Bukhara is the middle child of uzbekistan's whs cities. Less monumental and lively than Samarkand, but more so than khiva. Less cohesive than khiva, but more so than Samarkand.

It is by far also the most diverse of them too. While khiva and Samarkand almost exclusively shine through a particular period (19th century and 15th century respectively) Bukhara has a bit of everything. It has brilliant pre-timurid architecture (samanid Mausoleum), timurid masterpieces (Ulugh begh madrasa) and later additions up to the 20th century (arq). 

However out of the three cities I'm actually tempted to rank it last and that probably has to do with how touristic it felt. I think the high speed train has multiplied the number of people that go to the city in recent years. It was overcrowded and honestly  overpriced.

The kunya arq was also a bit of a disappointment especially in retrospective when compared to the palaces in khiva. 

The main pool has lost much of its charm, now infested with comically kitsch decor.

The madrasas are beautiful but surprisingly repetitive

On the bright side the kalyon mosque (phto) is perhaps the most impressive mosque in uzbekistan and the minarete is amazing.

Overall Bukhara left me mildly disappointed though with its splendid array it definetely deserves a place in the list.