SAW). Throughout his life, this saint traveled a lot and was engaged in the spread of Islam. The life and even death of Uwais Karani gave rise to many legends. It is believed that after his death in the battle of Siffin, the seven sultans could not decide who would bury al-Karani. Each Sultan prepared a coffin, and it turned out that the Saint was in each of them.
There are several places in the Muslim world where al-Karani is buried. And one of these places is located in the Chartak district of Namangan region. According to legend, he came to these lands to promote Islam. Karani’s mother is also believed to be buried here. When she died, the saint could not find water for her ablution for a long time, and then al-Karani turned to the Allah with a request for water. Then he hit the dry ground with his hand and the Holy spring scored at the same time.
Mazar on this site was erected in the 12-13 centuries and over time there was a large architectural complex, including a mosque, mausoleum and Museum. And in recent years, a large-scale reconstruction has been carried out here. The territory of the complex and the surrounding area were landscaped, a library and even a hotel were built. Today, all conditions for performing pilgrimage rites are created on the territory of the complex. The main entrance is decorated with symbolic gates. In the Central part there is a reservoir, and the erected buildings of the mosque and mausoleum are so artfully decorated that they look like toys from a bird’s eye view.
The Minor Mosque
In the capital of Uzbekistan, on the bank of the Ankhor river, there is a Minor mosque – one of the newest attractions of Tashkent.
The opening of the mosque took place before a significant event for the Muslim world – the Eid al-Fitr holiday in 2014.
During construction, all the norms for traditional Oriental architecture were observed, but the mosque differs from the more ancient ones in its white marble decoration. It can accommodate more than 2,500 people. On Sunny days, the shrine shines in the sun.
The Minor consists of a grand avenue planted with greenery, and inside there is a large hall decorated with quotations from the Holy book of the Koran and a mark pointing to Mecca made of gold.
Despite the fact that this is a fairly young attraction, it must be visited.
The State Museum of Applied Atrs of Uzbekistan
To get in touch with the cultural heritage of the Uzbek people, you need to visit a number of museums in Uzbekistan, but to learn about the history of craft art and see its masterpieces, it is enough to visit the Museum of applied art in Tashkent.
The Museum was first opened in 1927 as an exhibition of works by master craftsmen of our country and was called the Museum of Handicrafts. However, in 1977, it received the status of a state Museum and was transformed into an existing Museum.
The Museum’s collection contains more than 7 thousand of the best works of masters from the beginning of the XIX century to the present time, including ceramics, jewelry, gold embroidery, national clothing, suzans, carpets, skullcaps, miniatures and paintings on wood, porcelain, musical instruments and much more.
Humo Arena
Ice and Uzbekistan seem to be incompatible things. Uzbekistan is always associated with the sun or hot weather, but not with ice. But since the beginning of 2019, after the completion of the Humo arena sports and entertainment complex in Tashkent, it has become possible to attend matches, tournaments and competitions in hockey, curling, short track, and figure skating.
Since September 2019, Humo Arena has hosted regular matches of the “Higher hockey League ” championship. It was an honor and a great joy to attend one of the matches of HC Humo (Tashkent) and HC Dynamo” (SPb).
The Ice Palace impressed with its size, beauty, modern architectural solutions, and versatility. The Palace is built in the shape of the wing of the Humo bird of happiness. There is a multi-level parking lot nearby. The complex meets all modern safety and equipment requirements, accommodates 12 thousand 500 spectators. The stadium was almost completely filled with fans and sports fans. It was nice to be a part of something big and common.
It was clear that the audience of different ages went to the match with high spirits and fighting spirit. After the start of the match, everyone began to clap in unison, banging noisemakers to cheer on the players, chanting “Victory!”, “Puck, the washer!”. During the match, special drummers moved around the stands, who managed to rally the audience and support the players in difficult moments.
In short intervals, during the replacement of hockey players, female cheerleaders danced between the aisles, encouraging athletes and spectators. During their dance, incendiary music of world hits was played. Everyone was happy and danced, from young to elders.
Meanwhile, the hockey players were doing their job. They showed a professional game-tough, principled, strong-willed. On the ice, there was a real firestorm between the players. They pushed, shoved, pressed against the wall, fell, but quickly rose. Several times there were skirmishes: hot athletes, without having time to take off their gloves, tried to “solve all the problems ” right on the ice. Of course, after such incidents, the referee’s punishment was immediate, in the form of rest on the bench.
But such a tough game was to the liking of all the audience, and it did not prevent to maintain an atmosphere of incredible positivity and goodwill. Yes, people only would bread and circuses!
