Tashkent is certainly a safe city, like the old Baghdad used to be. It has lively crowded bazaars were you feel you're never too far from the smell of Shashleek (BBQ meat). It even still has street seller that come outside your home calling out to remind you of their must have tasty milk and yogurt.
For me, a very unusual sight was that of magnificent looking, but dreadfully tasting cakes in Uzbek bazaars. A Russian/European fusion in an Asian setting. Apparently they are popular in weddings where it is absolutely imperative to impress. In old Baghdad you never did see anything but real Arabic heavy duty sweets.
As in Iraq, I found food there to be generally fatty but certainly delicious. Iraqis have good competition here. There was no Mediterranean touch to the food. Instead, there were many Russian additions. I suspect that the reason you don’t see that many obese people, is that eating is done in moderation and the food is natural and organic. Plain food is sold and consumed as it is.
Shops sell good old plain bread and cheese, no sight of walnut and olive bread with cranberry filled cheese! Children and babies actually still enjoy pinching bread to chew on, not colourful sweets & crisps. I was pleased to see Naan bread bakeries are still flourishing and that there were no major supermarkets in sight.
Reminders of Baghdad came flooding in when I noticed two boys looking victorious after having broken the branches of a tree in their street. They then appear so proud with their new unique sticks. You notice children walking long distances with some family member while they help to carry the shopping. I’m sure they know that after finishing their daily duties they can spend happy times with their friends playing and shaking more branches of the street fruit trees but still while carrying their very young brother or sister in their hips.
Babies were mostly carried everywhere, I didn’t happen to see any prams.
Instead of the date palm trees of Baghdad there were plenty of apricot, cherry and other fruit trees. They decorate the street with their lovely colours but still can look barren when compared to England. Fruits were baking in the sun; others were on the ground getting trodden on. Nothing seems to go to waste though as there often seems to be a child with a plastic bucket collecting what is likely to becoming a nice dry snack for the bitter winter ahead.
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