The Wonders of China's Silk Road

Adieu to Shanghai and China

2008-08-21T12:54:00.008-04:00

Home Sweet Home . . . it is so great to sleep in my own bed after 8 weeks. When I came home from Europe, I only slept in my bed for 4 hours before I took off for China, so I am totally loving my bed right now. It is good to be home, to return to some level of normalcy and routine, and not have to worry about living out of a suitcase. I did love traveling this summer - new experiences and meeting new people :-) It has been a total blast, despite the non-stop hustle and bustle! Until next summer?!

Well to finish up my Silk Road study tour, we took a trip to Hangzhou, which is about 2.5 hours south of Shanghai. Hangzhou is also a major city on the maritime Silk Road. The purpose of visiting Hangzhou was to learn how silk and tea are made. Silk and tea were major exports on the Silk Road, silk to a lesser extent and tea to a greater extent. It was really interesting to learn that Hangzhou was the most expensive city in China, largely because of its huge tea industry. The standard of living is higher, which is highly evident when you see where and how people live in the city. Are there still people that are living below the poverty level? Yes, but they are fewer and far between compared to the other major cities in China. Just as silk and tea brought great wealth to China along the Silk Road centuries ago, it continues to bring the same success, if not more, to China today. Hangzhou is a beautiful city with picturesque views of the mountains and water. It is considered to have the best feng shui in all of China, which is why many people believe Hangzhou has been so prosperous throughout China's history.

The Beauty of Hangzhou

The machine used to turn the cocoon into silk thread.

A woman breaking down the cocoon to prep for the silk process.

A Tea Farm in Hangzhou

The Beauty of Lingying Temple in Hangzhou

Stalking the Monks

I have been to Shanghai three times, including this trip, and it never ceases to amaze me! I love Shanghai! Now, the previous times I have been in Shanghai, I have never seen the Bund at night. The lights are spectacular, but it is a bit tricky to see because of the pollution and the temperature. China doesn't have a strong enough power grid to support the nation's electrical supply, especially during the summer, so the government is extremely conservative about the use of electricity during the summer. So the government has a specific rule for the Bund lights during the summer. If the temperature is above 38 degrees celsius (roughly the high 90s), the Bund lights are not turned on. The temperature has to be below 38 degrees celsius for the Bund lights to be turned on. The previous times, I wasn't so lucky to catch the lights because it was so hot. I remember going up to the rooftop of the Peace Hotel for drinks and the Bund was pitch black - it was so disappointing. This time the Peace Hotel was closed for renovations, but I got to see the Bund lights - even if it was crowded with masses of people. It was so beautiful! The perfect end to an awesome summer, and the perfect way to say goodbye to Shanghai!

Shanghai Nights on the Bund

Thank you all for reading my blog and following me along the Silk Road! Hugs and Kisses!

Shanghai Days & Nights

2008-08-18T09:41:00.005-04:00

Hi, everyone! I had quite an interesting day today. We were supposed to take a tour of Hangzhou this morning, but didn’t bring our passports to the tour center, so they wouldn’t let us go. We bought tickets for tomorrow and will bring our passports, so the Chinese police don’t arrest us. Hangzhou is considered the “Venice of the East” and plays an integral part of the maritime Silk Road, like the port city of Shanghai. I am hoping that when we stop by the silk factory in Hangzhou, I can buy some cocoons and raw silk to explain the silk-making process to the kids.

After our little mishap in the morning, we headed over to the Shanghai Museum. It is one of my favorite museums in all of China. My favorite exhibits are the Ancient Buddhist Sculptures, Chinese Calligraphy and Chinese Paintings – so beautiful. In addition to their already plentiful artifacts from the Silk Road, the museum also had a special exhibit on coins found along the Silk Road in central Asia. It was interesting to see Greek and Hellenistic influences along the Silk Road amongst the coinage used for trade.

A view of the Shanghai Grand Theatre (the weird looking building on the left) with Shanghai skyscrapers in the background from the Shanghai Museum.

The Shanghai Museum was built in the shape of an ancient Chinese pot.

A beautiful wood-carved sculpture of a Buddha from the Shanghai Museum

From the Shanghai Museum we headed over to Yu Gardens and the Old City. It was a great glimpse of the Old Shanghai from a bygone era. Yu Gardens has basically kept the old style architecture and converted the buildings into a glorified shopping center. It is quite the tourist location and a draw with all its shops and food stalls.

