Turpan - one of the hottest places on earth

We took a bus and headed east from Tian Shan to Turpan.  The Turpan Depression is nearby, and is an area that is about 500 feet below sea level.  It is supposedly the hottest place in China and one of the hottest places in the world.  In the summer, pretty much every day in Turpan is over 100 degrees F.

On the drive to Turpan, we passed hundreds (maybe thousands) of wind turbines for generating electricity.  I would venture to say that China probably leads the world in wind and solar energy.

While it was really hot in Turpan, they have some pedestrian streets covered in grape arbors which helps make the heat manageable.  Don't pick the grapes though or you will be fined....

Time to get some cold drinks!!

In the coolness of the morning, a couple of us walked to go see the Emin Minaret, built in 1777.  First a few pictures of the walk.

And the minaret itself....

Inside the mosque

And some of the surrounding structures and mausoleums.

We finally were united with our truck!  Hooray!  Now we can travel wherever without being at the mercy of a Chinese bus driver.  Plus we can leave stuff on the bus when we make a stop.

Our first trip on the truck was visiting a karez, which is a system of underground aqueducts that make this city into an oasis.  There were lots of grapes being grown here - it's definitely the most common crop we saw.

We were able to climb down into the tunnels to see the water flowing underground.  It was nice and cool down there.  The locals use the water for drinking and cooking without treating it.

And just like at home, the tour ends at the gift shop....  But it was a neat looking structure at least1

I took this picture of the ice cream cooler because of the yellow t-shirt on the side - Abercrombie and Titch - I can't make this stuff up!!

Next stop - the desert, the Great Wall, and lots of ruins....

Urumqi and beyond

As I mentioned in my last post, I was now on an overland trip with a UK company.  We travel by a truck that has been converted into a well-outfitted vehicle capable of carrying passengers and gear, that can (hopefully) get through almost any road conditions (including when there isn't a road).  This trip started out a little bit different.  The truck ended up with some customs issues when it crossed the border from Kyrgystan, apparently due to a government official there copying a wrong number onto a form.  Long story, but the Chinese officials were trying to say that the truck was stolen (it was not).  Apparently a lot of money started changing hands between the overland tour company and the Chinese officials, who made everything as difficult as possible to straighten out.  Rather than leave us stranded in Kashgar for an undetermined amount of time, we ended up flying to Urumqi instead of driving for two days to get there.  Then they just rented buses to take us from place to place until the truck and Jim (our driver) finally got everything squared away and caught up with us in Turpan four days later.

The Urumqi airport

Urumqi wasn't a super comfortable place to be.  Because of the truck bombings that happened at a market only a month earlier, there was a huge police presence and everyone seemed on edge because of the police.  I was glad that we didn't spend very long here.  Even without that, it's really just a huge city with not much to see.

We had dinner in Urumqi at a Chinese restaurant.  Just when we finished dinner, the guy in the dark blue shirt approached us and introduced himself as the president of the local Bank of China branch.  He gave us a bottle of Chinese liquor and wanted to drink with us.  

After spending the night in a hostel in Urumqi, we took a bus to Tian Shan (Heaven Mountains) to spend two nights there near a lake in a yurt.  It sounds better than it actually was.  I would describe it more like a yurt version of a trailer park.  On the plus side, we did have a key to use an actual toilet (porta-potty type) instead of just having to go outside in nature.

Some of the views of the mountains and lake were pretty nice though, especially when you walked a bit to get away from the masses of Chinese tourists.

We had to take a few photos at the cheesy locations too.  I'm not sure why the Chinese like this stuff....

Next stop on the trip, Turpan.

Kashgar

After leaving Tibet and taking the train back to Chengdu, I flew to Kashgar in the very western part of China to join an overland trip with a company called Dragoman (they are based in the UK for those that are interested).  This is a 22-day trip traveling from Kashgar to Xian, following the Silk Road. There are 10 of us on the trip, along with a western guide (Gino from Spain), a driver (Jim from the UK), and a Chinese guide (Claire).  It was nice to join the group and have people to do stuff with again, after a long time eating and sightseeing on my own.  Only 3 of us joined the group in Kashgar.  Three have been traveling together all the way from Istanbul, Turkey and the other four people joined in either Tashkent, Uzbekistan or Bishkek, Kyrgystan.

The first thing we did as a group in Kashgar was visit the livestock market.  They sell goats, sheep, donkeys, cows, yaks, and other animals here.

The guy with the red bandanna around his neck is Gino, our guide.

Besides livestock, they also sell lots of fruit and vegetables here.  Watermelon and cantaloupe are the most common in this area.

Our hotel was right next to the former Russian consulate (though the sign is misspelled and says Pussian consulate!).  There was also a travel agency with a most interesting English name translation:  Kashgar City Summer Amorous Feeling Travel Agency.

The hotel was a bit on the old and tired side, but must have been absolutely amazing in its prime.  Here are some pictures of my room.

This was a restaurant we ate at the first night.  The brickwork was pretty amazing.

We  spent the next day exploring the city.  First, I visited the Id Kah Mosque, which is the largest mosque in China and can hold 20,000 people.  Most of it is outside spaces, which probably makes sense given how hot it can get here.

The red bit in the photo is a pile of carpets that get laid down on the ground for worshippers.

Next I visited the Abakh Hoja Tomb.  He was a 17th century Sufi and political leader (according to Lonely Planet at least - I'd never heard of the guy).

Brendan taking a picture because the sign said it was the 'take pictures place.'

My first camel sighting of the trip.

Be sure to taste the rice farmers here!

Last but not least, my construction photos from Kashgar.  Next stop on the trip, Urumqi.