Page:Kennedy, Robert John - A Journey in Khorassan (1890).djvu/90

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A Journey in

guard of twenty Cossacks, and in receiving official visits of congratulations from Bokhariot ministers and Russian residents. At noon we adjourned for luncheon to his quarter of the Residency,and made the acquaintance of Madame Klemm, her mother, and several Russians.

During our three days' stay at Bokhara we remained the guests of M. Klemm, who placed all his servants and horses at our disposal. We visited the bazaars, which we found crowded with most tempting wares, silks, embroideries, arms, and brass and copper ware of quaint native manufacture; among the sellers were many Jews and Hindoos, the latter being distinguished by a red caste mark on their foreheads. Bargaining in the Bokhara bazaars is a work of considerable labour, as the buyer is surrounded by a crowd of spectators who take the liveliest interest in the proceedings, and vociferously express unasked their opinions with regard to the quality of the goods and the prices demanded.

Bokhara, on the whole, is for a tourist a disappointing place. The streets are rough and narrow, with high mud walls, and but few