Khujand: Fortress and Panjshanbe Bazaar

Khujand is one of the oldest cities in Central Asia. In 329 BC Alexander the Great founded Alexandria Eschate, 'Alexandria the Furthest', on the Syr Darya (the ancient Jaxartes) here, on the northern frontier of his empire; most historians place it at or near the present citadel. The city later prospered on the road between Samarkand and the Fergana valley, and in 1220 its governor Timur Malik held out against Genghis Khan's army on an island in the river, a stand still remembered in Tajik history. Under the Soviets it was called Leninabad, from 1936 until 1991.

The fortress

The citadel stands near the river in the centre of town. Its walls and gate have been substantially reconstructed in recent decades on old foundations, and inside is the Historical Museum of the Sughd region, with well-presented displays from the Stone Age through Alexander, the Sogdians and the medieval city to the 20th century. The ramparts give a good view over the river and the town.

Sheikh Muslihiddin and Panjshanbe bazaar

Across the main square from the bazaar is the shrine of Sheikh Muslihiddin, a 12th-century poet and local ruler venerated as a saint. The complex combines a mausoleum, rebuilt several times since the medieval period, a 19th-century mosque with painted wooden columns and a minaret, and it is an active place of prayer, so dress modestly.

Panjshanbe bazaar, named after Thursday (panjshanbe), the old market day, is the heart of the city. The present building of 1964 has a pastel facade of arches and a central dome, and inside, under the high roof and spilling out into the side streets, are piles of dried apricots, almonds, spices, round breads and fresh produce from the valley. It is busy every day but liveliest in the morning.

Combining with Tashkent

The Oybek crossing (Fotehobod on the Tajik side) is about an hour and a half by road from Tashkent, and Khujand roughly an hour beyond. A day trip from Tashkent is possible but tiring; better to stay a night and continue to Istaravshan the next day, or carry on south to Dushanbe through the Shahriston and Anzob tunnels. Khujand also links easily to the Uzbek Fergana valley via Kokand.