This morning I had breakfast in the historic dining room of the hotel. There were pancakes, jam, boiled egg, tea, and various breads, so not exactly an authentic Uzbek meal.

I had arranged to meet my driver at 9am but got a call in my room about 15 mins early that someone was waiting for me. When I came down it was my guide for the day

After first welcoming me to his country, he was very surprised how somebody from Canada knew about Uzbekistan? The only info guides and drivers are given about me is my name and nationality.

I explained that I was actually working in Korea but am very knowledgeable about the silk road history. I planned this trip from Korea as I could never afford it from Canada.

I told him there were lots of Uzbeks in Korea with Uzbek restaurants. Most people here seem to know about their large diaspora in Korea. He also thought I was quite young and that we were both the same age about 30 so I didnt feel the need to correct him.

His name was Rustom which I thought at first sounded quite Russian sounding. I asked why he had a Russian name but he explained its actually Persian and thats what his origin was. He planned to visit sites in Iran and Iraq when timings were favourable for him. His friend just went two weeks ago and it was quite safe.

After our driver Anvar arrived we drove first to Samani Park on the west side of town. This had a Soviet era amusement park and the winds were quite strong this morning. I hoped it would warm up as the forecast was for the cold weather the next two days, not this early.

Rustom explained first the history of the invaders ranging from Alexander the Great, Arabs, Mongols, and Russians. I was hoping to go indoors somewhere as the cold winds were quite strong.

We were at a tomb which he explained was built in Zoroastrian style as people adapted to already existing cultures and traditions. Excavations have shown the settlement to be from 2500 BC though people have claimed it to be even older

It was a very interesting brick design with many irregular patterns causing contrasts. He explained that in the past people would write down their questions and put them in the tomb. Two priests would secretly enter from a hole and write the answers to the questions. This is how they managed to govern for a period of time.

We then made our way to a bazaar just behind the tomb and hopefully to escape from the howling winds. Even though it was getting later in the morning the temperature wasnt picking up.

I thought this was a bus terminal at first, which he said it was, but inside was also a bazaar. This was not a historic bazaar but a modern one made in a large open air warehouse.

It was interesting and had vendors of various types. First we went thru the meat section which had various cuts of lamb hanging. They also had cow tongue and baby lambs

In other sections they had fruits, dried goods, spices, and rice. They also had naan bread.

While interesting it lacked any character and atmosphere of traditional bazaars and just felt like walking around a warehouse or open air supermarket, which is what it was essentially though kept very clean

One vendor had various bars of dessert and tried talking with me so I had to get my guide to interpret. He wondered if I was Muslim and where I as from.

He was selling halwa, which is common across the Middle East to India though ours is different. He cut a slice with a knife and offered it. It was delicious and like a creamier version of Barfi which is an Indian/Pakistani sweet item.

He wanted to sell a kilo for $10 but I didnt need that much. We agreed to 200g for 4000 Som ($2). In hindsight I should have taken the kilo as this is a local speciality not found again in other towns.

We then made our way back out to another tomb called Chasma Ayub. Chasma in Indo/Pak languages means glasses but the meaning here was a water well.

This was a tomb of Prophet Job who is a lesser known Prophet of the Old Testament. The devil was jealous of him so told God to take away all his wealth to see if he stops praying. When God did Job continued to pray

Then the devil said to take away his health. He had some illness where insects would crawl under his skin. He couldnt move from the bed but kept praying. This continued for 17 years.

In the end the devil gave up and his health and wealth were restored. He became very famous after that. One day during hard times he struck his staff in the ground and a well sprung up.

This is the site we were now at where you can drink the holy water but the site was closed today. There was another museum beside which was also closed.

Outside a man was trying to sell a set of soviet era coins for $10. I felt sorry as it was low season and I was his only customer but it seemed a bit expensive.

We continued walking back into the old town for the next part of our tour.