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General
Introduction
The
northwestern Chinese border region of Xinjiang,
lauded variously as a land of song and dance,
melons and fruits, precious stones, and carpets,
is situated in the heart of the Eurasia Continent.
The Uygur people make up half of the population
of Xinjing, the largest province of China and
home to 12 other ethnic peoples, including the
Hans, Kazakhs, Huis and Kirgizs. The local folklore
is rich and varied. Xinjiang was a key link
on the Silk Road and a hub for east west cultural
exchanges in ancient times. Xinjiang's fascinating
scenery includes snowy mountains and lakes,
glaciers and rivers, deserts and oases, gobi
deserts and prairies, mirages, wind eroded landforms,
and the Yadan topography. It is a nice place
for those tourists who seek to get lost for
a while in the embrace of nature.
Climate
Situated deep in the interior of Asia and unpenetrated
by the air currents from the oceans, Xinjiang
has conspicuous continental climate, with highly
changeable temperature, sharp difference in
temperature between day and night, abundant
sunshine, intense evaporation and little precipitation.
The mean annual temperature of northern Xinjiang
is 4¡ã-8oC. and that of southern Xinjiang 9¡ã-12oC.
The arid south has a mean annual precipitation
of 25-100 mm., while the greater part of the
north has 100-500 mm.
Topography
Xinjiang
is divided into five topographical zones: 1)
The Tianshan Mountain Area, mostly 3,000--5,000
meters above sea level, consists of several
ranges running parallel from west to east across
the middle part of the region. The Tianshan
range divides Xinjiang into two vastly different
natural geographical regions, northern and southern
Xinjiang. The numerous intermontane basins and
valleys are important farming-pastoral areas.
The area around the Hami and Turpan basins is
customarily called eastern Xinjiang. 2) The
Altay range lies in the north and northeast.
3) In the south are the Karakorum, Kunlun and
Altun mountains and the Pamirs. 4) The Junggar
Basin between the Tianshan and Altay ranges
has the Curbantunggut Desert in the middle.
5) The Tarim Basin south of the Tianshan range
makes up more than half of the region's total
area and has the Taklimakan Desert in the middle.
Deserts make up about 22 per cent of the area
of Xinjiang. Mount Qogir, towering 8,611 meters
above sea level over the China-Pakistan border,
is the highest peak in the region. Aydingkol
Lake in the Turpan Depression with its surface
154.43 meters below sea level is the lowest
point in China.
There
are 20-some larger rivers in Xinjiang, including
the Tarim, Ili, Ertix and Manas. Lop Nur is
its largest lake.
SCENES
& SIGHTS
Urumqi
Capital
of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region and a rising
industrial city. Major attractions: Hongshan,
Xinjiang Museum, and Shuimugou Hot Springs.
Urumqi stands out as a most distinct Chinese
city with a folkloric look and burgeoning modern
industry. Baiyang Gully south of the city is
a scenic Kazakh pastoral farm. Museum of Xinjiang
Uygur autonomous Region at Xibei Road has a
collection of more than 50,000 cultural relics
with distinct ethnic features.
Kizil
Grottoes
Kizil,
70 km from Kuqa County, is the venue of one
of China's four grottoes which was built earlier
than Mogao Grottoes of Dunhuang. The 10,000
square metres of murals kept in the 236 caves
that are still there, are of high value for
artists and researchers alike.
Tianchi
Lake
Sprawling
on the waist of Mount Bogda of Tianshan Mountains
and 100 km east of Urumqi,Tianchi runs 4.9 square
km wide and 90 metres deep, a natural lake fed
by thawing snow runoffs. Snow-mantled peaks
and sky-soaring dragon-spruce, among other things,
define Tianchi Lake as a scenic place with prismatic
splendour.
Kaxgar
A
well-known tourist city in west Xinjiang, Kaxgar
is the venue of the tomb of Abac Hoja (Fragrant
Lady), a massive, elegant building created in
1640 in a typical Islamic style, and Atigar,
China's largest Islamic mosque dating back to
more than 500 years ago.