Old City

A pond in Yu Garden

Old City Architecture at Yu Garden

Mom at Yu Garden

I did a little research today on the “Shanghailanders.” My NEH readers know what I am talking about. I visited the Shanghai Jewish Refugees Museum today. The part of the museum is housed in a former synagogue known as the Ohel Moshe Synagogue. The synagogue is no longer active, but was restored to its original form in 1928. We arrived after closing time and they were generous enough to give as a private tour in English (yeah!) of the museum. The museum was restored last year by the Chinese government and cost over a million dollars to renovate. The renovations were beautiful and the exhibit was really quite enlightening and interesting. I found that the Chinese Ambassador to Austria, Dr. Fengshan Ho, along with Sugihara, gave out visas to Jews in Austria. He was responsible for saving over 30,000 Jews from dieing in Dachau. He was also recognized by the Israeli government in 2007, and was honored and memorialized at Yad Vashem. Dr. Ho was considered “the Chinese Oskar Schindler.” I also learned that when the Jews arrived in Shanghai, they were placed in a ghetto in the Hongkou District. If they wanted to leave the ghetto, they had to obtain permission from the Japanese governor because Shanghai was under Japanese control at the time. The German Nazis tried to encourage the Japanese to carry out the “Final Solution” in Shanghai as well, but, thankfully, it never came to fruition. The museum also has some beautiful sculptures from Canadian artists to promote peace and to honor the Jews in the Holocaust – so beautifully done. If you have any other questions on the Shanghailanders, let me know.

Dr. Fengshan Ho - the "Chinese Oskar Schindler"

The Shanghai Jewish Refugees Museum in the former Ohel Moshe Synagogue

Then we ended the day at Xin Tian Di, one of Shanghai's trendiest and hottest night spots. I love Xin Tian Di! It is one of my must sees when I visit Shanghai. It has great, but expensive by Chinese standards, restaurants, clubs and live music after dark. If I was with my friends, I would totally be there right now as opposed to blogging, but my mom is totally not feeling the night scene at Xin Tian Di. She likes the atmosphere, but isn't into the partying, so sad for me :-( There is always a next time!

Sites in Xian Tian Di

I updated the post below with pictures. I finally got the pictures to upload on photobucket.

The Home Stretch . . .

2008-08-17T11:48:00.009-04:00

Shanghai High! Yeah! We arrived in Shanghai today! While I love Xian, Shanghai is my absolute favorite city in China! I love Shanghai! It actually reminds me of NYC in some ways – so cosmopolitan and hustle and bustle, yet it is uniquely Shanghai! We arrived in Shanghai this afternoon, and decided to head to Nanjing Road. Nanjing Road is the most famous street to shop at in Shanghai. There are some many stores and people from all walks of life walking up and down the street. We stopped at some food markets and the Beijing 2008 Olympics store. I picked up some Olympic key chains and cell phone charms because I am completely obsessed with the Olympic mascots. They are so cute! Of course, we stopped at the Bund to see the view beyond the Huang Pu River - the beautiful Pearl Oriental TV Tower!

Nanjing Road

Huan Huan and I at Nanjing Road

The Bund - the Pearl Oriental TV Tower is the building with the pink spheres as part of the body.

The famous Peace Hotel, which is currently closed for renovations. Bummer! It is one of my favorite night spots to watch the night lights on the Bund.

The Customs House shows the original architecture of the French Concession in 1920s Shanghai. The same can be said of the Peace Hotel as well.

The view from our hotel room at night!

The last few days in Xian were kind of a whirlwind! We made a trip to Huashan Mountain. The view was supposed to be amazing, but it was kind of disappointing because it was a hazy day, so you really couldn’t see much. It was a nice view in some ways, but having been to Tianshan Mountain, it was really lacking. At the peak of Huashan Mountain were thousands of padlocks that were engraved with family blessings. The theory behind the padlock was that your family would always be safe, happy and together. So I, being the sucker that I am for this kind of stuff, bought a padlock for about $1.50 and had it engraved with my family members’ names, and locked it on one of the chains on top of the mountain. I took a picture of its location, and kept the key. If I go back one day, I hope I can find it again!

Me at the North Peak on Huashan Mountain

My lock on Huashan Mountain. Will I be able to find it in a few years?

The last day in Xian, I had to squeeze in a visit to the site marked as the beginning of the Silk Road. A gate and a caravan monument mark the beginning of the Silk Road in Xian. Xian was integral to the Silk Road given its position as the capital city and also its relative location to the Yellow River.

The gate marks the beginning of the Silk Road in Xian.

A caravan monument built to commemorate the beginning of the Silk Road in Xian.

We also visited the Bell Tower, the Drum Tower, the Shaanxi Provincial Museum and the Wild Goose Pagoda. By my favorite place in the old city is the Muslim Quarter. I love the Muslim Quarter because it has so many cool things to see – the street markets, food stalls, the people and the Great Mosque! The Great Mosque, in Xian, is the largest mosque in China, and is still in use today. There is a large population of Uygars in Xian, though not as large as the cities in western China, like Urumqi and Turpan. We did quite a bit of shopping, but as luck would have it, I couldn’t find a prayer wheel anywhere. I did quite a bit of people watching and saw some interesting happenings in the Muslim Quarter. I passed by a few mosques and wanted to take pictures, but I couldn’t go in and it was during prayer services, so I didn’t want to intrude with my picture – taking.

The Bell Tower in the center of Xian, Old City

The Muslim Quarter

Countdown to home – 3 days!

At the Beginning in Xian . . .

