Just as the epidemic is coming to an end and everyone has not started their retaliatory travel, we, who love to play, embarked on a long-planned trip to the Northwest for a family of three (five-and-a-half-year-old son)!
D1 Lanzhou～Gansu Museum (Bronze Galloping Horse)～Zhongshan Bridge～Xining (Suite)
Landing in Lanzhou at 11:30 in the morning, I rushed to the museum to watch the horse stepping on the flying swallow (bronze galloping horse). Because it was the weekend, the entrance line was like a long queue. I was afraid that I would not be able to catch up with the high-speed train to Xining, so I went directly to Zhongshan Bridge. Zhongshan Bridge is a pedestrian bridge. Visitors can walk on the rushing Yellow River, feel the heroism of the mother river rushing to the sea and never return, echoing the mouth of the Yellow River.
I didn't see it as Ma Ta Feiyan, so I took a picture in front of the train station, hoping that the children would remember this name - Ma Ta Feiyan. It is said that the children's photography skills are not bad!
Standing from Xining at night, compared with Lanzhou, I instantly feel the modernization of this ancient plateau city. Among the high-rise buildings, hotels are dotted. The place where I live happens to be the Xinqian Night Market, and it is still noisy and crowded at eleven or twelve o'clock.
D2 Crossing Daban Mountain ~ Rapeseed Flowers in Menyuan ~ Biandukou ~ (the most beautiful National Highway 227) Zhangye (Suzhou)
Because I brought my children, I chose to drive by myself. I placed an order online, and after picking up the car at the car rental point, I went to China Resources Vanguard to buy some supplies on the road (water, fruit, dry food, snacks, tissues, sunscreen, etc.) A must-have item summed up from experience), and quickly started the self-driving trip.
Not long after leaving Xining, I entered Daban Mountain. After a few hours on the winding mountain road, my vision can still be shocked. The Daban Mountain Tunnel is a toll tunnel, and the center of the entrance road surface is 3792.75 meters above sea level. It is the road with the highest altitude in Asia and the second in the world. tunnel. Fortunately, the family of three did not have any discomfort, and my husband said that he had the physical conditions to enter Tibet (Wahaha, look forward to it...). Walking in the mountains, the brain is full of heaven and earth, the mind is stretched, and there is no trouble.
Arriving near Menyuan, rapeseed fields can be seen everywhere. If you stop here, you can take pictures everywhere. The scenic area is based on the terrain, overlooking the rapeseed flowers from a high place, giving people the feeling that although the rapeseed flowers are small, they are also very spectacular!
Time does not allow to stay for a long time, I bought a Qinghai milk cake for my baby, finished eating happily and started to set off! After passing the Biandukou rapeseed field, the big "Biandukou" three big characters, it should be only a drone that can take a beautiful picture from God's perspective! It was already ten o'clock in the evening when we arrived at the hotel near Zhangye Colorful Danxia, so we cooked a dish at the hotel to fill our stomach. After running 400 kilometers of provincial roads in one day, the driver and the children were exhausted and could finally rest.
D3 Colorful Danxia～Jiayuguan～Dunhuang (Suzhou)
After getting up early in the morning, I went to the street to have breakfast and started the colorful Danxia tour. When you get on the bus in the scenic spot, your eyes and brain will be covered by the "red rock formation" of colorful Danxia. This is the most splendid place in Gansu, people can't help but forget the time, just want to marvel at its magnificence! The accumulation and precipitation of hundreds of millions of years, the gift of nature is generous and special.
When I was in school, I took the train to the Northeast. I often mentioned the (Shanhai) Pass. This time I came to Jiayuguan, the largest pass on the Great Wall. It's a pity that due to the time relationship and the evaluation of the scenic spot, I didn't visit the scenic spot of Jiayuguan City. I ate a hand-caught mutton in Jiayuguan City and went to the gate of the first pier of the Great Wall to check in. On the way, the children asked, "Where is the second pier ?” Next to the railway crossing on the way, this may be the second or third pier. . .
The next stop, all the way west, drove to Dunhuang at full speed. I have to say that the sun at five o'clock is very strong. Enjoying the hot sun after get off work is another experience. Along the way, there are less and less green on the left and right, and some are just high-voltage wires and windmills for power generation. Learning from yesterday's lesson, taking advantage of the dawn, I will drive a part of the way, sitting in the driver's seat and looking forward, the endless black Gobi, the wild clouds and the emptiness without a city, and occasionally a few tenacious Haloxylon trees, which makes people feel In addition to our life, there are only a handful of vehicles visible in the front and rear. There is a feeling of driving out of the sky. This kind of touch is something I have never experienced. Due to the strong wind, the blowing sand and dust drifted across the highway, the yellow sand flew all over the sky, and the desert sand was like snow! It was already nine o'clock when we arrived in Dunhuang, and it was just getting dark at this time. After check-in, have a Qinghai milk cake and have a barbecue. The children are so happy.
