For many Chinese, the first impression of Samarkand - a city with a 2,500-year history and a major stop along the ancient Silk Road - are the camel bells echoing in the mountains and the wisp of smoke rising from the desert.

President Xi Jinping arrived in the city on Tuesday to pay tribute to the ancient Central Asian civilization.

This is the only sightseeing trip he has planned for his 11-day, five-country tour. Uzbek President Islam Karimov, who accompanied Xi during the visit to his hometown, introduced Xi to details about the ancient Silk Road.