I have always had the idea of ​​going to Xinjiang in my heart, thinking that it is a place of poetry and distant places. September is the best time to visit northern Xinjiang again in golden autumn, so in June this year, a plan was finalized to visit Xinjiang during the National Day. Xinjiang has a vast territory and beautiful scenery along the way. Self-driving is obviously a better way than getting on a car to sleep and getting off to take pictures with a group tour. After confirming that you want to drive by yourself, you start to plan your itinerary and make a strategy. Since all the holidays add up to only 11 days, we can only take the classic small ring road in northern Xinjiang: Urumqi - Keketuohai - Burqin - Kanas - Karamay - Kuitun - Turpan - Urumqi, the entire small ring line is exactly 3000 kilometers.

After the itinerary is finalized, you can book the air tickets. Here is a trick. Book the round-trip air tickets separately, so that you can book special tickets. When we went, it was Guangzhou-Changsha-Urumqi. Friends in Guangzhou can also take the high-speed rail to Changsha first, and then fly to Urumqi, which is more economical and does not waste time. The next step is to book a hotel. The main reason for this is to see a high-rated hotel on Ctrip, which is close to the scenic spot, and the price is right. There is also the reservation of car rental, which usually can only be booked two months in advance at the earliest. The earlier you book, the more you can choose, the cheaper the price. I booked the brand new Shengda 7-seater SUV at Ehi Car Rental Urumqi Airport store two months in advance. Counting the insurance, the daily average is 520 yuan. If you book a car rental half a month before departure, the average daily cost is 870 yuan, and you may not be able to book a car.

After air tickets, accommodation, and car rental are confirmed, it is basically OK. Next, you can take a closer look at how to play at the attractions, what delicacies you can’t miss, where to buy souvenirs, and what things you must bring before traveling.

Things you must bring before departure: ID card, driver's license, mobile phone, sunscreen, sunglasses (the ultraviolet rays over there are too strong, which will sunburn the skin and eyes), and a small amount of cash. If girls want to take pictures in the desert, they can bring red skirts, silk scarves and small boots.

9-27 10:20 – 11:15 Guangzhou Baiyun Airport-Changsha Airport. You can try local braised pork and stinky tofu at Changsha Airport.

9-27 14:20 – 18:55 Changsha Airport-Urumqi Airport. After getting off the plane and picking up the luggage, I went straight to the eHi car rental store at the airport and walked for 8 minutes from the airport exit to the store. Check the appearance, fuel gauge, and condition of the rental car. After finishing the formalities, I got the car in about half an hour and drove to the Baishichang Longquan Hotel in Tianshan District, Urumqi. The hotel is 1 km away from Xinjiang International Grand Bazaar, and it takes 13 minutes to walk. The hotel environment is very good. Well, many amenities are well thought out.

(Room photo of Baishichang Longquan Hotel)


Urumqi, formerly known as Dihua, is the capital of Xinjiang and the most prosperous city in Xinjiang. There are two places worth visiting in the urban area of ​​Urumqi: Xinjiang Museum and International Grand Bazaar. Since we arrived late, we couldn't see the museum, so we had to go to the International Grand Bazaar. Enter the International Grand Bazaar after going through strict security checks. At night, the International Grand Bazaar is brightly lit and lively. People of all ethnic groups play music and dance in the center of the square. Drilling into the alleys, you can find all kinds of goods, such as ethnic costumes, dried fruits, gems and jade, and ethnic musical instruments, which are pleasing to the eye. There are also various kinds of food, but the taste is average. It is not recommended to eat in it. The food in it is just lively. We bought some raisins and wild goji berries at a dried fruit store. The best Xiangfei Wang asked for 80 per kilogram, and the counter-offer was 70 and the deal was completed. To spread the word, 90% of the raisins are dried in the dryer, which will be more durable, only a few are naturally dried, the taste of natural drying is better, but the color is not so good and it is not easy to put. According to the tour guide, only Turpan in Xinjiang has the conditions to dry grapes naturally, because Turpan is very dry, and the annual rainfall is only 16 mm. If you don't know how to use gemstones and jade, it's best not to buy too expensive ones, as they are very watery.

