Gansu/Xinjiang trip day 1

Where do I start? I had an amazing week in two western provinces of China, Gansu and Xinjiang. The purpose of visiting Gansu is to see the Mogao Caves in Dunhuang, which contains some of the most amazing buddhist art. Xinjiang has always been a place that I've found mysterious and exotic, and Kashgar is a name that had been on my mind for some time.

My first stop was Dunhuang, a sleepy town on the edge of the gobi desert. After my flight, I went straight to a backpacker cafe to find out more information and have lunch. One of the specialties in Gansu is donkey meat. Here is my noodle with donkey meat dish. The meat is very tasty without being overly chewy. I think I actually prefer it to beef.



After lunch, another backpacker and I rented bikes (50cents per hour) and rode around the countryside of Dunhuang.



Because Dunhuang is right on the edge of the Gobi Desert, we were able to see sand dunes from every street we went. It was really interesting to see the desert so close to the lush farmland.



One of the minor attractions we came across is the White Horse Pagoda. According to legend, a buddhist monk was traveling through the silk road on his white horse until they reached Dunhuang. His horse came to the monk in a dream and told him that for the road forward, to cross the Gobi Desert, camels would be needed and that the horse has reached its destination. When the monk woke up, he found out that his horse had died. The monk then built this pagoda as a memorial for his horse. Interesting story, not that interesting of a pagoda.



Towards the evening, we all gathered at a house on a street off the main road in Dunhuang. All of us waited in anticipation in the living room of the house.



What we were waiting for was an unforgettable experience: a camel ride into the Gobi Desert and a night sleeping under the desert stars.





On the way to the desert, we passed by many of these structures. The man leading us into the desert was named Mr. Li and he told us that these are the graves of the villagers. As the sand accumulates, older graves are slowly covered, allowing more graves to be built on top of the old ones. Nothing like nature to remind one of the vastness and fleeting moments of time.



Mr. Li asked us on the way to the desert if we wanted to climb a big sand dune or a small sand dune. We all said big. Next thing I know we are drudging through sand up a 400 meter sand dune in a race to get to the top before the sun sets. I probably drank three bottles of water during the ascend and had trouble breathing during the last part of the climb.



But it was all worth it in the end. Sitting at the top of the dunes with the warm sand under my legs, I saw one of the most amazing sunsets I have ever seen.







After the sunset, we slowly descended from the sand dune, which is named Echo-Sand Mountain for a reason: when the sand slides down from the top of the dune, the vibration causes the mountain to make a low roaring sound. During the climb up, I had forgotten all about the sound, but I was shocked to hear it on my way down. At first I thought it was the sound of an airplane's engine, but soon realized that sand all around me was sliding. It definitely added a bit more magic to the night. After getting to the bottom of the dune, our caretaker had already pitched our tents and made a nice bonfire. He cooked ramen for us and we washed it down with some cold Xinjiang beer. Food had never tasted so good.



Stay tuned for my second day of the trip where I watched the sun rise before heading back to Dunhuang and make my way to Turpan in Xinjiang.