Uzgen. Small town with a big history. Uzgen Historical-Cultural and Architectural-Archaeological Complex (Uzgen Minaret) Grandiose Uzgen Minaret

Uzgen is a city in Kyrgyzstan, the administrative center of the Uzgen district of the Osh region, one of the most ancient cities of the Republic. The first mention of it dates back to the II-I centuries. BC. The status of the city was assigned to him in 1927. The map of Uzgen shows that it is located 54 km from the city of Osh, occupying 9.2 km², the highest point of which reaches 1025 m. The Karadarya River flows on its territory. 49.4 thousand people live in Uzgen districts. The national composition is represented by Uzbeks, Kyrgyz, Russians, Tajiks. Uzgen reference books report that it was an important point on the way to Kashgar. In the XII century it was the second capital of the Karakhanid state.

Tourist firms and companies in Uzgen and the region offer interesting excursions that introduce you to architectural and historical monuments: a minaret built in the 12th century, a mosque and a madrasah. Not far from the city there is a tourist center and a recreation area "Kara-Shoro", where not only residents of the region come, but also guests from far abroad. Water from the natural spring "Kara-Shoro" deserves attention for its healing properties. Uzgen organizations are represented by networks of outlets. Industrial enterprises of Uzgen are engaged in the processing of grain crops. Construction companies and organizations providing various services also work on its territory. Educational institutions of Uzgen are represented by kindergartens, secondary schools, the Institute of Technology and Education, the Branch of Osh State University and the Educational and Medical Center of Osh State University. The city has a stadium, a music school, cultural and leisure clubs. Kara-Suu is the nearest railway station, located 44 km from the city. Communication with other cities of the region is carried out by bus service. The city government supports small businesses. As a result, markets are allowed on the territory of the city, as well as a network of outlets.

The yellow pages of Uzgen, being the most complete reference publication, help residents and guests of the city to better navigate its infrastructure. Uzgen telephone directories can be found in both electronic and printed versions. All Uzgen phones require dialing the code "+996 332 33" to the local subscriber's number. Uzgen telephone directories, being republished annually, include all updates of contact numbers.

website- Kyrgyzstan is a small country, but with a rich history. And we are sure that adventurers, travelers in search of new sensations will not be disappointed if they direct their way to the southern part of our republic. In the meantime, the daredevils gather their thoughts, think over the route plan and pack their bags, the site will conduct a short preliminary excursion to one of the cities of the Osh region - the city of Uzgen.

Uzgen is a small town with an interesting history. It is located in the south of Kyrgyzstan and is one of the oldest cities in the country. And in terms of importance, it is valued no less than such cities of Central Asia as Samarkand, Bukhara and Khiva.

Uzgen is located on the right bank of the Karadarya River, 54 km from Osh. The city dates back to the 1st-2nd centuries BC. It served as one of the trade points of the Great Silk Road, which connected Fergana and Kashgar. Its dawn falls on the era of the powerful Karakhanid Khaganate. And in the 11-12 centuries Uzgen was the capital of the Karakhanid state of Maverannahr. In terms of development, it competed with many of the largest cities in Central Asia.

Undoubtedly, the main and most interesting attraction of Uzgen is an architectural complex built at the beginning of the 12th century. The complex includes three Karakhanid mausoleums and a minaret, a mosque, and a madrasah. Also on the territory of the city you can find ancient burial places, mazars and the ruins of a fortress.

The date of construction of the minaret, some researchers refer to the beginning of the 12th century, and others to the 9th century. He served to call the faithful to prayer. Initially, the height was 40 meters, but apparently due to earthquakes, its top lost its original appearance. It currently has a height of 27.4 meters. And in 1923, a lantern was built on the surviving part of the building, this is a characteristic feature of the Karakhanid era.

The minaret of Uzgen, like other minarets of that era, has an octagonal base and a conical body, which is covered with ornamental brickwork. Also near it are a mosque and a madrasah.