(Photo of International Grand Bazaar)


No. 9-28 Urumqi - Tianchi - Keketuohai

8:30 After breakfast at the hotel, drive to the Tianshan Tianchi Scenic Area in the suburbs of Urumqi, 60 kilometers to the Tianchi parking lot, and drive for 45 minutes. After parking the car, buy a ticket, and then take the shuttle bus to Tianchi. The shuttle bus to Tianchi scenic spot is about 30 kilometers, about 40 minutes. Tianchi is the fairyland described in elementary school texts. The blue sky, distant snow-capped mountains and alpine spruces reflected in Tianchi are really beautiful. You can take a walk along the pool to take pictures, which is a more leisurely spot. The disadvantage is that the tickets are more expensive, 155 yuan, and the tour time is half an hour-1 hour is enough. It was already 1 p.m. when we came down from Tianchi. We ate noodles and hand-picked rice in the gourmet bazaar in the scenic area.

(Tianshan Tianchi photo)


14:00 After lunch, drive to Keketuohai. Tianchi is 489 kilometers away from Keketuohai. It takes 7 hours to drive. We ate dinner at Forty-Nine Meatball Soup in Fuyun County. If we are not in a hurry the next day If so, it is recommended to live in Fuyun County. Fuyun County is 56 kilometers away from Keketuohai, and it takes an hour to drive. Accommodation in Fuyun County is better and cheaper. It was already 10 o'clock in the evening when we arrived at Keketuohai. We stayed at Keketuohai 1953 Holiday Hotel. The bed was clean and comfortable, and the price was moderate.


No. 9-29 Keketuohai - Keke Suli - Burqin

Head to Keketuo Sea Area at 9 am. On the way to the scenic area, there is a birch forest by the river. In late autumn, the birch is covered with a golden coat, like a golden warrior standing proudly by the river, like an oil painting, very suitable for photography creation . Entering the scenic spot at 10 o'clock, Keketuohai mainly visits the Irtysh Grand Canyon. The peaks in the valley are dominated by granite, dotted with pine trees, spruces, and birches, red, green and yellow, and the emerald Irtysh River flows in In the middle of the canyon, sometimes melodious and melodious, sometimes galloping down, majestic. After arriving at Shenzhong Mountain by shuttle bus, you can choose to walk to Kalazhuoler Waterfall. The whole journey is about 7 kilometers, or you can choose a battery car to go there (10 yuan per person). If your physical strength is not very poor, it is recommended to go on foot. , otherwise you will miss a lot of beautiful scenery along the way. We wandered happily in Keketuohai, or took a walk, or took pictures, or sat down in a daze, or went to the herdsman's house to eat skewers, and stayed for a whole day, until 5 pm.

(Photo by Keketuohai)


At 5:00 p.m., leave Keketuo Sea Area and go to Keke Suli, 28 kilometers away. Kekesuli is a small lake covered with reeds. Not far away is a sea of ​​flowers, farther away are birches and poplars, and farther away is a snow-capped mountain with distinct layers and gorgeous colors. Such a beautiful place, no wonder wild ducks and swans come here to make their homes. This oil painting is reflected on the calm lake, and it is even more moving under the setting sun. Since we were in a hurry, we didn't stay for long, so we took a few photos and left in a hurry.

(Photo by Cocoa Suli)

Depart from Kekesuli to Burqin at 7:00 p.m., 287 kilometers from Kekesuli to Burqin, it takes 4 hours to drive. At 11 o'clock in the evening, I finally arrived at the hotel Burqin Jinshan Academy where I stayed. The hotel is on the edge of the Irtysh River, opposite a poplar forest, with beautiful scenery. The hotel is located in Burqin Bar Street, even in the middle of the night, it is still brightly lit.

Burqin is located in the Altay region. It is an exotic county with an Islamic architectural style. The ethnic groups include Han, Mongolian, Kazak, Hui, etc. It is rich in agricultural resources and mainly grows wheat, corn, and soybeans. Burqin County has a vast territory, and the famous tourist attractions Kanas and Hemu Village belong to Burqin County. Income generation mainly depends on tourism.

No. 9-30 Burqin - Colorful Beach - Jiadengyu

At 8:30 in the morning, the sun had just risen, and the temperature in Burqin suddenly dropped by 10 degrees. The wind was very strong, and we all put on down jackets. Have breakfast at a small shop opened by Kazakhs near the hotel. Except for the shop owner, no one here can speak Chinese. We had lamb dumplings, pancakes and milk tea. Ghee is added to the milk tea, and the taste is not suitable for southerners.

At 9 o'clock in the morning, after breakfast, go to the colorful beach 20 kilometers away. Along the road is the endless Gobi Desert. It may be because there is no shelter, the wind is very strong, and many large windmills have been built on the Gobi Desert to use wind power to generate electricity. At 9:30, enter the colorful beach scenic spot. It was a cloudy day and there was not much sunlight, but the colorful beach still showed red, yellow, white, purple, black and other colors. Opposite the colorful beach is a large Populus euphratica forest. In the golden autumn season, the Populus euphratica is colorful and graceful, like a group of girls in costumes dancing by the river, forming a sharp contrast with the colorful beach. The colorful beach, the Irtysh River, and Populus euphratica make up a desolate and beautiful picture scroll, which naturally attracts indiscriminate bombardment with long guns and short cannons.

(Photograph of Colorful Beach)


At 10:30 in the morning, leave the colorful beach and go to Kanas. Colorful Beach is 130 kilometers away from Kanas, and it takes 3 hours to drive. Our itinerary is to enter Kanas twice. At 12:00 noon, we arrived at Chonghuer Township, where we refueled and had lunch. The big security guard invited us to his house for dinner. We ate mutton soup, Ding Ding fried noodles, hand pilaf, fried lettuce, and mutton skewers. Except that the mutton kebabs were burnt, the other dishes tasted okay.

At 1:30 noon, leave Chonghuer and continue to Kanas. Here I would like to remind everyone that the roads to Kanas are all mountain roads. There are many U-shaped bends and there are only two lanes in both directions. You must drive carefully. When meeting cars, especially when meeting with large cars, you must stop before entering the bend. Let the carts pass first. When I met the bus, I entered half of the curve. Although I stopped, the bus still rubbed against the front of my car when it swung its tail. By the way, you must buy insurance when renting a car. At 3 o'clock in the afternoon, we finally arrived at Jiadengyu. We first went to the Longhu Hotel we booked before entering the cave. Then enter the Kanas scenic spot, the scenic spot is not allowed to drive in, you can only take the shuttle bus in the scenic spot, the ticket is included in the ticket. When taking the shuttle bus up the mountain, it is best to sit on the left side of the car, because the most beautiful Sanwan is on the left. We took a car to the visitor center, and then walked down, passing Yaze Lake, Shenxian Bay, Moon Bay, until Wolong Bay, the whole journey is about 8 kilometers, two hours. Because it was already 5 o'clock in the afternoon, the sun had already started to set, and the sun could only shine on the places above the mountainside, and it was dark in the valley. But this does not affect our happy mood along the way. The scenery of Kanas is so beautiful and the air is so pure that it cannot be described.

At 8 o'clock in the evening, we returned to the hotel where we stayed. The dinner we had in the hotel was really not flattering.

(Photo of Kanas Moon Bay)


No. 10-1 Kanas - Hemu

At 9:30 in the morning, enter the Kanas scenic spot. Today there are two hiking places, one is Sanwan, and the other is from the cruise ship pier to the Turuk Rock Paintings. The weather was fine that day. There were a few white clouds floating in the blue sky, which was very clean and clear. The sun shone on the hillside, and everything came alive. Sorbus, birch, spruce, fir, poplar, plus the ever-changing colors of the Kanas River, golden yellow, red, green, light blue, and white intertwine, rushing into our eyes at once, as if God Overturned the palette and dyed the land colorful. If ever there was a paradise on earth, this is it.

We got off the car at Wolong Bay and started hiking. Listening to the crisp and melodious singing of the birds, stepping forward, breathing in the fresh air. This day, under the sunshine, Sanwan showed its most beautiful posture, which is completely different from the Sanwan seen yesterday when the sun went down. The river water in Moon Bay turned milky white, like milk. The river in Shenxian Bay is blue, green and white, and the golden birches and brown-green firs on the shore are even more beautiful. Cattle and sheep are quietly grazing on the hillside not far away, and smoke is rising from the Kazakh herdsmen's yurts, which is a quiet and peaceful scene. Stay away from the hustle and bustle of the city, return to nature and simplicity, do not need to pursue high-end material life, only need three meals a day, and watch the clouds and clouds alternate with the seasons. It turns out that happiness can be so simple, and the soul and thoughts are also washed here.

At 12:30 noon, we went to the Tourist Distribution Center for lunch. After lunch, take a bus (free of charge) in the No. 1 waiting area of ​​the distribution center to the Kanas Lake cruise ship terminal, about an 8-minute drive. Starting from the cruise ship wharf and walking along the Kanas Lake, the entire Kanas Lake gradually unfolded in front of us and suddenly opened up. The water of Kanas Lake comes from meltwater of glaciers, with an average depth of 125 meters and the deepest point of 188 meters. The lake water is light blue, because there are algae growing in it, so some places appear green. Some places by the lake are beaches. If you have enough time, lying on the beach by the lake and basking in the sun is also very comfortable. It takes two hours to hike from the cruise ship pier to the Turuk Rock Paintings, 3.5 kilometers one way and 7 kilometers round trip. After two kilometers, almost no one went with them. After arriving at the rock paintings in Turuk, I was a little disappointed to find the ancient rock paintings I imagined. But climbing the Yangbei Stone and looking at Kanas Lake from a high place is another kind of scenery. If you want to watch the panorama of Kanas Lake, you have to go to Guanyutai. We gave up going to Guanyutai due to lack of time.

(Photo of Kanas Fairy Bay)


(Photo of Kanas Lake)


At 6:30 in the afternoon, depart from Jiadengyu to Hemu Township. It is 35 kilometers from Jiadengyu to the parking lot at the entrance of Hemu Scenic Area, and it takes an hour to drive. Then take the shuttle bus at the entrance of the scenic spot to Hemu Township, a total of 32 kilometers, about 40 minutes. Remember, you must tell the driver of the shuttle bus which station you want to get off at. The shuttle bus is not a bus, and it will not stop at every station. You have to go back by yourself after passing the station. When we got off at Meilifeng Station, it was already 8:30 in the evening. Because when I booked the room, my friend and I booked in different homestays. When we booked the room, the Baidu map showed that our residence was only 200 meters away from each other. Only when we arrived at the local area did we find that my friend’s residence was two kilometers away. Therefore, when booking a room in Hemu, you must call the hotel and ask for the location of the hotel. You cannot trust Baidu maps. There is no way, my friend can only call the hotel and ask the hotel to send a car to pick it up, but the hotel says to let the customer walk over by himself. There was a power outage at the time, and it was impossible to walk over. After repeated communication later, the hotel owner was willing to come and pick us up only after our repeated requests. I have to say here that the local service is not good.

At 9 o'clock that night, the power in Hemu Village suddenly went out. The whole village was boiling because the starry sky was so beautiful. A light white Milky Way runs through the sky, and various constellations that were not seen in the city before can be found in the sky here. Sometimes there are meteors passing by, and the whole starry sky is like a shining quilt covering Hemu Village. We slept on the deck chairs in the courtyard of the hotel and admired the stars in the sky. At that time, the outdoor temperature was minus 2 degrees, which was really cold and beautiful.

At 10pm, the call finally came and we went back to the cabin where we were staying. Hemu Village is the largest village of the Tuva people. The characteristic here is that the houses are all wooden structures.

(Hemu Xingkong photo)


No. 10-2 Hemu

At 7:30 in the morning, before dawn, we got up and headed to the viewing platform of Meilifeng. Although we were still sleepy, the morning fog in Hemu is a must here and should not be missed. At 8 o'clock in the morning, the observation deck was already full of people, all gearing up, setting up long guns and short cannons, waiting for the moment when the sun came out and the morning mist enveloped the village. The entire village is backed by snow-capped mountains and surrounded by birch forests. The Irtysh River flows slowly by the side of the village. As the Tuva people get up to cook, smoke rises from the chimneys of the wooden houses. At first, there were one or two houses, and then there were more and more. Finally, there was smoke from the chimneys of almost every house. The smoke from every household's cooking was connected in mid-air, as if a fairy spirit lingered in the mid-air of the village. At this time, the sun came out, and the light was so bright that it colored the picture like a fairyland. All of a sudden, the entire viewing platform flashed, and everyone rushed to take pictures of this charming and short moment.

