TASHKENT, UZBEKISTAN: EARTHQUAKES, WARS, AND CLOSE ENCOUNTERS WITH THE LOCALS

We began our journey through Uzbekistan in the capital city of Tashkent, the most populous city in Central Asia (2.5 million people). Its written history goes back 2200 years, and it has been conquered several times, including a complete destruction by Genghis Khan in 1219. After being rebuilt, it became part of the profitable trade on the Silk Road, and in 1865 it fell to the Russian Empire. When the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, Tashkent was the fourth largest city in the USSR and one of the centers of science and technology. 

The word "Tashkent" comes from the Turkic language and loosely translates to "city of stone," which seemed to us to be an appropriate name for this city that has survived so much. 

On April 26, 1966, Tashkent was hit by a 5.1 magnitude earthquake, not huge by California standards, but the seismic activity was so deep that it was ranked somewhere between an 8 and a 9 on the earth's surface. The epicenter was also in the downtown area and destroyed 80% of the city.

The Monument of Courage Earthquake Memorial was built in 1976 (the 10th anniversary of the quake) by the Soviets in their typical Brutalist style--larger than life forceful figures with smooth, simple surfaces. This couple faces the fissure in the ground in front of them, the man shielding the woman, and the woman's arm outstretched as if to push away the force that is threatening them:


The surface they are standing on has also been ruptured by the earthquake:


At first I did not see the child in the woman's other arm. He clings to her, but her resolute face and stance seem to insure his safety:

A deep, zig-zagging fissure connects the statue to a large granite cube:

It shows the time the earthquake hit: 5:22 AM.

Another side of the cube shows the date: 26 April 1966:

Behind the monument are a series of bronze reliefs that show the heroism of those who rebuilt the city.


Intricate geometric designs cover the backs of the supports for these panels:

We also visited Mustaqillik Maydoni, or Independence Square, in Tashkent. It's really more of a park than a square:

Prior to Uzbekistan's independence in 1991, it was called "Lenin Square." After independence, a large statue of Lenin was dismantled and replaced with a golden globe on a large pedestal. At the base of the pedestal is a mother with a child on her lap:

She not-so-subtly symbolizes "the motherland":

Another component of Memorial Square is known as "Memory Lane," a series of covered walkways . . . 

. . . with niches embedded in the walls that contain metal pages with thousands of names inscribed on them. These are the Uzbek soldiers who died in World War II, fighting for the Motherland, the USSR. There were one million Uzbek soldiers who fought, and of those, 400,000 died. Forty percent casualties!  The total population of Uzbekistan was only six million at the time.

My favorite part of Independence Square is this much larger-than-life second statue of a mother. In front of her is Uzbekistan's version of the eternal flame:

Unlike the woman figure in the other statue, the lined face and bony hands of this figure show her to be elderly--maybe a grandmother--and rather than gazing lovingly at her baby, she is staring sadly at the eternal flame:

She appears to be grieving the loss of her sons. I thought this was much more realistic and poignant than a monument depicting a victorious soldier. 

The main entrance to the park, which we saw on our way out, is a series of sixteen marble columns topped with silver storks:

Storks are a symbol of happiness in Uzbekistan:

On our walk back to the bus, we encountered two charming college students who approached us and began a conversation. They were studying English and wanted to take advantage of a practice opportunity:

We took their picture, and they took ours:

Our last encounter was with Amir Timur (also spelled Temur and known in the West as Tamerlane), the last of the great nomadic conquerors of this region. He began his reign in 1370, about 150 years after the death of the great Genghis Khan:

Behind him is the International Congress Hall of Uzbekistan, built in 2009 in honor of Tashkent's 2200th anniversary. (Yeah, that is old.)  Our guide told us it is used for international conferences. The dome is topped with silver storks similar to those on the gates to Independence Square:

But back to Amir Timur. He wasn't a super benevolent ruler. It is said of him that wherever he went, "he brought about destruction, massacres, burning, looting, and dishonor to women."

His gesture here reminds me of the Nazi salute. It does seem like he had a lot in common with Hitler, so this black and white version seems appropriate:

And finally, our lovely hotel, creatively named the Hotel Uzbekistan: