 Registan Square in Samarkand | ||
| Samarqand, Самарқанд, سمرقند | ||
| province | Samarqand Province | |
|---|---|---|
| Residents | 504.423 (2015) | |
| height | 702 m | |
no tourist info on Wikidata:  | ||
| location | ||
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Samarkand is an oasis city in the northeast of Uzbekistan. It is one of the oldest cities on earth and was conquered by Alexander the Great, destroyed by Genghis Khan and made the capital by Tamerlane. The Silk Road runs through Samarkand and it was converted into the in 2001 by the significant buildings from the city's heyday UNESCO World Heritage recorded.
background
Samarkand is the national showpiece of Uzbekistan, the historical sites have been extensively restored with foreign help.
getting there
| Distances | |
| Tashkent | 290 km |
|---|---|
| Bukhara | 270 km |
| Karschi | 150 km |
| Kokand | 500 km |
| Shahrisabz | 90 km |
| Termiz | 380 km |
| Urganch | 700 km |
| Dushanbe (Tajikistan) | 310 km |
By plane
Arrival from Europe via Istanbul nearly every day turkish airlines possible.
Uzbekistan Airways offers flights from Moscow Domodedovo International Airport on Tue, Thu, Sat, Sun, St. Petersburg on Mon and Fri, Kazan on Fri and Tashkent daily except Fri (summer 2010).
By train
In Amir Timur Str. (Approx. 600 m from the roundabout with the statue, at Registan Plaza-Hotel) there is an inner-city booking office Termir y'ol Kassarli (8.00-18.00).
The
is about 6 km from the Registan. Train 2 runs in Tashkent on Mon, Thu, Fri, Sat and Sun at 7.00 a.m. and arrives in Samarkand at 10.50 a.m., train 50 leaves Tashkent every day at 7.00 p.m. and arrives in Samarkand at 11.55 p.m. To Termiz can be reached daily from 22.10 (place card 42000 S).
By bus
From the bus station Autovocal if taxis to the Registan cost 3000 Som, foreigners with luggage, you will ask for 5000 Som. Private buses to Tashkent cost S20-25,000, the two daily buses on the state line cost S22,100.
In the street
The journey from Tashkent to Samarkand is approx. 4-5 hours, shared taxis depart from Sobir Rahimov Bus Station in Tashkent.
mobility
There are numerous yellow, marked taxis, without meters, which cost a flat rate of 3000 Som (Europeans 5000 S) in the city center. Other passengers are also picked up in between.
On the inner-city Marshrutkas Line numbers and destinations are written in Latin letters. Numerous bus shelters are neatly labeled with line numbers, first and last departure times and intervals (the same is more theoretical). Line and city maps do not exist.
Tourist Attractions
Streets and squares
For the main attractions, there is a three-tier discrimination in terms of entrance fees, depending on the appearance and language skills of the visitors. Roughly, the basic price for Uzbeks is multiplied by 3-4 for guests with an Asian appearance, ten times that is charged from Europeans, from whom one would gladly accept the same amount again for a "photo permit". In view of such practices, one should not be afraid to use free secret routes. The tickets are no longer checked after the box office. In the Registan you get between through a wooden gate from behind Ulugbek- and Tilya-Kori-Madrasa. Into the Timur mausoleum by wandering aimlessly in the area, then through the rear door.
- Registan. The Registan is one of the main attractions of Samarkand. The Registan became the most important square in the city after living in Afrosyab came to a standstill. It has been rebuilt several times. Today there are three former ones Madrasah (Koran schools). In the whole world there is no comparable place where three monumental madrasas are united. At the beginning of the 1980s, the level of the square was adjusted to that of the 16th century. The interior of such a place has been completely inappropriately remodeled into a kind of kitsch tourist mall. The former cells of the Koran students accommodate almost all sales booths that do not display any prices. A fair price for Europeans is likely to be around a tenth of the initial retailer's demand.
