FALCONRY IN UZBEKISTAN

Falconry is the tradition activity of keeping and training falcons to take quarry in its natural state. Since ancient time Falconry was very popular in our region, Central Asia. I was surprised to find out that it is still popular in modern Uzbekistan and there is society of falconers in Tashkent. 

I went to their club and spent an amazing day with falcon-lovers. What is Tugan Falconry Club and what they do, what is fides and where you can see falconry and other interesting things which I am going to reveal in this post.

Traditionally Falconry was transmitted from generation to generation as a cultural traditions by different ways, including learning within families, mentoring and formalized training in clubs. 

Falconry Competitions of Khiva's King, 1890. 

In Uzbekistan there is only one official Falconry Club which was opened in 2014. It is non-governmental commercial organization was found by falcons true lovers with non-commercial purposes. Tugan Falconry Club has support of Uzbekistan State Committee for Nature Protection. The Club was found for purpose to develop in 2 following dimensions: revival of traditional falconry as it is cultural heritage, making contribution in falcons’ population. That’s why nursery for growing up falcons or treating injured birds was built, located in Sergeli region which is 30 minutes away from the centre of Tashkent city (taxi fee 1-2$, you can ring up to the Club and they will help you to find the place). By the way they are very hospitable so it is free to visit their club. If you want to go to see falcons' fly you can ask price when you come to the Club.
Today there are 10 falcons in the nursery, in autumn 2 of them will be released to face the wild nature.

While talking to club members I noticed theirs real love for birds, they touched them with care and there was love in their eyes. Falconers develop a strong relationship and spiritual bonds with their birds, and commitment is required to breed, train, handle and fly the falcons. It is fides (you can notice this word on the logo of the club), which means trust and belief, it is foundation of relationship between falconers and falcons.

The world of Falconry is much larger and wider than I imagined. UNESCO recognized Falconry as Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. Since before the time of the pyramids, over 4000 years, Falconry as a hunting method has become a deep tradition. Today’s modern lifestyle and rapid urbanization have restricted opportunities to practice falconry. 

Thanks to Falconry club now we have opportunity to preserve traditions and transmit them to growing generation. Recently Uzbekistan became the member of IAF (International Association for Falconry) along with such countries as UAE, Spain, Ireland, South Korea, Mongolia and others. It can open new ways for cooperation and development this sphere in our country. 

I wish the best luck to Tugan Falconry Club in Tashkent! You can find more information about Tugan Falconry Club here - https://www.facebook.com/denis.choi.5686/?fref=ts

Photos with love from Ernest Kurtveliev.

KUPKARI

Dust from horses’ hooves, excitement around lamb/goat carcass, atmosphere of real competition among horsemen – all of these things you can see in Uzbek traditional game, called Kupkari. Here in Uzbekistan we say that Kupkari is a competition of real dzhigits (brave and strong young man, skilled horseman). Yesterday I went to this competition which was held in Parkent area and it was fun.

Kupkari also can be called as buzkashi or ulak, it is a traditional Central Asian competition. ‘Kup’ from Turkish means ‘many’ and ‘kari’ from Persian means ‘case, work’. So, the name defines the heart of the game: many dzhigits are involved in one case. And the case is about grabbing sheep’s carcass and hold it until you reach the finish line/open space, then you should throw it in the far distance and the game will be over. 

But it is worth noting that the weight of animal carcass is from 25 to 130 kg. Can you imagine how it is difficult to pick up heavy object at full gallop and after that hold it in your hands while a lot of competitors tries to get it. For me it’s almost unreal. But there is a good motivation for dzhigits. Of course, taste of win and proud, but prizes also can motivate players. In Kupkari prizes can be very different from carpets to sum amount, and the biggest prizes are usually body carcass (which was used in the game), foal or calf. Because games are held in the villages, so the prizes are relevant.

There are two versions of this game. The older version of this game is rather brutal one where everyone for himself. And the battle is against everyone. And the modern one is about team playing, where two teams are in the fight for trophy.

Usually Kupkari is held in spring or autumn. Because in Uzbekistan people traditionally celebrate big events such weddings in these seasons, as well as during the main spring holiday Navruz. It is on the 21st of March and for Uzbek people Navruz is New Year holiday. Kupkari games are often held during Navruz holiday. Yesterday event was hosted after the wedding and Father of the groom decided to organize game, by giving prizes. Participants came from different regions of Uzbekistan, even from distant ones to take part in Kupkari games. It began at 12 p.m. and ends in the evening. There were about 60-70 players and 300-400 visitors, didn’t count but there were a lot of people.

On my way home I thought that people need these kinds of event, something huge and bigger than just a party because everyone of us want to be the part of something bigger than we are. 

Photos made by Ernest Kurtveliev. 

I used photos of Kupkari games (not only from Parkent event).

UZBEKISTAN’s MOUNTAINS. PART #1 WINTER

First of all, we do have great mountains in Uzbekistan; surely you should visit them in any season. Because vivid colors of nature, fresh air and feeling of something unexplored and wild draw every human being. There are peculiarity of nature and interesting events in every season, and today we are going to talk about winter season.

A little piece of information about Uzbek Mountains. Powerful and complicated mountain system of Central Asia belongs to the highest systems of Euro-Asian mountain belt crossing. Tien-Shan and Pamir-Alai are included in the Central Asia. 

By the way interesting fact is mountains occupy 43% of the total land area, in Uzbekistan it is 96,000 m², which means 21,3% of total land area of the country. Uzbekistan’s mountains are medium-high mountains (2000-2500 meters above the sea), the highest peak is Babatag (4688 m).

