The Spice Shop
Bokhara, Uzbekistan 2012
Torie and I spent several days in Bokhara. Before we left we were well known to the market place vendors. I was the favorite of the family who owned the one and only coffee shop where you could get a good espresso. I visited every day and always ordered cake with my coffee. The owner had worked in Germany. When he returned to Uzbekistan, he opened his shop. His wife, who had never eaten a torte or a kuchen, baked a very good imitation of a German cake. We ate and sipped our coffee under a tree and looked out over the shops and shoppers. Perfect!
Torie was the favorite of all the other vendors. She is a keen shopper, knew the merchandise and could discuss it knowledgeably. Not only that, but the shopping god was on her side. One man sold embroidered boots. He had one pair of bright red knee-high boots for sale. And guess what? They fit Torie perfectly!
We walked past the spice shop every day. We ignored it until we had exhausted the possibilities of the silks and antiques and carpets and miniature paintings. On our last day, we looked over the spices and bought some of the little gourd containers. Smooth and highly polished, just touching them made you want to have one. Torie bought some and I bought one of those nail-studded objects. They are stamps for the round Uzbek loaves of bread.
To learn more about Central Asia, contact Penelope at www.uzbekjourneys.com