Star Date: December 2005
China: The Southern Silk Road, Quinghai, Gansu
Hello Dear Family & Friends!
Ech nerse emes!
(No problem – Kyrgyz)
“No tool is more beneficial than intelligence. No enemy is more harmful than ignorance.”
(Abu Abdullah Muhammad al Harithi al Mufid – 10th century Muslim scholar)
‘Chinglish’ road sign-get the point?
Hotan Sunday Market, full of distinctive hats and relaxed smiles.
My trusty stead.
The southernmost part of this remote western region hasn’t changed much in 1000 years. Clustered around lush oasis’s in the parched barren deserts, life in these small villages along the Southern Silk Road is reminiscent of what it would have been like to cross the desert by camel and stop here to rest and gather supplies. Villages offered simple accommodations, with the toilet down the hall, while the newly built Chinese cities, some with most buildings erected after 2000, offered surprisingly comfortable modern rooms in which to rest after our long, hard camel, I mean, bus ride. The villages remain predominantly Uighur Muslim and unchanged while the regional cities usually consisted of two parts. In the Muslim part of town the negotiations were going hot and heavy in the markets around the main Mosque. In the Chinese part of town there was always a large new town square displaying identical masonic symbols: the party flag, columns, sundials, pyramids, phoenixes, dragons and the classic fountains without water. Around this square were new shops and Chinese restaurants. Behind the row of businesses there was always a market where the Chinese bartered fast and furiously for the best deal. As we went further east the markets were a combination of Uighur and Chinese trading and working together. From Xining east there remained only tiny Muslim sections in the cities adjacent to equally small populations of Hui Muslim Chinese.
Following ancient footsteps in the sand.
An interesting article which we read recently, by Dr Richard Foltz, Columbia University, was discussing the history of superpowers. “In every era, one or two countries have existed that can be called superpowers because of their influence in world military, economic, political, and cultural affairs. Examples through history have been the ancient Persian Empire and conquests of Alexander the Great which set the stage for Rome, Mauya India, and Han China to dominate the regions of Eurasia.” Over the centuries that followed the Arabs, Mongols, Portuguese, Spanish and Dutch, successively achieved powerful positions, and in the 18th and 19th centuries the British took their turn. In the 20th century, especially since 1945 (first nuclear bomb test in New Mexico), the United States has been the dominant power. “A characteristic of a modern superpower is a lively cultural scene that extends across its borders.” What took centuries along ancient trade routes now happens almost ‘overnight’ and for good or for bad, technology has allowed the spread of U.S. culture throughout much of the world. “Transregional dominance is difficult to maintain, as other civilizations eventually catch up and forge ahead.” The interesting concept in this whole historical scenario is that most people tend to focus on the problems now and they forget that the U.S. is but a drop in the historical bucket. This ‘New Bully on the Block’ will have to “prove endurance to match the longevity of China’s status as a superpower, which began in the middle of the 1st millennium A.D.”. Top that one George!
Proud Uighur mother.
Shave and a haircut anyone?
The next chair down was a dentist
with a bowl full of teeth!
The further back east we went the more remote it got. We were pleasantly surprised at the good roads through Cherchen and as far as Charlik. From there we had to share a private jeep with 4 locals through the barren mountains to Huatugoa. Crossing into the Qinghai province we followed the edge of the Tibetan Plateau along a bumpy gravel road. Formerly a part of Tibet, called Amdo, this was the birth place of the current Dalai Lama. This province has served as a kind of ‘Chinese Siberia’ in the past with large numbers of political and common criminals sent here for hard labor. Suddenly the stark mountainous landscape gave way to an eerie cloud of dust caused by a large open pit mine and processing plant. They were mining a kind of white powder, possibly gypsum and the air was so thick that you had to breathe through a cloth. The workers lived in cold stone buildings without windows and when we finally arrived in the next town it was unlike anywhere we have been. Like a scene from an inhospitable distant planet in Star Wars this place was a rugged frontier town, solely existing because of the nearby mine. Most people lived in small cement or mud houses, as the windows in the large apartment buildings had been blown out in a recent explosion. Freezing cold, tired and hungry we asked when the next bus to Golmud was leaving. I almost started crying when they said, “Two days”. I thought Hell was supposed to be hot!! Looking at the big map on the wall we surveyed our options and started asking when the next bus was to “Anywhere But Here!!?” Dunhuang in 3 hours, out of our way but better than suffering here for 2 days. I couldn’t believe this strange twist of events which pointed us back to the sand dunes we loved so much. The one thing I had secretly wanted to do for my birthday was to ride the camels at sunset on these large dunes near Dunhuang, but choosing the southern route ruled that out. Now only 12 hours on a sleeper bus stood between us and footsteps in the sand. Watch what you wish for, you may get it!!
A cantankerous old character with
tales to tell.
Sometimes the bleakest of situations reveals the warmth in the hearts of those around us. A curious young man befriended us and tried to help with the bus tickets. He stood baffled as we spontaneously chose to go in the completely opposite direction. He then invited us to go eat with him. We did our usual and stopped to buy whatever vegetables we could find. We followed him to a row of small tent like restaurants and were warmly welcomed into his brother’s establishment. I quickly rolled up my sleeves and started chopping and cooking. We had a fun time preparing dinner together and ended up with so much food that we gave a bowl to everyone there. After hanging around the little stove for an hour or so after the meal we headed back to the bus station. This family which had so little had shared so much, just when we needed it. They refused to take any money towards the cooking costs and instead gave us some fresh flat bread and snacks to take on the bus. We left that cold desolate town with a warmth inside us that lasted through the cold bus ride ahead.
Brilliant view at sunrise from our rooftop.
Atop the 5000+ ft high Singing Sands Dune Mountain in Dunhuang we had visions of ancient days on the Silk Road. Encompassed with this history we ventured out on a camel caravan to the oasis at Moon Crescent Lake and up to the lofty heights of the towering dunes. Stretched out below us were the footsteps in the sand of the ancients who followed this perilous route. As the sun set and the shadows shifted, the cold evening wind blew a smoker’s crest of sand off the top of the mountain and the crescent moon appeared along with the first evening star. Was it 2005 or 1500AD.? I still don’t know.
And so it goes……………………………………….. Next Tibetans, pandas, Gansu and Sichuan. Though that camel ride was exhilarating, an even better birthday present was receiving warm wishes via email. Thanks. Keep Smiling and Keep in Touch. Take care.
Love, xoxoox Nancy & Joseph
Three little sweethearts who guided us through the maze of narrow alleys to the ancient Jama Mosque.
Our journey from Beijing west to Kashgar, Xinjiang /Pakistan then back along the South Silk Road east to Guilin, Guangxi
Hand wrought copper pots.
Every unique, exquisite face tells a story.
In China hats differentiate tribes, (Tajik) and the glasses, well, they are just way cool!
