About Uzbekistan

Uzbekistan highlighted by Hungarian Media: You can travel to one of the oldest cities in the world - Samarkand on a luxury train
24 November 2023
Uzbekistan highlighted by Hungarian Media:  You can travel to one of the oldest cities in the world - Samarkand on a luxury train

Hungary's leading newspaper Magyar Nemzet published an article dedicated to Uzbekistan:  “Samarkand: you can travel by luxury train to one of the oldest cities in the world”.

“2,750-year-old Samarkand, one of the richest cities on the famous Silk Road, preserves the legacy of the fabulous East, where tourists are now transported by luxurious high-speed trains,” the article says. - Samarkand was once one of the most important oases on the caravan route from China to Europe. Today, tourists are brought here by trains reaching speeds of 250 km/h. The former capital of Uzbekistan has a rich cultural heritage, and its history goes back centuries, something few cities in the world can boast of.”

The article notes that Samarkand is one of the most beautiful examples of mature Islamic architecture. Gur-Emir mausoleum, the resting place of Amir Timur since 1405, was mentioned in the article as one of the most important attractions. “The ribbed turquoise dome of the structure, 26 meters high, is visible from afar, and its peculiarity is that it seems to constantly change its color depending on how the sun’s rays fall on it,” the publication writes. - The ancient center of Samarkand is Registan Square, the name of which, translated from Persian, means sandy place. The square is surrounded by three monumental buildings, the so-called madrassas, and medieval Islamic schools: Ulugbek madrasah, Tillya-Kari madrasah and Sherdor madrasah, which were built in the 15th-17th centuries. A must-see landmark of the city is the Bibi Khanum Mosque, which was restored at the beginning of the 20th century...”

According to the Hungarian newspaper, one of the city's newest attractions is the Silk Road Samarkand tourist center, which opened in the fall of 2022. The new tourist complex is located on an area of 260 hectares, where tourists can find hotels, restaurants, recreation centers and cultural attractions as they visit Samarkand. The centerpiece of the site is the 17-hectare Eternal City, inspired by ancient architecture. The narrow streets are lined with vendors and artists offering handmade goods. “If you get hungry, looking around, you can also try traditional dishes,” the publication informs. - You can go to Samarkand by plane, or by high-speed express from Tashkent. The super express covers a distance of 344 kilometers in less than two hours, which also contributes to the fact that Samarkand has become increasingly popular among travelers from all over the world in recent years.”

Magyar Nemzet (Hungarian Nation) is the largest and oldest daily newspaper published in Hungary since 1938. The daily audience of the online version of the publication reaches up to 4 million people.

Promoting the tourist destinations of Uzbekistan on famous mass media channels like this will definitely impact on making our country a new favorite destination for European travelers, by increasing the number of tourists visiting Uzbekistan. 

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Did you know?

Uzbekistan is one of only two countries in the world to be ‘double landlocked’ (landlocked and totally surrounded by other landlocked countries). Liechtenstein is double landlocked by 2 countries whilst Uzbekistan is surrounded by 5!

Did you know that Uzbekistan lies in the very heart of Eurasia, the coordinates for Uzbekistan are 41.0000° N, 69.0000°

Uzbekistan is home to the Muruntan gold mine, one of the largest open pit gold mines in the world! The country has 4th largest reserves of gold in the world after South Africa, USA and Russia

Uzbekistan is the world capital of melons. They have in excess of 150 different varieties, which form a staple part of the local diet, served fresh in the summer and eaten dried through the winter.

It is Uzbek tradition that the most respected guest be seated farthest from the house’s entrance.

Tashkent’s metro features chandeliers, marble pillars and ceilings, granite, and engraved metal. It has been called one of the most beautiful train stations in the world.

The Uzbek master chef is able to cook in just one caldron enough plov to serve a thousand men.

When you are a host to someone, it is your duty to fill their cups with for the whole time they are with you.  What you must not do, however, is to fill their cup more than half-full.  If you do that as a mistake, say it is a mistake immediately.  Doing it means you want them to leave.  Wow!  Amazing, right?

To Uzbeks, respect means a whole lot.  For this reason they love it if, even as foreigners, you endeavour to add the respectful suffix opa after a woman's name; and aka after a man's.  Example: Linda-opa and David-aka.  You could also use hon and jon respectively.

Having been an historic crossroads for centuries as part of various ancient empires, Uzbekistan’s food is very eclectic. It has its roots in Iranian, Arab, Indian, Russian and Chinese cuisine.

Though identified with the Persia, the Zoroastrism probably originated in Bactria or Sogdiana. Many distinguished scholars share an opinion that Zoroastrianism had originated in the ancient Khorezm. Indeed, today in the world there were found 63 Zoroastrian monuments, including those in Iran, India, Afghanistan and Pakistan. Thirty-eight of them are in Uzbekistan, whereas 17 of these monuments are located in Khorezm.

One of Islam's most sacred relics - the world's oldest Koran that was compiled in Medina by Othman, the third caliph or Muslim leader, is kept in Tashkent. It was completed in the year 651, only 19 years after Muhammad's death. 

Tashkent is the only megapolis in the world where public transport is totally comprised of Mercedes buses. And due to low urban air polution it is one of the few cities where one can still see the stars in the sky.

You would be surprised to know that modern TV was born in Tashkent. No joke! The picture of moving objects was transmitted by radio first time in the world in Tashkent on 26 of July 1928 by inventors B.P. Grabovsky and I.F. Belansky.

Uzbekistan is the only country in the world all of whose neighbours have their names ending in STAN. This is also the only country in Central Asia that borders all of the countries of this region

Uzbeks are the third populous Turkik ethnicity in the world after Turks and Azeris (leaving both in Azerbaijan and Iran)

Did you know that there was silk money in Khiva? Super interesting right? Of course, but the best part of having silk money was that it could be sewn into your clothing.

Famous Islamic physician Ibn Sina (Avicenna in the Latin world) who was born near Bukhara was the one of the first people to advocate using women’s hair as suture material – about 1400 years ago.

Uzbekistan has a long and bloody history. The most notorious leader of Uzbekistan was Timur (or Tamerlane) who claimed descent from Genghis Khan. His military campaigns have been credited for wiping out some 5% of the world’s population at the time.

If you have thought that some of the Islamic architecture in Uzbekistan resembles that from Northern India, then that is because Timur’s great great great Grandson, Babur Beg, was the founder of the Moghul Empire that ruled much of India for almost four centuries! Babur’s great great Grandson was Shah Jahan, who built the Taj Mahal.

Uzbekistan was once a rum producig country. There is still a real arboretum in Denau (city near Termez on the border with Afghanistan), grown from a selection station that studied the prospects of plant growing in the unusual for the Soviet Union subtropical climate of Surkhandarya region: only here in the whole of the USSR sugar cane was grown and even rum was produced!

Uzbekistan has been ranked one of the safest countries in the world, according to a new global poll. The annual Gallup Global Law and Order asked if people felt safe walking at night and whether they had been victims of crime. The survey placed Uzbekistan 5th out of 135 countries, while the UK was 21st and the US 35th. Top five safest countries:

  • Singapore
  • Norway
  • Iceland
  • Finland
  • Uzbekistan
Exchange rates
100 RUR
12857.09 UZS
100 USD
1286125.53 UZS
100 EUR
1365453.77 UZS
100 GBP
1645726.75 UZS
Weather in cities
Tashkent
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Samarkand
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