Of course, three mausoleums attract special attention of all tourists, researchers and lovers of ancient architecture. Representatives of the Karakhanid dynasty are buried in them. They are on the same line and are named accordingly: North, Middle, South. A feature of these mausoleums is their location. These buildings clearly show the development of architecture over time.

The earliest is considered - Medium. Scientists attribute its construction to the 11th century, based on the nature of the masonry (curly masonry of the interior) and masonry with twin bricks. The founder of the Karakhanid dynasty, Nasr ibn Ali, rests in it.

The northern mausoleum was erected by order of the ruler Togrul Kara-Khakan Hussein ibn Ali. Its construction was completed in 1152. It was attached to the Middle and became its continuation, they were connected by a northern corner column. One mausoleum smoothly passed into another.

The uniqueness of the Northern Mausoleum is manifested in the combination of architectural forms with relief brick ornaments. Carved ganch and carved terracotta were also used in the facings of the portal.

In 1187, the Southern Mausoleum was added to the Middle Mausoleum, having already used the southern column of the Middle Mausoleum. In the South, judging by the old Arabic inscriptions, the chief military leader was buried. It is interesting because the portal is decorated with carved terracotta. Carved ganch is used only in the soffit of the entrance niche.

It is also worth noting that this is the only mausoleum with two portals in the history of Karakhanid architecture. This unusual phenomenon is explained by the fact that when guests enter from the western side, the city was supposed to delight. And from the south side, it should have been visible from afar to the caravan routes and was facing Karadarya.

A characteristic feature of the architecture of the Karakhanid era of all three mausoleums is the use of burnt bricks on a clay-ganch mortar.

After you finish exploring the mausoleums and the minaret, don't rush back home. Be sure to visit and explore the remains of the old fortress, other archaeological ruins and mosques built in the 19th century - Guzar and Tashlak. You will find many more exciting and...

Today the city is divided into two parts, Upper and Lower Uzgen. In Upper there are enterprises, bazaars and shops. In Nizhny - sleeping areas. It has lost its former grandeur, but continues to be a place of pilgrimage for tourists and researchers.

When they say " Kyrgyzstan”, what associations does this evoke in you? Mountains, koumiss, yurt, passes, Issyk-Kul, mountain horses… in general, it has more to do with nature than with historical monuments or great dynasties. It is understandable, frequent earthquakes, aggressive and destructive wars leave little behind. However, there are corners of Kyrgyzstan where you can still find echoes of 2000 years of history. Take at least Museum complex of the Karakhanid dynasty in Uzgen. I specifically added a stop in this "deaf" place on the route to Bishkek, we'll see.

It’s not far from Uzgen, literally about 50 km, 30 of which we drove with a not too talkative Kyrgyz, and the pharmacist helped us overcome the rest of the way in his old car. How good it is when they bring you almost to the sights. With this hitchhiking, I'm completely lazy :).

Mausoleum of the Karakhanid dynasty.

As I said, Uzgen, located on the eastern side of the Ferghana Valley, has more than 2000 years of existence and was once a center of trade. Now this is the most ordinary town, in which there is simply nothing to see, except perhaps for the archaeological and architectural museum complex (as it turned), for which we all gathered today.

It is not difficult to find it, among the low city buildings, a minaret 44 meters high stands out strongly, so we go straight to it. Judging by the inscription, the minaret has been standing here since the 12th century.

The archaeological complex consists of a minaret, which we have already met at the entrance, and three mausoleums conventionally named North, Middle and South. Somewhere there must still be the ruins of a madrasah and even a mosque. Well, right, if there is a minaret, then there must be a mosque.

The rulers of the Karakhanid dynasty are buried in the mausoleums:

The middle mausoleum (built in the 12th century) is the founder of the Nasr-ibn-Ali dynasty.
The northern mausoleum (1152-1153) is the ashes of Hasan-ibn-Hussein-ibn-Ali.
Southern Mausoleum (1187) - the name of the deceased has not been preserved.

