A Madrasa Too Many

In the Itchan Kala, the old walled city of Khiva, Uzbekistan

It’s Eid! Again, this weekend. And it looks like we’ll just be spending some quiet time at home this time, with Justin, who’s back from Singapore for his school break. This is all thanks to Moldova, who did not grant Anu’s visa… (We were supposed to have a short family holiday there. We got the news only a day before our flight! But at least, they informed.) Well, things don’t always go your way. That’s how it is with life. You just have to get on with it! And wait for the next big adventure!

Meanwhile, here’re some photos of the old city of Khiva for Eid. Eid Al-Adha Mubarak! Selamat Hari Raya Haji!


The West Gate (aka Ota Darvoza) of the Itchan Kala, Khiva, the main gate for tourists. (That's where the ticket booths are). The taller fort-like structure seen further back, along the wall, is Kiva's citadel called the Konya Ark

This ‘old walled city’ is chock-a-block with madrasas. Almost every other building is a ‘madrasa’ (i.e. school, or educational institute in Arabic, the plural for this in Arabic is actually ‘madaris’, but who knows, man?) How many madrasas do you actually need?? Are there really so many scholars and students around in this small city? Beats me, man? But that’s what the Itchan Kala of Khiva is now, a walled city of madrasas, that has been converted into museums. Yup, gone now are the scholars, books and seminaries, replaced by antiques, artefacts, artwork, photos, costumes, tacky mannequins, stuffed animals, you name it, depending on which themed museum it is. Take your pick. Music? Fine arts? Arabic writing? Natural history?... I lost count. After a few visits, every madrasa looked the same… that may be why they ‘enhanced’ them with different themes! Your ticket for the Itchan Kala ‘Open Air Museum’, (yup, you need a ticket to visit the ‘attractions’), covers all the palaces and ‘museums’ in the walled city, and is valid for umm… 2 days, if I remember correctly. (It was 150,000 Uzbek som per ticket, about AED 50, and cheaper for kids, the ticket seller lowered down the age of our kids, I forgot whether it’s Justin or Jayden, or both, to make it cheaper for us, bless them). But there’s a catch, there’re a few interesting places that aren’t covered in the tickets, like the beautiful mausoleum of Pahlavon Mahmud, the Islam Hoja minaret (the most striking minaret inside the walled city), and the city walls. You don’t actually need a ticket to enter the walled city itself, if you don’t enter any of the attractions. You can go in and out as you like, from some of the gates, or if you stay in one of the many guesthouses inside the Itchan Kala. There, explanation done, photos to follow.


A walk in Khiva (or Xiva in Uzbek – ‘X’ is the alphabet for the ‘KH’ sound in Uzbek). On the right, is the Ak Mosque (or Oq Masjid) and on the left, facing the photo, is the Allakuli Khan Madrasa (Olloqulixan Madrasasi), one of the more prominent madrasas in the Itchan Kala (Ichan-Q’ala in Uzbek)


Revellers dancing in freezing temperature for a wedding! (If you look carefully, you'd see glimpses of the bride, hidden behind the crowd). Yup, it was freezing when we were there. Friggin -13C! All the pools were ice. And we had to thaw out the solid frozen mineral water from the bottles we bought from the shops, to drink! The minaret seen here is of the Juma Masjid. Itchan Kala, Khiva, Dec 2023


Inside the Juma Mosque… So that’s where the Sohar Mosque got its ideas from… recognize those wooden pillars? They’re one of the distinguishing features of the Islamic architecture of Central Asia and Iran. You can see them all over Uzbekistan!


What did I tell you? (About the pillars I mean). Anu, at the …errrr, let’s see, the Konya Ark (Ko‘hna Ark), the citadel, former residence and administrative centre of the Khan of Khiva. Yup, Khiva used to be an independent country, called the Khanate of Khiva until it was conquered by Russia


A view of Khiva city, the parts outside the Itchan Kala, from the Konya Ark. That smooth surface, beyond that garden and just beyond the wall in the photo (centre, left), is a pool, frozen solid! (Yup, you could walk on it, the kids did!)


A bedroom in the Toshhovli Palace. No, this isn’t part of the Konya Ark, it’s on the other side (i.e. the east side) of the Itchan Kala


One of the excluded attractions, the Islam Khoja Minaret. It’s the minaret of, wait for it …a madrasa! You guessed it. Hmmm… was Khiva in the past, something like those competing tuition centres in some Singapore malls?? Nope, we didn’t climb it. On the first day, we went there a bit too late, and we just didn’t go back I guess. Besides, Anu’s scared of heights. Brrrr…. As you can see from our clothes, it’s freezing!


Inside the mausoleum of Pahlavon Mahmud. This is another additional paid attraction, not included in the ‘open air museum’ ticket. It is a complex of beautiful tombs (something like the Shah I-Zinda, but not as grand). Anu and Justin hung around outside (Anu’s not a fan of tombs and mausoleums), while yours truly and Jayden went in to explore… Pahlavon Mahmud by the way, was a Khiva poet, a Sufi teacher, a wrestling champion known for his exceptional strength (no kidding, go ahead, Google it), defender of the city, and, patron saint of Khiva! Top that!


This is the East Gate of the Itchan Kala, or Polvon Gate (named after who else, but the superman of Khiva, Pahlavon Mahmud)


Whoa, what’s this? It’s an underground chamber in the courtyard of one of the many madrasas/ museums. If I’m not mistaken, this is the Kutlug Murad Inaq Madrasa aka the Fine Art Museum. I wonder what’s this chamber for...


A restaurant with a view! When you’re hungry, you could stop at the Terrassa Café, just next to the Konya Ark’s entrance. Very nice food, but a bit pricey for Uzbekistan. Remember to try out that green lagman (noodles)! It's vegetarian. This is one of the restaurants you should definitely visit, if you’re beef adverse (like the missus, and yours truly, when he is with the missus!), as beef is the main consumed meat in Uzbekistan. That madrasa in the background, is the Mohammed Amin Khan Madrasa (Muhammad Aminxon Madrasasi) or, …the Orient Star Hotel (yup, it’s now a 3-star hotel, fancy staying in a madrasa??)


This was the second guesthouse we stayed in, in Itchan Kala. The Yulduz Hotel, near the quieter, northern walls of the Itchan Kala. Our first guesthouse was Boyjon Ota, near the centre of Itchan Kala. We stayed a total of 4 nights in Khiva, believe it or not! Nobody stays so many days in Khiva just to see the madrasas! Why we did it was because in between the stays in the 2 guesthouses, we made an excursion into the reclusive state of Turkmenistan! We didn’t want to carry all our bags for a 2-day excursion, so we put our bags in the Yulduz until we returned! Luckily, we did that, as it was not easy lugging huge bags across the cold and desolate border! Also, we stayed an extra day in Khiva after coming back to Uzbekistan, so that we could travel on a night sleeper train to Tashkent, our next stop, 1000km away, 14.5 hours by train. The night trains don’t happen every day! Didn’t fancy spending 14 friggin hours of the day stuck in a train!


Night time in Khiva. That short stunted turquoise minaret (on the right of the photo), called the Kalta Minor, is one of most recognizable landmarks of Khiva. The then Khan (ruler) of Khiva who commissioned it, wanted it to be the tallest minaret in the Muslim world, aiming to surpass the Qutb Minar in Delhi. Unfortunately, the Khan was killed in battle before the construction was completed, and it has been left in that state since then…

There you go. Have a blessed and peaceful Eid!