The desert and Gobi grasslands have never been my cup of tea, but in 2021, I was caught by Amway by chance and found that there are different ways to play. I decided to break the oath made N years ago and make up for the puzzle of Ningxia.
The climate of Ningxia does not match what we have known for many years. It is rainy in August and September. Keep paying attention to the weather forecast. Rain, rain, rain, is this still an area adjacent to the desert? How about a good autumn? It's time to fight for character, let's go!
Day 1, Yinchuan, rain
There was no accident, the landing was continuous slanting rain, the temperature was 14°C, and the heart was cold, so the only way to drive away the coldness in the body and heart was to use a pot of hot-boiled mutton. XX mountain spring ice-boiled lamb, the lamb is very tender, with a slight smell of lamb, generally acceptable, not bad!
Day 2, Yinchuan, sunny to cloudy
Waking up early in the morning, the sun was shining brightly, and my mood also changed after the rain.
Today's itinerary is very easy during the day, focusing on around sunset. After breakfast in a leisurely manner, first visit the urban area, Nanmenlou Square, Chenghuang Pavilion, and Drum Tower.
Nanmenlou Square has a little meaning of Tiananmen Square. The key is that there are no various checkpoints and inspections, so you can check in comfortably.
Chenghuang Pavilion, you can go to the second floor.
Drum Tower, four gates around.
After lunch, I took the bus to the Flower Expo Garden, wobbled for an hour, and took a nap, got off the bus full of energy and continued to stroll around. There are no tickets for such a large park, which satisfies my fun of wool.
Nearly 6:00, go to Lanshan Theater to watch the sunset. Entering from the Flower Expo Garden, there is a big slope, so you don't have to climb the more than 200 stairs, saving your knees. A lot of people came out to play on weekends, the clouds were low, and the sunset was not seen, but the meaning came, and I was satisfied!
After dinner is the last stop of the day - the China-Arab axis. The 4 photos were taken with reference to the landscape photos of the original site before the renovation. I only hope that China will become richer, stronger and more confident.
Day 3, Yinchuan-Alxa-Yinchuan, overcast to cloudy
Today is the first breaking point of this trip, but Jinwu is off on Monday. Fortunately, the key landscapes don't look at the sky, as long as it doesn't rain.
Target, Alxa Left Banner. Passing through the Gobi, the grass is everywhere. This year, the rain is heavy, and the free-range cattle, sheep and camels are blessed. They are full of food and drink, very professional, with their heads held high, and their eyes fixed.
The last time I went to Qinghai and Gansu, I ate a lot of scrambled eggs with scallions. Today I saw scallions blooming, and they were so bright.
Entering the Tengger Desert, where grass grows in the desert? Dare I come to a fake desert? It is said that this has always been like this here, well, I still have less experience.
After driving for 2 hours, we arrived at the transfer point at 9:30. Change the car and change the driver, and cross the five lakes.
First, the wild off-road vehicle rushes to the sand, and then checks to see if the heart is full of blood. All the way went smoothly and came early, and suddenly there was a rush to pack a desert.
Finally return to the transfer point along the desert road.
Crossing the five lakes: Swan Lake, Wulan Lake, Camel Lake, Hailiuqi Lake, Guitar Lake
There are dozens of large or small lakes in the Tengger Desert, among which the saline-alkali lakes are red or pink in dark or light colors, and the greater the evaporation, the redder the color. Visually, the color of Ulan Lake is the reddest, and Swan Lake and Camel Lake are pink.
After comparing the quotations of many travel agencies, GJ’s quotation is the most affordable, Yinchuan pick-up, 5-seater MVP400 yuan/car, off-road vehicle crossing 1000 yuan/car. Entering each lake is charged in cash by person and car. Internet celebrity Ulan Lake is the first to charge, and other lakes do not charge for nothing. The 4 people paid a total of 210 yuan to the local herdsmen throughout the journey. Wulan Lake, GJ provides aerial photography services, but the map of the heart of the earth is not provided, don't ask and don't tell, interested friends remember to bring your own DJ. Including the big heart, saline-alkali lakes are not forbidden to enter, which is different from the salt lakes in Qinghai. After all, stepping barefoot into a salt-alkali lake is like washing your feet with soap, making them soft and slippery, O(∩_∩)O haha~
After returning to the city for dinner, make up the Huaiyuan Night Market that was originally arranged on the first day. Probably because of the proximity to Ningxia University, there were already crowds of people before nightfall.
Ever since I tasted Lao Majia Guohua's milk egg fermented glutinous rice at Zhengning Road Night Market in Lanzhou, I have never forgotten it. I specially went to Huaiyuan Night Market to serve Wuji milk fermented glutinous rice, 10 yuan a cup, cooked on the spot, 10 ingredients, the boss waved a folding fan and rapped, it was a wonderful experience. Wu Ji seems to taste better than Lao Ma's.
While waiting for the fermented glutinous rice to be cooked, go to the side of the Suxiaomeng beef pie shop to queue up. 4.5 yuan for a beef patty just out of the pan.
