Waiting out Day 2 in the terminal with our Kazakh friend, Sasha

And on to Xi'an -- airline ordeal

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September 2nd 2010
Chinese trains usually fill up early, and we were disappointed not to be able to get tickets to Xi'an from Urumqi for another great ride across the desert. But we were pleased to get airplane tickets,which, although somewhat expensive, promised us a 3-hour trip to Xi'an, instead of 36, and giving us an extra day there that we hadn't planned on. Well, things in Chi ... read more

Asia » China » Xinjiang » Urumqi

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For centuries China stood as a leading civilization, outpacing the rest of the world in the arts and sciences, but in the 19th and early 20th centuries, the country was beset by civil unrest, major famines, military defeats, and foreign occupation. A... ... read more