At that time, it was possible to enter only one mausoleum - the Middle one, because a lock hung on the doors of the remaining two. I'm disappointed, but there's nothing interesting inside, it's empty.

I must say, the territory of the mausoleum does not look at all like it is visited by tourists. Moreover, it does not even look like someone is responsible for its safety.

We came across an old “banner” with information about “what is good and what is bad” on the territory of the complex. There is also a price list about the prices for the entrance ticket, pretty shabby with time. So no one will ask for a ticket, which is also not bad. I didn’t even find a guard in sight, but there are a lot of schoolchildren who smoke around the corner of the mausoleum itself.

It seems that once upon a time, good uncles sponsors invested in an architectural monument, but they just did not assume that it would not be very interesting for tourists. And it was necessary to invest, see how it looked after numerous destructions.

Mila and I sat in the shade on one of the stones in order to take a break from the backpacks and the heat. From abandoned places always breathes some kind of longing, and now I involuntarily felt sad. Okay, that's enough, it's almost evening, and we still have to drive a little.

"Bear Gift"

On the road, we were picked up by some kind of truck moving in the direction of Jalal-Abad. And from there we were lucky to get into another truck, this time heavily loaded with something. The driver turned out to be an interesting conversationalist with an open mind. He wanted to do something nice for us so much that he couldn't think of anything better than buying a watermelon. I prayed to the Lord that he would choose a smaller one. But, this is hospitable Kyrgyzstan, everything is done here from the heart, so after 10 minutes we had a large 8-kilogram happiness at our feet.

I wonder how to move with it now, if my own backpack weighs a little less than this watermelon? Well, okay, go by car, not go on foot, I somehow moved to another passenger car with a “gift”. But, here we reached the village, where, according to all time frames, it was time to look for an overnight stay, which meant a lot of walking.

Frankly, I even thought about leaving a “surprise” for someone at the door. Mila also saw a local woman with two watermelons, only smaller, and offered to exchange me for one of them. I laughed, but decided not to back down. I think whoever invites you will receive a gift.

And the village is still somehow strange and does not at all resemble the Muslim way of life. The streets are often drunk, some houses look almost as deplorable as we have somewhere in the outback. I even began to worry about where we were staying.

But, in front of me, I came across a quite decent grandfather who was digging a trench right at the behest of his fence. As usual, I approached him to ask where it was safe to spend the night. The old man silently glanced at us, then looked around and briefly said that it would be better if we spent the night at his house, otherwise there were too many alcoholics in the village.

Kyrgyz housing differs little from Tajik or Uzbek. There are also several buildings, a courtyard and a stall for livestock. Right in the center of the street grew a vineyard with the last tassels of fruit, and under it a dining table, at which we were immediately seated.

While dinner was being prepared, we drank hot tea and listened to the stories of grandfather Akyd (yeah, interesting name). He described in colors how a couple of years ago he visited the dream of his life - Mecca and what miracles of a rich Muslim life he had to see in Arabia. He told really interesting things, besides, I myself have long dreamed of visiting that country, the only problem is that I am not a Muslim and Mecca is interesting to me only from the point of view of a traveler.

And here the pilaf arrived in time. Now with Mila, we were able to afford to eat them well. True, grandfather practically did not eat himself, but he “threatened” us that until we had eaten everything, we would not leave the table. Watermelon grandfather Akyd was also useless, he gladly fed us his supplies, and then ours went into action.

We went to bed late, we were given a separate room for the night, so we slept sweetly and soundly. In the morning the owner offered to stay with him for a couple more days, but we decided that we would move on. Ahead is a long one, it is not clear how long we will drive along it.

On the territory of Central Asia, rich in various historical processes and outstanding personalities, there are many historical monuments that have survived to this day and are of great value. Among them, a worthy place is occupied by Uzgen historical-cultural and architectural-archaeological complex, without the mention of which not a single scientific monograph or journalistic work on the history, culture, art history, architecture of medieval centrasia can do.

