Hong Fu Urumqi

... a cold a blustery autumn day. We were glad we had gloves and scarves! There were a few families out walking, and more appeared as the sun came out. <br> <br>There was some confusion about our hotel. The one we were supposed to stay at had been pulled down a year ago! It was half way through a complete re-build.<br><br>But we were 'upgraded' to a 5* hotel, which was fine - nothing special; a typical 'business' hotel - could have been ...

... A route of over 4000 kilometres.<br><br>The Chinese are brilliant at building roads through incredibly difficult terrain - as we saw when we travelled on the Karakorum Highway from China to Pakistan in 2007.<br><br>For this entry I will let the photos tell the story!

... so much beauty... I was not ready to leave. I was glad I hadn't listened to the people who told me to stay away and glad that I had not been scared off. I had gambled and it had paid off. Xinjiang is one of the best places I have been to. But perhaps most of all, I was really bummed to have to say goodbye to LX. Somewhere along the line, he went from being my student to being my friend. A good friend. And goodbyes always suck. Goodbye Xinjiang. Hello Sichuan.

Finally it was time to go back to Changji. We stopped at a couple of shops (including a farm for deer antlers, boo hiss) on the way back, but arrived a lot earlier than I expected. The tour to Kanas was fun, I'm glad I went on it. Not only was the scenery spectacular, but I was forced to speak in Chinese for the whole time and I learnt how to split melon and pumpkin seeds fairly quickly, thanks to the auntie sitting across the aisle from Lirong and I who kept showering us in the damn ...

... trip. LX pretty much bullied the travel agent, Lirong, into going on the tour to take care of me. I am not really sure how he managed to do this, but she gave in. She'd never been to Kanas before and business was lousy (riots and all that) which meant her boss was willing to let her go for free. Besides, LX had pestered her to the point where she was worried if anything happened to me up there, he'd be out for her blood. After scaring the living daylights out of Lirong, we went out for dinner.

... us went off to play pool. I was plagued by dizziness the whole day. I had had this once before in Jinan, but never so serious. Dizziness, blurred vision and a blocked ear. LX was worried it was because I had knocked my head and nose on the bars in the taxi the night before, but I thought otherwise. I've had lowish blood pressure for the past five years or so. I've fainted a few times and get dizzy if I stand up too quick. Since I ...

... sure nothing went wrong. Practically all of them were Han Chinese, shouting "GO CHINA!" at the top of their lungs. There were orders not to look out your window if the relay passed by your building, as the government was on the lookout for snipers. Since 9/11, the Chinese government has gained international support in labeling Uyghur separatists as terrorists. Although the situation is comparable to that in Tibet, the suppression of the Uyghur ...

... plein quartier Uighur. C est super vivant avec du monde dans les rues et pleins de stand de bouffe avec brochettes de mouton, pain frais, petits pains fourres a la viande et noodle etire a la main. Delicieux. Les Uighurs sont une minoritee musulmane venant de Mongolie qui est installe dans la province de Xinjiang depuis le 9eme siecle. Xinjiang signifie nouveau territoire et est integre a la Chine depuis 1755. Meme si comme au Tibet, la chine a investit beaucoup pour ...

... and to have a meeting with my manager. I spent four days there preparing for some sessions that I will facilitate in a few weeks. Janet and Kent went to Kapchagi to visit their host family for a few days. It was a wonderful trip and I feel very lucky to have developed these wonderful friendships while I have been in Peace Corps. I look forward to spending time with the McKinney's again when I get back to the states and I know that I will see Guzel many more times before I leave.

... is relatively orderly, and we make it through the turnstiles and out into the throng. The others are going to try their luck in the booking hall, so we head out to the taxi rank. Can't interest anyone for a while, then get two. Settle for a lady driver, who won't use the meter, and wants 20 Yuan for only a couple of kms straight line distance. She then hangs around for an additional starter, so MP threatens to get out, and this ...