Xinjiang travel notes writing

Go deep into the Taklimakan desert in the drizzle.

I traveled all over the Taklimakan desert. During my three-week trip, I saw the beautiful autumn scenery in southern Xinjiang. Passing through Hotan at that time, what impressed me the most was the best cut cake in Xinjiang bought at the gate of Hotan Grand Bazaar. This kind of cut cake made of sugar boiled from walnuts and grapes is called "Ma Ren Sugar" in Uighur. It was read by China on the tip of the tongue. It tastes sweet but not greasy, and it's cheap. Not demonized by the outside world at all.

How delicious is it? I bought a lot at that time. Eat all the way from Hotan to Qiemo and Ruoqiang. My sweet teeth were sour, so I brushed my teeth and continued to eat. It's like poisoning. I can't stop. Finally, on the day of the thirty-second regiment, I was unfortunately poisoned by food, vomiting all day, feeling weak and hollowed out. Simply staying at the Tarim Hotel is actually just a dilapidated guest house. After a night's sleep, I recovered as before.

When I go to Hotan this time, what I look forward to most is undoubtedly the taste of cutting cakes!

However, the trip to Hotan in the evening and leaving the next day did not leave me time to buy cut cakes.

On the second day of our arrival, we set off by off-road vehicle. It is said that we will drive all day to Daria Buyi.

When the famous explorer Sven Hedin crossed the Taklimakan Desert, he discovered this small oasis "Tunguska Bazite" hidden in the "Sea of Death", which is now called Dariyabuyi, where the Creya people have lived for generations.

There was a rare light rain in Hotan on the day of departure. The average annual precipitation here is only 35 mm, but the average annual evaporation is as high as 2480 mm. I have been to the desert many times, and it is the first time to see a cloudy day in the desert, which is very fresh. In addition, I talked with two media friends in the same car about why vibrato is popular, the role of the media, the advantages and disadvantages of the rapid consumption era and other interesting but not superficial topics. Time flies, after more than two hours of normal road, we happily entered the desert.

Just before entering the desert, the sun came out. When I first entered the desert, the off-road vehicle was driving among large reeds, which made me feel like I was in the shooting scene of Zhang Yimou's Red Sorghum. These reeds are common raw materials for fixing sand grids along desert highways.

Then, the road gets crazier and crazier. Our car is the last one in the queue. There are always people ahead, but bumps are still the norm.

The road in the desert is the most swaying, sometimes passing through some dead Populus euphratica, sometimes passing through clusters of red willows, and sometimes marching towards the Kriya River. Although I knew it was a long way, I really didn't expect that we were still on the road after dark. After repeated discussions in the dark, the drivers rolled up their trouser legs and went down to the river to explore the road, and finally decided to cross the river in one place.

Shortly after crossing the river, we finally arrived at the camp in Daliyabuyi, and nearly 12 hours had passed since the departure time. We drove for more than 9 hours on the vast sand sea of 155 km.

Exploring the beauty of heaven and earth introduces the concept of "luxury camping culture" in Europe, builds camps far away from people, and provides warm and comfortable wild homes for people who love the wilderness. Camp Dariyabuyi is the third camp they set up in the west. The first two are located in Bailongdui, Lop Nur and Kukosiruk Township, Tashkurgan, respectively.

Although it was already dark when I arrived, I still felt warm when I opened the tent door and saw small lanterns and comfortable and tidy bedding. Especially for people like me who often go camping and cook in the wild, such conditions are really touching.

Although it was dark, we were still excited to visit everywhere. The success of the camp toilet account has aroused everyone's onlookers. Two toilets, one black and one white, are quietly located in the tent, and a small candle even creates a romantic and warm atmosphere.

This Biolan waterless environmental protection toilet made in Finland uses sawdust, leaves and active compost bacteria to synthesize fillers instead of flushing, which can loosen and ventilate the soil, balance carbon and nitrogen, and increase the organic matter content and nutrients in the soil.

Put down your luggage, and after visiting in the dark, we will meet at the camp account. Dinner is ready and served. The steaming mutton and carrot soup dispels the fatigue of a day's journey (although I am not tired at all), tea, food and even cakes, all of which make "going into the wild" as comfortable as city life. The only difference is that there is no internet here.

Steaming mutton soup

At night in the desert, the lowest temperature is about five degrees below zero. The luxurious tent designed by Italian designers is windproof, sand-proof, fireproof and waterproof, which is slightly warmer than the outdoor temperature, and with thick quilts and blankets, it is particularly warm and comfortable for me, who is not afraid of cold.

Our camp is backed by Populus euphratica and faces the desert. From the camp, we have to climb a sand dune and walk for about 15 minutes to reach Riyabuyi. Early in the morning, before the sun came out, I walked towards the village alone.

Daliya is a poverty-stricken village with no roads, no electricity and only solar energy. Today, there are more than 50 families left in the village. They live in a house made of red willow branches. The main function of the house is to prevent sand and shelter. In arid desert areas, there is basically no need to consider the rainproof function, so the gap between willow branches is acceptable. A slightly more delicate house will paste a layer of mud from the Keriya River on the outside of the red willow to fill the gap between the branches of the red willow.

The towering Populus euphratica surrounds the courtyard, and the breeze blows and it is golden. The village is very quiet, except for a few crows in the morning, and there is no extra sound.

Every day begins with sweeping sand. Women sweep the sand in their own yard, and on the "Nanjing Road" in the village, the children on duty sweep the sand in the corridor of Hope Primary School ... In short, even if it is not the spring with poor sandstorm, sweeping the sand is a daily routine. Sand in the desert is useless. You can't build a stove or a house. Its only function is to bury everything. How many once glorious ancient cities have been buried under the Taklimakan desert? Only the scattered wooden stakes exposed remind people that today's "sea of death" was once full of vitality.

This land is not even barren. Survival is not easy. Creole people only eat naan, mutton and "desert ginseng" cistanche deserticola.

The internal structure of Liu Hong's house is very simple. There is a platform about 30 cm above the ground where people cook, eat and sleep. People born in the desert have learned to live in harmony with sand for a long time. Every household has a bunker, which is used to make a unique "bear market" here.

Firstly, dry Populus euphratica was used to heat the bunker, and then the prepared Kumaqi was put into the bunker and buried. The heated carbon ash transferred the heat to Kumaqi evenly. Wait a minute, take it out and pat off the sand, and you can enjoy the steaming delicious food!

We watched the whole process of making Kumachi in Daria Buyi. The villagers made Kumaqi with mutton stuffing for us. Buried for a while, the smell of mutton emerged from the cracks in the sand, which made everyone salivate.