The Ismail Samani Mausoleum   Yes!! I know you are expecting the wonderful blue tiled buildings. They are stunning. Here is one to keep you going til I post about them, and there will be several posts. One of the facades of Registan Square  One of the main reasons we design in black in white is that colour can be distracting. When you remove colour you are able to better able to see any texture. This building is the prefect example. If there were coloured tiles all over it - you wouldn't see all the amazing brick patterns. One of my favourite buildings in Uzbekistan is in Bukhara. The Ismail Samani Mausoleum.  This beautiful mausoleum is constructed in baked bricks that are laid in 18 pattern forms. The pattern of three horizontal bricks and three vertical bricks is apparently showing the importance of learning - stacks and stacks of books (I can’t help but see basketweave) It was built in the 10th century CE as the resting place of the powerful and influential Islamic Sa...

The first Heathrow group - Ruth, Chris, Trisha, Julie, Maggie, Jan and Carla.    So - to begin.  I traveled to, and toured Uzbekistan with Isha and Aahilya Holidays for a month. We traveled with 2 groups, one 23 March to 7th April and the next one 7th to 22nd April. So I had the privilege of visiting each venue and experience twice. There were 14 guest in each group. From the UK, Australia and New Zealand. They were fabulous groups, we had such a great time.  We traveled by coach, airplane, car and train. Each different type of transport offered us a different view of the country.   We all flew into Tashkent, with flights coming in from all over, it took a while for everyone to arrive. Everyone was met at the airport when they arrived and transferred to our very comfortable hotel. On the first night we ate in our hotel, a lot of the guests were tired from traveling. This dinner was important as we met our wonderful guide Khurshid. Little did we know when we firs...

Me in Registan Square, Samarkand So! I have just got back from 2 x 2 week tours of Uzbekistan with Isha Sharma and Aahilya Holidays. Well, I have been back 2 weeks. It has taken me that long to settle back in after such a remarkable time with 2 fabulous groups. I have been feeling a bit overwhelmed . .  It is a weird feeling. I couldn't believe I was there, standing in front of those beautiful buildings. And when I got home I couldn't really believe I had been. To travel to a place you have always dreamed of visiting, but never, ever thought you would, it really was a dream come true. And it looks as though a few more dreams will be coming true - Isha (owner of Aahilya Holidays) and I have planned all my trips from November 2025 to November 2026. Having spent the last month traveling together, we managed to get everything finalised. Istanbul, India, Morocco, Uzbekistan and Turkey. You can find all the links to the itineraries for all the trips on my new 'Travel' webpage...

A beautiful Suzani embroidery  It is now 111 days till I leave for my 2 tours of Uzbekistan. The original tour sold out so fast, we had to add another, which will start on March 23rd. I get breathless with excitement just thinking about it . .  Since my move to Ireland I haven't been saying Yes! to too many things, I wanted to settle into my new environment and not get too distracted. And then came Covid, so I REALLY settled in. So when Isha from Aahilya Holidays first asked me to lead a tour for her, I said no.  You may remember that I led 4 tours to Jaipur with Jamie from Coluricious in the early days of tutors of and artists leading travel tours. I think I felt that I had done with travel and I was happy to be settled where I was. Discover new foods   However, I have always dreamed of exploring Uzbekistan, the colours, the textures and the general romance of the country. But never, ever, thought I would be able to actually go. So when Isha suggested we go to Uzbek...