another stamp for the passport

I'm going to Uzbekistan for work. I've been wanting to travel Central Asia, so this came as a very very pleasant surprise.

The downside: as it is a work trip and I'm being officially hosted, I can't extend my trip, so i have...4 days. Seems like a pity to be able to travel this far (on someone else's expense!) and yet unable to see a little more of a fascinating country and region. One of my dreams is to trek in the Tien Shan mountain range (lies between China and the rest of the Central Asia region), and in Uzbekistan, and I am near, yet so far. Ah well.

The above picture isn't very good - I found must better photos on this account on flickr, which gives a quick glimpse of what I can expect. I hope our hosts aren't too strict about us wondering around. I know we will be taken on a day trip to Samarkand (above), which looks stunning, so at least I'm not missing out on sightseeing entirely. If I have some time I'd like to explore Tashkent (the capital) where I'm staying. I like to see ancient places meet the new.

Image from uzbek.org.sg