Unforgettable trip to southern Xinjiang

I learned from books when I was very young that Xinjiang is a good place. Far away are alpine canyons, snowy plateaus, Tianshan Mountains, Kunlun Mountains, Tarim Basin and Taklimakan Desert, where the scenery is picturesque, melons and fruits are fragrant, and there are ethnic customs, songs and dances. How can it not be fascinating?

65438+1October 10 departs from Shanghai and flies directly to Urumqi. During the flight time of nearly 6 hours, the temperature in Urumqi was 8 degrees lower than that in Shanghai, and my body felt a little cold. There is a long mound next to the airport runway, which is very special. I guess it's used to keep out the wind.

There is a subway from the airport to the city, which is the only subway in Urumqi. The population of the city is only over 3 million, and few people take the subway. My friends are all big and multidimensional, and there are two young women sitting opposite them. They are beautiful, with fair skin, long noses, big eyes and angular faces. They speak Uyghur, which is very fast. The hotel I booked is near the International Grand Bazaar, and the subway is direct.

The International Grand Bazaar has a strong Islamic architectural style, which embodies the strong national characteristics and regional culture of the western regions.

There are super-large buildings, Grand Bazaar Banquet Hall, Grand Bazaar Food Plaza, Grand Bazaar Happy Plaza, the first sightseeing tower in Xinjiang, 80 meters away, sightseeing Islamic Mosque and many tourist handicrafts boutiques.

There are not many tourists now, which may be the reason for the cold weather. There is a century-old barbecue shop, and I bought a few and prepared lunch for the next few days. 5 yuan each is original, not very hard. There are many restaurants in Xinjiang around the hotel, all of which are luxuriously decorated. However, there are not many guests. Later people know that our connecting flight time is more than 5 o'clock. Most people in Xinjiang eat around 9 o'clock, and children are after 7 o'clock. There is a steamed stuffed bun shop next to Urumqi Civil Affairs Bureau. I bought four steamed buns at three yuan each. The stuffing inside is made of mutton and beef, not freshly baked, and the taste is average. I went to a snack bar with more people in Xinjiang. It's clean, the curtains are fine white rust flowers, and the whole store looks elegant. I found that Xinjiang people pay great attention to their clothes, neat and solemn, and their hair is meticulous. Even in Ta County, thousands of kilometers away from Urumqi. But the food, I still feel a little uncomfortable.

The first day (No.65438+10/October 1 1, 2020), Urumqi-Luobu Village-Korla.

The guide driver came to pick us up early in the morning, and it was dark outside after 7 o'clock. There are four friends in the same company, and Buick's business car is very comfortable. The driver said that we had a total distance of 2500 kilometers. This is only a small part of southern Xinjiang. No wonder some people say that China is not as big as Xinjiang. Fortunately, the driver is a tour guide and an old hand. He is over 40 years old, funny and knowledgeable, mainly talkative. Laughing and laughing all the way.

A highway soon left Urumqi, all the way to the east, Turpan direction, Tuwu Expressway, two-way eight lanes, driving for 1 many hours, and then all the way south, all desert, Shan Lan in the distance is Tianshan Mountain. It's almost Dabancheng, and it's dawn. Dabancheng in the distance was covered with trees, but the girls in Dabancheng didn't see it. big braid was gone. There is also a scenery along the road, which is the wind farm. After walking for two hours at high speed, all of them were big fans, and only one spent more than 10 million. Some are rotating, some are not rotating, artificially controlled and generate electricity on demand. It's windy in Xinjiang. When it's windy, even trains blow over.

After arriving at Xiaocaohu Interchange, we stopped taking Lianhuo Expressway, went directly south, took Tuhe Expressway, crossed Tianshan Mountain, crossed Toksun County, walked all the way west along the southern foot of Tianshan Mountain and crossed Bosten Lake Scenic Area. In fact, it was more than 20 kilometers away from the expressway at that time, and there was no shadow of the lake. It's spectacular to see pieces of red pepper threshing floor along the road.

The driver said that the quality of peppers in Xinjiang is the best in the country. The roadside is full of dried peppers.

I ate the famous fragrant pear in Korla at noon, which was very sweet and watery. It's so delicious that I can eat the skin. Direct order 12kg a box, 85 yuan, after lunch, go to Luopu Village, Yuli County, an ancient village that makes a living by fishing, next to Tarim River, the fifth largest inland river in the world with a length of more than 2,000km. Luopu village is on the edge of Taklimakan. Taklimakan Desert is located in the middle of Tarim Basin, with a length of about 1000 km from east to west and a width of about 400 km from north to south. It is the second largest desert in the world after sub-Saharan Africa. "Taklimakan" means "can't get in" in Uygur language, also known as "the sea of death". Standing on the sand mountain, there are many reeds near the Tarim River desert, and the photos are beautiful. The lake is dotted with yellow Populus euphratica, which is so beautiful.