2008-08-14T10:56:00.002-04:00

Okay, so I am not as much of a pro at taking the train as I thought I was. We missed the train because I didn’t check the time on the ticket like I should have. We ended up taking a later train, and thank the lord there was space, otherwise I would have had to pay for another night at the hotel. Thankfully, we made it to Xian in one piece!

It is so great to be back in Xian and in a big city, not by New York standards, but by China standards. Xian has always held a special place in my heart, since my first visit back in 2004. I find the Old City so enchanting with so much to see and experience. I just love walking the streets and markets, and finding interesting things to buy and just see. It represents Chinese culture at its best!

Just a little history on Xian . . . it used to be the capital of China before Beijing, but the city was known as Chang’an. It was the starting point of the great trade caravans of the Silk Road. Xian was at its most glorious under the Tang Dynasty when it opened its doors to the widely cultural and economic influences of Byzantium, Persia, Arabia, the Kingdoms of Central Asia, Tibet, Burma, India, Korea and Japan. The Silk Road was at its golden Age under the Tang Dynasty. The Silk Road brought Islam, Buddhism and Christianity to the Shaanxi province, where it has flourished throughout the centuries. Xian is a melting pot of Silk Road culture.

Our first stop was Huaqing Hot Springs, which is located in the foothills of Lishan Mountain. Huaqing Hot Springs served as the luxurious bathhouses for the imperial dynasties. Its most famous inhabitants were Yang Guifei and Chiang Kai-shek. Yang Guifei was the concubine of Emperor Xuanzong, and considered one of the most beautiful women in all of China. Huaqing Hot Springs was a gift to her from the emperor. Ah, what men will do for a pretty face. Chiang Kai-shek, the leader of the Nationalist Army, used Huaqing Hot Springs as his headquarters. It was the site of the “Xian Incident.” In 1936, one of Chiang Kai-shek’s own men collaborated with the Communists to kidnap him. Chiang was later freed when Stalin put pressure on the Communists to free him, and was exiled to Taiwan after his release.

Huaqing Springs

The Statue is Yang Guifei, the most beautiful woman in all of China.

Xian’s most famous calling card is the Qin Terracotta Army. This was the third time I have visited what the Chinese call the “Eighth Wonder of the World,” and I am still in awe of these statues. All of them were handmade and there are thousands of them, most have still not been exhumed because it is better to have them buried for preservation. Emperor Shihuangdi had them built for his burial mound, so that he would have an army to protect him in the after life. It sounds weird, I know, but it is true. He started planning his burial mound before he was even close to death because he knew his plans would take years to complete. Incidentally, my family and I are descendants of the Qin Dynasty, so I keep telling people that I am technically a princess, and they laugh, but it is true. My mother says it explains why I am so mean to the kids in class because Shihuangdi was a really cruel emperor and ruled the people quite harshly.

Qin Terracotta Army Museum

Chefs making noodles for lunch - yummy!

The Eighth Wonder of the World

What makes these people so special that they get to go into the pit and I don't?

Today, we visited the Forest of Steles Museum. It is one of my favorite museums in Xian. It basically consists of over one thousand inscribed stone tablets. Most tablets are basically famous Chinese writings, such as Confucius’ Analects, but some are beautiful works of art. I can’t believe the artistic ability these people possessed to carve Chinese calligraphy and works of art into stone – so beautiful. I even learned from one of the stone tablets that Christianity came to China a thousand years before the official date recorded. The tablets have also recorded the happenings of the Silk Road, and the museum itself also houses many Silk Road relics.

Forest of Steles Museum

A header from one of the stone tablets.

A man making a scroll from of the stone tablets.

A garden of carved stone figures.

There is so much more to show you of Xian, so check back soon!

Goodbye, Lanzhou!

2008-08-11T08:11:00.006-04:00

Farewell to Lanzhou! I am excited to be moving on to Xian, one of my favorite cities in China! Before I get there, I will have to endure one more long train ride, 9-hours. At least it will be an overnight train, so by the time I get up tomorrow morning, I should be in Xian. Wish me luck with my luggage tonight and pray that I don't get kicked off the train, especially since Lier is back in the States right now and can't bail me out of trouble anymore. LOL!

Today, we visited Five Springs Mountain. I was so disappointed because it is supposed to be temples built on the side of the mountain because of the five springs that flow down the mountain, but it was nothing more than a glorified amusement park. There were Buddhist temples located up the mountain, but right next to the temples would be pool tables, bumper cars or other types of amusements. I felt like it was a bit disrespectful to the temples and the faithful who worship at those temples. This was definitely a good example of Chinese capitalism at its best.

Five Springs Mountain

Boys playing by one of the springs.

I had to sneak in a sunflower I found at one of the springs.

