Khiva, Uzbekistan

Khiva is a great place.  We are staying inside the walls of the old town and so everything we might want to see is very close by.

Fancy, carved doors like this are everywhere-

The market was just around the corner.  Here's the butcher-

The fruit lady-

And the cobbler-

This is the Tosh-Hovli Palace.  It was built between 1842-1851-

This is some of the tile up close-

There are also wood carving totem type poles holding up the ceiling-

This is the Khan's bedroom in the palace-

This is the Khorezm Weaving Training Centre-

Silk is being woven on the left, cotton on the right-

The Juma Mosque has 218 wooden columns supporting the room.  The building dates from the 18th century-

I love this woman's teeth! Gold!  Gold!  Gold!

Another typical beautiful woman.  The people here are so friendly and want to practice their English-

There are numerous shopping opportunities-

Fur hats-

And other styles of hats-

I tried a few on, in preparation for the cold days coming up.  This one smelled horribly-

Here is the Kalta Minor Minaret.  It was started in 1851, with the intention of being tall enough to see all the way to Bukhara.  Unfortunately, the Khan died in 1855, before it was finished-

Here is a typical home-

And, unfortunately, a typical toilet-

I climbed the Islom Hoja Minaret.  It's 57 meters tall.  Here are the steps-

And the view from the top-

Wood carving is very popular.  Here are some young men hard at work-

This is an interesting tool.  It's used to put your personal stamp on your bread.  They eat a very dry, nasty, flat bread-

This is in the Kuhna Ark.  It's the Khiva rulers' own fortress and residence.  This platform is where they would set up yurts-

The walls are made of mud and straw-

This is the outside wall of the old town as seen from the watch tower in the Kuhna Ark-

The father of algebra: Abu Jaafar Mohammad Ibn Mousa Al Khwarizmi-

As you can see, today was a great day - so many cool sites.  I am looking forward to tomorrow!