Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) - The authoritative American publication The New York Times published an article by correspondent Charlie Wilder, who visited Central Asian countries, including Uzbekistan, Dunyo reported.

Following her travels, she wrote that for many years she dreamed of making a trip to Central Asia - the cradle of civilizations, until recently not open to travelers from the west.

The article notes that for many years Buddhist and Zoroastrian temples, painted mosques and madrassas remained inaccessible to the eyes of many people. In 2016, the atmosphere in the region changed, economic development intensified and political stability strengthened. The visa policy of Uzbekistan has also changed - in 2018, citizens of more than 100 countries of the world were easier to enter the country, including Americans who can arrive in the republic without a visa and confirm a return ticket for 5 days.

The journey of Charlie Wilder and her accompanying photographer Tony Sanikol to the countries of Central Asia began with the holy city of Bukhara. Discovering this ancient city for herself, the journalist writes that the center of trade, science, religion and culture was once one of the holy cities of the Islamic world.

“This is a city in which poets like Firdausi and Rudaki composed their most beautiful works,” she said. “This is a city in which Abu Ali Ibn Sino (Avicenna) opened the foundations of medicine for future generations,” the article says.

The author was struck by the Poi-Kalyal complex with its architectural elegance. Going deeper into history, C. Wilder shares the legend that the complex, richly decorated with rhombuses on burnt masonry, served as an inspiration for the creators of the Doge's Palace in Venice.

“Walking around the city in a state of some trance, we admired the blue domes, the mosaic-decorated palaces of the old city and the caravanserais. Everywhere shops of artisans offering their work to tourists,” an American journalist describes a walk in Bukhara.

The journey continues in Samarkand - a city, as the author writes, as ancient as Rome and Babylon, and superior in beauty to Bukhara, largely due to the heritage left by Amir Temur.

Along with Registan Square, the Shahi-Zinda complex, journalists visited another pearl of the heritage of the Temurids era - Mirzo Ulugbek Observatory. “This is one of the first and most accurate observatories in the history of mankind, which allowed astronomers to calculate time and celestial objects with amazing accuracy,” the author writes.

Having discovered Samarkand, C. Wilder and T. Senikola went further along the route - to Tajikistan through the border with Uzbekistan, which, as they write, became much easier.