I cut our visit to Five Spring Mountain short, and headed over to White Pagoda Park. We took a cable car up to the summit of the park. I know I have a penchant for wanting to be in high places and riding cable cars or balloons in the sky. If I had to choose a power to have, it would definitely be flying! When we reached the top of the mountain, we decided to take in the view and walk down the mountain and back to the Yellow River. The view of Lanzhou from the top was amazing! As we started walking down, we encountered a more impoverished area that looked run down and on the verge of being torn down, but people were still living there. There was massive construction around this area - a new hotel for the tourists. The people living in those buildings were probably in the process of getting kicked out of their homes because the land was needed for the new development. The government did the same thing in Beijing to build up for the Olympics. That is progress for you.

View from the Cable Car above the Yellow River

Kids playing in the Yellow River, not sure how clean it is.

View of Lanzhou

View of Lanzhou from the summit of White Pagoda Park

Are there any signs of life here?

Signs of life.

I have to run and catch a train! Catch you when I get to Xian!

Greetings from Lanzhou!

2008-08-10T11:07:00.004-04:00

So I am trying to stay out of trouble while in China, but my friend Lier seems to be a magnet for bad luck lately. I feel really bad for her. She was pick-pocketed at least 6 times while in Urumqi. Every time she goes through security check, they always check her bags. Our taxi was pulled over in Dunhuang for a security check and she was yelled at by the police officer for not carrying her passport with her. While on the train from Dunhuang to Lanzhou, we almost got kicked off the train because we were in the wrong bunks. Thankfully, it worked out okay. The people that had purchased tickets for the bunks let us stay in them and switched with us. They seemed really angry at first, but then again I didn't really understand what they were saying, and Chinese people shout at each other when politely conversing, so who knows. The train conductor assured us, no one was upset and that everyone was fine. It was just a misunderstanding and lots of people were watching because they were just curious to see what was going on. Now you would think that I would be used to attracting attention in foreign countries, being everyone kept staring at me while I was in Czech Republic, Germany and Poland, but we were the most popular people on the train yesterday. After our brief moment of pure terror because we are in a totalitarian state, people started coming over to our sleeper area because they heard us speaking English to each other. They were so intrigued by the fact that we were speaking English, they came over to engage us in conversation and to practice their English. It was so weird, but also a relief to know people were not angry with us for the mishap. We met so many great people on the train and they kept us company for hours, which is great on a 14-hour train ride. We met a girl going to university in the fall for law, an English language teacher and two military officials. They were very strange at first. They asked a lot of questions about America and were very patriotic about China. They implied China was better because the military response to the Sichuan Earthquake was immediate and well thought out, compared to America's response to hurricane Katrina. We also discussed the issue of Tibet with them, and they said that the people of Tibet were happy with Chinese rule, it was the Dalai Lama and the extremists who are upset because they lost power to the Chinese government and want it back. The situation got sticky when my mother brought up the issue of Falon Gong. They didn't want to talk about it, and left to smoke a cigarette. When we asked what they did for a living, they looked a little cautious and even left the room to discuss what they were going to say. I immediately thought they were like government spies or something. When they asked to take a picture of us, we asked to take a picture of them and they said no. They didn't want to be photographed because they were military officials. I guess they are high ranking officials then. They were really nice though. They helped us with our luggage and said if we ran into any problems in China, we could contact them to help us out. It's good to know people in high places!

We arrived in Lanzhou around midnight this morning and just hit the sack. By the time morning came around, it was time to bid farewell to Lier, my dear friend. She has been our rock throughout this whole entire trip. She made all the necessary arrangements for us and was a tour guide and translator for the last week. I don't know how she put up with my mother and I, but we are so thankful and grateful for all her help throughout the last couple of months, so the Silk Road tour would be a success. She did an awesome job! Love you, Lier! How are we going to survive without her?! It is a little scary because I haven't really traveled China without a translator before, so I guess there is a first time for everything. I think it will be okay. As we move further east, more people speak English and it will be easier to get around the bigger cities, since I have been there before. We did fairly well today, so I think it will be fine when we hit Xian and Shanghai.

We had a pretty easy day today. Lanzhou is a major city on the silk road because it is near the Yellow River and the Hexi Corridor. These two connections make it an ideal trading post to the old silk road, and it later became China's main defensive city in the west. We visited the Yellow River today, and my mother was shocked to see how dirty it was. She thought it was going to be golden like the name implies, but it was just brown, muddy and filthy. It is one of the most polluted rivers in China. Despite the pollution, we took a quick speed boat ride on the river to see the bridges and White Pagoda Park on the other side of the river. We even saw people floating in the river on wooden rafts! I thought they were going to fall over, given the water was so choppy. After the speed boat ride, we walked along the river, did some people watching, and crossed Lanzhou's most famous bridge, Zhongshan Bridge. Zhongshan Bridge was constructed in 1907 by German and American engineers and was "the first bridge over the Yellow River." We crossed the bridge to visit White Pagoda Park, but when we got there my camera died. UGH! We decided to head back to the hotel, so I could charge my camera. I couldn't visit White Pagoda Park or anywhere else for that matter without my camera.

Monument at the Entrance to the Yellow River Observation Park

Elderly Chinese people doing their morning exercise - dancing! So cute!