There are three old people in the village, one is very tall, both are working, both are centenarians, and they look in good spirits. In the evening, I returned to Korla. Korla is the seat of Bayinguoleng Mongolian Autonomous Prefecture government. This is a city built in the desert. The air is bad. At 8 o'clock the next day, I didn't see the city appearance of Korla.

The next day (10, No.2020+02), Korla-Populus euphratica Park-Kuqa

I left Korla early in the morning. At the destination, when I saw Yanglin, there was a desert road along the road, which was said to be a desert road, but there were still sporadic shrubs and red branches on both sides of the road. The road to go can be said to be the longest in the world-the longest road built in a flowing desert. It runs through the Taklimakan Desert, the largest desert in China, from north to south, and the length of crossing the flowing desert is as high as 446 kilometers, only 1995 is completed. This is one of the most difficult roads to build in China. In fact, it is difficult for people to see too much desert scenery in their cars. In order to ensure that the road will not be eroded by the flowing desert, the sand-fixing green belts planted on both sides of the road are half a person's height. From the car, it is hard to imagine that this is the largest desert in China. But several oil and gas zones have been discovered.

In China, 90% of Hu Yangshu grows in southern Xinjiang, and Populus euphratica in southern Xinjiang is concentrated around Tarim River. Hu Yangshu and Populus euphratica, known as "three thousand years", have a magical life cycle. They have lived for a thousand years and survived for a thousand years, but they have not rotted for a thousand years. Luntai county Tarim Populus euphratica National Forest Park is located in the middle reaches of Tarim River on the northeast edge of Taklimakan Desert, covering an area of about 100 square kilometers.

Take the shuttle bus through Populus euphratica forest, and then take photos on foot. Populus euphratica is fighting the arid climate with tenacious vitality. Whether it is lush green leaves, cracked trunks or dry branches, it symbolizes the power of life. Take photos all the way and feel its indomitable life and tenacious strength.

After the visit, today's destination, Kuqa, is desert along the road. Kuqa belongs to the eastern end of Aksu region. We arrived at the hotel early, so we can visit the night market today. Roads are being built everywhere in Kuqa, so we can only walk. There is a kind of fruit called fig, which is delicious and can be eaten with skin. The fruit in Xinjiang is very strange. Pears are eaten with skins, and they are not bad at all.

Kuqa Night Market is very successful. I suggest that friends must go.

There are many kinds of food, as well as folk song and dance performances, beef bones and large portions. 68 yuan only needs one, which is super delicious. Under the recommendation of the store, eating noodles is very appetizing.

On the third day (10, 2020+03), Kuqa-Mysterious Grand Canyon in Tianshan Mountain-Thousand Buddha Cave in Qizil-Aksu.

Shenmi Grand Canyon in Tianshan Mountain is located 64 kilometers north of Kuqa County (known as Qiuci in ancient times) in Xinjiang, surrounded by mountains at the southern foot of Tianshan Mountain, which combines the beauty of human canyon with the wonders of Tianshan Mountain. The mountains are composed of ochre argillaceous sandstone.

Go to the mysterious Tianshan Grand Canyon and take a short section of Duku Highway, which is actually a short section of highway crossing Tianshan Mountain, and the characteristics of Danxia landform appear. Deep canyons and exposed rocks of different colors form faults, straight lines or bends, which are formed through geological movements for hundreds of millions of years. This is the power of nature. When passing through a tunnel, the driver let us off and took a beautiful photo. A mountain looks like Potala Palace, which is magnificent at sunrise. I also climbed a hill and took some masterpieces. Very satisfied.

The Grand Canyon is a dry sandstone mountain on the southern slope of Tianshan Mountain, especially the mountain here is red with ochre. Under the sunshine, the rock wall is as red as a flame, which is very spectacular. The mouth of the canyon is wide, the valley bottom is flat, the winding path in the valley is secluded, and there is a hole in the sky. The cliffs on both sides go straight into the sky, in line with the movement of the sun.

After coming out of Shenmi Grand Canyon in Tianshan Mountain, we returned to the southern foot of Tianshan Mountain along the Dooku Highway, took the provincial road to the west and headed for Qizil Grottoes. The driver told us that we had been marching halfway up the Tianshan Mountains, but we just couldn't feel it. When we arrived at Qizil Grottoes, we realized that we had to go down into the valley. At noon, I ate an authentic small restaurant opened by Xinjiang people without signs. The local villagers patronized a lot, and the food they grabbed was delicious.

