41°18′N · Certain
Tashkent
Where we land. Soviet-era metro stations built like ballrooms, the Chorsu bazaar under its blue dome, and a first night to get our bearings.
Certain Latitude
The world has stories.
So do we. Let’s trade.
Journey 03◆39°39′N 66°57′E◆April 2029 · dates TBD
Uzbekistan
April 2029. Explore the majestic Silk Road cities — Samarkand, Bukhara and Khiva — that first connected the cultures of East and West, with multiple faith communities and ethnicities living side by side in an early historical model of coexistence and exchange of ideas. Blue tiled gates five thousand miles east of Morocco provide an opening to the wonders of early travelers and their journeys of discovery.
Uzbekistan is still off-the-beaten-track, but ripe for exploring. High-speed trains connect historic Silk Road cities that brought music, spices, trade and cultural exchange from China through Central Asia en route to Europe, and Uzbekistan retains the most storied and best preserved cities along the route. In our interconnected 21st century world, what better time to explore cities in which those contacts and encounters were first made? We will venture along ancient Silk Road routes while admiring the pristine courtyards of old cities that match the color of the sky, and avoiding the crowds of more commonly-traversed cities of Eastern Europe.
Where this stands. Uzbekistan is our third journey, planned for 2029 and still being scouted. Join the interest list to hear the dates first — and to tell us what you would want a fortnight on the Silk Road to feel like.
Why here
Because the blue keeps going east
The cornflower blue of a Chefchaouen wall and the cobalt of a Samarkand dome are cousins. The tile-makers, the geometry, the eight-pointed star repeating across a wall until you stop counting — it is one long conversation stretching from Morocco to the Fergana Valley, and we would like to hear both ends of it.
Practically, it is one of the easiest places we could take a group of fourteen. Distances between the four cities are short. The old towns are compact and flat. And the hospitality is close to overwhelming.
Places we’re scouting
The shape of the trip
The great Silk Road cities are certain. What sits around them — the craft valley, the mountains, the desert night — is what we are still deciding.
39°39′N · Certain
Samarkand
The Registan at dusk, the tiled stairway of Shah-i-Zinda, and Ulugh Beg’s observatory — a sultan who measured the year to within a minute.
39°46′N · Certain
Bukhara
The most intact old town in Central Asia: Poi Kalyan, the Ark, and the trading domes where silk, hats and coins were each sold under their own roof.
41°22′N · Likely
Khiva
The walled Ichan Kala, small enough to walk end to end before breakfast, and best seen from the walls at sunrise when it is entirely empty.
40°28′N · Under discussion
The Fergana Valley
Silk woven by hand at Margilan and the blue-glaze ceramics of Rishtan — the makers behind the patterns we will have been staring at all week.
Optional
A night in the desert
Yurts near the Aydarkul lake for those who want it, and an extra night in Bukhara for those who would rather not. Nobody is made to sleep on the ground.
What stays the same
The Certain Latitude rules travel with us
- 10–14 travelers, ages 40s–60s.
- We stay in cozy central locations with local flair.
- Rail wherever it beats the road — and here, it does.
- We leave ample unscheduled time to explore what tugs at our heartstrings and makes our souls sing.
- Come solo, or bring a friend — and know that new friends await.
The interest list