Nowruz in Dushanbe, Samarkand, or Hawler (Erbil)?

[JamesMarshall]

Has anyone spent Nowruz in the cities of Dushanbe (Tajikistan), Samarkand (Uzbekistan), or Hawler/Erbil (Iraqi Kurdistan) and have any thoughts on the festivities there? Which would be the best place to spend the holiday?

Myself and my partner would like to spend Persian New Year in a place that celebrates, and are thinking one of these three spots would be our best bet. We're unfortunately unable to go to Iran itself, since we're on Canadian passports. Her family is Iranian and she has access to an Iranian passport, but her family there has begged us not to try to come visit because they're convinced that we'll be abducted by the government and used for hostage diplomacy. The odds of that are exceptionally low, but we're not going to push it.

Thus, why we're trying to plan a trip to one or more of the surrounding countries, to try to get the Nowruz experience! Her Iranian family might also fly out to join us for a few days as well.