Xinjiang - A Whole New World

I know Aladdin is Arabic, but Xinjiang - part of the majestic Silk Road - is, without a doubt, a whole new world from the country it now belongs to China.

 Part I: Kashi & The Karakoram Highway

The people, their clothes, religion, food, and music couldn’t be further from that of the Chinese. I’ve seen men in Xinjiang with paler complexions than I - something I thought only Icelanders had. I also ran into a local with hair as yellow as straw and eyes bluer than the Atlantic. I was confused, overwhelmed, and excited all at the same time. What a majestic place, where camels are your transport, women dress like it’s January in the middle of July, where dust is every homes’ natural decoration and where some men look Swedish.

My trip opened my eyes to the current political situation in China and my heart swelled with respect and adoration for these people. To avoid a rather lengthy and over-emotional rant on that topic, let’s rather start with my first stop on the Silk Road: Kashgar. Also known as Kashi, this dust-hole is dirty, loud, you get uninterrupted interrogative stares, and finding a cold beer is hard, but it’s by far the most unique “rough-it-in-the-desert” experience I’ve ever had. The fact that you permanently have a crust of dust around your eyes and mouth is part of the charm of this place: everyone is dusty. Everyone constantly smells camel and everyone is sweating under the punishing sun. The only difference is, the tourists are the only ones complaining about it. The locals accept the dust as a part of their nature, they love their camels and they know that the desert can be a hot place. These are characteristics of their home and they love it and through all this, they continue working, worshipping, and enjoying life.

We did all the typical tourist stops in Kashi: 

The Sunday Market

This is a very known livestock market, which is actually open daily. It is a platform for locals from all the surrounding villages to buy and sell their animals. Every now and then you'll spot a tourist and his camera, but it is huge that still feels like a working bazaar in a land that time forgot.

Id Kah Mosque

Being the largest mosque in China and housing nearly 10,000 worshippers - daily, we opted for a comfy seat outside for a fun round of “people watching” instead.

Just kidding, of course, we went in.

Tomb of Apak Hoja

This was quite the color explosion after dusty and pale Kasghar. It’s a large mosque (and also a pilgrimage site) from 1640 and it’s decorated in what I’ve been told as typical Islamic style. It’s the tomb of a religious and political leader with the title of Khwaja in Kashgaria. Meaning he was known as the lord of Kasghar. Also buried here are 72 of his relatives and the "Fragrant Concubine”. Wife of a rogue leader who was taken to Beijing to be the emperor’s mistress after her husband was captured. She refused, that is just not how to treat a lady, and was later forced to commit suicide or was murdered by the emperor’s mother - depending on which Uyghur version you’ve heard.

Food markets

Old Town

Kashgar has two sides: old and new. The new one looks pretty old, so imagine the goosebumps you get once you visit the older part of town. This is a maze of 'Gaotai residences', old slum-like mud houses, where children play in the narrow streets, a thin layer of dust hugs every square centimeter and colorful front doors pop up around every corner but the most intriguing part of this window to the past, is the silence. There's life to be seen but the silence that falls over this part of town is overwhelming. I would even call it eery, like the atmosphere of a ghost town that swallowed the town's crooked streets. 

Shipton's Arch

Stumbling over steep-walled canyons and rocky river beds, you get smacked in the face with vistas of the world's highest Arch. It's 100 meters wide and as tall as the Empire State Building in New York. 

The Karakoram Highway

The real “wow moment” came when we did a 2-day excursion on the Karakoram Highway. This stretch of road is one of the highest in the world and connects Xinjiang to Pakistan. The journey is long and somewhat dangerous. I say dangerous because I consider Chinese convoys speeding past me, forcing me to either meet my maker or miss the edge of the cliff by sheer luck, quite hazardous to one's health. These large black Jeeps had only two main objectives: get to the destination at super speed and give every other person on the road a mild heart attack. So you have maniacs who’ve seen way too many Fast and the Furious movies, no bathroom breaks as bathrooms are non-existent and winding roads consisting out of stones and dust. Why would I torture myself by sitting in a car for hours, straining my neck and shutting my eyes every time a convoy speeds by? To put it simply: for the vistas my dear.

On the Highway

Halfway we stopped at a local family who rents out a few Yurts to tourist as a refuge from the grueling sun and Mad Maxes of the Highway. The Yurts were hugging a beautiful lake decorated with snow-capped mountains and camels that laze around in the fields.  It’s idyllic. It’s quiet and the atmosphere is priceless. These people didn’t have much to offer but the views their backyard offered always made us feel humble and appreciative of their hospitality.

Our Yurt

Onward and upward. We continued in the direction of the Pakistani border the next day. What followed was hours in a car, with our jaws on the floor. At one spot, we opened up Google maps (which worked without any problems, go figure) and we saw that we were at a so-called crossroads. In front of us was Pakistan waiting patiently, to our left was only a mountain keeping us from Afghanistan and Tajikistan. To our right was India peering at us and behind us was the unforgiving Eight Wonder of the World, the Highway. All these countries, mystery and danger - only a few kilometers away. It was an exhilarating feeling, to say the least.

Did I cross the border? Well, I got plans to visit Mickey in Orlando next year and decided to postpone having the Pakistani entry stamp in my passport. But never say never. 

Next up was driving through a city that recently experienced a couple of terrorist bombings, camping in the desert, visiting a resting Buddha and long days without any bacon or cold beer. Oh, the things you do for adventure!