See Modern Samarkand in Uzbekistan, Inspired by James Elroy Flecker's Poem

James Elroy Flecker at Cambridge, England.

Samarkand - one of the dreams of children and student worldwide, evoked by James Elroy Flecker's poem:

Samarkand

• When the great markets by the sea shut fast
  All that calm Sunday that goes on and on:
  When even lovers find their peace at last,
  And Earth is but a star, that once had shone.
  • The Golden Journey to Samarkand (l. 7)

• And some to Meccah turn to pray, and I toward thy bed, Yasmin.
  • Hassan, in Hassan, act 1, sc. 2 (1922)

• I have seen old ships sail like swans asleep.
  • The Old Ships (l. 1)

• But have you wine and music still,
  And statues and a bright-eyed love,
  And foolish thoughts of good and ill,
  And prayers to them who sit above?
  • To a Poet a Thousand Years Hence (l. 9-12)

• The poet's business is not to save the soul of man but to make it worth saving.
• Quoted by Louis Untermeyer in Modern British Poetry (1920)

What is the city and the country which inspired these wonderful verses?

James Elroy Flecker, born in Britain, wrote about the Golden Journey to Samarkand, a city on the famed Silk Road. The Silk Road ran East-West for miles across Europe and Asia to and from China in the Far East. Samarkand is in Uzbekistan, a country of mosques and mausoleums. Romantically, first in my mind, although alphabetically it is last on my list. Afghanistan and Pakistan I know a bit about, What of Samarkand today and Uzbekistan?

Samarkand
Samarkand has a large number of impressively large and elaborately ornate mosques and mausoleums.

Also assorted Christian places of worship.
Orthodox Church of St George Victorious.

The city of Samarkand has trams and yellow taxis.

How do you get there and get around?
Train Station
The train station and high speed train and very modern, with a distinctive, luxurious and local design.

Useful Websites
Wiki Uzbekistan
Wiki Samarkand
Wikivoyage
Wikitravel
Tripadvisor
https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/James_Elroy_Flecker

• About the Author
  Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker.
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