The Silk Road has been connecting people for centuries, bridging spice traders with silk caravans long before backpackers every discovered its trails. It was here, in the most accidental fashion, that I met people from every corner of the world. I had come to Xinjiang, China to experience its unique and singularly Uyghur culture. Instead, it is the unexpected diversity that makes Kashgar the crossroads that it is. ------- Yurts are cold. I had spent the better part of a starless night curled up in a small ball, alternately sweating under flea-infested camelhair blankets and freezing in the Karakoram mountain air. [View Full Entry]

---

---

While trekking long-lost regions of the world, an intrepid traveler such as yourself frequently ponders what piece of equipment is of utmost importance to your travels, that item of indivisible necessity that you would prefer to give your life for than continue forward on the journey without its help at hand. Indeed, world explorers often find themselves in such a situation, as ferocious lions, fierce bears, and deadly restrooms continuously test your courage and resolve (not to mention the quality of such equipment). So what is that one crucial article for every seasoned global wanderer？ A backpack? A natural choice you [View Full Entry]

---

---

After staying two days in Jilin City (story to be written soon), we decided to hop a bus to nearby Yanji, capital of China's Korean Autonomous Region. Tucked up between Russia and our true motive for going, North Korea, we figured it would be an off the beaten path-type of escape. Almost true... Turns out Yanji is actually a pretty lively city. Much cleaner and newer looking than Beijing, the area's beautiful surroundings also caught us a bit off guard. I would say much of the rolling hills and small rivers resembles a really green Colorado. Gorgeous and a perfect climate. [View Full Entry]

---

---

Untitled Peter WinterThe adventures start again... Just wanted to give a brief outline of what the next two months has in store for me. Kaelyn arrived this past Monday, and we have been staying at school while I wrapped up my last week of classes. After taking care of the enormous amount of preparation, and the costs that go along with it, we are finally ready to set off on our travels. This Monday (hopefully), we will begin working our way north, eventually heading to the North Korean border and Changbaishan, where we hope to get a look at an [View Full Entry]

---

---

I had a funny feeling in my stomach throughout the day. Not quite nervous bees flying around, but rather a twisting knot that continuously retied itself deep inside my gut. And no, it was not La Duzi. I was simply nervous about the afternoon ahead. Today I was moving from my comfortable room at Youdian Liaoyang Hotel near Peking University to my new home somewhere in Beijing. Not just a new room though, but a new family. Late last semester, a friendly conversation with my study program’s coordinator about the winter vacation ahead somehow landed me on the list for the [View Full Entry]

---

---

The morning was chilly on top of the mountain, a rather crisp start to the New Year. Zhangjiajie was experiencing a bit of a cold spell, not the most desirable of conditions when your hotel room is devoid of both heat and heavy blankets. But then again, it wasn’t really much of a hotel in the first place. Following my aimless, foggy wanderings of the night before, and the bus that proved to be my salvation, I was deposited once again in what seemed to be the middle of nowhere. Dark and desolate, a large man standing singly in the [View Full Entry]

---

---

Senlin Gongyuan was a ghost town this morning. Known as Zhangjiajie Village by some, the small town at the base of Wulingyuan Nature Reserve seemed to be more a setting for some bad horror movie than the booming tourist spot it claimed to be. Chinese New Year was fast approaching, and it seemed the entire town had disappeared for the festivities. The empty four-star hotels, now locked up with loose chains and wood planks, were wrapped in a thick blanket of gray fog. A single motorized rickshaw putters down the open street, vanishing into the dark nothingness beyond. I had grand [View Full Entry]

---

---

The rain in Longsheng already had me down. The dark streets at 6:45am pushed me even further to the bottom. Best of all, I had absolutely no clue what the day in front of me had in store, and as today was set aside for travel, that wasn't a good thing. A few days prior in Yangshuo, I had booked a train ticket from the nearby town of Liuzhou to Zhangjiajie, a small town in northern Hunan province, and home to the Wulingyuan National Park. Before ever coming to China, a random guidebook picture of the Zhangjiajie sights had put the [View Full Entry]

---

---

A loud city clock chimed early in the Longsheng air, awaking me fifteen minutes before my scheduled 7 am alarm. A quick look around happily revealed nothing much had changed during the night. Yes, still in an exceedingly basic hotel room, devoid of any sense of homeliness. And yes, the city outside still looks gray and as plain as this room. But who cares, I wasn't here for the thrilling cityscape. Nope, I came to Longsheng with one purpose - to see the famous Dragon's Backbone terraced rice fields. What I found quite surprisingly, was a colorful pair of eating utensils. [View Full Entry]

---

---

Today I got out and did one of the things I was really looking forward to in Yangshuo - Rock Climbing! In yet another amazing coincidence, I was left a short comment on this blog by a poster jess tipping me off to a great climbing company known as Xclimber, noting that for a real challenge, I should get to the cliffs. Little did they know, I had booked a half-day climb with the same company only 2 hours beforehand! Craziness. Now to the climb. I arrived at Xclimber at 10am, ready to get to work. I was to be joined [View Full Entry]

---

---