(Hemu Chenwu photo)


After coming down from the observation deck, we had beef noodles and pancakes at a nearby restaurant, which were good. Then take a walk along the river to take pictures, snow-capped mountains, birch forests, rocky beaches, river water, and wooden houses. There are almost ten steps and one scene. You don’t need superb photography skills here. We just walked around, stopped and patted and spent a wonderful afternoon.

(Photo by the Hemu River)


At 8 o'clock in the evening, we went to a restaurant called "Private Land" in Laojie for dinner. The owner of the restaurant is Kazakh, he is tall, I think the owner is good-looking, and the waiters in the restaurant are all handsome men and beautiful women. The restaurant is decorated in the style of ethnic minorities, very warm. We ate naan meat, vermicelli stewed cabbage and naan pit meat. Naan bun meat is to put the braised mutton on top of the naan, so that the juice of the mutton will soak the crispy naan. Eat the mutton with a big mouthful, and then tear off a piece of naan and dip it in the juice, it is very fragrant. Nang pit meat is actually mutton skewers, but it is not baked on the stove, but baked in the pit. The meat on the skewers is very large, fat and thin, sizzling and oily, sprinkled with cumin and other spices, it is really delicious. Take a bite, the aroma of cumin and mutton lingers in your mouth, full of happiness.

At 10 o'clock in the evening, after eating and drinking, I decided to do something interesting: take pictures of the starry sky. Walking two kilometers to the back of the village, the light is almost gone. We set up the camera there, adjusted the sensitivity and exposure time, and started shooting the starry sky. This kind of opportunity is really rare. Even in the countryside in the southeastern coastal areas, you can’t see so many stars, and you can only shoot the starry sky in the mountains in the northwest. I was in charge of lighting the sky with a flashlight, and my friend was in charge of shooting. The filming effect is not bad, after all, it is the first time to shoot the starry sky.

No. 10-3 Hemu—Urho Devil City

Depart at 8:30 in the morning, ready to go to Urho Devil City. The whole journey from Hemu to Devil City is 430 kilometers, and it takes 7 hours to drive. Since our car is almost out of gas and can only run up to 90 kilometers, we can only go to the gas station to refuel. There are two gas stations closest to Hemu, one is Jiadengyu gas station, 34 kilometers away from Hemu, but it is not on the way and there are many cars queuing up for refueling; the other is Chonghuer gas station, on the way to Devil City , 70 kilometers away from Hemu, there are relatively few cars queuing up for refueling. Finally, in order to save time, I decided to refuel at the Chonghuer Gas Station. Because it was the National Day Golden Week, there were too many cars refueling, and the gas station was short of fuel, so each car could only refuel for a maximum of 200 yuan.

At 4 o'clock in the afternoon, we finally arrived at the World Devil City. Devil City is located in the northwest of the Junggar Basin, 100 kilometers away from Karamay City. It is a typical Yardang landform, a wind-eroded landform formed in a dry and windy environment. One hundred million years ago, ancient animals such as stegosaurus, plesiosaur, and pterosaur lived here. Later, archaeologists unearthed many dinosaur fossils. The first impression it gave people was that it was desolate, as if they were in places like Egypt and Iraq that the archaeological team went to in the movie. Devil City takes a small train to visit the whole journey, and there are several stops along the way, you can come down to visit and take pictures. Several famous martial arts films were filmed in Devil City: Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, Seven Swords Under Tianshan Mountain, etc. We got off the car halfway and found a higher viewing platform to take pictures of the Devil City under the sunset. Under the illumination of the setting sun, the light and shadow of the Devil City combine to create a very good effect. The camel caravan passing by in the distance reminds people of the ancient Silk Road, as if they have traveled through time and space. The lonely smoke in the desert is straight, and the sun is setting in the long river. This is the scene described.

