Two Years of Travel in Pictures: Julie’s favourite photos of our trip (Uzbekistan to Brussels)

The final instalment of my favourite photos of our trip! Part 1 covered Latvia to Thailand, and part 2 from Kuala Lumpur to China.

Inside Chorsu BazaarI added a fisheye lens to my camera kit in Uzbekistan. Inside the dome of Chorsu Bazaar in Tashkent was the perfect place to give it a trial run

Rows upon rows of fresh produce, like this one of potatoesPotato sellers perched on a bench in Tashkent’s Chorsu Bazaar

Uzbeki lady touristsI got chatting to this group of ladies after I took this sneaky photo and found out that they were visiting Tashkent from the eastern Uzbek city of Andijon

Looking through the entrance of Barak Khan MedressaLooking out through the entrance of Barak Khan Medressa to Khast Imom Square, Tashkent

Dome detailOne of my abiding memories of Uzbekistan is the colour blue, from the turquoise of the mosques to the clear blue skies

Laghman noodle soupLaghman noodle soup with a round non bread and a side of the ubiquitous tomato and cucumber salad was a favourite lunch during our time in Uzbekistan

Registan at nightThe Registan in Samarkand was jaw-droppingly beautiful by day and by night

Sunrise in SamarkandA bright orange sunrise seen over the rooftops of Samarkand

Jo photographing mausoleum at Shah-i-ZindaThe second time that Jo joined us on the trip was in Uzbekistan. Here she’s photographing one of the mausoleums at Shah-i-Zinda in Samarkand

Stick insect on tiles at Shah-i-ZindaA bright green stick insect on the vibrant tiles of a mausoleum at Shah-i-Zinda

Samarkand cemeteryUzbek gravestones feature portraits of the deceased. We enjoyed wandering through the cemetery in Samarkand and practicing our Cyrillic transliteration skills

Char Minar, BukharaChar Minar in Bukhara was the gatehouse of a long-gone 19th century medressa

Knitting stallholder in Tosh-hovli PalaceThe souvenir stalls in Khiva offered lots of thick woollen socks, often made by the stallholder like this lady inside the Tosh-hovli Palace

Uzbek dancerWhen we ascended the watchtower of the Kuhna Ark in Khiva to watch the sun set over the city we were surprised to find a music video being shot and spent as much time taking photos of the dancer as of the historic buildings

Moynaq boat cemeteryThe ship cemetery at Moynoq which used to sit on the edge of the Aral Sea really brought home the environmental tragedy caused by the Soviet Union’s irrigation projects in the area to increase cotton production. Moynoq was a thriving fishing town at the edge of the lake in 1960 but is now 150km away from the still retreating water

Silk vendor at Margilon BazaarVendor of traditional Uzbek silks at Margilon Bazaar in the Fergana Valley

Jeans stall at Margilon BazaarThe Uzbek people were some of the friendliest we came across and we spent a lot of time saying hello and answering questions at the enormous Margilon Bazaar

Pigeons in flightPigeons frightened by a cat outside Yeni Cami in Istanbul

Blue Mosque interiorMagnificent interior of the Blue Mosque in Istanbul

Jewellery in Grand BazaarNecklaces for sale in Istanbul’s Grand Bazaar

Tiled interior of Rustem Pasha MosqueA man begins his afternoon prayer in the Rustem Pasha Mosque

Lokum shopWe couldn’t resist the Turkish Delight shops in Istanbul

Andrew in Istanbul Museum of Modern ArtAndrew getting a different view of “Bring Yourself to Me” by Handan Boruteçene in Istanbul Modern

Basilica CisternThe huge Basilica Cistern in Istanbul lay forgotten for almost a hundred years after the Ottoman Conquest

Topkapi Sarayi on a rainy dayThis photograph really captures the day that we visited the Topkapi Sarayi, the former palace of the Ottoman sultans in Istanbul – rainy and grey

In a Turkish playparkWhen Steph, Tom and Olly visited us in Istanbul we got to see the local playgrounds and behave like big kids!

Passengers feeding gulls from the ferry to the Princes' IslandsPassengers on the ferry to the Princes’ Islands feeding gulls

Haghia SophiaThe iconic Haghia Sophia stands in the centre of Istanbul and dominates its skyline. Its dome rises 56m above the floor and looks much smaller than it actually is from below

VallettaMalta’s traditional architecture is very distinctive and nowhere more so than in the capital city Valletta with its golden limestone, narrow streets and wooden covered balconies

Looking back towards the start of the walk at Dingli Cliffs. Not bad for a day in NovemberLooking back towards the start of the walk at Dingli Cliffs. Not bad for a day in November

Prickly pearThe prickly pear grows throughout the Maltese countryside and the fruit is both eaten and used to make a liqueur

The defence command and situation room in the Lascaris War RoomsThe Lascaris War Rooms were a fascinating insight into WWII history

Beer and crisps on the beachA can of beer and a packet of crisps on Għadira beach after a long day’s walk around the northern coastline

Church detail at Addolorata CemeteryRoofline of the church at the Addolorata Cemetery in Paola, Malta

Mdina street lampsStreet lamps in the twisting streets of Mdina, the fortress city in the centre of Malta

Vittoriosa churchStormy clouds behind St Lawrence’s Church, Vittoriosa

Salt pans on GozoThe fantastic Segway tour that we took on Gozo went past the natural salt pans on the north-west coast

Traditional fishing basketTraditional fishing baskets are still used by Maltese fishermen who let them down and mark the spot, collecting them several hours later

