Places dbone Wants to Go

Home to what was once considered the largest gate in central Asia.

The heartbeat of modern Uzbekistan’s thriving market culture.

The rocks are a time capsule of a 407-million-year-old Earth.

Beautiful palace stands tall over the Fergana Valley.

Witness traditional silk production in the Uzbek city that's been a hub of sericulture for over a thousand years.

Giant cauldrons overflow with Uzbekistan's favorite rice dish at this cavernous dining hall.

One of the most ethnically diverse spots on the planet.

The ruins of an ancient Zoroastrian Tower of Silence believed to be the earliest example of the traditional funerary practice.

These "50 Fortresses" have been unearthed in the ancient oasis of Khwarezm.

Final palace complex of the last of 29 Kokand rulers.

Former island in the Aral Sea used to be a top-secret Russian bio-weapons facility.

This "tower of death" has acted as an observatory, a religious hub, and an executioner's lair.

Ancient barriers wrap around what was once an important stop along the Silk Road.

Light still pours into the ruins of this ancient Islamic observatory.

The Avenue of Mausolea is a series of grand palatial tombs.

An entertainment center in a huge transparent tent.

This 100-foot tall tombstone memorializes victims of 40 years of nuclear testing in Kazakhstan.

A statue of traditional Kazakh dancers adds some beauty to this Soviet-era mining city.

Stelae-eyed stones greet visitors to a corner of Kirov Park.

This Soviet statue is based on a piece of propaganda that's been elevated to national myth.

A sober museum housed in the original administrative building of one of Stalin's largest gulags.

A Stalinist prison camp for the wives and children of men accused of betraying the Soviet state is now a memorial museum.

This Soviet-era athletic and recreation facility is the highest ice skating rink in the world.

This was once the largest city in Kazakhstan, and a major stop on the Silk Road.