Others include Ding Tiemin's baked eggs, spicy strips, sweet porridge, etc. After all, he came here after dinner, so he couldn't taste them all for a while. Take a taxi back to the hotel with the warm milk fermented glutinous rice and beef patties and taste them carefully.
Day 4, Yinchuan-Wuzhong, sunny
Arty in the morning, visit Ningxia Museum.
Xixia characters, countless strokes.
Take a look at the flowers, and if you still have time, visit Phoenix Park on the street. The park is not small, and it is full of green trees, but the greenery is nothing new, so it is much better.
After lunch, drive to the second highlight of this trip - Xige Winery.
The hotel is called Yuge Grape Manor Hotel. After checking in, you can visit the winery production workshop.
Xige is the only winery in Ningxia that can book accommodation through ordinary channels. There are only 10 double-bed rooms and 10 twin-bed rooms. Two months before the trip, I suddenly found that all the rooms were sold out before October 15th. I did not give up and checked the listings every day, only to see that the reservation was suddenly opened one day. Fortunately, I got the room, otherwise I have to give up this point, and I can only taste wine at Changyu Castle.
Dinner is at Yuge Organic Restaurant in the winery, and after the meal, take a walk around the winery to digest food. Stay overnight at the winery to watch the stars, haha, there is no one in a hundred, you can be ashamed!
People today don't see the moon in ancient times, but this month once illuminated the ancients.
Ask the moon with wine, dance and play with shadows, brother Yugou, brother Taibai, brother Zizhan, drank this cup!
Day 5, Wuzhong, cloudy to sunny
Get up early in the morning and visit the vineyards. Bunches of ripe grapes, juicy and sweet, I guess, can you believe it (*^▽^*)
Next stop, Qingtongxia Ancient Town.
It was planned to take a boat trip to Qingtongxia Yellow River Grand Canyon in the afternoon, but it was too hot, so I gave up decisively. This is also because the Lai·Yueshu Art Hotel itself is like a park. The Grand Canyon can be visited or not. Plan A and plan B are as scheming as I am.
The sun is westward, stroll around the ancient town of Qingtongxia, and look at the Iron Bridge of the Yellow River.
Come back and go to Lai Tangquan to soak in the hot springs, which is comfortable.
Day 6, Wu Zhong-Zhongwei, sunny
The third hot spot, the strongest hot spot-Desert Star Hotel.
I stayed in the wooden house area E1 and E2. According to the evaluation of my peers, the two rooms are the best location, which is better than the rooms with a unit price of 3000~5000. As long as everyone is happy, I am very satisfied anyway.
After nightfall, I went to the Stargazing Valley to watch the stars. I really doubt that the photos of the starry sky provided by real people on the scene are for people to P. But listening to popular science knowledge about stargazing is very interesting. It was the first time I saw an artificial satellite flying across the night sky with naked eyes, and I didn’t even know I could see it.
I couldn't bear to fall asleep.
Day 7, Zhongwei, overcast and cloudy
It rained early in the morning, not for a long time, but it was overcast. While there is still time, I went to the Yellow River District of Shapotou Scenic Area for a visit.
Although the whole journey is cloudy and sunny, although Gu Yan can't see it, the sunrise and sunset in the poem "Poetry and Buddha" have always been regrettable, and we can only look at the long river.
Sometimes the weather is fine, and the Desert Star Hotel should stay for two days, so that you can slowly visit the Shapotou scenic spot. The scenic spot is divided into the desert area and the Yellow River area, each of which takes about 2 to 3 hours to play. Star Hotel can arrange a car to take you to the desert area, 5 minutes by car; then transfer to the scenic spot shuttle bus to the Yellow River District, 10 minutes away, 15 minutes by car; go back to the hotel and call the hotel on the wristband to send the car back. You can also check out and store your luggage before going to the scenic spot.
After arriving in Zhongwei City, we wandered around the Drum Tower, Gaomiao, and Shapotou Water Town.
Day 8, Zhongwei, sunny to cloudy
In the morning, we still had to kill time, so we went to Xiangshan Park and Jinsha Island separately.
Depart at 3:00 p.m. to the final breaking point - the Yellow River Suji and Ming Great Wall ruins. I thought I would go through Highway 66, but fortunately, I didn’t plan to go to North Long Beach at the beginning, so I have a little regret on Highway 66.
Most of the residences can no longer enter to take pictures, and can only check in outside the wall. We have Dumbo, so we can still find out.
Personally, I am not very interested in the renovation of old villages, but I am more interested in admiring various styles of talents, from small S concave to big S, from Xishi holding a heart to Chang'e flying to the moon. Holding the Tianya Mirror in hand, we will keep it for self-study.
The ruins of the Great Wall of the Ming Dynasty are not as good as the old ones, and the rammed earth Great Wall in the Northwest became Badaling. However, China's "two long and two yellow" is a rare place where the Great Wall and the Yellow River are in the same frame, which is worth taking pictures to commemorate.
Day 9, return trip
When the epidemic was raging, there were frequent thunderstorms in various places. Ningxia was a relatively safe place. The journey was smooth with no surprises or dangers. The regular 5-day itinerary has been extended to 9 days. It is slow, down-to-earth, and plugged into the south of the Yangtze River. It is a worthwhile trip.