Mom on our Speed Boat Tour of the Yellow River

View of Zhongshan Bridge and White Pagoda Park

The Summit of White Pagoda Park

A Mosque along the Yellow River

After taking a break at the hotel, we decided to visit White Pagoda Park tomorrow and would spend the evening walking around the neighborhood. My mother is obsessed with tea, so we visited a tea shop where they made us some really great tea! She also bought a ton of tea, probably enough to fill Boston Harbor again! LOL! It was just nice to walk around the streets and do some people watching. We had dinner at a little restaurant and I came back to blog! Tomorrow night, we will be embarking on our last train ride of the trip, yeah! I am so over the train because the luggage is such a pain on the train. This time the train ride to Xian will only be 9-hours, so it won't be as bad as the 14-hour ones. I am excited to be going to Xian! It is one of my most favorite cities in China because of the Terracotta Warriors, Steles Museum, the Grand Mosque and the Muslim Quarter. I can't wait to share Xian with you!

Off to pack again. Hugs and Kisses to everyone! Have fun!

Let the Olympics Begin . . .

2008-08-08T10:34:00.013-04:00

Well, it is official. The Beijing Olympics have finally begun on this auspicious day - according to the Chinese anyway (08/08/2008 - very lucky!). The opening ceremony was met with much fanfare tonight as the entire hotel staff is preoccupied watching the festivities. It was beautiful and well choreographed, and China and it's people have every right to be proud of their accomplishments for Beijing 2008. I am going to see if I can check out some of the Olympic festivities while I am in Shanghai.

Me with the Fire Mascot, Huan Huan, for the Beijing Olympics

Back to the Silk Road . . . . Today in Dunhuang, we visited the famed Mogao Caves, which contain caves painted with Buddhas and clay-made or stone-carved Buddhas. It was so awesome! The only problem was they wouldn't allow an photography, understandably so, but still a downer nonetheless. I did manage to sneak a few pictures of the 7 story Buddha when no one was looking. I know shame on me, but I couldn't resist. I even apologized to the Buddha after I was finished, so I could avoid bad karma later. The caves and Buddhas were amazing! Words cannot describe what we saw in those caves and pictures can only tell you so much. It was just breathtaking and so majestic to be in those caves.

Mogao Caves - This pagoda holds a 9-story Buddha, so beautiful!

Cave Paintings of Buddha and the Bodhisattvas

Ruins of a Buddha Statue and the Bodhisattvas

After the Mogao Caves, we took a siesta because it was just too hot to be outside at our next stop, Crescent Moon Spring, a mini-oasis which offered paragliding, sand-surfing, ATVing and camel-riding. I didn't do any of those activities, so disappointing. I couldn't find the paragliding station. It was too hot to walk up the sand dunes and slide down. I am allergic to camels (I think?). I also didn't have time to stop at the ATM to withdraw money, ugh! I was a little disappointed because I expected a little more to see at this sight, but there was only the Crescent Moon Spring and it's mini-oasis. The view was still spectacular, but the sand was scorching hot! I wore my sandals and the sand was burning my skin as we trudged through the sand and desert to reach the oasis. I don't know how people did it in the days of Marco Polo because I wouldn't be able to do it for days, when I barely survived one hour. One little girl kept telling her mother it was too hot to walk on the sand, but in the end she trudged on and did some sand-surfing herself. She was so cute!

Crescent Moon Spring

This was a beautiful shot taken by Lier from the top of a scorching hot sand dune. Her poor little feet!

Camel Caravan at Crescent Moon Spring

We had to rush back to the hotel after Crescent Moon Spring, so my mother could catch the opening ceremony for the Olympics. I managed to catch the sunset from the top of our hotel, and spent some quiet time just admiring the beauty of Dunhuang before we leave tomorrow for Lanzhou. I have another 14 train ride to look forward too. Have a great weekend everyone! Miss you!

Breakfast with a View

Sunset in Dunhuang

A Glimpse of China's Northern Silk Road . . .

2008-08-08T03:12:00.010-04:00

I developed a sweet tooth for Uygur ice cream - so light and yummy!

A Uygur woman selling roasted corn on the street.

Uygur Street Vendor in Urumqi

Mom and Lier inspecting a silk carpet for purchase.

Windmills in the desert outside of Urumqi.

An adorable group of Uygur children.

I love sunflowers!

The Ruins of Jiaohe in Turpan

The Grape Vineyards of Grape Valley in Turpan

A Performance of the Traditional Ugyur Wedding Dance in Grape Valley in Turpan

Flaming Mountain in Turpan - It was as hot as Hades!

Tianshan Mountain and the Heavenly Lake

View from the Cable Car on Tianshan Mountain

View from the Train to Dunhuang

All Aboard for Dunhuang!

