Uzbek people are expecting more Chinese travelers as the China-Uzbekistan mutual visa exemption agreement came into effect on Sunday.
A UNESCO World Heritage site, Uzbekistan's Bukhara, is a city steeped in over 2,500 years of history. Its stunning architecture and vibrant bazaars feel like scenes pulled straight from ancient legends, many familiar to Chinese people through shared Silk Road heritage.

"Here I can explain. Great Silk Road. Here you can see kind of go from China, Samarkand, Bukhara. And here you can see Zhang Qian who started Silk Road from China. Silk Road for Uzbekistan, it's always (about) the passing for the silk, for the tea, or exchange always. It's not just like business. They bring also, they take also," said miniaturist Kurbanov Firuz while introducing his work.

Local vendor Makhmud Saidov said he hoped that the mutual visa exemption policy will help him sell more of his decorative textiles.
"All handmade by hook work. We have two kinds of work: with needle work -- needle, in Bukhara we call Suzan; and also hook work, making like this style. We want also to go to China, because, now it's very easy to go to China. We have now a direct flight also," he said.