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Published: June 18th 2017
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Geo: 40.15, 94.68
We ordered a Western Breakfast. It was Coffee and one fried egg.
That was it?
After our exciting breakfast we jumped into the bus and off we went to visit the Yumen Pass which is part of the Silk Road.
We drove and drove.
There was literaly nothing around. Just sand and more sand and a few bushes.
We stopped to buy tickets to get into the Area and we all got out to stretch our legs.
The kids asked, “Can we run?”
“Sure,” we all yelled, “GO?”
Well they ran and ran until we could hardly see them in the distance.
Well I suppose they cant get too lost?
It was a really odd feeling that in China you could be so far away of civilization.
The cities of China are so crowded and here we where really in the middle of THE GOBI DESERT.
We arrived at the Small Fangpan Castle. Which is part of the Great Wall of China.
Not much of the wall had survived the harsh environment but you could still see the wall in the distance. There was a bit of a lake visible but mostly tall grasses a few bushes, lots of stones and sand.
In a landscape like this, you really realize just
how big the world is and just how little you are within it.
Then back on the bus to try and find lunch.
The straight road just kept going on and on. It wasn't flat and you could see it rise and fall in the distance.
We came across a little village with a small restaurant on the side of the road. There where grape vines all around us and very tall trees lined the main road.
We ordered and ate really well. It was probably one of our best meals on the trip.
They had wine on the menu.
Mogaoku Dry Red Wine made by Dunhuang Wine Company. So we ordered it and it wasn't too bad.
Back on the bus and off to The Great Wall Hall.
The wooden sign started like this -
“Welcome visitors from all over the world with smile!
Wang Wei's ode to Weicheng city makes people have a longing for eternal Yangguan pass......” The rest continued with history of the defense line... military stronghold.... and glory throughout the Han, Jin, Sui and Tang Dynasties.
We hopped onto carts that were being pulled along by donkeys. While a few of the kids hopped on the back of the donkeys.
The carts where very bumpy and jolted
along very slowly. Our donkey wasn't very happy to be pulling us along. The driver would have to get off the cart and pull him along. We probably could have walked faster.
This place was beautiful. There where sand dune as far as the eye could see. There was also a small pergoda on the top of a sand dune in the distance and a part of the Great Wall that had been fenced off.
Again the kids just began to run. We would loose sight of them as they ran down the hill and then we would see then again but only much smaller as the ran up the hill in the distance.
This really was a fantastic place and I think we where very luck to see this place by ourselves. Without hundreds of other tourists.
That night we toured the streets of Dunhuang once again and saw some very interesting street signs and ate like the locals on the side of the street. Street Food.
Lots of the restaurants where muslim so the boys pointed to a few things written in chinese characters from a laminated piece of paper and we all hoped for the best.
It wasn't that too bad at all,
but I stayed away from the liver.
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