At 7 o'clock in the afternoon, I left Devil City and ate a large plate of chicken at a nearby food street. I originally booked a hotel in Karamay, but my friend said he didn’t want to leave, so he canceled the hotel in Karamay and stayed in a town near Devil City. The accommodation in the town is not good in terms of sanitary conditions or sound insulation, but it is too tiring, and it can only be used for one night.

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(Devil City photo)


No. 10-4 Uerho Devil City - Dushanzi Grand Canyon - Urumqi

It takes 3.5 hours to drive 287 kilometers from Devil City to Dushanzi Grand Canyon. Drive 250 kilometers to Kuitun, and then drive more than 30 kilometers to Duku Highway. Duku Highway is known as the most dangerous and most beautiful highway in the country, and it really deserves its reputation. Although we only drove a short section in front, the snow-capped mountains, grasslands, and canyons in front of us are already amazing.

At 12:30 in the afternoon, we arrived at Dushanzi Grand Canyon. The Grand Canyon is formed by the erosion of snow and rain all year round. The gullies are distinct, and the whole is gray and black, which is very spectacular. Now many entertainment facilities have been added inside, such as high-altitude bicycles, high-altitude cableways, glass plank roads, cliff swings, etc. One of the most exciting is the cliff swing. People sit on the swing, are pulled to a height of 20 meters, and then let go and swing out of the cliff. The experiencers screamed, and the viewers were also terrified. At 1:30 in the afternoon, there was a high-altitude tightrope walking performance performed by 16-year-old Adili Maimaiti. He carried the balance pole and quickly walked to the center of the canyon. He sometimes sat down, sometimes lay down, and sometimes stood upside down on the slender steel rope. The most thrilling thing was to walk on the tightrope blindfolded. scream.

At 2:30 in the afternoon, leave Dushanzi Grand Canyon for Urumqi.

(Photo of Dushanzi Grand Canyon)


No. 10-5 Urumqi - Kumtag Desert - Turpan

Departure at 8:30 in the morning, 283 kilometers from Urumqi to the Kumtag Desert, and drive for 4 hours. At 12:30 noon, we arrived at Shanshan near the desert for lunch. I ate grilled lamb chops, fried noodles and green vegetables, and drank the famous local drink kvass. After dinner, proceed to Kumtag Desert. The Kumtag Desert was formed in the Han Dynasty. The strong winds from the Qijiaojing tuyere of the Tianshan Mountains and the Dabancheng tuyere carried a large amount of sand, which met and deposited in the Kumtag area, forming a desert wonder. The sand here is very fine and soft, and your feet will sink when you step on it. It is very difficult to move forward and climb in the desert. At noon, the temperature reaches 30 degrees, and the temperature of the sand can reach 50 degrees. In addition, the dry weather in Turpan and the hot sun make it extremely hot. We climbed to the top of a sand dune and looked at the desert. Like a sea of ​​sand, the endless undulating sand dunes are endless, which makes people feel hopeless and dead. When Xuanzang passed by here to learn Buddhist scriptures, he had to cross the desert for hundreds of miles. There was no modern transportation at that time, so one can imagine the difficulty.

This is a paradise for women. Put on a red dress or Uyghur clothes, put on a silk scarf, and put on POS non-stop. The yellow desert is the background, and the red dress looks particularly gorgeous, so they all let themselves go and put on the most Enchanting posture, leaving the most beautiful shadow.

Another great pleasure is to ride the off-road vehicle to flush the sand, the charge is 160 yuan/person. The driver of the off-road vehicle was a young Uighur guy with a wild driving style. He took us around the sand hills at a very fast speed, like riding a desert roller coaster, which caused screams.

At 5 o'clock in the afternoon, we left the desert and went to Turpan to stay. We drove to Turpan for about 100 kilometers, and the drive took one and a half hours. In the evening, I ate at the Silk Road Restaurant in Gaochang District, Turpan. I ate beef stew, fried noodles, mutton soup, pancakes, and stir-fried vegetables. The portions were very generous and very affordable.

