Room with a view

Mega chaos at Tashkent airport - all the domestic flights leave within 10 mins of each other so hundreds of passengers were shoving at the supposed queue for the one security check. It was crazy so we pushed too and eventually got away. Not the best thing when feeling a bit fragile after 4 hours sleep.

. An hour flight to Urgench airport where a bus was waiting. Another hour to Khiva which looks amazing. We are staying in what was a madrasah, in a small cell-like room on the first floor, no windows but with a door opening from an outside passage with a view to Inner courtyard. (Top picture). At the back of the room is the bathroom and beyond it lattice doors then another door opening onto a private balcony looking out over all the tiled domes and minarets. (Bottom picture). It's like a fairytale.

Went with 3 others for a late lunch - no veggie food but they did provide a kind of soup with rice, split peas, carrots, and bread. Mr C got 4 enormous meat samosas and a draft cloudy beer. Ruslan p, our guide, had an enormous plate of boiled meat bones with lots of fat and a bit of meat on it.. We had a walk round a bit of the city walls, all mud bricks.

Had a lovely walk through the stalls selling astrakhan hats, fur coats, mohair scarves, souvenirs etc passing amazing minarets till we got outside the old city to walk through the Sunday market - men making shoes, selling everything from large curved sickles and knives, to brooms, food, bread, kebabs, material, galoshes, funny twig-like stuff to chew to get seeds out and spit the rest away.

Everything is so colourful - turquoise and blue tiles everywhere.