2008-08-07T11:08:00.006-04:00

Well, I survived the 14 hour train ride from Urumqi to Dunhuang. It was quite the experience traveling on the train. I had reservations about traveling on a Chinese train because I wasn't sure whether or not it was going to be sanitary or safe - I heard a lot of horror stories from various people and websites, but my friend and tour guide, Lier, assured me it was fine and that we had the best accommodations. The train station in and of itself was completely packed and we had to go through massive security checks with only one entrance into the train station - it was absolute mayhem! People were pushing and shoving each other, and cutting the line - Chinese people are so aggressive! After check-in we headed to the waiting room to wait for the call to board our train. One thing I noticed about Chinese travelers was they often do not use luggage, but pack everything in a big plastic bag or multiple plastic bags. Some people do use small carry-on luggage, but nothing like my big suitcase. I had an inkling my luggage was going to be a problem when I saw what everyone else was bringing on the train. When the boarding call came, we headed to our rail car. I was fully expecting a private sleeper cabin for four people with a private bathroom. What we ended up staying in was a cubicle area with 6 beds (3 on each wall) with no door or bathroom, but had 2 windows with a view. The cubicle was open to everyone, so we had to lock up all our valuables in the luggage and sleep with our bags underneath the pillow.I couldn't store my luggage because it wouldn't fit under the bed, so I just had to slide it in between the beds, so it was kind of out of the way. What was I going to do on the train without getting bored. I had my journal, romance novel and guide book with me. Lier was reading my guidebook when the security officer came over and was intrigued by the fact she was reading an English book. We thought it would be better if we just told people we were from China, so they would just leave us alone. Everyone was so curious about us because we were speaking English to each other. Since Lier and I speak different dialects anyway, we can only communicate through English. People were so intrigued by us, so the security guard came over and struck up a conversation with Lier. Lier also tried to teach him some English, like okay and alright. He also gave us some pointers on what to see throughout our trip, and gave us some really good recommendations for cheap travel. Meanwhile, I was writing in my journal in English, of course, and kept commenting on my handwriting. He asked what I was writing, and Lier told him I was writing a book about my trip. While I was writing in my journal, a Chinese man grabbed my journal out of my hand to see my handwriting. He didn't even ask for it. I was a little shocked by it, and the security guard asked if I was upset by it. I told him I wasn't because I knew the man was curious about my handwriting and just wanted to see it up close. He couldn't read my journal anyway, so it was no big deal, just a little shocking that he grabbed it. I wrote in my journal for a few hours, not realizing the time. The security guard kept telling passer-bys how smart I was to be so fluent in English that I could not only speak the language, but write in it fluently. He also said he was waiting for me to finish my writing, so he could turn out the lights. I didn't realize he was waiting for me and apologized, and he said it was fine because I was doing important work. In all honesty, I was actually finishing up my journals for the NEH tour, nothing majorly important.

My biggest dread was the bathroom. If you don't already know, China is infamous for not using western style toilet bowls, they use squatter bowls. I have no idea why, but they do. The squatters make a huge mess and I didn't look forward to sharing the bathroom with 50 other people. I tried to be a camel, so I didn't have to use the bathroom at all. It worked for about 12 hours. I couldn't hold it anymore. It was okay, but it wasn't by any means anywhere near my idea of a perfect bathroom. The sleeper was fine and I was able to get a decent amount of rest, and the ride was pretty smooth. We will be taking another 14 hour train ride in two days, so I am a pro now!

When we arrived in Dunhuang, all we could see for miles was sand. Dunhuang is located in the middle of the Gobi Desert and is basically a big oasis. We took a taxi to our hotel, The Silk Road Dunhuang Hotel, and fell in love with the hotel. It is so beautiful with its rock gardens and zen decor - great for relaxation and meditation. After a quick lunch, we were ready to go. We hired the taxi driver to be our private driver for the next two days for the low price of $50 USD - that is like a month's salary for him. He was going to take us to a few of the lesser known places today - the Ancient Dunhuang City (actually a Japanese created movie set), the 1000 Buddha Caves (only 16 still exist), Yanguan Pass, and the White Horse Pagoda (total disappointment because there really wasn't anything to see - we were in and out in ten minutes). My favorites were the 1000 Buddha Caves and Yanguan Pass. The 1000 Buddha Caves were so beautifully painted and the colors were still vibrant after thousands of years. Unfortunately, we weren't able to take any pictures well inside because they are so meticulous about preserving the few caves they have left. Yanguan Pass was the best! Yanguan Pass was a fortress that people traveling the silk road had to pass through in order to get to the emperor in Chang'an. The fortress was converted into a beautiful museum with a great exhibit on the Silk Road. After the museum visit you are given the opportunity to visit the ruins of the only surviving beacon tower from the pass. The beacon tower was cool to see, but the view from the top, being it was the highest point, was absolutely amazing. It had the most amazing view of the Gobi desert, the oasis, and the snow covered mountains that border the Gobi Desert - simple perfection! I have never seen anything quite like it! It was so beautiful! Wait until you see the pictures!

Now that I have my Mac connected to the internet, I am going to post some pictures in my next posting. Hugs and Kisses!