Uzgen architectural and archaeological complex is one of the sights of Kyrgyzstan

What is the Uzgen historical-cultural and architectural-archaeological complex like?

The Uzgen complex consists of a beautiful minaret standing apart, and groups of mausoleums lined up and located at a distance of approximately 100 meters from the minaret. These outstanding historical monuments are an invaluable gift to the current generations, left to us by History itself since the time of the Great Karakhanid Empire (10-12 centuries). These buildings are unique masterpieces of the monumental architecture of the peoples of Central Asia in the Middle Ages.

According to historians, next to the mausoleums there used to be madrasah, whose building was built in the 15th century. However, in the 30s of the 20th century, during the destruction of religious objects as representing a spiritual danger, it was destroyed by the Soviet authorities. A sports stadium was built in its place, however, it did not last long.

The uniqueness of the Uzgen complex lies in the fact that 4 historical and archaeological monuments built during the 11-12 centuries AD are compactly located here. At the same time, all of them are perfectly preserved by historical standards, which makes them even more valuable and significant, but at the same time, they require greater responsibility from living people for their preservation and transmission to future generations.

Old photos of the Uzgen complex

The grandiose Uzgen minaret

According to the studies of historians and archaeologists, the Uzgen minaret was built in the middle of the 11th century, during the dawn of the Karakhanid era. For your information, the city of Uzgen was the second center, along with the great Karakhanid state.

The minarets were designed so that the mullahs at the appropriate time, with their strong and loud voice, called the faithful to commit. Therefore, minarets were usually built in the central part of the settlements and were visible from afar, since their height was much higher than other structures and buildings.

Judging by the design of the minaret, scientists suggested that the primary height of the Uzgen minaret was approximately 45 meters. However, over time and due to strong earthquakes, the upper part of the minaret was destroyed. Until the 20s of the 20th century, the Uzgen minaret did not know any reconstruction work. It was first subjected to such activity in 1923, when a group of Soviet architects and archaeologists conducted research on the minaret. As a result, the minaret was partially reconstructed, and in the upper part of the minaret, destroyed by His Majesty Time, a lantern was built to protect the historical monument from various natural phenomena in the form of rain, wind and snow.

The greatness of the Uzgen minaret can be seen from afar

At present, the height of the Uzgen minaret is 27 and a half meters. Structurally, the building consists of three parts, not counting the foundation. The foundation is a square with sides of approx. 9 meters, while the depth of the foundation is about two meters. The foundation is made up of various stones, both in shape and size, and fastened with loess mortar.

The lower part of the Uzgen minaret is an octagonal base about 5 meters high. The sides of the plinth are made of burnt bricks of rectangular shape and various sizes. On one side of the basement, on the south side of the building, there is an lancet entrance to the minaret, and then a spiral staircase. The entrance to the minaret itself is located at a height of approx. 2 meters from the ground, where a metal ladder leads.

The middle part of the minaret is a cylindrical structure, while as the level of the minaret rises, it narrows. So, if the diameter of the lower part of the cylinder of the structure is approximately 8 meters, then already in the upper part it is a little more than 6 meters. Inside the cylindrical shape of the minaret there is a spiral staircase, while the number of steps is 53. In some places the steps are very steep, high. If we take into account that the mullahs who called to prayer climbed and descended this staircase several times a day, then we can assume that their physical fitness was very decent.

Uzgen minaret - various types

The spiral staircase is illuminated by 2 windows, which are rather narrow and placed on the east and west sides. Outside, the minaret in its cylindrical part is very beautiful, it consists of 11 different belts, ornamented with patterns that are interesting in their design. In this case, you can see both curly and floral patterns. These ornaments are embossed, i.e. carved into the brick itself, and therefore look just great and grandiose. Separate ornaments in their form resemble patterns on

: the first - because Uzgen was also one of the capitals of the Karakhanid state and preserved its pre-Mongolian monuments; the second - because 90% of the population here are Uzbeks. As, by the way, in the shown mountain village of Arslanbob, only here it is no longer a village, but the oldest city in Kyrgyzstan.