D4 West Thousand Buddha Caves～Sunset at Crescent Moon Spring in Mingsha Mountain (Dunhuang City)
Since I didn't book tickets for the Mogao Grottoes, I chose to sit quietly on the cliffs of the Dang River for thousands of years in the West Thousand Buddha Caves. I queued for two hours and visited for half an hour. Only a few of the caves are open, and a cave can only accommodate twelve or three people, with staff explaining. Line up first, buy tickets to enter one wave after another, wait for the previous wave to visit the first cave, and then enter the next wave, so continuous. After watching the Buddha cave, I deeply felt the wisdom of the ancient people, the skill of the painters (the unpainted murals are of great archaeological value), the perfection of the materials (the blue and green are still bright and shining after thousands of years of river washing) . Danghe Ancient Road is also a good place to take pictures.
After eating the famous local Huyang stewed cakes, drinking apricot peel water, taking a nap, we headed towards Dunhuang wonderland - Crescent Moon Spring Scenic Spot of Mingsha Mountain. It is known as "one of the best scenery outside the Great Wall". The battery car buys tickets at the waiting point on the left side of the scenic area. To ride a camel, you need to line up to buy tickets on the right side of the scenic area. One hundred and one children, twenty for children, only cash is accepted. After buying the ticket, go to the camel ride point and allocate according to the number. Since the camels are not allocated uniformly in the scenic spot, you have to wait for their camels to come back to ride after you distribute them to someone else, wasting half an hour of waiting for the camels. Children who always sit anywhere in the camel herd dislike the smelly and dirty camels, haha! Riding a camel was a bit bumpy, and the kids didn't want to touch the camel's hair, so they didn't move much, and they were honest.
The end point of the camel ride is Crescent Moon Lake. It was past eight o’clock at this time. I hurriedly took a few photos and hurriedly climbed the sand mountain to watch the sunset. However, the sun set when I climbed three quarters of the way. After the sun set The light gets dark quickly, and the effect of the camera at this time is not as good as that of a mobile phone with night scene mode.
When the sky completely darkened, we started to go down the mountain, and the sand board came in handy. Children who grew up by the sea did not expect that sand can be played like this! Have fun!
At the exit of the scenic spot, you can enter the information of the second entry, regardless of whether you come or not, it is recorded first. After going back in the evening, my husband felt that the tickets were so expensive, the fun was not enough, and he didn't take any beautiful photos as a souvenir. It was a pity, and he considered whether to go again tomorrow morning. Fall asleep in tangles. . .
D5 Mingsha Mountain Crescent Moon Spring Sunrise ~ Yangguan ~ South Eight Immortals Devil City ~ Emerald Lake ~ Delingha (stay)
Before dawn, I entered Mingsha Mountain again early in the morning. This time I took a battery car and went straight to the mountain. Halfway through the climb, the sun rose, and I missed the sunrise perfectly. This should be the two biggest regrets of this trip (Mingsha Mountain sunset and sunrise).
With the sunshine, I took some photos. The children were anxious to go sandboarding. Today's schedule was also very full, so they withdrew. Return to the hotel to have breakfast and continue the journey.
Because it was self-driving, we went to Yangguan, which was not planned, and passed through Gaolaozhuang on the way. I think this should be the biggest benefit of independent travel. We can change the plan at any time and reach some less famous but meaningful places.
Along the 215 National Highway all the way to the south, there are mostly sand mountains on both sides of the section from Dunhuang to Aksai, which can also be regarded as the Pansha Mountain Highway. On the way, I passed through No. 102 forest of Ant Forest. Since the road to Ant Forest was blocked by the project department on the Xiuliuge Expressway, I didn’t go in again, and it was already unreachable on the navigation. I don't know whether this little effort can start a prairie fire for Gobi, or will it be occupied by human engineering?
After leaving Aksai County, the national road stretches straight to the sky from here. From a distance, there is a row of snow-covered mountain shadows lying between the sky and the earth, which is where Dangjin Pass is. Driving through this open world, my whole brain is shocked, looking forward, there is no end, as if I have forgotten everything, I only know to keep moving forward, there is no end. On the road, some tourists stopped by the side of the expressway to take pictures. Crossing the expressway was very dangerous. In order to set a good example for our children, we kept going without stopping.
Nanbaxian Devil City is open, and it is still a natural environment. It has a vast area and not many people. I can't help worrying about its integrity. I don't know how long it can last. The colorful clothes here are easy to make big movies!