Qizil Grottoes, also known as the Thousand Buddha Caves in Qizil and the Buddhist Grottoes in China, are the cultural relics of ancient Qiuci country. 200 years earlier than the Mogao Grottoes. Due to the limited reception capacity, the queue only lasted for more than 2 hours. As an important grotto in the history of Buddhism spreading eastward along the Silk Road, there used to be Sanskrit here, but after thousands of years, only the remaining grottoes and mottled murals are left, which makes people sigh. The Kumarajiva monk sculpture at the entrance stared at the footsteps of modern tourists with closed eyes. Climbing the steps leading to the cliff, dozens of grotto sites are distributed on the cliff, which makes people feel the power of faith.

On the fourth day (10, 2020 14), Aksu-Kashgar ancient city-Kashgar,

There are no scenic spots on this day's trip, but the scenery along the way is beautiful. At 8: 30, before dawn, we set off and walked west along G3 102 Tuhe Expressway. The whole journey is high-speed, and the beautiful Tianshan Mountain is presented to us in another beautiful style. The mountains here are very high, and the landform of Ya Dan stretches for hundreds of kilometers. It's all this landform, which is very spectacular. Various veins of the mountain show different colors, and there are green ore bodies. The driver said it was a gold mine, which could not be seen anywhere else. Compared with Danxia in Zhangye, Gansu, it is really a drop in the bucket.

Suddenly, in the distance, there are 3322 wild camels strolling leisurely in the desert. They are all very strong. The driver said that if they have rings on their ears, they are owned. Crows, eagles, etc. You can see it from time to time along the road.

This expressway lasts for nearly 6 hours, and the road conditions are good, but there are too few service areas. Passing by a service area, I happened to see it. The fig tree gained knowledge. As we approached Kashgar, Tianshan Mountain and Kunshan gradually joined together. Think about coming all the way from Urumqi. We have traveled thousands of kilometers along Tianshan Mountain. I can't help feeling that Xinjiang is really big, and the mountains and rivers of the motherland are vast and magnificent!

The full name of Kashgar is "Kashgar", which means "the place where jade is concentrated". With a recorded history of more than 2,000 years, it is surrounded by mountains on three sides and open on one side, with a population of 4 million. In ancient times, Shule and Kashgar were regarded as the transportation hubs of the ancient Silk Road and international commercial ports where Chinese and foreign businessmen gathered. It is also the only national historical and cultural city in Xinjiang, which embodies the characteristics and essence of Uygur folk customs, culture and art, architectural style and traditional economy. After settling down in the hotel, our group can't wait to visit the ancient city. Streets and alleys in the city crisscross. Houses are mostly civil, brick and wood structures, with yellow-gray architectural tones. Brick carvings and wooden doors on the exterior walls are very ethnic. Many traditional houses have a history of one hundred years.

The ancient city of Kashgar has a large area with three commercial streets. We came to a snack street. There are many kinds of delicious food in Xinjiang, including roast chicken eggs, pigeons, steamed stuffed buns, mutton, yogurt seeds, hand-grabbed rice, nuts and fruits. What impressed me the most was roasted pumpkins, pumpkins of different sizes and nuts, which were particularly delicious. There are many children playing in the alley of the ancient city, and the children cooperate with us to take pictures.

In the morning, you can cross the ancient city of Kashgar from the hotel and go to the Aidijia Mosque. The main entrance of Aitig Mosque is bright goose yellow, which is very conspicuous in the whole ancient city of Kashgar. The Aitig Mosque was founded in the middle of15th century, and has been rebuilt and expanded many times. It is the largest mosque in Xinjiang and one of the largest mosques in China.

Entering the main entrance of the mosque, the most attractive thing is this hanging carpet, which was presented to the Aidiga Mosque by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. It's exquisite and unusual. This is a picture of pomegranate flowers. This picture means "all ethnic groups should hold together like pomegranate seeds." This slogan can be seen everywhere in Xinjiang. This multi-ethnic place is of great significance.

Gao Tai folk houses are a distinctive Uighur community in Kashgar. It was built on the Loess Plateau and is said to have a history of more than 600 years. Most of the houses here are adobe houses and brick houses, which are stacked on top of each other, winding and strewn at random, which is the witness of generations of Uighur compatriots living here. Looking in from the outside, it feels like entering a maze with a thick history. Due to the age, many houses have cracks and look crumbling. When we came here, it was being upgraded. We were not allowed to visit, so we turned around and left.

