Around Uchkuduk, Part One

Getting to Uchkuduk in Uzbekistan is a bit of a feat. The small mining town is waay out there, not a place for tourists and not on the way to anything. Let's go!

Big Welcome sign. Uchkuduk is in the middle of the Kyzyl Kum desert. If you're on the road to town, you won't miss the town.

A model city. There's a tiny museum at city hall, more a set of rooms with development accomplishments. A large mural at a school. Studying is for winners!

A sculpture to the past. Life size look at a typical Silk Road-era camel caravan.

Uchkuduk is a low rise, dusty town filled with Soviet-era apartment blocks. And little kiosks painted in curious colors. Plum is in.

Schoolgirl at the mini mart/fabric emporium.

A Traveling Zoo In Uzbekistan

Sometimes the zoo comes to you. If you live in a small town in Central Asia, there probably isn't any sort of zoo and you never get to see live, exotic animals. Until the zoo rolls into town.

Bright colors in a drab landscape. The traveling zoo hits Zarafshon, Uzbekistan.

The setup is nothing more than a series of trailers, cages with a side that opens up. Lonely lion.

The trailers are arranged wagon train style, in a U shape, creating a sort of inner courtyard, some privacy to the attraction. You gotta buy a ticket to see the animals.

It's a sad spectacle. An old-school, small cage existence for the animals, causing a bear to pace and a lion to zone out.

Put those animals anywhere. Maybe you see an ostrich, camel, llama, a goat.