Central Asia XVIII: 15,944 Steps

Khiva is a city for walking.  People live within the Old City, and there are even a few small cars parked outside homes, but most people walk.  I walked 15,994 steps on October 25, 2021, according to my Fitbit, and Dave, who walked around the old city while I was still sleeping, walked nearly 20,000 steps.
 

The sun rose in the East, as Dave went for his early morning walk.

In Bukhara, the ancient sites are scattered around the modern city.  In Khiva they are all contained within the “Old City” which is surrounded by high, adobe walls.  There are fifty museums within the Old City, as well as many palaces, madrassas, and a harem.  We spent four hours in the morning, sight-seeing with Abdu, and we then spent another two or three hours in the afternoon, wandering around by ourselves, finding picturesque crafts, people, and monuments around each corner.  We studied this city map, created in tile near the city gate, as well as traditional paper maps.

We passed by the Terrassa Restaurant, where we ate dinner on the roof the previous night.  It was less romantic in broad daylight!

Khiva dates from the 5^th century BC, but the highlights of its existence were in the 6^th century AD, when it was the center of the Khorezem development, and in the 17^th, 18^th and 19^th centuries, when it was the center of the Khiva khanate.  As our guidebook said, "Since 1967 Khiva's status as a museum city has ensured that it remains the most homogenous collection of architecture in the Islamic world, deep-frozen, immune to time, and lost in romantic imagination."  The tiled Kalta Minaret is a distinctive landmark.

These tiled towers belong to the Amin Khan Madrassa, a Moslem university which now houses a hotel.

There are images of camel trains throughout Uzbekistan, including sculptures in the Bukhara park, sculptures in the desert between Bukhara and Khiva, and paintings on these tiles in the Old City.

My father would love this picture.  He was an excellent photographer, and his favorite shots were of interesting people in foreign lands.

The Kodja Minaret, in the far background, looks like it dates back hundreds of years, but it was built in 1910.  It was the last architectural monument of the khanates, right before the Russian revolution.  The Russian Revolution resulted in a tighter hold by the Soviets on Central Asia than the tsars had taken.

 I especially enjoyed the Djuma Mosque, with 212 columns holding up the flat roof.  The columns were from many eras.  Some dated back to the 10^th and 11^th centuries, and others were modern.  Many were carved with intricate patterns and Arabic inscriptions.  

Mike is collecting both hats and foreign clothes for his children to dress up in.

The artistry of each unique column was amazing.

During the afternoon, Mike, Dave and I walked the perimeter of Khiva along the Old City Wall.  We looked down on madrassahs and minarets, shops and homes.

For a country depicting camels so often in artwork, there are few of them about.  This camel was dressed up and ready for hire, either for riding or picture taking.  He drank water from a bowl, like a dog.

Bukhara is the best place to buy souzanis, enameled boxes, jewelry, and brass, but Khiva is the best place to buy hats.  Mike bought a dark fur hat like this one to take home to Heidi, and we all bought the fluffy, shaggy sheep hats that came in white, gray, brown, and black.

I was fascinated with the heavy, carved doors in Central Asia, with such different dimensions and designs.  My front door at home seemed positively boring!  

Khiva, like Bukhara, was a city of craftsman.  Above, an artist designed tiles.

These women are weaving rugs.

This man makes wooden bookstands.

A handmade souzani is draped behind David and a caved bedstead, cabinet, and bookstand surround him.

Mike bought another hat and handmade caftan.

Once more, night fell with enchantment on Khiva.

Outside the Old City, we saw this reminder of the encroachment of the modern world!

Back at our hotel, MIR had planned another special entertainment for us--a program of local singers and dancers.  The lady in red encouraged Mike, Dave, and me to get up and dance.  We did!