(Kumtag Desert photo)


No. 10-6 Turpan - Urumqi

The scenic spots on this day are all within 10 kilometers of the surrounding area, so it feels great not to have to travel long distances. At 9 o'clock in the morning, we went to visit Karez Folk Custom Garden. Karez, together with the Great Wall and the Grand Canal, are called the three major projects in ancient China, and they are the crystallization of the wisdom of the ancients. The Turpan area is hot and dry, with an annual rainfall of only 16 millimeters, but evaporation as high as 3,000 millimeters, and almost zero surface water sources. The only water source is the melted snow from the Tianshan Mountains. How can the snowwater from the Tianshan Mountains flow to the Turpan area without being evaporated? You can only take the underground passage, a gathering place for snow water in Tianshan Mountain is at the foot of Flame Mountain. Therefore, people began to dig wells from the foot of the Flame Mountain, and dug a shaft every 50 meters. The shafts were dug to connect the shafts, and they dug all the way to the Turpan area, and dug open channels at the place where the water was drawn. Then, for such a long distance from Huoyan Mountain to Turpan, the shafts were dug from opposite sides. How can we guarantee that the digging will not go wrong? The clever ancient Turpan people invented a positioning method: wooden stick positioning method. A well rope is hung above the well head, and a sharpened horizontal wooden stick is tied to the well rope. The direction where the two stick tips face each other is the shortest straight line between the two shafts.

At the exit of Karez, there are hundreds of years of grape vines. An enthusiastic Uyghur boy told us that the temperature in Turpan can be as high as 40 degrees in summer, and can drop to minus 20 degrees in winter, so it is necessary to bury the vines in the ground in winter to prevent them from freezing. He also introduced that those brick houses with holes all over them are the drying rooms for drying raisins. Now 90% of the raisins sold outside are dried in dryers. In the Turpan area, it is basically dried in the sun, without adding any pigments, and the taste is better.

At 11:00 noon, we went out from Karez to the ancient city of Jiaohe. Jiaohe Ancient City is the largest, oldest and best preserved adobe city in the world. It was built by the Cheshi people in the 2nd century BC, and reached its peak in the Northern and Southern Dynasties and the Tang Dynasty. The Anxi Protectorate, the highest military and political institution in the Western Regions of the Tang Dynasty, was located in the ancient city of Jiaohe. More than 600 years ago, the Mongols attacked Turpan and set fire to the ancient city of Jiaohe for three days and three nights, burning all the precious scriptures and documents.

Entering the north-south main road of Jiaohe Old City, although the eyes are full of desolation, the straight and spacious avenues and tall city walls vaguely make people feel the prosperity of the past. We visited other courtyards, government offices, pagodas, and shrines along the main road. The most magnificent are the pagoda and the shrine. The upper floor of the pagoda has been damaged, and the remaining two floors are still about 10 meters high. Most of the Buddha statues on it are seriously damaged. The temple is square and surrounded by tall walls. In the center of the temple is a square, which should be a place for people to visit. There is a large ancient well on each side of the square, which is now closed. There are wing rooms and dining rooms on both sides of the temple, which should be places for eminent monks to rest and eat. Maybe Xuanzang lived in this wing room when he passed by here.

We boarded a higher viewing platform, overlooking the entire Jiaohe Old City, with ruins and ruins, full of desolation, which reminds people of bloody battles and scenes of gold and iron horses. Tang Cen's "Drums beating on all sides, the snow and the sea are surging, the three armies shouted that the mountains were moving, the captive soldiers were in full swing, and the bones wrapped around the grass roots on the battlefield" describes such a scene.

(Photograph of Jiaohe Ancient City)


At 2 o'clock in the afternoon, we left Jiaohe Ancient City to visit Turpan Museum. The treasure of the town hall of the Turpan Museum is a skeleton fossil of a beautiful giant rhinoceros, 8 meters high, 9 meters long, and weighing up to 30 tons in life. Standing in front of such a giant, I can't help but take a breath of air, it's amazing . In addition, the Archives and Coins Museum are also worth visiting. They have collected many ancient documents and ancient coins from various countries. These objects have witnessed the glory of the ancient Silk Road. The second floor is the mummy exhibition hall. These mummy corpses that have been sleeping underground for thousands of years are very well preserved, and their hair and muscles are intact. The light in the mummy exhibition hall is relatively dim, and looking inside alone, I can't help but feel a chill down my back.

At 4:30 in the afternoon, we left Turpan for Urumqi. This is the end of the trip to Xinjiang.


Last photo of people