Living Out of a Suitcase

2008-08-06T03:34:00.005-04:00

Today, we will be leaving Urumqi and taking an overnight train to our next stop along the Silk Road, Dunhuang. Lier is intent on us having a true Chinese experience, so we will travel like true Chinese people on a crowded train. My only request was we get the soft sleeper, which is considered the best accommodations in Chinese standards. Usually, I am not a "prissy miss," but roughing it in China is very different from roughing it in the westernized nations. I am trying not to sound like a rude American, but I just can't rough it the Chinese way. The cost was really cheap too - roughly $35, which is way less expensive than taking Amtrak to any city in the USA. I am excited to be visiting Dunhuang - it is considered to be a true gem along the Silk Road. We will be visiting the Mogao Caves, which houses some of the most spectacular Buddhist artwork in the world - paintings on the walls or statues carved out of the stone or the caves themselves. Dunhuang is a little oasis in the middle of the Gobi Desert, so it will be really cool to experience desert life however brief it may be. I may also try some sand surfing. I heard it was a lot of fun, so I am totally game as long as it isn't too dangerous or too hot out! The heat in the desert has been scorching hot - over 100 degrees fahrenheit! Don't know how the camels and donkeys survive out there for so long.

I just wanted to provide a quick recap below of where we have been so far.

Day 2 - Turpan
Lier made arrangements for us to visit Turpan, another city along the Silk Road. Turpan is known as the hottest place on Earth because it is at a low depression geographically. It is basically in the middle of the desert, but it's main staple is grapes. They have grape vineyards that produce the sweetest grapes in the world (at least that is what I was told). Grapes are easy to grow and require a minimal amount of water, so they are everywhere in Turpan, which is so weird given the city is in the middle of the desert. We took a tour of the karez system (the ancient sewer system started in Turpan), visited the desert home of a famous musician, visited the Flaming Mountain, hiked up to the Jiaohe Ruins (abandoned the hike about half way because it was as hot as Hades up there), visited Grape Valley, and had fruit and refreshments at a Uygur home. The Uygur family even taught us the traditional wedding dance! On the way back to Urumqi, we got stuck in a sand storm. It was so crazy! I never experienced anything like it. The wind was so strong that the sand was obstructing the view of the driver. He was having trouble driving the bus because he couldn't see in front of him. The wind also kept unsealing the door of the bus, so we had to stop a couple of times so it could be tightened and sealed again. It was a little scary because the last thing I wanted was to be stranded in the middle of the desert at 9pm. We made it back safely, but noticed the huge drop in temperature as well. It went from over 100 degrees to about 50 - 60 degrees, which I hear is common in the desert, but still weird nonetheless.

Day 3 - Tianshan Mountain and the Heavenly Lake
While our trip to Turpan was scorching hot, our trip to Tianshan Mountain and the Heavenly Lake was rainy and cold. It was raining and so cold, I had to buy another pashmina to stay warm, since I was wearing a short sleeved shirt. It was funny because at the base of mountain, vendors were set up not only to sell their wares, but also to rent clothing, like jackets, coats and rain jackets. A lot of people ended up renting communist uniform jackets to stay warm, so strange, yet they made a load of money of the rentals - much more profitable that way. We took a bus 3/4 of the way up the mountain and stopped for lunch. I wanted to take a cable care, so I could get a good view of the mountain going up, but the tour guide wouldn't allow it since we had lunch reservations. Lunch was extremely disappointing, but there was nothing we could do about it. The tour guide was very disorganized and didn't supply us with a lot of information and got flustered when we asked her questions about the tour. She got in quite a few arguments with people throughout the tour and really didn't show a lot of care for her customers. Anyway, we hiked up the rest of the way to see Heavenly Lake. I don't know what was worse hiking up the mountain or walking up 236 steps in the tower of St. Mary in Krakow. I do know it was worth the hike. The view was absolutely amazing! Picture should be inserted here, but will try to add one later. You could see the snow-covered mountains and the water in the lake was so clear and glistened, even under a rainy day. We decided to take a boat ride on the lake. The boat took us to another mountain where we had to hike up over 300 steps to reach a Taoist Temple. This hike was worse than the first one, but was well worth the view at the top. We were given a tour of the temple and instructed on how to pray properly. Now this is where the temple turned a bit mercenary. The priest told my mother I was having marriage problems and needed to see the fortune teller to help with my "marriage problem." We went to see the fortune teller and he told my mother I wouldn't get married until 2010. He told my mother I needed to carry a tacky medallion to increase my chances of finding a good match and light a 6 foot tall incense as an offering to the Quanyin - the fairy godmother. The total cost of the package was 6000 Yuan, which is roughly $900 USD. I was like forget it and let's go. My mother told him she didn't have any cash, so he said they accepted credit cards for payment. I have never been in a religious establishment where they asked for money to offer a prayer to god. I have to say it is so China to commercialize everything, including religion. My mother still concerned about my marital state offered 50 yuan ($7 USD) for the medallion and he accepted it - what a rip-off. After offering our closing prayers to the fairy godmother, we headed down the mountain on the cable car. The cable car was and open-air car, so I was able to take some beautiful pictures of the mountain as we headed down. It was so beautiful! The cable car ride was definitely the highlight of the day.

