Seeing The Bazaar In Qarshi

Uzbekistan has the best local markets and Qarshi's main shopping area is a fine example of the crossroads of a city all crammed together, selling anything and everything.

View of one section of the market. The usual rows of vendors under a little bit of weather protection.

Fresh loaves of bread, still in the delivery truck. And in old cardboard boxes, way to upcycle. Chick pea display, tenderly art directed. Humble.

Uzbek staples. Bales of cotton, brooms, and cooking oil.

Entertaining piles of toys. Babies bursting and a soldier, creeping up on some farm animals.

The Charmin of the East, bear toilet paper. That's rough. Not the best selling approach?

Mincing the meat. Hard to tell the photo ads from the real thing. Parts of the market look a little abandoned during a slow day.

The Egg Room.

 

Big Toys In Qarshi

Right next to the Bunker museum is a collection of planes, tanks, boats. Basically, if it could get there, a parking space was found. Theme? Nah.

Big green with a big gun.

Jet fighter, putting on its mean face. Random helicopter in the background. Tiny green boat, lonely in its impromptu dry dock. So much for the fountain setting.

Early Uzbek Airways jet age. Probably 2016.

Plane interior, spartan for passengers, lots of gauges for the pilots.

More green stuff, ready for an invasion. No climbing!

WWII Bunker Museum In Qarshi

Time to go underground for a little WWII, Great Patriotic War glory. A curious way to present a museum, building a bunker. Look at it and live it.

Heading in. And out. The "bunker" is a U-shaped trench design.

Exhibits are mostly small objects and one, life-size diorama of Russian life in a bunker on the Eastern front. "Comrade, fire up the samovar!" Radio man, living up to the classic, nerdy stereotype.

Tools of war, big rifle, big bullets.

Foods of war, dry goods and big loaf. An army travels on its stomach.

Back in the bunker, sestra comrade is ready to defend the motherland. And staying warm.

Old Qarshi

Qarshi is a town of about 200,000 people, a bit southwest of Samarkand, close to the Turkmenistan border. It's out there. The place looks mostly modern with no significant Silk Road era sites. What "old" buildings that exist are 16th, 19th century re-creations of an older era. Old looking, not ancient in date.

Facade of the cute Qilichbay Madrasah.

View to the inside courtyard, one, lonely tree. Front entrance of the Bekmir Madrasah.

Big, classic dome. The back of the Odina Mosque.

Smaller, more plain dome and a cool interior. The Sardoba.

Back to the big Odina Mosque, the view heading into the main courtyard.

Namık Kemal House Museum In Tekirdağ

The Namik Kemal House Museum is a bit of a misnomer as the place is devoted to more than Kemal's life and effects. A lot more.

Cute, 19th century digs. The house was restored and opened as a museum in 1993. It's named for Kemal, a Turkish Nationalist poet. Besides info and items related to Kemal, the museum is crammed with anything and everything related to the town.

Front room, sticking to the Kemal theme with lots of biographical photographs, plenty of books on display. Alcove at the foot of the stairs, the grab bag of stuff starts to appear. Kitchen, home gear room. Bring us your tired pots, radios, bowls, baskets, everything.

The almighty Kemal manual typewriter. Curious wardrobe. Let's err on the side of not Kemal's.

More 19th century wardrobe and a handsome mannequin.

Rákóczi Museum In Tekirdağ

Time to see how an exiled Hungarian noblemen lived. Francis II Rákóczi led an unsuccessful uprising against the Habsburgs in 1703 and was then forced into exile, finally settling in Tekirdağ in 1720. He lived there until his death in 1735.

Front exterior of his house, on a hill, with a view to the sea.

In case you forget who lived there, a wall mounted bust of Rákóczi greets all visitors. The house is a pilgrimage site for Hungarians. In case you forget what noblemen in the 1700s wore.

The fanciest room in the house. Lounge anywhere you like, except the throne chair.

Mod cons, for 18th century. Kitchen and crapper.

Family history in Old Master oil paintings, the polaroids for the rich.

Red Crescent Museum

Red Crescent is Turkey's version of the Red Cross, an organization that supports and provides medical related aid. There is a nice museum at Gallipoli, devoted to a bit of history of the group as well as a focus on work done during WWI.

Mighty building. With little wagon ambulances out front.

Olde timey medical gear and a map of the local area with field hospital, cemetery locations.

Life size tent, should you need sudden aid. On the back wall, a section on women in the Red Crescent.

Old canteen containers. Flower fund raising. Red Crescent sells flowers for funds every Eid al-Fitr.

Keep it clean. A nice enlargement of an old guide to proper hygiene procedures.