- Ulugbeg Madrasah. The Ulugbeg Medrese is on the west side of the square. It is the oldest medrese on the Registan and forms a large rectangular building with a monumental portal and a courtyard with 4 aiwans and the cells of the students. It has four classrooms in the corners and a winter mosque in the western part. There are four minarets at the corners of the building. The furnishings consist of glazed and unglazed bricks, mosaics, majolica and marble. The main portal is decorated with geometric, epigraphic and plant ornaments. Inscriptions refer to Ulugbek and various construction phases, including the completion of the work in 823/1420. The Ulugbek Medrese was restored on the occasion of the anniversaries of Mirzo Ulugbek and Amir Timur from 1993 to 1996.
- Shirdor madrasah. The Shirdor Medrese is located opposite the Ulugbek Medrese. It repeats the facade, planning and composition of the Ulugbek Medrese. The first floor of the Shirdor Medrese has been preserved, while it has been destroyed at the Ulugbek Medrese. A tiger ("shir") is depicted at the entrance portal, from which the name "Shirdor" is derived. The Shirdor madrasah was established under the Uzbek rulers Yalangtush Erected between 1619 and 1632. The names of the masters Abdaldjabbar and Muhammad-Abbas are preserved on inscriptions.
- Tilla Kari madrasah. The Tilla Kari Medrese closes the Registan Square to the north. Its western part is a mosque. The inside of the mosque is covered with money, Tilla Kari means "covered with gold." The madrasah was also under Yalangtush Erected between 1641 and 1660.
Mosques and madrasas
- Bibi Khanum Mosque. The Bibi Khanum Mosque is located between Registan Square and the ancient Afrosiab. It is the Friday mosque of Samarkand. According to written documents, it was built between 1399 and 1405 on the orders of Amir Timur. It shows the typical features of medieval Islamic buildings, in particular the composition of a courtyard with aiwans. The entrance to the large courtyard is decorated with a portal with round minarets. The courtyard used to be framed by a gallery of stone pillars. There are two dome structures with aiwans on the transverse axes. On the longitudinal axis opposite the entrance is the main building of the mosque with its own portal and octagonal minarets. The huge hall is covered by a double dome. At the corners there are round minarets on octagonal foundations. The walls are covered with gilded paintings and geometric, vegetable and epigraphic ornaments. The inscriptions are often sentences from the Koran. During the reign of Ulugbek (1st half of the 15th century) a huge stone Koran stand was erected in the courtyard. The official admission price for Europeans (Oct. 2014: S 10,000) is negotiable at S 5,000, especially for groups.
- Gur Emir Ensemble. The Gur Emir Ensemble (Amir Timur-Mausoleum) is located 120 meters south of the Rukhabat Mausoleum. The Gur Emirn Ensemble and Rukhabat Mausoleum were through the “royal avenue” (shakhrakh) connected from white stones. The courtyard was surrounded on three sides by buildings and protected in the south by a wall with the entrance portal. The portal is covered with mosaics with vegetal, geometric and epigraphic ornaments, including an inscription by the master Muhammad ibn Makhmud Isfakhani from Iran. The Muhammad Sultan Madrasa was on the left side of the courtyard. It was a square structure with a courtyard surrounded by student cells and classrooms in the corners. The building was on the orders of Muhammad Sultan, the favorite grandson and official heir of Amir Timur. The madrasah was later destroyed, only the foundation walls have been preserved. The Mukhammad Sultan Khanaka was opposite the madrasah. It is a much smaller square building for the accommodation of high guests and for the discussion of religious topics, of which only remnants of the wall have been preserved. The Gur-Emir mausoleum is located opposite the entrance portal. Above the octagonal mausoleum there is a cylindrical drum and a spherical dome, which is divided by mighty ribs. In the mauseoleum there is a vault under the Gurkhana with the tombs of Timur, his sons and grandchildren and two well-known teachers. The outer surfaces are covered with inscriptions and ornaments made of glazed bricks, the lower part of the wall is covered with marble bricks. The interior of the mausoleum is decorated with gilded paintings. In the marbleGurkhana are the tombstones, which are among the best examples of stone carving. Numerous tour guides with their loud lectures disturb the tranquility of the place extremely. The mausoleum was built on the orders of Timur from 1403 to 1404 and was intended for his favorite grandson, Muhammad Sultan. Later it became the family tomb of the Timurids. In 1424 an eastern gallery was added during the reign of Ulugbel. This became the main entrance to the Mauseoleum. The walls of this gallery are covered with paintings and in the lower parts with mosaics. Additions to the mausoleum in the south and west were never completed, probably a part in the 15th and another in the 17th century. built. The Gur Emir ensemble and especially the mausoleum are among the most important buildings of medieval Islamic architecture. On the occasion of the anniversary of Amir Timur, the whole of Central Asia in the 15th century. The haunted butcher, who was historically incorrect after the introduction of the first and to date also the last autocratically ruling President Islom Karimov as the “forefather of the Uzbeks”, extensive restoration work was carried out.
