Samarkand

Samarkand was already ancient when Alexander the Great passed through it, and it reached its full splendor under Timur (Tamerlane), who made it his imperial capital. The Registan — three monumental madrasas facing a single square — remains one of the most complete pieces of Islamic architecture anywhere, and the tilework at Shah-i-Zinda and the Bibi-Khanym Mosque shows the same turquoise-and-cobalt palette that still defines the city today.