Considered to be central Asia's holiest city, the old centre is full of ancient buildings and bazaars although a lot of restoration has taken place. Immersing myself in the old town, viewing the architecture and wandering the back streets this has a very different feel to Samarkand and is so quiet and peaceful especially at night. The place is extremely clean, however is famous for plagues in the past due to contaminated water in the canal network.
Apparently there is a new town, but I didn't go to it!
Staying at Lyabi-Hauz, eating kovurma laghman (fried noodles with meat and tomato sauce) and shashlyk kebabs overlooking the 17th century pool, medressas and square in the heart of the old town, a couple of ancient mulberry trees are also here and a statue of Hoja Nasruddin (a wise fool).
Bargaining at bazaars, the vendors prefer dollars especially for the big ticket stuff such as silk carpets, fur jackets, jewellery, gold and suzani (not that I was buying), signs of the black market where you get more uzbek cash for your dollar than at a bank!
Stopping at a carpet and silk centre to have a lesson in distinguishing between hand-made in Bukhara or machine factored in China , magic carpets (double sided and changing colour) and silks and cotton. I also had the opportunity to try on an original traditional burka, the veil was extremely itchy and the cloak very hot. The knots on the back show your marital status and number of children - I believe today I was married with 6 children! An interesting place and no hard selling!
The Kalon Minaret is incredible at 47m tall with 10m deep foundation, Jenghiz Khan was so impressed he ordered it spared in his trail of destruction. Access is from the adjacent Kalon mosque by a bridge, unfortunately though we were unable to climb its 105 stairs. Ornamental bands circle the minaret, all very different and there is minimal use of ceramic tiles.
The oldest structure is the Ark closed for renovation but mostly ruins inside now, this was the royal town for 15 centuries.
A visit to the 16th century Hoja Zayniddin Mosque, which is still functioning has very old original mosaic and ghanch work and the Chashma Ayub mausoleum built over a spring.
I have to mention the dining room at the hotel before leaving, this is a stunning room with artwork and silks adorning the walls although only breakfast is served here.
Wednesday, 31 October 2012
Samarkand
One of the oldest settlements in central Asia founded 5th century BC and a key city on the silk road.
Arriving for our first night, most of us went to the wine museum for a tasting. Would we finally find some decent wine, drinkable would be nice! After trying 7 extremely sweet wines, 2 harsh cognacs and another spirit I would say no although some of the guys did buy some!
Next needing food, Beck our guide took us to a restaurant that was extremely busy and lively with music and dancing and of course we had to join in the fun.
The main attraction is the vast Registan square complex with mosque and madrasahs. Just stunning and I'm speechless (hmm)! Blown away by the sheer size of this place and the amazing architecture
Bibi-Khanym Mosque is 41m high, built for Timur by his favourite wife, legend states that the architect would only finish the mosque if he could kiss Bibi. When Timur returned he found a mark on her cheek and from then on decreed women should wear veils.
Another night out, this time at an Armenian restaurant for 9 of us, a much quieter affair except for a local lady who insisted we got up and danced with her. She even put her arms around Simon to take his kebab off him - Don't eat, dance! Now Simon does enjoy his food and by gosh these kebabs were huge!
Tried out the local bus the next day and wanting some time on my own, I headed towards the older part of the town to visit the old beautiful mosque, this is a functioning mosque so off came my shoes and I covered my head before venturing inside. The minaret is very small inside and dark and not wanting to get stuck I stayed on the ground to take in the views of Samarkand.
The avenue of mausoleums known as Shah-I-Zinda (Tomb of the Living King) again is an impressive sight with ceramic tiles in the traditional white, blue and turquoise colours each building very different inside, domed roofs of marble or painted plaster.
Arriving for our first night, most of us went to the wine museum for a tasting. Would we finally find some decent wine, drinkable would be nice! After trying 7 extremely sweet wines, 2 harsh cognacs and another spirit I would say no although some of the guys did buy some!
Next needing food, Beck our guide took us to a restaurant that was extremely busy and lively with music and dancing and of course we had to join in the fun.
The main attraction is the vast Registan square complex with mosque and madrasahs. Just stunning and I'm speechless (hmm)! Blown away by the sheer size of this place and the amazing architecture
Bibi-Khanym Mosque is 41m high, built for Timur by his favourite wife, legend states that the architect would only finish the mosque if he could kiss Bibi. When Timur returned he found a mark on her cheek and from then on decreed women should wear veils.
Another night out, this time at an Armenian restaurant for 9 of us, a much quieter affair except for a local lady who insisted we got up and danced with her. She even put her arms around Simon to take his kebab off him - Don't eat, dance! Now Simon does enjoy his food and by gosh these kebabs were huge!
Tried out the local bus the next day and wanting some time on my own, I headed towards the older part of the town to visit the old beautiful mosque, this is a functioning mosque so off came my shoes and I covered my head before venturing inside. The minaret is very small inside and dark and not wanting to get stuck I stayed on the ground to take in the views of Samarkand.