The first thought that came over us darkiya_v upon arrival in Uzgen - run away and not return. In theory, this "oriental flavor" sounds beautiful, but in practice it means a powerful blow to all the senses, complete disorientation and the constant attention of all passers-by. After a while, you get used to it, you enter the local "friend or foe" system, and many things that at first seemed like threats suddenly turn out, on the contrary, to be manifestations of friendliness and hospitality. But in the first minutes... Men and boys stare, women look away, children shout "Hallowe!" to the point of hoarseness, a gypsy-lyuli drags a smelly alas-alas to the next car, a beggar creeps up on the right, and a cop's cap flickers on the left ... Away, away, away!
However, we arrived in Uzgen by private trader, I spotted the top of the minaret flickering between the shabby five-story buildings, and from the bazaar we headed towards it, soon reaching a completely civilized and calm square with a full set of monuments:

Afghanistan (where a lot of people were sent from Central Asia), the Great Patriotic War, Lenin, the defenders of Batken in 2000 (if anyone does not know, then this village near the Kyrgyz Pamir was attacked by Islamic militants):

Manas completes the alley of heroes of the Soviet Union, looking at the akimiyat:

I suspect that before Lenin stood in his place. Manas is a pillar of Kyrgyz identity, and in a 90% Uzbek city, this is especially true. And ahead you can already see the minaret on the settlement of Ancient Uzgen:

To be honest, I am too lazy to repeat the history of the Karakhanid state, which dominated East Turkestan in the 10th-12th centuries. Too lazy to talk about the features of the pre-Mongolian architecture of Central Asia - almost without glazed tiles, but with the most complex ornaments made of brick and terracotta. All these things were already in Kazakh and Kyrgyz and - in a word, where Karakhandi monuments were preserved (here are several mausoleums, caravanserais and minarets in Uzbekistan, including the famous Bukhara Kalyan). Since Karakhanidia has always been ruled by two dynasties, the descendants of the Chigili (Arslan Khan, that is, King Lion) and Yangma (Bogra Khan, that is, King Camel) tribes that founded the state, he had at least two capitals. The "camel" capital was invariably Kashgar, the "lion" capital was Balasagun (from which the Buranin settlement remained), and he was less fortunate: in 1130 the Karakidans captured the Chui valley, for some time both dynasties coexisted in Kashgar, and finally in 1141 the "lion's "Uzgen, the main city of the Ferghana Valley at that time, became the capital, but it did not stay that way for long - in 1212 both dynasties were overthrown by the nomadic Naimans, and a few years later Genghis Khan came and trampled the Karakhanid cities into the mud ...

The minaret, 27 meters high, is actually the same "stump" as on Buran: its original height was 44 meters.

Amazing Karakhanid masonry - such complex patterns from ordinary bricks! This minaret is the same age as the pre-Mongolian churches of Vladimir or Smolensk.

In 1923 (!) someone guessed to attach the top, that is, this is already Soviet Muslim architecture:

8a.

Across the wasteland - three mausoleums ... or rather, a triple mausoleum. Its central part was built about 1000 years ago and therefore is simpler and more severe, the left and right ones date back to 1154 and 1187 respectively, and they are much more pretentious - as often happens, Karakhanid art flourished only in the years of the decline of the khanate. To be honest, I don’t know who rests in them - obviously the Karakhanid nobility, but khans or just local princes?

The view from the reverse side - only the portals of the mausoleums are so elegant, and it is clearly seen that the Southern mausoleum is smaller than the others, but from the facade it masks this with an attic. Their dimensions quite clearly characterize the rise and fall of Karakhanidiya.

10.

Portals of the central (right) and northern (left) gumbez - as art historians write, "an early stage and mature classic of Karakhanid architecture":

11.

