Decorated walls of Central Asia

[questa]

“We take the Golden Road to Samarkand”

Tashkent

This mosque holds the world’s oldest Quran

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Khiva

The last 3 were of the Harem section of the palace.

the Hunter of the East has caught
the Sultan's turret in a Noose of Light

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Bukhara

Char Minar

Kalon Minaret. Built1127
47m tall with 10m deep foundations.
Layers of reeds were used in the foundations to allow movement and prevent earthquake damage.
It is said that when Ghengis Khan was laying waste to the region he came to the Kalon and while looking upwards at the top, his hat fell off. He declared that any tower that could make him take his hat off, deserved to remain standing.

He then razed the rest of the city

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Samarkand

Tamerlane's mausoleum

The famous Registan was closed. I could only get side on photos

Shahr-I-Zindah Mausoleum . This contains many beautiful tombs but the finest is for the 16 year old niece of Tamerlane

Ceiling and wall of the girl’s tomb

[Deleted]

Totally fabulous set of photos. I don't know where to begin to talk about them. I've seen photos of the Samarkand type places in the past, but they have always seemed inaccessible to me -- "not a snowball's chance in hell of ever getting there."

But I also thought the same thing about places like Angkor Wat, and I have been there twice, so maybe there is hope for me.

This is much more splendid than a mere "Image Bank" collection of photos. Do you mind if it is moved to Asia under a new title?

[bixaorellana]

Echoing Kerouac's compliments and his comment about moving the collection.

Image Bank is for everyone to add their very best photos to the different categories within it. Your wonderful set needs to stand alone as a thread with narrative and breadth for questions, answers, and expansion. It would fit beautifully in Asia or in Post Cards.

[mossie]

I agree with all the above. Absolutely staggeringly beautiful, to see the standard of workmanship and the sheer engineering accomplishments shows that we are not the only ones capable of great works.

Thanks Questa, for sharing this with us.

[htmb]

Incredible photographs, Questa. Have you always been a world traveler, or is this something you've done more recently? It's amazing to hear of the places you've visited.

[questa]

Thank you for your kind words about my photos. In the sixties I travelled around Australia a lot (and fell in love with deserts) but never thought I would travel overseas except in my reading and dreams.
An opportunity arose in 1992 to see one country...I chose Burma and the "Road to Mandalay".

The travel bug hit and I have since covered S.E and Central Asia , Trans Siberian and Mongolian trains, China, Iran, Morocco and the Karakorum Highway from India to China.

In 96-97 I had a backpackers type restaurant in Bali and 2 more years worked as a volunteer in Lombok, Indonesia with the Health Dept there. (I was a nurse/midwife)

I have not been to Europe, the Americas or Africa (apart from Morocco) and really do not have the desire to go there.

I really like old maps, my spare room has walls of them, so I look at them and say..."There!" and start planning the trip.

Now I'm in my 70s with mild Parkinson's (which makes for blurry photos) but still travelling...Madagascar and Zanzibar are calling..

[htmb]

How wonderful, Questa. Thank you so much for filling in some of the details. I can't wait to see more of your fabulous photos and hear more fascinating stories. Have you picked up different languages alone the way?

[questa]

I learned some Indonesian in the restaurant, then at school in Australia. For Lombok work I did an immersion course at a college in Yogyakarta for 6 weeks.

It was living as a local in a small village away from other expats that really taught me the language. Now I am still doing tertiary level classes to keep my skills up.

Malaysian language is very similar to Indonesian so I can understand it too.

[mossie]

You are a real star Questa. So sorry to hear about the Parkinson's, I just hope it doesn't restrict you from entertaining us with more travelogues. You take very good insightful pictures.

[Deleted]

Beautiful. I've been to Bukhara and Samarkand in 2006. My photos pale in comparison with yours.

[bjd]

Some good friends went to Uzbekistan last year -- they took lots of photos, but I think yours are better.

(Maybe because you posted a selection, whereas I saw all of theirs in one go.)

It's nice that you choose to go to places that are not the usual tourist route.

[questa]

Sept 1, 2013 10:58:35 GMT bjd said:

It's nice that you choose to go to places that are not the usual tourist route.

My standard rule is ...'has the place got a Macdonalds?'

If it has, I avoid the place like it had the plague!

[lugg]

Beautiful photos Questa. I am in awe of your "off the beaten track" journeys depicted here and elsewhere.
I know my son will really appreciate your photos as you have travelled to many of the countries that fascinate him and that he hopes to see.

[bixaorellana]

Totally enjoying this thread again, along with your fascinating bio. Mossie said it -- you are a star!

The picture of what appear to be stairs leading smack into a wall -- is that a seat or perhaps a pulpit?

I love how you inserted that beautifully lighted photo of the unadorned low dome and minaret, along with the perfect quote.

Sumptuous! Gorgeous! Interesting! Thanks!

[questa]

It is called a minbar and is the pulpit from which the sermon is delivered. In its simplest form the minbar is a platform with three steps. The speaker can sit or stand on the top step and it is regarded as a seat of authority. For practical purposes, the extra height gave good acoustics and the people could see the speaker.