I expected great walking, beautiful landscapes, fascinating architecture and captivating history from this trip. What I didn't expect was to feel so mentally rested and reinvigorated after 10 days bathing in the company of such positive and friendly people. The group, our guides, our hosts and the vast majority of the Uzbeks that we met were absolutely lovely.
Uzbekistan is an absolute gem. It combines the historical heritage of Silk Road cities with a positive, modern outlook and an incredibly welcoming and inclusive culture. Everywhere we went, people were curious, courteous and cheerful, and I can't recall feeling safer anywhere.
We saw very few Western European tourists during our trip - there is a lot of tourism in Uzbekistan but mainly from other Central Asian countries. Our trip coincided with the Persian New Year and the end of Ramadan, so there were huge numbers of women in scintillating velvet dresses, striving to out-compete the ornate tilework of the mosques & madrassars with their patterned frocks.
The trip hit a great balance between busy historical hot spots, Soviet and post-Soviet structures, and contemplative walking in the mountains. Seeing the second world war memorial for lost Uzbeki combatants in Tashkent was unexpectedly moving, and learning about how the country has sensitively navigated political sensitivities was fascinating.
The food was amazing and the vegan member of our party was catered for pretty well, considering that Uzbek culture is so meat-based. Every meal time was a smorgasbord of delicious, fresh food with lashings of aromatic green tea, poured with care and attention. And the plov!
As part of a reforestation initiative in the mountains, a juniper tree is planted for every trip member. We got to plant and name our own trees on the hillside overlooking the yurt camp, which was really sweet. I hope that Helga thrives and grows into a big tree!
Temperature-wise, even though our trip was in March, we all found the heat challenging. My cold weather gear was used in the chillier evenings up in the mountains, but the daytime temperatures were surprisingly high. The trees were just starting to spring into leaf and I bet the April trips will be stunning, but I was glad not to have gone at a hotter time of year.
Top tips for getting the best out of this trip:
Boots: make sure that they are well worn-in and grippy on dusty/scree inclines. Although poles were provided, some of our party really struggled with sloping traverses and sharp descents, and also with blisters from newer, rigid boots. (I might have said how much I loved my grippy inov-8's just a little bit too much!)
Clothing: shorts or loose trousers are a good idea for walks, with longer trousers or skirts for urban areas. In the heat, a light, loose, sleeved shirt was generally better than a tight, technical top. Bring a waterproof, we only had wet weather once in Samarkand but when it rains it really rains!
Food: let the guides know about any food difficulties as soon as you can, they will really do their best to work around your preferences and needs.
Water: I took a Lifestraw filter bottle which was great on some walks, but not much use on others where there were few streams. Water was always available to top up on the bus and in the morning, but make sure that you carry more than you think you need.
Fitness: I would thoroughly recommend doing some training in advance to get the best out of this trip. I'm in my late 50's with reduced lung capacity and was always at the back of the party during ascents. However, after a couple of months in the gym (especially the step-climber) and a few practise Munro's the month before, I always coped and my legs didn't suffer. I had fully expected to have to sit out the big mountain day at the yurt camp, so was absolutely made-up that I was up to the challenge.
Trip level: some of our party members had previous MBA trip experience and felt that this was possibly under-graded at level three. My highest daily step count was over 46,000, far more than I generally do on a Munro day.
Language: there is a lot of English spoken but you can't rely on it. Picking up a few phrases in advance was really helpful - words like iltimos, rahmat (pronounce the h like the CH in loch), mumkin and kerak got the most use. And of course choy!
And no review would be complete without a shout-out for our guides. Ixti was a font of patient cheerfulness, never phased by the constant stream of questions from our group. Our specialist guide in the mountains was Baha, a super-fit local lad from the Nuratau region, whose charm and enthusiasm for always offering just one more walking option ("maybe just 3 hours more if you want. . ?") won everybody over. We changed drivers in the first few days and ended up with Aleesh, a super-sweet guy who navigated the uneven roads with care and safety. We always had the two guides with the group, but Baha also recruited a local villager during the highest mountain day, to cater for a three-way ability split with longer/shorter options.
Although we laughed when Baha dramatically told a group member, "Your desire is the most important thing" (she was only wanting to pop into the shop with him to get snacks!), it really did feel like this was their approach. Nothing was too much trouble and we really felt cosseted by the attention and care shown by our hosts.
I'd thoroughly recommend this trip to anyone, as long as you can cope with long, hot days and are confident in your ability to walk long distances on consecutive days. My Uzbekistan adventure was amazing and will live long in my memories.