When looking at the guide, I found that everyone lives in Dachaidan Town. I have to say that this town has been seriously commercialized, and the price of hotels is far higher than that of my big Qingdao. We decided to go a little longer at night and live in Delingha City. The conditions are guaranteed and affordable . On the way to Delingha, I passed the Emerald Lake, and the sky was a little dark, but I saw the Salt Lake for the first time, and I was shocked by the magic of nature!
It was twelve o'clock in the evening when we arrived in Delingha City. The child fell asleep on the way and started to get high. There is a hot pot restaurant open opposite. The father and son discussed it and went to have a hot pot! Had a midnight hot pot meal.
D6 Gahai～Chaka Salt Lake～Qinghai Lake～Huangzhong (Suzhou)
In the morning, I set off from Delingha (I quietly bought a self-high pot when I was buying water). Not long after leaving the urban area and getting on the expressway, I came across a beautiful lake - Gahai Lake. Coincidentally, there is a parking area on the expressway, and there are many People stopped their cars and ran to the lake to take pictures. How could they miss such beautiful scenery?
The little photographer is very professional!
The children here also left fertilizer as a souvenir. . .
Continue to move forward along the Cha-Tak Expressway, attracted by the vast scenes on both sides of the road. On one side is the train track. From time to time, you will encounter a train passing by. On the other hand, you will encounter an unknown lake. There are mountains in the distance as barriers, as if walking through in the painting.
With a baby, we didn’t like to join in the fun. We chose the Sky No. 1 scenic spot with fewer tourists in Chaka Salt Lake. We brought a small shovel for digging sand and took a small train from one scenic spot to another. We went down to the salt lake, took pictures, and dug. Salt, finally put a bag of salt in a plastic bag and take it away, as a souvenir of this trip.
Chaka Salt Lake has been playing for a long time. I came out and rushed to Qinghai Lake, all the way along the 109 National Highway. It was the first time I drove on the Panshan Highway. I was nervous and cautious. It rained halfway, which can be regarded as crossing the mountains and the sea. Yes, Qinghai Lake is very big, and the sky has darkened as we walked. It is a rare experience to watch the beautiful sunset by the lake and eat self-high pot.
D7 Kumbum Monastery～Xining Airport
Woke up early in the morning and went to the prestigious Kumbum Monastery. Kumbum Monastery is the birthplace of Tsongkhapa Master Lobsang Drakpa (1357-1419). He studied scriptures at Xiaqiong Temple in his early years, and went to Tibet for further studies at the age of 16. He reformed Tibetan Buddhism, founded the Gelug Sect (Yellow Sect), and became a generation of masters.
Arrived in Xining at noon, the last meal ended with beef and beef noodles. After returning the rented car, go to Bayi Road Passenger Station to take the airport bus, and calculate the cost while waiting for the airport bus and waiting for the flight. From landing in Lanzhou to before taking off in Xining, the total cost is about 7,400 yuan (including car rental fee 2,200, refueling fee 725, toll fee 455, model: Cruze, no additional expenses such as violations during the whole process, if you are not familiar with the road conditions, it is recommended to buy car damage insurance, after all to travel that far).
Note: The salt dug from Chaka Salt Lake was packed in a mineral water bottle and brought home!
Written at the end -
Clothes: Bring a bright red skirt or red scarf, although it is very vulgar, but you can see how wise it is by looking at the photos! The temperature difference between day and night is relatively large, so you have to wear jeans at night in early August! Remember to check the weather forecast and prepare a thick coat!
Food: It is indispensable to eat some local specialties in every place, but since self-driving parking is a problem, it takes time to find a place. Sometimes it can be solved at a nearby ramen restaurant where parking is easy. Fortunately, my children love noodles.
Accommodation: Since the number of people this year is three quarters less than in previous years, we all book hotels on the same day. It is recommended to book in advance to prevent sleeping on the street or sitting on the ground.
OK: Along the way, an average of two or three scenic spots per day, more than 400 kilometers, sounds not difficult, but the time for playing is relatively tight, and there is not enough time to take pictures slowly. If conditions permit, you can spend more time slowly Play around and play a few more attractions.
In addition, taking children with you consumes a lot of energy. You have to eat and drink after playing in the scenic area for a while. You must carry water and food at all times. Fortunately, our children are used to running with them since they were young. They fall asleep after getting in the car. It is also worry-free to start playing when the place wakes up. Finally, the ultraviolet rays in the Northwest are relatively strong. In addition to sunscreen, sunscreen clothing, hats, sunglasses and other equipment are still required. If necessary, prepare some medicines to prevent high reactions.
I hope I can give you some help when you are about to travel. I wish you a pleasant journey!