The avenue of mausoleums known as Shah-I-Zinda (Tomb of the Living King) again is an impressive sight with ceramic tiles in the traditional white, blue and turquoise colours each building very different inside, domed roofs of marble or painted plaster.
Tashkent
A long border crossing to get into Uzbekistan, 5 hours and what started off as a warm afternoon was getting just a bit chilly in the evening . Fortunately custom officials allowed us to go and get coats from the truck but would we get through before their technical break at 7pm?
Uzbekistan, here for 9 nights, central Asia capital of culture with the big 3 cities of Samarkand, Bukhara and Khiva with amazing architecture on our agenda.
Starting out in Tashkent (meaning city of stone), this modern capital city is a blend of old and new, the elaborately decorated metro system made it easy to get around the city but no pictures allowed as this was originally designed as a nuclear shelter.
I just had to go in search of The old town which runs from the Chorsu Bazaar, a maze of alleys with low houses and entrances that conceal garden courtyards. The bazaar itself sold all sorts of wares including socks and spices and pomegranates.
Khast Imom complex is the religious centre with mosque, medressas (now souvenir shops) and a museum housing the oldest Quran in the world.
Medressah Kukeldash is one of central Asia's largest Medressahs next to Chorsu Square.
The new town centres around Timur public square with broad tree lined roads and a statue of Amir Temur sitting on his stallion.
Plenty of Plov on offer with a visit to the Central Asian Plov centre for lunch. This is a national dish of rice, vegetables, chickpeas and meat swimming in mutton fat/oil. Not good for the diet but very tasty! Served with non/Lepyoshka (bread) and salad of tomatoes, cucumber, onion and dill.
Cotton is cultivated and saw many cotton pickers working the fields on our travels toward samarkand Soviet irrigation systems are interesting with water channels dug in the ground to divert water to the fields
Uzbekistan, here for 9 nights, central Asia capital of culture with the big 3 cities of Samarkand, Bukhara and Khiva with amazing architecture on our agenda.
Starting out in Tashkent (meaning city of stone), this modern capital city is a blend of old and new, the elaborately decorated metro system made it easy to get around the city but no pictures allowed as this was originally designed as a nuclear shelter.
I just had to go in search of The old town which runs from the Chorsu Bazaar, a maze of alleys with low houses and entrances that conceal garden courtyards. The bazaar itself sold all sorts of wares including socks and spices and pomegranates.
Khast Imom complex is the religious centre with mosque, medressas (now souvenir shops) and a museum housing the oldest Quran in the world.
Medressah Kukeldash is one of central Asia's largest Medressahs next to Chorsu Square.
The new town centres around Timur public square with broad tree lined roads and a statue of Amir Temur sitting on his stallion.
Plenty of Plov on offer with a visit to the Central Asian Plov centre for lunch. This is a national dish of rice, vegetables, chickpeas and meat swimming in mutton fat/oil. Not good for the diet but very tasty! Served with non/Lepyoshka (bread) and salad of tomatoes, cucumber, onion and dill.
Cotton is cultivated and saw many cotton pickers working the fields on our travels toward samarkand Soviet irrigation systems are interesting with water channels dug in the ground to divert water to the fields
Kazakhstan
The border crossing wasn't too bad, only taking us 3 hours to get though.
Our destination was to be camping in
Aksu-Dzhabagly Nature Reserve, 1319 sq km of valleys and mountains bordering both the kyrgz and uzbek borders. However because of the weather and complaints from the group we stayed in a home stay in the village of Zhabagjly. First night I was sharing a room with 5 of us and didn't sleep too well but it was warm, we had good traditional food and the shower was hot. I had the same room all to myself the second night and slept like a baby.
Jill, Jacqueline, Nigel, Andrew and I trekked by horse from the village to Kshi-Kaindy a mountain refuge near a waterfall at 1700m, a 24km round trip taking 6 hours. Not as cheap as in Kyrgyzstan but the horses were much better. Still no helmets, better saddles and yet more problems for me with the horses, these were much bigger (15 hands) and the first horse I got on was a stallion who refused to budge, even the ranger couldn't get him to move with me in it! So another 2 horses and then I got a flea bitten grey mare named Circo who was very well behaved except, as a pack horse, she wanted to join the others on a gallop! Fortunately I managed to get her to stop before cantering (trotting is my limit as a novice rider!)
We stopped midway on our trek for lunch at one of the rangers huts and to view the waterfall, this would be more spectacular during spring when the snow melts from the mountains.
Further along the valley, the rest of the group camped near the 300m Aksu Canyon, some in the tents but most in the rangers house.
So much then for Kazakhstan!
A brief couple of nights here.
On to Uzbekistan and the silk route cities...
Our destination was to be camping in
Aksu-Dzhabagly Nature Reserve, 1319 sq km of valleys and mountains bordering both the kyrgz and uzbek borders. However because of the weather and complaints from the group we stayed in a home stay in the village of Zhabagjly. First night I was sharing a room with 5 of us and didn't sleep too well but it was warm, we had good traditional food and the shower was hot. I had the same room all to myself the second night and slept like a baby.
