Khiva, Uzbekistan

Travel Dates 28th-30th September 2019.

Click on any picture to see a larger version. 

The 'fast' train from Bukhara to Khiva was not one of the new Afrosiyabs but moved along at a reasonable pace. We left on time at 12:25 and arrived at 17:51, a distance of just under 500 km or 300 miles in 5 1/2 hours. Initially it was a bit uncomfortable because the aircon wasn't working and it was in the 30s C outside but after half an hour they moved us all to another nearly vacant carriage with working aircon. After that it was a very comfortable ride.

Fairly quickly the green and fertile fields of the Bukhara district changed to uninhabited sandy plains with low scrubby plants; essentially a desert landscape.

After several hours it changed dramatically as we crossed the Amu Darya river. 

From that point the land beside the line was well irrigated and populated. The most popular crop appears to be cotton despite the disastrous effect expansion of irrigation for cotton has had on the Aral Sea. This web-site describes the problem, click on "see more" under "Description": Cotton production at Aral Sea, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan. The original expansion occurred under Khrushchev and was continued through the Soviet era. That should be on every Australian politician's reading list because of the terrifying direct comparisons with cotton and rice irrigation in our Murray-Darling catchment. The brown crop in the picture is cotton, there were fields of it into the far distance.

I was, as usual, accosted by a taxi driver at the station on arrival and negotiated a fare of 20,000 so'm. I was a little annoyed when he left me sitting in the cab while he found more passengers. I was tempted to pay him the lesser rate of 15,000 he charged two young Germans as a couple but it hardly seemed worth getting upset about it. 5,000 so'm is about 80c; he needed it more than I.

The Khiva Caravan Sarai Hotel is unusual. I think it is a small converted Madrassah. It is located very close to the main West Gate of Old Khiva. My room was tiny, including a door about 150cm high. Anyone taller than a hobbit must bend down to enter. Thankfully I only cracked my scone once. Used toilet paper went in the bin, not the toilet, similar to my Tashkent accommodation. I had to go into the courtyard to use the web. But I forgave all those tiny problems as it was the most comfortable bed I slept in after the luxury hotel in Malaysia - an Uzbek bed that was not as hard as a rock! And my feet did not hang over the end! Glorious. The hotel was very close to the West gate of Ichan Kala.

The owner directed me to an excellent Shaslik restaurant a few hundred metres along the wall to the north for dinner.

Plan of the Ichan Kala, the World Heritage site inside the walls and the main area I visited.

The region surrounding Khiva has a long and varied history, one of the oldest settled regions in the world. Originally part of the fertile Amu Darya delta region known at various times as Khorezma or Karakalpakstan the region has suffered climatically with steady increases in maximum temperatures and lowering minimum temperatures over the past century. That has been exacerbated by the increase of irrigation for cotton, creating desertification further west. Khiva still has a water supply but Karakalpakstan to its immediate west is in dire straits from drought and salinity increases.

Around the 15th and 16th century the Silk road provided wealth from trade but from the middle of the 16th century caravans began to give Khiva a wide berth as it became known as the centre of the slave trade in the region. Dealing in and employing slaves became the prime source of wealth for the rulers. Raiders from nomadic tribes in outlying areas preyed mainly on Persians, Kurds and caravans but also on Russian sailors and townsfolk as far as the Caspian Sea. They knew they could always get good rewards in the Khiva slave market. Bukhara also had a notorious slave market but it did not form as significant a part of their economy. By the early 19th century it was estimated there were 30,000 slaves in Khiva, including 3,000 Russians. Young and beautiful Russian boys and girls were highly prized. It was said that a Russian male in good health was worth four healthy camels. The Khan of Khiva kept the best ones for himself.

That trade eventually became the trigger for Khiva's conquest by the Tsar. By the middle of the 19th century Russia, wanting a warm water port and influence in the Middle East, and Britain, protective of their Empire in India were playing "The Great Game" for control of the region between southern Russia and the Arabian Sea. Not wishing to upset other European alliances the Tsar wanted a valid reason for invading the region; freeing Russian slaves in Khiva presented an excellent justification. 

Britain sent some very brave men to the Khan in Khiva in attempts to persuade him to free the Russian slaves and deny the Tsar an excuse to invade. James Abbott in 1840 was partially successful but eventually appeared to fail when a small Russian invasion force perished in a harsh winter and the Khan decided there was no longer a reason to free Russian slaves. Despite that Abbott was well received by the Tsar in St Petersburg and set the scene for future negotiations. The Khan, whose knowledge of the outside world was abysmal, thought the "Ingliz" were a minor Russian tribe. When news of Abbott did not reach the British a second officer, Richmond Shakespear was sent. He was more successful and convinced the Khan to free 416 slaves. Shakespear accompanied them to the Caspian Sea for collection by the Russians. After returning to England via St Petersburg to see the Tsar he was knighted. He and Abbott had succeeded in delaying Russian expansion to the south.

Thirty years later Russia eventually invaded Khiva freeing the Russian slaves of that time but slavery persisted in Khiva until 1920 when the Soviet era began in the district. The British won the Great Game as Russia never reached India or the Arabian Sea.

I bought a two-day tourist ticket for 100,000 so'm and spent those days wandering inside Ichan kala, the walled city of Old Khiva.

In addition to visiting the various museums, madrassahs and mosques I noticed there are many homes inside the walls, built in the old way using mud bricks with mud and straw cladding. A significant number of locals live in them. Presumably most of the adults are employed on the site. They did not seem to mind me wandering around their maze of narrow streets and alleys away from the many tour groups.

These domes are actually the ceilings of living and storage rooms beneath the surface.

There appeared to be many more ancient buildings in Old Khiva than I saw in Samarkand or Bukhara but that might be because they are concentrated in one location. Many are still being renovated. A significant number have become hotels, guest houses and restaurants within the walls.

One of many small museums was devoted to the history of the German-speaking Mennonites in Khiva. They migrated originally from Germany to Russia, then later a small group of about 100 migrated further east to Bukhara. The Amir treated them badly but they were accepted by the ruler of Khiva and settled near the city. They remained an enclave, retaining their language and religion, not mixing with the locals. The ruler found them useful and let them stay because of their trade skills and knowledge, using them as builders, architects and tutors. From 1884 they stayed peacefully near Khiva until their disobedience of the Soviet commune laws led to the leaders being shot in 1936 and many imprisoned. The survivors fled to Tajikistan where they struggled to continue over the next 50 years.

On the second evening I returned to Ichan Kala at sunset. I was lucky, this was my first cloudy evening since arriving in Tashkent. 

A few more pictures.

The old pictures showed all the men wearing giant sheep fleece hats but I did not notice any modern Uzbeks wearing them.

I left Khiva on the night train back to Tashkent, departing around 2:30 pm and arriving at 7am. 

I love trains but this became the worst train ride I have ever taken. This lovely couple and their child were in the opposite bunks. After we settled down to sleep the cherubic infant began crying and screaming. She stopped just long enough to let me get back to a doze before beginning again...and again and again all through the night. Added to that I found later the next day that the meal I ate in the restaurant gave me a severe dose of traveller's curse. The less said about that the better; suffice to say it wiped out most of my planned first week in Kazakhstan.

Cheers, Alan