Monuments
In the middle of the roundabout near the mausoleum, “by order of Karimov, the First” (... President of Uzbekistan), a seated bronze statue of Timur was erected, stylistically reminiscent of that in Central Europe at the end of the 19th century. the usual grotesque, pseudo-historical medieval images of kings.
In the park near the Timur mausoleum, you can "admire" the fountain in the afternoons, synchronized with music (including Adriano Celentano).
shop
Im clean Siyob-Bazar, between Bibi-Khanum Mosque and Registan the population of the old town takes care of itself. In the pedestrian zone leading there, numerous, poorly frequented shops offer overpriced kitsch aimed at tourists.
nightlife
After sunset, at most for private groups in restaurants until midnight. Otherwise: go to bed early!
accommodation
Cheap
- Bahodir B&B, 132 Mullokandova St. (Facing the main Registan entrance, approx. 50 m to the right to the wide footpath, 150 m through the park, at the first fork in the road (in front of the ice cream parlor) on the right, approx. 30 m on the left side of the street.). Tel.: 998 662 354759 (international and mobile. 83 662 354 759 within Uzbekistan), Fax: 998 662 354305. Friendly family business with a cozy inner courtyard, including a rich breakfast. Dinner $ 3 (as of 10/2014). Very popular with the Japanese.Price: Dorm: US $ 10 / single in a triple $ 15.
- Antica Courtyard B&B, 58 Isskandarov St. (With your back to the main entrance of the Timur mausoleum, about 50 m to the first passage in the city wall, about 30 m into the alley; signposted.).
medium
- 1 Jahongir B&B, Chirokchi 4 (facing the main Registan entrance, approx. 50 m to the right, across the street at the Registon supermarket, signposted after 150 m, left in a small side street). Price: from US $ 30.Overpriced for the performance offered, a little soulless.
- Hotel Siyob. At the taxi / bus station below the bazaar of the same name - therefore comparatively noisy in the morning.
Upscale
Due to the good tourist development, there are several high-priced hotels that are used by tourist groups. Central are:
- Hotel Dilosha
- Hotel President
- Registan Plaza Hotel ****
health
The tap water is drinkable.
Practical advice
In Amir Timur Str. (Approx. 400 m from the roundabout with the statue, at Registan Plaza-Hotel) there is an internet cafe on the left. There is another diagonally across from the rail booking office.
trips
- Shahrisabz. 80 km from Samarkand.
- Tajikistan. 60 km from Samarkand.
- Urgut. 30 km southeast of Samarkand, picturesque bazaar.
literature
- Galiulina, R. X .; State Committee of the Republic of Uzbekistan for Land Resources, Geodesy, Cartography and State Cadastre: Samarkand: city plan; Tashkent 2005: 88 x 64 cm, folded (not available on site in 2014)
- Guntermann, Maria; The great miracles of mankind: the most impressive superlatives in the world; Munich 2014 (Kunth); ISBN 9783955040932
- Meuser, Philipp; Architecture guide Uzbekistan; Berlin 2013 (DOM); ISBN 9783869221984 ; [Orig. soot.]
