Day 4 took us from the historic charm of Samarkand to the rugged beauty of the Nurata mountains. This day was filled with high-speed adventures, quirky cultural encounters, and a touch of history.

Morning: Departure from Samarkand

Setting Off to Nurata

We started our day early, excited for the journey ahead. Ruslan, our tour operator, had sent one of his henchmen to pick us up at the hotel. The man’s limited English added a layer of adventure to our trip. As we drove at breakneck speed to the north of Samarkand towards the Nurata mountains, we had no real idea where our destination was or what we would do if we were left stranded somewhere.

As we left the tourist hub behind, we became quite the attraction for locals, especially groups of giggling schoolchildren who waved at us wherever we stopped. It was lovely to see a country that not even 10 years ago was still pretty shut off embrace visitors with so much friendliness!

Afternoon: Exploring Nurata Town and Alexander’s Fortress

Cultural Interaction: Picnic Ground Chats

Part of the itinerary we had agreed with Ruslan was a “cultural interaction” with locals, which sounded sufficiently vague to be either top or flop. In reality, it meant being dropped off at a picnic ground to mingle with local families enjoying a lunchtime BBQ. The warmth of the locals was undeniable—they welcomed us with open arms, offering shashlik, warm Fanta and trying to strike up conversations despite the language barrier. The Russian/English divide made these interactions more awkward than enlightening, but it was a genuine glimpse into local life.

Lunch and Alexander the Great’s Fortress

We arrived at Ruslan’s guesthouse in Nurata by early afternoon, ready for the obligatory plov lunch. Here, we met fellow Stan-travelers who recommended a newly minted tour guide in Bukhara and couldn’t stop praising Kyrgyzstan. Their tales of adventures had us adding new destinations to our bucket list.

Post-lunch, we explored the crumbling remains of Alexander the Great’s fortress. Uzbekistan’s history as a staging ground for megalomaniac conquerors like Alexander, Genghis Khan, Tamerlane, and Stalin is still palpable in their buildings, old and new.

Evening: Settling in with the Fellow Travelers

Over dinner, we properly hung out with other travelers for the first time and enjoyed the convivial atmosphere at Ruslan’s. Embodying the spirit of optimism that pervades Uzbekistan, Ruslan was busily expanding his guesthouse, a sign of the bright future he envisioned for tourism in Uzbekistan.

Though the tourism infrastructure outside main towns is still minimal, the potential is no doubt vast and increasingly being realised by enterprising locals, such as Ruslan: a real espresso machine, some decent international (or, dare we say it, vegetarian…) food and English-speaking staff would be a sure license to print money in some of the smaller towns we passed through.