Kanas
Lake
The
Kanas in Altay Mountain, north Xinjiang, is
a lake which looks mysterious and elegant with
the peaks around it reflected bewitchingly in
its pellucid water. Inhabiting the place are
Mongol nomads who have adhered to their incomparable
habits and customs.
Turpan
Hot
is summer in this major tourist city of Xianjiang,
situated in Turpan Basin, the lowest point on
the mainland of China. The local people have
developed karez, an irrigation system composed
of wells connected by underground channels,
to counter the heat and drought of the place.
at the foot of the Flaming Mountain east of
Turpan lies and Grape Gully (nickname: Green
Pearl City"), an oasis where the scorching
sun is shut off by luxuriant tree foliages and
grapevine trellises that cover 220 hectares
and are crisscrossed by irrigation ditches.
No place in China is hotter in summer than the
Flaming Mountain in Turpan, a mountain made
famous by the classical Chinese mythological
novel, Journey to the West. Xinjiang's largest
ancient pagoda, Dorbiljin (Emin) Pagoda, (also
called Sugong Pagoda) stands 2 km east of downtown
Turpan. To the east lies Gaochang, which until
the early Ming was a thriving town on the Silk
Road; today it has been reduced to a 2 million-square-metre
stretch of broken walls and deserted fields.
The inexorable pace of history is even more
keenly felt at Jiaohe, another ancient city
that was deserted during the early Ming, leaving
a pile of ruins west of Turpan.
Silk
Road Tour
During
the Han and Tang dynasties, silk products and
other goods were shipped to the capital city
of Chang'an (present-day Xi'an), where the Silk
Road started, and then they were transported
by a constant flow of foreign caravans along
Hexi Corridor to Europe by way of Xianjiang,
where three routes were divided on the Silk
Road. A journey down the Silk Road has thus
become a most enchanting tourist program in
Xinjiang.
Golden
Travel Route
Taklimakan
in Tarim Basin, south Xinjiang, is the world's
second largest desert which used to be dubbed
"Death Sea". A 522-km-long highway
has been paved across it from south to north,
turning the "Death Sea" into a tourist
hot cake. A "golden travel route"
mapped out by local tourist authorities runs
from Urumqi to Kaxgar by way of Turpa, Korla,
Kuqa, Niya, and Hotan, and brings visitors on
an itinerary of discovery of landscape, places
of historical interest, and local customs and
habits.
Bayanbulak
Grassland
Some
400 km from Urumqi lies the vastest and most
beautiful grassland of Xinjiang-Bayanbulak,which
formerly belonged to Hejin County of Bayangol
Mongol Autonomous Prefecture. The charms of
Bayanbulak are accentuated by the Swan Lake
in its heart, a mating and incubating place
for large flocks swans.
Special-Purpose
Tours
Quite
a few special tour programs are available in
Xinjing, including camel-riding exploration
of the deserts; climbing some of the world's
highest mountains; riding a horse and being
a guest of Uygur, Kazakh, Mongol and other ethnic
families; tours of discovery of the Silk Road
or some kingdoms that have been consigned to
history in the West Territory. For details,
contact any of the travel services in Xinjiang.
SOUVENIRS
Xinjiang
carpets: Woven with wool produced in Hotan,
they have found their way to more than 80 countries
and regions.
Xinjiang
precious stones: There are 27 kinds in 10 categories,
including sapphire, emerald, garnet, crystal,
and diamond.
Xinjiang
jade carvings: The hard and dense textures of
the precious stones produced in Xinjiang render
an unambiguous artistic appeal to the objects
of art carved out of them.
Uygur-style
hats: Such hats are not only useful in daily
life but make excellent souvenirs for keeps.
Xinjiang
melons and fruits: Among the region's fruits
that are known throughout China are stoneless
grapes and hami-melon from Turpan and Piqan
(Shanshan), fragrant pears from Korla, apples
from Gulja (Yining), pomegranates from Yecheng,
walnuts from Aksu, figs from Artux, and white
apricots from Kuqa.
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