Uh-mazing Uzbekistan!! (Part 1): Can't Forget about Tashkent!!

- December 24, 2025, Wednesday.

- If I were to choose only one country in Central Asia to visit, I would say Uzbekistan in a heartbeat. Being the center of the great Timurid Empire, Uzbekistan has a lot of the most iconic historical and cultural treasures of the region (although this is not to say that the other Central Asian countries have nothing to be proud of.) I was excited for my family's last main leg for the trip, because most of why I decided to visit Central Asia (my family just tagged along, honestly) were in Uzbekistan.

- The usual entry point to Uzbekistan is Tashkent, the country's capital. Filipinos would need to accomplish an e-visa to entry Uzbekistan. The current visa application website can have particular specifications when it comes to photo size and quality, as well as filename font styles (they prefer file names without capitalizations, at least when I applied for my family's visa). 

- Like other countries in Central Asia, Russian remains to be the lingua franca. However, one difference I saw was how many Uzbeks can also speak good English, and how many English-learning institutions were scattered around the various cities we visited in Uzbekistan. I didn't have to speak too much Russian, but speaking Russian did help too, particularly with older people.

- After arriving in Tashkent, we booked a car via the YandexGo app to our hotel Mirzo Boutique Hotel. It was a nice cozy hotel although it was slightly far from the downtown area (still, it was close to the market and some other tourist spots).

- We had lunch at a restaurant near our hotel before heading off to the Amir Timur Square (close to Amir Temur Xiyoboni metro station). Built in 1994, it is the main square of Tashkent, and has a statue of Timur the Great, also known as Tamerlane. He was the founder of the Timurid Empire (as you can tell from the empire's name.) 

With Amir Timur.

The Tashkent Chimes, twin clocks of the square.

- Right beside the square is the State Museum of the Timurids. Built in 1996, the museum celebrates the legacy of the Timurid Empire. It not only features the history of the Timurid rulers, but also artifacts used in daily life by people during those times.

It was built in Timurid-style architecture, complete with the signature turquoise dome.

Mosaic of Amir Timur and a copy of the Osman Qur'an (the world's oldest surviving Qur'an)!

Ceremonial clothing.

Photo of the mosaic from the second-floor balcony.

Timur's eyebrows....so they say.

Gallery of Timurid rulers.

- We ended the day by going to Sailgokh Street, also known as Broadway (accessible through either Mustaqillik Maidoni metro station, or from Amir Temur Xiyoboni metro station). The street was named as such because it has rows of shops, restaurants, and open spaces for people to come together. It was winter so the street was not as lively as I had expected, but at least the shops and restaurants were all open. We also had dinner at a Georgian restaurant because I've been curious about Georgian food. It was great!

Sailgokh Street.

Some souvenir shops.

The Romanov Palace, also known as the Palace of Grand Duke Nicholas Constantinovich. Of course, the Grand Duke was part of the Romanov Dynasty. He was exiled there to Tashkent by Emperor Alexander II in relation to the Grand Duke's scandals in Russia. 

Georgian restaurant.

Khachapuri (bread with egg and cheese) and khinkali (dumplings with a bit of soup inside, like Chinese xiaolongbao.)

I love you too.

- One day in Tashkent was definitely not enough, but I'm glad that this was just the beginning of my exploration of Tashkent. For now we had to leave the city to explore the royal and historical cities outside the capital!