Ramadan Kareem! It’s Ramadan, the fasting month!
The good thing about Ramadan is that we have shorter working hours (yippee), less traffic jams and less work pressure generally, as the clients would be typically more relaxed and accommodating. (If things could stay like that for the whole year, everyone would live a longer life…)
The bad thing is that due to the reduced working hours, I find it really hard to come up with enough time to do the personal stuff. Writing this blog, for example.
So, it’ll have to be holiday photos for the time being! I have something up my sleeve this year, just for the Islamic Holy month… From the land of the madrassas! Here goes!
The Registan, Samarkand, Uzbekistan
The Registan is the heart the city of Samarkand (or Samarqand), one of the oldest cities in Central Asia and was the heart of the Timurid Empire. Samarkand, was an important city on the ancient Silk Road.
Samarkand - World Cultural Tourism Capital. Sez who? Well, that’s what the large, fat sign beside the Registan says! (above)
The Registan is flanked by 3 madrasahs (schools in the Islamic world – the plural for madrasa in Arabic should actually be madaris, but that would only confuse the heck out of all the English readers out there) – the one in the middle, facing the square’s entrance is the Tilya-Kori Madrasah. It is the one with the blue domed mosque. The madrasah to the right (when entering the square) is the Sherdoh Madrasah. It is the one with two tigers above the entrance arch. The madrasah on the left, is the Ulugbek Madrasah, which the oldest of the three.
Us and the Tilya-Kori Madrasah
Justin and mommy at the Tilya-Kori Madrasah’s entrance arch. Yes, Justin was with us on this trip. His first foreign trip with family, after he started schooling in Singapore
The interiors of the beautiful Tilya-Kori Mosque
The Sherdoh Madrasah. Notice the tiger and sun emblems on the top?
The lattice-screened central opening to the Ulugbek Madrasah. All the 3 madrasahs here have this feature
In the courtyard of the Ulugbek Madrasah. It was winter (Dec 2023), that’s why all the trees were barren
Uzbek craftsman trading their wares, Ulugbek Madrasah, Registan, Samarkand
Coffee break in freezing Samarkand – Ulugbek Madrasah
The gardens surrounding the Registan
The Tilya-Kori Mosque from behind
That’s all folks. Express photo blog done!
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