Chimgan and Beldersay are well-known and popular places among locals and foreigners. You can find up to 10 hotels to stay near these areas if you want to stay in the mountains more than 1 day. These areas are located not far from Tashkent city, about 90 km. You can go by mini-bus or taxi. Departure is early in the morning at 6-7 a.m. from Maxim Gorkiy region, near metro station. Price for bus is about 5$ (two-way), taxi* – 8$ (two-way). Taxi is not private one; you will sit with other passengers. Private taxi price is about 65-70$ for one car. It takes about 2.5 hours for bus and 2 hours for car.

Winter weather is mild, and it’s very cool to have snow activities while the weather is pretty warm. Average temperature in winter season is 8°C.

In winter the most popular activity are skiing, snowboarding and sleigh. For professionals and extreme-lovers: climbing, tracks, heli skiing, free-ride and others. You can find out more information about it here https://www.facebook.com/ClimberCA.ru/

I will tell more about mountain leisure for amateurs. Let’s start from skiing. Ski season is not long, from late December till mid-March; the ideal time for skiing is February. The longest ski slope is in Beldersay (3017 m), there is chairlift to the top. It takes more than 20 minutes to get there, the higher you go the colder you feel. There is also ski slope in Chimgan (1500), about 10 minutes. And rope tow lift ‘mop’ is 570 m.

For snowboards Chimgan is the best place. In Uzbekistan young people love snowboarding more than skiing. There is even snowboard lovers’ community in Tashkent. You can find them on Facebook page Snowboarduz

You can rent ski and snowboard equipment for one hour (4-5$) or for one day (9-10$). If you are with more than 3 persons ask for a discount.

Winter events

Tournaments on ski and snowboarding are held regularly in winter season. Recently 27-28 February, 2016 ski-cross and snowboard-cross tournament was held by support of non-government organizations. Event was called ‘Chimgan Extreme 2016’ on the slop ’12 keys’ in the Chimgan Mountains. Competitors’ age was from 12 till 60 and it brought something very exciting into the atmosphere of the holiday. Children, adults and elders altogether were involved in the world of sport. Though it was not professional sport there was contest spirit and explosion of emotions while the tournament. The day was bright and warm, filled by rays of the sun and people’s smiles. Sport activity is all about emotions. 

The award ceremony was held in the atmosphere of joy and simplicity. Everybody was glad for each other’s win and the winners got their prizes. When the holiday was over I left with the good memories and desire to come and watch it again!  

What to eat

For Uzbek food lovers there are sufficient amounts of cafes there, not very expensive. But if you don’t eat Uzbek food you should take some snacks with you. 

Have a snowy rest ;)

P.S. some of pics made by our local famous photographer 

Ernest Kurtveliev

UZBEKISTAN GUIDE TIPS. PART #3 THE MUST-EAT LIST: TASHKENT

There is one thing in what everyone who was in Uzbekistan agrees: food is very delicious here. The variety of tastes of Uzbek cuisine you will remember for a long time. Natural, organic, simple products are used in preparing meals.

Number one in Tashkent Must-Eat List is Plov. It’s traditional festive dish. But at the same time real Uzbek people can eat plov every single day. In Uzbekistan Thursday is plov’s day. Plov is made from rice, meat, carrot, onion and spices. In different interpretations raisin, pea, garlic and other things can be added. The real plov is surely made in pot on fire. Plov usually is made for large number of people, because we Asians love to eat in big companies and sharing meals. Worth noting that there are different types of plov in different parts of our big country.

Plov

In Tashkent plov places almost at every step. But one place is special and famous one. It’s ‘Central Asian Center of Plov’ in Yunusabad region. Cafe is large and popular, prices are low.

In Uzbekistan we are meat-lovers, so number two is Shashlik, similar to Turkey well-known kebab or meat on sticks. Meat can be lamb, beef, chicken, fish and even pork; because there are different nations live in Uzbekistan. For good shashlik go to ‘Navat’ cafe, inside Poytaht Mall.

Shashlik

Do you remember how Panda Po ate noodles, seemed so yummy? The next dish is like thick noodles with meat and veggies, it’s called Lagman. It can be prepared either as the soup or fried noodles. Originally it’s Uyghur dish, but there are a lot of interpretations in Central Asia. And Uzbek lagman is worth to try in ‘Lagman-House’, located near Chorsu bazaar opposite the mosque. It is special feeling to eat nice food in the atmosphere where culture and religion intertwine.

Lagman

‘Anor’ café is also lagman-lovers place. It is located in the centre of Tashkent, near Gospitalniy bazaar. Interesting thing that you can watch the process of preparing lagman and other dishes, because there are transparent windows between guest hall and kitchen here.

Have you ever eaten horsemeat? The next food Narin consists of horsemeat and thin noodles. Nourishing meal, and usually it is eaten with bouillon which is also made from horsemeat.  

Narin

And the last one in our Must-Eat list is Kazan Kabob. Imagine deep fried golden brown whole potatoes, crispy fried meat, soft and fresh, melting in your mouth. You can find nice kazan kabob and narin at ‘Navat’ Cafe as well.

And just for navigation to good places in Tashkent where you can find delicious food and Uzbek traditional interior. Here is the list of cafes with average bill for one person 5-7$. ‘Rayhon’cafe, Karatash region opposite Media Park.‘Soy’ cafe opposite Uzbekistan Parliament Building.‘Manas’ cafe, interesting and unusual interior, you will sit in yurts and touch national Uyghur coloring.

And a bit of pompous and expensive places: ‘April Verdant’, ‘Caravan’,’IKAT’. Nice food, gorgeous interior.