Qianhai Hotel Kashgar

... onze Chinese gids ontmoeten. Heel veel Chinese mannetjes in groene pakjes willen de bus doorzoeken en dat gaat deze keer redelijk grondig. Tassen en rugzakken door de scanner, brillenkokers en kruidenpotjes open, kastjes open, motorkap open, gebrande CD's checken. Het duurt een ruim een uur maar de felbegeerde stempel verschijnt helaas niet in het paspoort dat moet bij de custom contol. En die blijkt 180km over hobblende kutweg verder pas te zitten!! Wat een ellende! Halverwege ...

... or maybe that was the lack of oxygen playing tricks on my mind) and the sky was a brilliant orangey-pink until night brought relief in the form of a cool breeze.<br><br>We leave China tomorrow, and as fascinating as it has been, I am excited beyond belief. I have struggled internally with this place over the last 12 days, and I am not sure who has won &#8211; me or China. I have tried to understand the military presence &#8211; if two ethnic groups in Canada ...

... It was in Kashgar that we renewed our taste for bread, a staple in Central Asia, and where we started to try the ubiquitous samsas, laghman noodles and manty (dumplings) that were to fill our stomachs for the next few weeks. <br><br> <br>We made only a couple of trips out of the centre of town, including one to see the main bazaar, filled with carpets, clothes, spices, food and even refrigerators! It also had plenty of food stalls and we sat to enjoy chicken and rice ...

... Even in mainland China, the government of the PRC is a mixed bag at best. The signs of modernization are everywhere, but the government seems to have no problem running roughshod over the rights of the peoples in each area. In 1945, this region revolted against the central government (as it has numerous times In the past) and the KMT, then in control of the majority of China, signed an agreement with the leaders to allow the region autonomy. When the red army defeated the KMT in 1949 ...

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... drives by a giant cloud of dust follows it and completely envelops us. Even if the truck stops I have to wait until the cloud disappears before I can even see the driver. We wait for the next hour and half but can&#8217;t find a truck willing to take us. By this time our hair has been encrusted by a layer of dust and we decide to take anything to get the f*** out of this miserable place. Finally we find a bus going south and ...

... did not exchange traveller&#8217;s cheques, nor did it allow payment for any additional expenses by way of credit card. It only accepted cash. <br><br>We thought that we may have had enough money for a room service snack for dinner but when we asked at the desk about room service no-one spoke English and we were not able to make ourselves understood. A flustered manager finally dashed down the stairs and exclaimed &#8220;I hear your room needs servicing!&#8221;<br><br>Not a ...

... we were to encounter.<br><br>To add to our demise we were both sick from a recurring stomach bug (Bukhara Belly that we contracted in Uzbekistan), cold and tired. <br><br>From the Kyrgyzstan-China border we drove a short distance to the main Chinese customs outpost. At least we were on our way and we were beginning to feel a bit more optimistic about our arrival time in Kashgar. And Abdul and our driver were friendly and pleasant company.<br><br>The ...

... We didn&#8217;t ever find out whether they were allowed into China or were forced to return to Kyrgyzstan. Anyway, it was a stern warning to us.<br><br>The road from Tash Rabat to Torugat was more like a goat track, and in some instances we found we were travelling up the middle of washed out creek beds. When we did get to the main road it was a spine jerking and perilous journey to the outer Kyrgyz checkpoint. Despite it being the first days of summer the road ...

... restaurants were setting up, boiling water in huge kettles to pour their guests never-ending bowls of black Pakistani tea. They spread carpets out on the ground or arranged three-legged benches for their customers who ate bowls of long noodles in mutton broth or sticky carrot-and-mutton pilaf. We ate breakfast and watched the crowds. Dozens of children helped their fathers and mothers get the beasts tethered and then beelined for a shack selling hand-made ice cream and ...