Khujand

Khujand has watched the Syr Darya flow out of the Fergana Valley for some two and a half millennia - claimed as Alexander's furthest Alexandria, fought over by every power that wanted the valley's wealth, and now Tajikistan's easy-going second city. The rebuilt citadel walls hold the historical museum, but the living monument is Panjshanbe: one of Central Asia's great covered bazaars, a pink-arched hall where dried-apricot pyramids, bread stamps, gold teeth and wedding fabrics trade at full valley volume, facing the tiled Sheikh Muslihiddin mausoleum complex across the square. Riverside parks and cable cars add the city's unhurried pleasures.

What you actually see

• Panjshanbe Bazaar - the pink-arched hall at full trading pitch.
• Sheikh Muslihiddin complex - mosque, minaret and mausoleum by the square.
• The citadel and museum - Khujand's long story on the old walls' line.
• The Syr Darya banks - parks and the cable car over the river.

When to go

April to June and September to October dodge the valley's fierce summer; the bazaar peaks mornings, especially Thursdays and Sundays. The mountain road from Dushanbe is spectacular and slow - flying saves a day.

Honest expectations

Khujand is a relaxed provincial city rather than a monument town - the citadel is largely reconstruction, and the pleasure is bazaar life over architecture. Little English is spoken; smiles, gestures and a few Russian or Tajik words carry far. Summer tops 40 degrees with conviction.

Nearby

The Fergana Valley border towns, Istaravshan's old crafts quarter and the road south to the Fanns.