Khiva is a small town in North-Eastern Uzbekistan, near the border with Turkmenistan. It used to be Khorezm's capital and in the centre of the Great Silk Road trading. It is a classic medieval town surrounded by rectangular city walls with frequent conical watch towers, which create a distinctive wave along the entire length of the wall. There are four main gates allowing access to the area of the old town of approximately 700 meters by 400 meters. On a such a small territory, the ancients packed over 20 mosques, Islamic schools, and mausolea. It creates a wonderful and surreal site for relaxing and taking it easy. Khiva receives however less tourists than Bukhara or Samarkand but it is reasonably well geared for visitors. There are good hotels and reasonable places to eat. The airport in Urgench, some 35 km away is easily reached by taxi or the trolleybus, which runs immediately from the airport terminal to the walls of the old Khiva. [edit text][editors]
