a double landlocked country steeped in silk road legacy. it s like something from a 60s spy movie or something. it s incredible. ..where soviet influences. horns sound ..meet ancient traditions. this is amazing. i can t believe this. this is where arches would have stood. ..and vast landscapes hide impressive relics. it s pretty astonishing that i m able to still walk around here. for the best part of a century, this country has been off limits to many outsiders. but in recent years, that s been changing, and i m on a journey to see what we ve been missing out on. this is uzbekistan! once part of the enormous soviet union, uzbekistan is a country of arid deserts, lush mountains and ancient cities. in its long history, it s been home to many civilisations, remnants of which can still be seen today. and now, its more recent past is as much of a draw. i m starting myjourney here in tashkent, the biggest city in the whole of central asia. it s dynamic, full of young people wit
i get the impression uzbekistan is involved in a tug of war between becoming more open and progressive and respecting its past. i m travelling an hour outside of the city to see that past in its full glory. this is parkent, known locally as quyosh, which means the sun in uzbek, and there s good reason for that. and there it is now. in the middle of nowhere, on a mountain like, nothing else around it and it s like something from a 60s spy movie or something. it s incredible. the institute of the sun is a soviet legacy. i can t believe i m actually allowed in here. it was once home to a top secret project, testing the capabilities of military equipment to withstand extreme heats.
a double landlocked country steeped in silk road legacy. it s like something from a 60s spy movie or something. it s incredible. ..where soviet influences. horns sound ..meet ancient traditions. this is amazing. i can t believe this. this is where arches would have stood. ..and vast landscapes hide impressive relics. it s pretty astonishing that i m able to still walk around here. for the best part of a century, this country has been off limits to many outsiders. but in recent years, that s been changing, and i m on a journey to see what we ve been missing out on. this is uzbekistan!