NEWSLETTER
Fall 2006 - Volume 11, Number 1, Page 3 of 4 next

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In August, I stepped out of my routine, out of the world I was familiar with, into a far more exotic and adventuresome one. I and twenty fellow travelers — 18 enterprising and remarkable individuals beguiled by Far Horizons’ extensive itinerary, Askar, our competent and delightful Uighur tour guide, and Ken Hammond, our engaging and passionate professor of Chinese history — embarked on a journey into Western China to follow and explore the Silk Road. First flying to Xi’an, we learned that no photograph or partial viewing of a few traveling pieces could prepare us for the sight of row upon row of the magnificent terra cotta warriors.

Daily, as we meandered further west, the group would observe and absorb its new surroundings, watching children, women and men, going about the business of their lives. We felt a growing affection, and hoped for a growing understanding, of the cultures

 

we encountered. We were eager to cross the boundaries of our own small lives to incorporate this new world. It was that rare sort of travel, we discovered, that brings you into the heart of a people. Dining in a lovely and simple home in the historic quarter of Kashgar, the family was warmly welcoming, the meal a traditional assortment of lamb kabobs and rice pullao, noodles, fruits, nuts, and tea. Though Askar interpreted while we and our host asked each other questions, I believe we all most enjoyed the universal language of laughter.

The markets in every town were a riot of color, smell, and sound, from the Hami melons to the ubiquitous nan (local flatbread) to the scarves, musical instruments, spices, and knives… Poplar-lined streets drew our eye; exquisitely detailed mosques were tucked here and there in every village. There was always another magical oasis to explore. In Turfan one late afternoon we went to Jiaohe, an ancient city and UNESCO World Heritage Site. Shortly upon arrival, we had the site to ourselves. We dined by the light of the setting sun atop the roof of one of the buildings while listening to local musicians play and partaking of an entire roast lamb feast. For a moment we were taken completely out of ourselves, no longer onlookers but participants in this landscape. We fell in love with

 

Lake Karaqul, the drive a spectacle at every turn from the river to the wild road, to the camels and the peaks surrounding us, drawing us forward. Lunch in a vineyard under a tangle of grapes entranced us, aware as we were of the desert encroaching, held at bay only by a fragile swath of green. At Subash in late afternoon light, observing the extensive ruins which have persisted against the odds on both sides of the river, made us catch our breath. And then there was the camel ride into the Taklamakan desert, a caravan of modern-day travelers transported back to another era, the ancient pagoda of Rawak emerging like an apparition from the undulating dunes. The sun glinted on the sifting sands and there was no sound save the occasional rustle of native grasses as the wind played through or the camels snacked.

To a person, we would have explored further, we would have crossed additional borders of every kind to continue our journey. Our appetites were merely whetted. And there is still so much more to reveal: the wonders of the Mogao Caves and their sublime frescoes, buying carpets in Kashgar as travelers have done for over a thousand years, donkey cart rides into Goachang, and in Beijing, a meal fit for the Emperor himself!

Join a Far Horizons group and travel China’s Silk Road - August 7 - 27, 2007

 

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