Blogs from Dunhuang, Gansu, China, Asia - page 4

It is funny how lines on a map can have such a huge effect on the ground. In this case the line in question was the border between China and ex-Soviet Central Asia. Up until then I hadn't realized how much has been destroyed in Central Asia, down to the peoples souls. When you reach Kashgar you discover to your amazement that you only entered Asia after crossing that border and that so far you have been somewhere in between, some kind of weird twilight zone. The Soviets did an amazing job at eradicating a lot of the cultures in their sphere of influence and substituting it with nothing in particular. The former Soviet states of Central Asia are neither here nor there, not belonging to Asia or to Europe. Arriving in Kashgar your senses are ... read more

Dunhuang is a small but ancient and historical city in China's province of Guansu. It is an Oasis city along the fabled Silk Road, leading from the important city of Xi'an (home of the Terra Cotta Warriors) toward the countries of the West. Dunhuang is the half way point from the ancient metropolis of Xi'an to the borders of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Pakistan, and India and was an important desert-oasis rest-stop for the travelling caravans of merchants, religious and diplomatic envoys, and adventurers heading to and from China. It is a very beautiful and green city, but is completely surrounded by huge desert sand dunes and larger forboding mountains. Dunhuang has seen its importance rise and fall with the development of more modern and efficient transportation of China's valuable exports of Silk, Porcelain, Spices, Jade throughout ... read more

I have been to Dunhuang before... I know it's in the middle of nowhere... really... but two summers ago, during a 1 week break from my studies in Beijing, I went to Dunhuang by myself to see the desert, and to explore the Mogao Caves. There was something about Dunhuang two years ago that I loved. I don't know if it was the food, or the people, or just the general atmosphere, but Dunhuang has always held a special place in my traveling heart since traveling there. At first, however, it was not on our itinerary. I didn't think we'd have time to fit it in, and thought we'd have more time in Turpan, so I thought I could show Witt the desert there. But when we arrived in Jiayuguan, we learned that the tourist attractions ... read more

We were woken early on the train by the noise of our fellow passengers chatting, singing and generally making a racket at daft o'clock. We recovered from this rude awakening and made our way out to our country hostel 6km outside of Dunchuang overlooking the dunes of the Gobi desert. From here we arranged an overnight Camel Trek with the guys at the hostel and later that afternoon were introduced to Mr Li, our guide and Colin and Bob, our transport. We set off past the cotton fields and into the desert, it all being very quiet apart from Mr Li's occasional burst of singing and Colin's passage of wind. Colin (Tom's Camel) shared a few traits with his rider; he always needed the toilet immediately after setting off, would enjoy the occasional snack break, was ... read more

Hi all. I'm from Malaysia & new to the blog. I love to travel & taking pictures is just one of my many hobbies. ... read more