Tashkent

 As I arrived I grabbed a cheap SIM card..8$ for 50gb for a month.  My initial plan was to only connect through hostels but my brother bless his little cotton socks decided to go and get pneumonia and get himself admitted into hospital so I thought it was best to stay connected! (Love you bro!) 

I was also told it was not possible to catch the airport bus into town, on asking in the terminal sure  no problem and you can tap on with your credit card no problem.  The cost 0.13€ ..oh ok then.  The driver kindly notified me when my stop was coming up and with the help of Google maps I made it to the hostel.  

The jury is still out on the hostel, the first guy that checked me in really was having a very bad day! I was shown to the dorm, it was very clean, had lockers and air conditioning.  I had to ask where the toilet and showers were.  I found out the next there was a communal area! I grabbed a shower and was recommended a local cafe for something to eat.  The service was like a cafeteria style with 99% meat options, the one veggie dish they had was very tasty and very cheap.  The guy spoke no English but we managed to navigate our way.

It didn't take me long after dinner to hit the hay it's fair to be said I was KNACKERED!!!

After a good night's sleep, I showered and headed to the supermarket.  Very conveniently located next to the hostel.  I grabbed water, fruit, local bread and some cheese and headed out for the day.

I decided to head up to Hazrati Imam complex, best way to see the city is by walking so I adorned my new walking sandals and headed off.  Passing by some incredible buildings and walking through some beautiful parks.  Unfortunately my new sandals were not up to the job, just as well I had my trusty havianas in my bag.  After a quick access of blisters and change of shoe I continued.  

On route I passed the incredible structure of the Islamic Civilization Centre.  I'm not quite sure if it is being restored or being built but it is amazing.  The bright blue dome against the bright white building and not to mention the tiles and patterns on the entrance.  I was blown away.  So much more impressive than in the fotos! 

However it didn't take away the spectacularness of the Hazrati Imam complex.  I was very lucky to visit at a non busy time.  Again the grandeur of the buildings, the colours, the quietness, the calmness was amazing.

I wasn't allowed in to the main building due to being a woman.  But that didn't take away the grand impression of the building.

For the rest of the day I wandered, I visited Chorsu bizarre, where you could buy any part of any animal, an array of amazingly great smelling fruits, vegetables and spices and basically everything else.

As it was now reaching the hottest part of the day,  I took this opportunity to do my metro tour.  Tashkent has got some of most beautifully decorated metro stations in the world.  They are all different, some with amazing chandeliers, mosaics and patterns.  Basically if you don't leave a station you can travel to every station for 0.13€.  

I think I covered a fair few, very impressive! I ended my tour at the stop that lead me to the very impressive Uzbekistan hotel, it in itself is a famous land mark of the city.

With the temperature cooling I decided to visit Independence Square.  It's not really a square but a park containing many statues and monuments surrounded by lots of fountains.  Next door was a lovely little 'paddling pool' where you could dip your feet, children could play and there was a cross walk where it looked like little people were walking on water.  It was also linked to beautiful fountains.  

This was my first experience of stardom, where a lady asked where I was from and if she could have a picture, I was only to happy to oblige!!

My next stop on my wandering tour was the Palace of Youth Creativity.  A space where you can study, read, meet new people and escape from the heat.  This is situated in another one of the cities parks.  A really lovely space to go and relax.  This happened to be pretty close to the hostel so I made my way back.  Had a shower and returned to the same restaurant for tea.  Easy, cheap and we now understand each other.  Although I did meet a guy called Akbar who spoke good English and added a bit of help.  He also offered his number if I needed anything!! I'm not sure if it was Akbar or courtesy of the owner but I didn't pay for tea 😊

I headed back to the hostel and started taking to Walid from Pakistan and Nicoli from Russia both here for different reasons.  One unable to get back into his country, the other on a kind of holiday and lost track of time!! We chatted for a while and they were heading out for something to eat, I asked if I could join..no problem..Walid wanted a drinking partner, again I felt only to happy to oblige !! 

While the guys ate we chatted about lots of different things, it was a nice evening where there different life paths crossed.  We had another beer (no tequila, although not through want if trying) and then headed back.  Sat outside the hostel, enjoying the evening breeze for a while before turning in.