INTRODUCTION TO KARAKALPAKSTAN
Introduction to Karakalpakstan
The wake-up call in Nukus wasn't the best, not due to the beautiful structure in which we rested or any logistical problems, but due to Montezuma's curse (i.e. traveler's dysentery). It was an unpleasant experience that would last for a few days, but which I still remember today as one of the most annoying that can happen during a trip, especially at the beginning, when your legs are soft and you're sweating cold. Luckily Lavinia brought from home a supply of drugs that would have been the envy of a field hospital, including those necessary for this inconvenience. Remember what we have just said and make the most of it for your travels, especially if you decide to visit Karakalpakstan in August, when the temperature can reach 50 degrees.
How come in Karakalpakstan? Why not limit yourself to the classic tour of Uzbekistan? I will try to answer as concisely as possible. I had wanted to visit Karakalpakstan all my life, because in geographical maps and school atlases that blue spot to the right of the Caspian Sea, called the Aral Sea, had always fascinated me.
At the time (we are in 2004) I began to dig among the first information available on the internet, and I discovered that the great blue spot was drying up due to human intervention. I decided to make this story known to the professors, exposing this topic in the final exam. With this trip to Uzbekistan, I wanted to personally verify what I had studied at school almost twenty years ago, closing the circle.
The Karkalpakstan
Karakalpakstan occupies a third of Uzbekistan, and its 1,800,000 inhabitants are distributed over a territory covering 166,600 km², or half of Italy.
The population is mainly concentrated in the district of Nukus, the regional capital near the Amu Darya River, which in this stretch of route was completely canalised during the Soviet era.
The further you move away from the longest river in Central Asia, the more the territory becomes first arid and then desert-like, characteristic of the vast majority of the region.
The climate can be defined as extreme continental, with very harsh winters and hot summers in which it is really difficult to stay outdoors during daylight hours.
Politically, Karakalpakstan enjoys some autonomy from the central Uzbek government, but continues to demand more and more independence.
Protests and unrest have sometimes occurred, both due to the problems linked to the ecological disaster of the Aral Sea and the grabbing of the territory by multinationals.
In July 2022, a month before our departure, there was a secessionist revolt generated by discontent with an attempt by the central government to change the laws regulating political relations with the autonomous republic of Karakalpakstan.
The government decided to retrace its steps and abolish the changes, a decision that served to restore calm and save our trip.
The first stop of the day was the Mizdakhan necropolis, not far from the city. In this rural environment it is normal to see carts still pulled by mules, and improvised stalls displaying watermelons and melons along the road.
These and other scenes of daily life are evidence of a society that is not yet fully industrialized and globalized, something we had only seen in history books.
The monumental cemetery of Mizdakhan is vast, and bears witness to the evolution of Muslim burials (such as the fact of finding bas-reliefs of deceased people on more recent tombs).
Not far away is the hill on which Gyaur-Qala stood, one of the many Zoroastrian fortresses scattered throughout Karakalpakstan.
Mizdakhan
It is one of the best-known Muslim cemeteries in Central Asia. It is believed that the tomb of the prophet Adam is located here, and the mausoleum erected above it is called the "world clock": legend has it that the Apocalypse will come when all the bricks of the ruins fall to the ground.
Many tombs, many stories and legends to tell, such as the one that narrates the tragic end of the Romeo and Juliet of Karakalpakstan. She, a princess promised in marriage by her father to rich local nobles, was in love with a simple architect.
The father discovered the truth, and after seeing several marriage promises fall apart, he decided that his daughter would marry the one who built a minaret as high as the sky in a single night.
The architect succeeded, but took his own life by throwing himself from the minaret because his father broke his promise. The princess, learning of this, committed suicide with the same dynamic.
The father, heartbroken over the loss of his daughter, decided to build a mausoleum for the two lovers with the bricks of the minaret that was demolished.
Gyaur-Qala
It was the first Zoroastrian fortress we saw in Uzbekistan, located a few hundred meters from the Mizdakhan cemetery.
The "fortress of the infidels" hosted one of the many communities of this monotheistic religion that was once widespread throughout Central Asia before the advent of the Muslim religion. It is believed that the Mongol horde led by Genghis Khan razed it to the ground, which is why this fortress is the worst preserved in the region: today only a few mud ruins remain, but the excavations carried out by the Russians during the twentieth century brought to light many artefacts and objects used during funeral rituals.
After these interesting visits we left for Moynaq, which we will tell you about in the next article.
That's all! If you like this text or have any question, leave a comment below.