Today was more of a chill day because I am really starting to lose steam - too much traveling and living out of my suitcase. We visited the Xinjiang Provincial Museum where I did more research on the Silk Road and bought a book. The museum was beautiful, even though the exhibits lacked a great deal of knowledge. It didn't go into a lot of content on the artifacts, just labeled them. After the museum we visited the Uygur section of Urumqi, where my mother did more shopping. She purchased a jade Guanyin - hello, customs and luggage limit! The Uygur section was quite interesting and I was able to get a lot of people shots, but one could also tell it was also the most impoverished area in Urumqi. The Uygurs work so hard for so little money. We bought a ton of fruit because it is so sweet, delicious and cheap here. We stumbled across a mosque where the Uygur men were walking in for prayer and saw a ocean of shoes as they were preparing for prayer. I wish I would have been able to go in, but I didn't want to cause another scandal.

I need to pack for our 14 hour train ride, so I will check in soon! Thanks for reading!

Where am I?

2008-08-05T09:04:00.005-04:00

Well, I made it to Urumqi in one piece, but just barely. While the flight to Shanghai was uneventful, the flight to Urumqi was a little tense. We arrived early in Shanghai, so I tried to catch an earlier flight to Urumqi so I didn't have to sit in the airport for 8 hours. The check-in agent gave me such a hard time about changing my flight. He kept asking why I didn't know the new flight number, why I needed to go to Urumqi, why I wanted an earlier flight, why I was traveling in China and what my middle name was. I thought he wasn't going to let us board, and then he just handed us our tickets and told us to leave. It is a bit daunting to be in a totalitarian country. I feel like I have to think about and watch everything I do or say because you never know what could happen with "big brother" constantly on the watch. When we landed in Urumqi, no one could speak or read English, and we couldn't speak the mandarin dialect, so we couldn't get to our hotel. We went to three hotels before we found the right one - what a long day! Thankfully, my friend, Lier, was in the lobby to greet us when we arrived. It is so wonderful to have someone that speaks the language help you with all the arrangements and translations. It is really difficult to travel China without someone being able to translate for you. After check-in, we walked around Urumqi even though I was so tired. I wanted to stay awake, so I could adjust to the time change more smoothly. China is 12 hours ahead of NYC and, I guess, 6 hours ahead of Eastern Europe. I have no conception of time right now besides a watch. My body is out of wack because of all the rapid time changes, but I will deal. While walking the streets, it was interesting to people watch - to see all the different people living in Urumqi. My mother bought 2 silk carpets and I bought 8 pashmina shawls the first night. They were so beautiful and super cheap, but of high quality - the dollar goes so much further here. I love it!

Let me tell you a bit about Urumqi being I never heard of it before this trip and am sure some others may not have heard of it either. Urumqi is one of the major cities along China's northern silk road. Urumqi is in western China and is close to Russia, Mongolia and the Stans (Uzbekistan, Kazakistan, Pakistan, etc.), so the city is a melting pot of all those cultures. All the signage is written in Chinese and Arabic. Government signage includes English, but businesses also include Russian as well. The most interesting people are the Uygars, a minority group who do not look like the typical Chinese person. They are a blend of Chinese and the Stans, and they practice Islam, which irritates the government to no end and also puts them in the path of government persecution at certain times. The Uygurs' roots can be traced through the silk road into China, and they enhance China's heritage with a beautiful and rich culture that has adapted to Chinese civilization.

I wish I could post pics, but am unable to do so right now. Hopefully, within the next few weeks I can upload some pics, so you can see what Urumqi and China are like.

Off and Running Again . . .

2008-08-01T17:28:00.004-04:00

Barely 48 hours after I got off the plane from Amsterdam, signaling the end of my NEH Holocaust Seminar, I am getting on another plane to Shanghai connecting to Urumqi, China to begin my studies on the Silk Road. Whew! I am so dreading my plane ride because I was in transit back to NYC on Wednesday for 24 miserable hours and the plane is not my favorite place to be right now, my bed would be heavenly. I am a little rested now and am not really suffering from jet lag, but I am really tired. My brain is not at 100% capacity, but I am going to try to make it work :) I will be traveling the northern Silk Road, working my way from west to east (Urumqi, Turpan, Dunhuang, Lanzhou, Xian), and ending in Shanghai - one of my most favorite cities in the world, so beautiful and full of life! The purpose of this trip is to study the effects of the Silk Road on the development of Chinese civilization - I know it sounds pretty daunting. But I will only be gone for 2 1/2 weeks as opposed to 5 weeks, and I am not rushing around on a tight schedule. It will be more of a leisurely stroll, much better for my body to handle because I am running out of steam. Hopefully, I will have lots to share with everyone when I get back. Wish me luck!