Theme Week Uzbekistan – Fergana

22 April 2020 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  7 minutes

1906 Russian-era building © flickr.com - Adam Jones/cc-by-sa-2.0

1906 Russian-era building © flickr.com – Adam Jones/cc-by-sa-2.0

Fergana, or Ferghana, is the capital of Fergana Region in eastern Uzbekistan. Fergana is about 420 km east of Tashkent, about 75 km west of Andijan, and less than 20 km from the Kyrgyzstan border. While the area has been populated for thousands of years, the modern city was founded in 1876.   read more…

Theme Week Uzbekistan – Termez

21 April 2020 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  8 minutes

National Archaeological Museum © Zenwort/cc-by-sa-4.0

National Archaeological Museum © Zenwort/cc-by-sa-4.0

Termez is a city in the southernmost part of Uzbekistan near the Hairatan border crossing of Afghanistan. It is the hottest point of Uzbekistan. It has a population of 140,404 (1 January 2005), and is the capital of Surxondaryo Region.   read more…

Theme Week Uzbekistan

20 April 2020 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Bon voyage, Theme Weeks, UNESCO World Heritage Reading Time:  15 minutes

Old City of Bukhara at sunset © flickr.com - Adam Jones/cc-by-sa-2.0

Old City of Bukhara at sunset © flickr.com – Adam Jones/cc-by-sa-2.0

Uzbekistan is a country in Central Asia. It is bordered by five landlocked countries: Kazakhstan to the north; Kyrgyzstan to the northeast; Tajikistan to the southeast; Afghanistan to the south; and Turkmenistan to the southwest. Along with Liechtenstein, it is one of only two doubly landlocked countries. As a sovereign state, Uzbekistan is a secular, unitary constitutional republic. It comprises 12 provinces and one autonomous republic. The capital and largest city of Uzbekistan is Tashkent. The Uzbek economy is in a gradual transition to the market economy, with foreign trade policy being based on import substitution. In September 2017, the country’s currency became fully convertible at market rates. Uzbekistan is a major producer and exporter of cotton. With the gigantic power-generation facilities of the Soviet era and an ample supply of natural gas, Uzbekistan has become the largest electricity producer in Central Asia. Renewable energy constitutes more than 23% of the country’s energy sector, with hydroelectricity and solar energy having 21.4% and 2% respectively. As of late 2018, the republic was given a BB- rating by both Standard and Poor (S&P) and Fitch. Strengths indicated by Brookings Institution include Uzbekistan having large liquid assets, high economic growth, and low public debt. Among the constraints holding the republic back are low GDP per capita, something the government could influence by changing how it accounts for sectors of the economy not currently included.   read more…

Xi’an in China

29 August 2018 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, UNESCO World Heritage Reading Time:  15 minutes

Bell tower © Danielinblue/cc-by-sa-3.0

Bell tower © Danielinblue/cc-by-sa-3.0

Xi’an is the capital of Shaanxi Province, People’s Republic of China. It is a sub-provincial city located in the center of the Guanzhong Plain in Northwestern China. One of the oldest cities in China, Xi’an is the oldest of the Four Great Ancient Capitals, having held the position under several of the most important dynasties in Chinese history, including Western Zhou, Qin, Western Han, Sui, and Tang. Xi’an is the starting point of the Silk Road and home to the Terracotta Army of Emperor Qin Shi Huang.   read more…

Palmyra in Syria

6 August 2018 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Architecture, Museums, Exhibitions, Palaces, Castles, Manors, Parks, UNESCO World Heritage, Union for the Mediterranean Reading Time:  5 minutes

Cella of the Temple of Bel - destroyed in 2015 © Bernard Gagnon/cc-by-sa-3.0

Cella of the Temple of Bel – destroyed in 2015 © Bernard Gagnon/cc-by-sa-3.0

Palmyra is an ancient Semitic city (Tadmor) in present-day Homs Governorate, Syria. Archaeological finds date back to the Neolithic period, and documents first mention the city in the early second millennium BC. Palmyra changed hands on a number of occasions between different empires before becoming a subject of the Roman Empire in the first century AD.   read more…

Theme Week Iran – Mashhad

30 July 2016 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  7 minutes

Imam Reza Shrine © Usef/cc-by-sa-3.0

Imam Reza Shrine © Usef/cc-by-sa-3.0

Mashhad is the second most populous city in Iran and capital of Razavi Khorasan Province. It is located in the northeast of the country, close to the borders of Turkmenistan and Afghanistan. Its population was 2,749,374 at the 2011 census and its built-up (or metro) area was home to 2,782,976 inhabitants including Mashhad Taman and Torqabeh cities. It was a major oasis along the ancient Silk Road connecting with Merv in the East. ISESCO named Mashhad the 2017 Capital of Islamic Culture.   read more…

Theme Week Iran – Birjand

28 July 2016 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  7 minutes

© صادق1605413/cc-by-sa-3.0

© صادق1605413/cc-by-sa-3.0

Birjand is the east Iranian provincial capital of South Khorasan and the centre of the county Birjand resp. Quhestan, known for its saffron, barberry, rug and handmade carpet exports. The city of Birjand has a population of 180,000 people. Being close to the Afghanistan border, Birjand is located on the “Silk Road” of opium smuggled from Afghanistan on the way to Europe (also dubbed the “opium crescent”).   read more…

Kerch on Crimea

14 February 2015 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, UNESCO World Heritage Reading Time:  6 minutes

Main Street © KBDA3200/cc-by-3.0

Main Street © KBDA3200/cc-by-3.0

Kerch is a city on the Kerch Peninsula in the east of the Crimea in Ukraine. Founded 2,600 years ago as an ancient Greek colony, Kerch is considered to be one of the most ancient cities in Ukraine. The city experienced rapid growth starting in the 1920s and was the site of a major battle during World War II. Today, it is one of the largest cities in Crimea and is among the country’s most important industrial, transport and tourist centres.   read more…

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