Day 5 (10, 2020) Kashi-Baisha Lake-Karakuli Lake-Ta County

The film "The Visitor on the Iceberg" made the world know about Pamirs, which means "the roof of the world" in Tajik. The flat China-Pakistan Friendship Highway starts from Kashgar, connects the plateau, and passes through Bulunkou, Bulunkou Baisha Lake and Baisha Mountain. Today, the weather is sunny and windy. We all put on thick down jackets, the fine sand on Baisha Mountain looks like satin, and there is a perfect reflection of Baisha Mountain on Baisha Lake.

A Tajik woman roasted naan with cow dung on the roadside, and our party asked for two, which were very delicious.

Further on, you will arrive at Mustag Ata, the most beautiful snow mountain in southern Xinjiang, with an altitude of 7509 meters. The name Mustag is a transliteration of Uygur language, which means "the father of iceberg". More than a dozen glaciers have developed in Mustag, and the thickness of ice on the top of the mountain is about 200 meters. Although Mustag Ata is more than 7000 meters above sea level, its slope is relatively gentle, and it is relatively easy to climb in the 7000-meter-level snow-capped mountains. Climbing mountains and skiing were allowed before. But in the past two years, in order to protect the glacier from further melting, it has been closed. Perhaps overlooking it is the best way for us to appreciate the glacier now.

Mustag and Tahman Wetland at the foot of Jiubie Peak in Gong Geer are golden in this season, which is in harmony with the snow-capped mountains. Standing by the lake overlooking the towering snow-capped mountains and looking at the calm lake surface carefully, I sigh that we are so small in front of nature, why can't we slow down, let go of our feelings, listen to the voice of nature, fear the power of nature and awaken our true feelings.

After this, it is not far from Litashkurgan County. National Highway 3 14 continues to extend on the vast Pamirs. The Stone Town here is an important pass on the ancient Silk Road. Western business travelers entered South Asia and West Asia from here, bringing tea, silk, porcelain and other commodities, while eastern business travelers also entered the Western Regions and the Central Plains from here, bringing spices, camels, gold and silver wares and other items, which is the best testimony of the prosperity of the Silk Road trade.

It's still early to Ta county, and behind the hotel is a high snow-capped mountain. After a short rest in the hotel, we visited the county. The county seat is very small, and I met a Sichuan girl. She said that after living in Ta County for more than 20 years, her daughter and husband both worked in Ta County and said that they would return to Sichuan after retirement. Imagine that it takes six hours to drive from Kashgar. In such a remote place and such a bad environment, they have worked all their lives. How much sacrifice they need to make is very respectful to those who work in the frontier of the motherland.

This is the only white race in China with a population of over 50,000. They basically don't get married outside, walking in the street, all with European faces, and their female friends look so cold and neatly dressed. There are students who have just left school by the roadside, and no parents come to pick them up. Most of the houses of county residents are two-story long residential buildings, which look very simple. Why is a flower so red? The Tajik people are well known. They have guarded the northwest border of the motherland for generations, and their lives are not rich, but their spirit of defending the country is admirable.

Day 6 (10, 2020+06) Taxian-Panlong Ancient Road-Kashi Ancient City

Because the usual route was temporarily closed due to the weather, after communicating with the driver, we took another route to Panlong Ancient Road. It is this change that allows us to appreciate different beautiful scenery and gain a lot.

At 9 o'clock, we set off. This route is almost a little bit, winding through the Kunlun Mountain Grand Canyon. The river is clear and the water potential is not great. After a big reservoir, the lake is blue and sparkling, and after a bridge in the lake, the scenery in front of us has changed its style. Valley after valley is wide and clear, and small villages with various golden vegetation are scattered in the valley. Sometimes, ethnic minority compatriots want to take a ride on the side of the road, and drivers will stop. It shows that there is no extra space in our car, and the people here are very simple. But dressed neatly. There are wild seabuckthorn on both sides of the road from time to time. Sheep eat seabuckthorn leisurely, and some even pick it up in trees. Tell me, can the sheep here taste delicious?

A beautiful picture appeared before our eyes. There are snow-capped mountains, grasslands, golden Woods, streams, flocks of cattle and sheep, and compatriots in national costumes. We kept rejoicing and admiring, getting off the bus and taking pictures, hoping to take all the beautiful scenery away.

The last stop is Panlong Ancient Road, where the valley is very wide. The mountains on both sides are spectacular, covered with snow and the valleys are far away. Standing on the mountainside and looking into the distance, my mind will really open up and sigh how small people are in front of nature. Actually, I've seen many photos online. I want to say that only when you come in person can you feel its shock and strength.

Back in Kashgar, the beautiful scenery once again made tired eyes pregnant again.

Unforgettable trip to southern Xinjiang returned smoothly. I will definitely come to Xinjiang again.