Located at the Northern frontier of Tansoxiane, in the fruitful valley of the river Chirchik, this cutting edge of settled civilisation was one of the privileged place of trade between Kazakh nomads of the steppe and Sogdian merchants. Since its foundation, on the second century b.c., the city had different names : Tchotch, Shash, then Binkent. When the Arabs took the town in 751, it was already an important place on the Silk Road .

On the XIth century, the city is renamed Tashkent (stone city in Turkish).

At the beginning of the XIIIth century, Tashkent suffered from important destructions and was emptied of its population under the Shah of Khorezm and Gengis Khan. Under the reign of Tamerlan, the city was given to his grand son, Oulougbek, and find again some prosperity. Despite the general decline of the cities located on the Silk Road as from the XIth century, Tashkent is growing with the Chaybanides at the end of the XVth century and during the XVIth century. Most of the monuments that we can see nowadays date back to this time.

uring the visit of the city, you will see the madrasa Koukeldash (XVIth century), the whole Hasti Imam: Barak Khan madrasa (XVIth century), Tilla Sheikh mosque (XIXth century), Kaffal Shashi mausoleum (XVIth century), the museum of decorative arts as well as the Tchorsu bazaar.

Capital of Timour (Tamerlan), Samarkand was the main city of the ancient Sogdiane. Located at the crossroads of main trade roads coming from China , Siberia , Persia and the West, the city was prosperous up to the wave of the Gengis Khan's troops of Mongols who destroyed the city before rebuilding it on its ashes. Samarkand had had its hour of glory two centuries later, when Tamerlan named if the capital of his empire. The wonderful madrasas of Reguistan Square (XV-XVIIth centuries) decorated with dazzling earthenware will give you the possibility of apprehending the numerous influences showing the evolution of the Timouride architecture.

After having visited the famous mosque of Bibi Khanum, we will celebrate the Timourides' fame before the Shakhi Zinda mausoleum.

ear Roukhabad's mausoleum stands the Gour Emir which is the tomb of the great conqueror Tamerlan, as well as his sons and grand sons.

Located in the Zerafshan valley, this city has an authentic charm. It was one of the most important cities on the Silk Road where all merchants gathered to sell carpets and jewels. Although Islam arose in another place, Boukhara has seen the development of this religion. The city shelters a hundred of Islamic schools and as many as mosques and holy tombs.

he monuments will bring you back to the medieval era and even before : the Ark (the citadel dated I-IVth centuries), the Poï-Kalian grouping of XV-XVIth centuries, the Kosh madrasa of Oulougbek and Abdoulaziz Khan, dated XV-XVIIth centuries, the Liabi-Khaouz grouping dated XVI-XVIIth centuries, as well as the domes of the tradeswomen (XVIth century).

Former Kesh, Shakhrisbaz is the native city of Tamerlan . He built the huge white palace Ak-Saray (XIVth century) whose impressive vestiges on the gate offer an amazing earthenware scenery. The Kol-Goumbaz mosque (XVth century) and the Gumbazi-Seidan mausoleum tell the past splendor of the city.

This village is surrounded with sandy hills covered with « saxaouls » (endemic tamarisk).

Camel ride from Bactriane. Dinner under the yurt followed by traditional Kazakh singings, the

«ulans». Under the desert starry sky, of an exceptional purity, the joyous or sometimes nostalgic ulans are absorbed by the sand.

Nourata is a big oasis fed by the big spring Tchashma with holly fishes.