Day 277: Sigh & Reap

Still in Siem Reap, still working my way through the ruins of Angkor. I set out upon this trip with three "musts" on my itinerary - the Aral Sea, Ha Long Bay, and Angkor.  Tomorrow I hope to complete the final "must".

Meanwhile, back in Uzbekistan, it's the 18th of August and I am embarking upon a ride across the desert from Bukhara to Khiva, riding a shared taxi that cost me nearly twice as much as it should have.

The road to Khiva was variable - now well maintained, now crumbling into fragments, here cruising above the desert, there sinking beneath the assault of the dunes.  Broken-down cars, minvans and buses littered the route.   Fortunately my car did not break down.

At Urgench the taxi terminated and I paid too much to another waiting taxi driver for a ride to Khiva, 35 kilometres away.  He dropped me off outside my chosen hotel, the Islambek.  A nice air conditioned room cost me $20 per day.

The attraction of Khiva is the old City, supposedly a near-perfectly preserved medieval city.  In fact it has been largely rebuilt and in the process the life has been squeezed out of it.  I immediately dubbed it "Khiva-land".  As long as you avoid the West Gate you can walk in and out of and around the city without hassle, but if you want to enter any of the attractions you need to have a ticket (sold at the West Gate).

The inclusive entry price was now UZS 15k for one day, plus 5k for a camera. However, not only had they doubled the price and shortened the period of validity from two days to one, but some sights that used to be included - such as the Oq Shihbobo Bastion - now had a separate entry charge. I didn't bother asking the price to climb to the "terrace".

Climbing the Islom-Hoja minaret, which my guidebook listed as perhaps 500-1k, now cost UZS 3k. I might have coughed up for that except that I didn't see the justice in it, having already paid USD 10 for access to a bunch of sights most of whose visual pleasures could be seen and photographed for free from outside. It looked like someone woke up to the fact that tourists like getting views from heights, and went around tacking stiff separate entry fees onto all the tallest places in the old town.

Of the "included" places, the Kuhna Ark was in better condition and was better value than Bukhara's Ark, as I could get a real idea of how it worked.

As mentioned, walking around the town was still free and fun. Climbing the northern walls was easy, with ramps beside the North Gate. With a bit of a scramble I got up on the wall to the south-east, and there was a beaten path up through some tombs to the south-west wall. The south wall was particularly interesting, being largely unreconstructed. The views from the walls didn't quite match up to the views from the towers, but after all, they were free.

The town south of Pahlavon Mahmud, off the tourist trail, was a fun place to wander around in, with glimpses of real life. The locals were cheerful and friendly, especially if I tossed them a "sallom Alleekoom" (salaam aleikum with an Uzbek accent) in response to their "hello". I wasn't badgered for "bon-bons".