For some reason, the portal of the southern gumbez is called the "beginning of decline", although for me it is the most beautiful here:

12.

Especially near:

13.

Ornament games:

13a.

Only the Middle and Southern mausoleums communicate with each other - the first was almost the only mausoleum in Central Asia with two portals, one of which was facing the entrance to the city, and the other to the Karadarya valley. Entrance to the mausoleums is free, shooting too - here, for example, their domes:

14.

View from the South Mausoleum to the Middle one:

15.

Under the masonry of its walls, patterns of the second portal of the Middle Mausoleum are revealed:

16.

And just some miraculously surviving details of decoration:

16a.

Some other, not so ancient building on the settlement:

17.

There is a small service house near the mausoleum, where an elderly Uzbek took a nominal fee from us and gave us the key to the minaret door, instructing us to lock it behind us and not let anyone in, which we did. The roof of the minaret from below looks almost more ancient than its walls - and you will never guess that it was made in the USSR.

17a.

View of the settlement - once there was a cramped clay city with madrasahs and trading domes. But the minaret was, most likely, the only one - in Karakhanidiya they belonged not to individual mosques, but to the entire settlement, and therefore they were built so powerful. It is clearly seen that the city stands like two terraces - Upper Uzgen and Lower Uzgen. Karadarya winds in the distance - together with Naryn (I showed it in), with which it merges in the Ferghana Valley, this is the source of the Syrdarya. The lonely mountain has a height of 2051m, that is, a kilometer and a half above the valley. And the mausoleum from the end is very plain:

18.

First, however, let's look at Upper Uzgen - it is mostly Soviet and very dull, although not without the New Mosque:

19.

The main square and the same street as in the last frame. I don’t know its name, but it could easily be Lenin:

20.

Neither another mosque, nor someone's later mausoleum in the distance. In total, there are 28 mosques and prayer houses in Uzgen, at least two of them are pre-revolutionary (built in 1893 and 1914, respectively), one each in the Upper and Lower parts.

21.

But Lower Uzgen is the kingdom of old mahallas. Although Uzgen regained the status of the city only in 1927 (more than 700 years after the invasion of Genghis Khan), in fact, it became such at least in the 19th century. Mahallas stretch for kilometers, and at least three mosques can be seen from above:

22.

23.

24.

The complex channel of the Karadarya with many canals, the roofs of mahallas, a shed for strollers (the settlement is here instead of a park) and the very service house where we, having descended from the minaret, returned the key.

25.

And they decided to descend straight down the slope, dotted with small graves. By the way, did you know that it can be +33 degrees in October? I didn't know...

26.

A ditch runs under the cliff, along it there is a palisade of poplars. We ran into the fence, started to climb over the adjacent cliff, which attracted the attention of the Uzbeks standing nearby, and when we got down, a neatly dressed elderly man smiled, asked who we were and where we were from, and offered to go with him.

27.

Inhabitant of mahallas. He didn't lead us. Uzbek attributes - tarpaulin boots (or galoshes) and skullcap:

28.

And I managed to get used to the mahallas during the trip. Completely different from European urban culture: the mahalla is not a village, namely that it is a quarter, and the quarter is self-sufficient - with its own head, its own court, its own guards (or rather, it’s just that the locals all know each other and immediately see a stranger). Deaf facades, dusty streets, hot silence:

29.

Aesthetics - only in details such as darvaz (gates), platbands, cornices:

30.

Because the streets in mahallas are the wrong side, like courtyards in European quarters. And the courtyards here are extremely cozy - quiet, shady, sometimes covered with carpets ... Actually, we are in the house of our guide, who seated us at a table on the veranda here, personally brought tea, cake and honey to the guests (he himself, go ahead, young carry), and then he took out a crooked Chustovsky knife from somewhere and cut a hefty pomegranate from a tree. So we sat for half an hour in this silence and coolness, slowly carrying on the conversations already familiar in Central Asia, not just a tourist with a local, not a guest with the hosts, but, I would venture to say, the West with the East. I like Uzbek hospitality - on the one hand, a little bit formal (unlike Kyrgyz), on the other - worked out for centuries and therefore impeccable.