Crater on Mt EtnaIt was eerie to see steam rising from vents in the snowy Monte Barbagallo crater of Mt Etna

Drying salt codBaccala, or salt cod, is a typical regional ingredient in Sicily. In Catania’s fish market we saw it drying in the sun

Interior, Santuario della Madonna delle LacrimeLooking up inside the conical Santuario della Madonna delle Lacrime in Siracusa. We nicknamed it the ‘Cone of Shame’

Temple of VulcanoTemple of Vulcano at Agrigento where we spent an unexpectedly cold and slightly snowy New Year’s Eve

Banyan treeFantastic banyan trees in Giardino Garibaldi, Palermo

SpritzSpritz o’clock became a late afternoon institution during our stay in Sicily where the refreshing cocktail is served with complimentary bar snacks

View from La Rocca, CefaluViews up the coast from the former fortress atop La Rocca over Cefalù, Sicily

Monreale CathedralThe mosaics inside Monreale Cathedral tell stories from the bible to assist in medieval times when the vast majority of the population were illiterate

Trees in Palermo's botanical gardenSculptural Silk floss trees from South America in the Botanical Garden in Palermo

Stanze al GenioThe rather unlikely sounding tile collection of Stanze al Genio in Palermo ended up being one of our favourite sights in Sicily. We dreamt about starting our own collection in an attempt to make our own home so beautiful

Fontanelle Cemetery skullsLocals leave offerings for skulls in the Fontanelle Cemetery in Naples

216On one of the rare sunny days of our fortnight in Naples we spent exploring the house and grounds of the nearby Reggia di Caserta

Andrew in curved corridor of the dome of St Peter's BasilicaWe climbed to the cupola atop the dome of St Peter’s Basilica for views across Rome but hadn’t expected the staircase to be inside the sloping walls of the dome itself

Dome gallery, St Peter's Basilica, Vatican CityEntering the base of the dome at St Peter’s Basilica was an unexpected treat for the vertiginous view to the floor of the church

ColosseumLooking down into the Colosseum from the third tier trying to reimagine ancient Roman times

Dome of St Peter's Basilica through the keyholeThe view through the keyhole of the Villa del Priorato dei Cavalieri di Malta was surprising in its perfection even when we knew what to expect

Piramide, RomeA pyramid in Rome? Yes really! It was built in around 12BC as the tomb of Gaius Cestius

Rome metro trainThere’s a lot of graffiti in Italy. Most of it is fairly unsightly tags but occasionally it is well enough done that it improves whatever it is sprayed onto, like this line B metro train in Rome

Synagogue, RomeThe main synagogue in Rome stands imposingly above the River Tiber

Baptistry carving detail, PisaThe leaning Tower of Pisa is part of a complex known as the Piazza dei Miracoli (Square of Miracles). The Baptistry has incredible acoustics which are demonstrated every half hour by the guard who stands in the centre of the room and sings a few notes which resonate for so long that he can create chords with his own voice!

Camposanto MonumentaleThe Camposanto Monumentale cemetery in Pisa is slowly being restored after being damaged by bombing in WWII

Swiss AlpsWe loved catching up with our friends Heidi and Olivier in Switzerland and once again admiring the spectacular scenery of their home country

Stained glass window of bridge in LuzernSunlight streaming through the stained glass window of a tiny chapel on Spreuerbrücke in Luzern

CERN monument‘Wandering the immeasurable’ by Gayle Hermick stands outside the visitor centre at CERN and is inscribed with major discoveries in physics in the language that they were made

Sunset, Aix-en-ProvenceThe sun goes down behind the tree lined Cours Mirabeau in Aix-en-Provence

Interior, Carcassonne cathedralInside the diminutive Basilique Saint-Nazaire in the medieval La Cité, Carcassonne

La Cite, CarcassonneCarcassonne’s medieval walled fortress town, La Cité

Church of the JacobinsReflections inside Toulouse’s Church of the Jacobins

Salon des VinsThe bread, cheese and wine in France was just as good as we’d expected

Cathedral spires, Luxembourg CityLuxembourg’s Notre-Dame Cathedral has three spires, each different from the others

Smokers outside Centraal StationSmokers outside the ornate Centraal Station in Amsterdam

Rooftop winch on a canal houseAmsterdam’s canal houses were built with a pulley projecting from the gable to more easily move goods to the upper floors and they are still in use today

National Monument, Dam SquareNational Monument and Royal Palace in Dam Square, Amsterdam

'Tolerance' by Alaniz‘Tolerance’ by Alaniz is one of the artworks featured in Amsterdam’s Street Art Museum

RijksmuseumLooking down the pond in Museumplein towards the Rijksmuseum

TulipsWe got up early to catch the dew on the tulips at Keukenhof Garden before meeting up with Dan, Clare, Scott and Emma

Windmills at Zaanse SchansAll of the windmills at Zaanse Schans village are working, milling items as diverse as logs, spices and dyes for paint!

Fairground ridesA funfair was squeezed into Dam Square for the King’s Day celebrations

Tulip fieldWe enjoyed cycling through the colourful bulb fields of the Netherlands

European Parliament, BrusselsThe European Parliament in Brussels

Atomium detailThe Atomium was built for the Brussels World’s Fair in 1958 but its architecture still looks futuristic

4 thoughts on “Two Years of Travel in Pictures: Julie’s favourite photos of our trip (Uzbekistan to Brussels)

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

What is 18 + 8 ?
Please leave these two fields as-is: