Samarkand is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, and it has been arguing with Bukhara about which is more beautiful for about a thousand years. Alexander the Great took it in 329 BC, when it was called Marakanda, and it grew rich on the Silk Road, only to be flattened by Genghis Khan in 1220. Then Timur, or Tamerlane, made it his capital in the late fourteenth century and filled it with the turquoise-domed monuments that still dominate it today.
The classic sight is the Registan, a square framed by three monumental madrasas whose tiled facades glow gold in late afternoon. Behind it, the Bibi-Khanym Mosque, the Shah-i-Zinda avenue of tombs with its blue ceramic corridors, and Gur-e-Amir, Timur's own mausoleum with its fluted dome, repay unhurried visits. Ulugh Beg, Timur's grandson, built a great observatory on a hill north of town in the fifteenth century, and the curve of his enormous sextant, cut into the ground, is still there. Locals will tell you that the paper made here, from mulberry bark, once carried Chinese techniques west.
As a starting place for riding, Samarkand is gentler than Tashkent. Traffic is busy but manageable, and you can be in the countryside quickly. The best excursions go south over the Tankhoz pass towards Shakhrisabz, Timur's home town, where the road climbs through pistachio and juniper hills in the Hissar range, with dramatic bends and wide valley views. West of the city lie orchards, vineyards, and cotton fields. Spring, from April to early June, is superb, with green hills and mild weather, while July and August are fiercely hot. Autumn brings the grape and pomegranate harvests.
Practically, Samarkand has plenty of everything, from guesthouses in old courtyard houses to fuel and tyre shops. Be aware that in Uzbekistan the fuel supply can be patchy, and some stations sell compressed gas rather than petrol, so top up when you see a proper petrol pump. For lunch, look for the Samarkand version of plov, usually made with chickpeas and raisins, and the round, stamped bread baked in clay ovens and sold fresh in the morning.