31.

After tea drinking, we went out with the owner to the main street - asphalt, cars rush, but behind the roadside the same blank facades:

32.

Water splashes in the ditch:

33.

An ancient settlement dominates over the mahalla:

34.

We went to the mosque, according to our guide - pre-revolutionary:

35.

Rather, like most Uzbek mosques, this is not one building, but a courtyard, and buildings on it from different eras. This one, at the entrance, is a clear remake. There is something like a Sunday school at the mosque (I don’t know what the Muslims call it), and in a few minutes there will be several times more kids here.

36.

The old part of the mosque is to the left of the entrance, the same blank wall from the frame before last:

37.

And this is also a remake ... although is this word appropriate here? In Central Asia, medieval buildings are often indistinguishable from the 19th century. This is not a remake, but the continuity of tradition.

38.

They simply build as they have been accustomed to for centuries, even if banal wallpapers are used for the ornament:

39.

Leaving the mosque, our guide immediately braked the car, put us in it, paid and named the route, and we literally teleported back to Upper Uzgen, to the city bazaar:

40.

Oriental bazaar as it is - crowds, bustle, bright dresses, colorful goods, and that special sultry drive that does not exist in our markets, imbued with a dull spirit of social injustice.

41.

The bazaar has long overwhelmed the nearest streets:

42.

Behind the bazaar there are their own mahallas, that is, Old Uzgen is, as it were, two "islands", between which Uzgen is New and Ancient.

43.

Bazaar mosque - a clear new building:

44.

But we came to the bazaar with a very specific goal - to taste the Uzgen pilaf. The fact is that the surroundings of Uzgen are famous throughout Central Asia for their rice of a special variety, which is not grown anywhere else (at least they think so here). And it’s just, apparently, there are enough graphic artists here - rice shops in the bazaar often come across like nowhere else in the cities I have seen:

45.

Actually Fig. Here you can see how the name of Uzgen is actually written and pronounced - it's just that this sound does not exist in Russian. However, I photographed not quite the right thing: "Uzgen rice" is a whole group of similar varieties, the best of which is devzira.

46.

Alas, finding Uzgen pilaf was not so easy. In dining-askhans with characteristic tables such as ottomans, by the end of the day it was already completely dismantled:

47.

At any end of the bazaar, we were stubbornly sent to this tea house, but there a problem arose - they cook pilaf for at least a kilogram for 700 soms (about 500 rubles), and it takes about an hour. Since I had to eat it alone, it was obviously a lot, and we left the teahouse with nothing. Here, by the way, pay attention to the device - behind each door there is a small "cell" that can accommodate 7-8 people, and they do not sit on chairs, but at a low table on pillows. That is, here even the catering culture is old and unlike the European one.

48.

In general, we wandered around the bazaar, asking where else we could try this rice, and when we were brought to the same teahouse for the third time, the teahouse workers finally imbued with my interest and agreed to make a pound for 500 soms.
The courtyard of the teahouse - on the right is the counter, on the left are the wide windows of the kitchen, where you can see how something is cooked on an open fire. We were seated in a cell behind the last door in the right wall:

49.

And about an hour later they brought pilaf, which automatically included tea as well. It should be noted that pilaf in Central Asia is prepared differently in every self-respecting city, it is something like a brand name, but I don’t remember all the Uzgen ingredients, except for the hot pepper at the top. Let me just say that the sweet crispy Uzgen rice was really worth the search:

50.

Well, the bazaar in Central Asia is always also a bus station, and leaving the tea house, we went to Osh - the capital of South Kyrgyzstan and the last city on this path. About him - the next 4 and a half parts. And a half - because in the next one I will talk about the bazaars of Osh and Uzgen, in which the Ferghana flavor is best seen.