Jill, Jacqueline, Nigel, Andrew and I trekked by horse from the village to Kshi-Kaindy a mountain refuge near a waterfall at 1700m, a 24km round trip taking 6 hours. Not as cheap as in Kyrgyzstan but the horses were much better. Still no helmets, better saddles and yet more problems for me with the horses, these were much bigger (15 hands) and the first horse I got on was a stallion who refused to budge, even the ranger couldn't get him to move with me in it! So another 2 horses and then I got a flea bitten grey mare named Circo who was very well behaved except, as a pack horse, she wanted to join the others on a gallop! Fortunately I managed to get her to stop before cantering (trotting is my limit as a novice rider!)
We stopped midway on our trek for lunch at one of the rangers huts and to view the waterfall, this would be more spectacular during spring when the snow melts from the mountains.
Further along the valley, the rest of the group camped near the 300m Aksu Canyon, some in the tents but most in the rangers house.
So much then for Kazakhstan!
A brief couple of nights here.
On to Uzbekistan and the silk route cities...
Kyrgyzstan
12 nights in an amazing country, the border crossing was relatively straight forward and much more relaxed once we got past the Chinese final checkpoint, following which we could stretch our legs and enjoy some lunch, more bread and tomatoes and cucumber and last of the squirrel (the dodgy processed meat that haunted us in China, thankfully we'll get lots of cheese now!)
The scenery is spectacular with massive mountain ranges (dominated by the Tian Shan range in the southeast), valleys, gorges and alpine lakes.
An early onset of snow 2 weeks prior to our arrival meant the nomads had left the area so unfortunately staying in Yurts was out of the question! Instead we were camping out at altitudes around 3,000m in freezing cold conditions at night where icicles formed on the inside of tents and water bottles froze.
A couple of home-stays and an unplanned farm stop gave some respite from the cold, still a number of us were out buying warm clothes once we got to Bishkek. A fleece was just not adequate!
Our first night was at a delightful home stay in Naryn and our first taste of the traditional hospitality with a huge spread of food on the table, mutton soup, kofte, mash, dried fruits, nuts and biscuits. Fed up by now with bland Chinese food and hungry from a long days drive, we scoffed it down. Breakfast the next morning was equally good with pancakes, cheese, bread, local jams and fresh yoghurt. Later in the week our guide Saed told me he was worried looking at us eating and thinking truck food was not going to be good! I picked up some fur lined leather boots at the market for USD20!
Off to our first bush camp, a spectacular location just after the Dolon Pass, colours are amazing with green and brown hills dotted with sheep and ice capped mountains a little further away. A shame about power lines overhead (hoping for a storm not,) but don't detract from a clear and cold night away from light pollution and we sat around the camp fire gazing up at the milky way where a number of constellations could ll.lbe seen.
Next day travelling on the Kalmak-Ashuu Pass, 3450m high, we had to use snow chains on the truck to get us through to the valley at Lake Song Kol, a beautiful location in central Kyrgyzstan with an alpine lake. Well I can only imagine what this place is like in season with herds of animals grazing the grassland, yurts to stay in and horses to be rode, alas not for us! 3 nights here may just be a little long...
Brrr, heck the first night was freezing with temperatures at best -5 degrees and I'm sleeping in almost all my clothes!
Needing to keep warm, 3 of us completed the 14km trek down to the lake and back over some boggy ground, about a 3 hour round trip. By the lake was an old boat with 2 homemade oars, not the time for some sailing, parts of the lake was iced over.
Back in time for lunch and later some scones, badminton and frisbee to take our minds off the cold.
After 2 nights enough was had and time to head back over the pass again with the snow chains and it's starting to snow, the sky in the distant mountains looking ominous. A quick trek for an hour up the valley for me carefully avoiding the large marmot holes before heading back to pack up my tent.
Off then to a home stay in Kochkor for a couple of nights, I could have stayed under the hot shower for hours but after some food it was good to climb into a warm bed.
The next morning we went to a felt making factory, to see a shyrdak womens cooperative, traditional hand made felt making, it takes 800 sheepskins to make just one wall of a yurt, not enough time for us to see a one being made as takes months, however, we did design a felt pad using our truck as the motif and enjoyed some rather interesting singing and dancing!
After lunch Jacqueline, Nigel H, Andrew E, Ann H and I went with Saed up to the mountains for a 3 hour horse trek. Hmm no helmets, dodgy saddles and my horse didn't want to do as it was told, I guess she knew I was inexperienced lol, this was my first time ever on a horse.. The guide gave me his horse to ride and all was well even when she stumbled on the rocks down the steep hill, I managed to stay on.
Next up more bush camping for 4 nights and it's still freezing! But some pumpkin soup and mulled wine to keep us warm, just a shame I was feeling nauseous hmmm.
A drive up to Jeti Oghuz, which is a beautiful gorge formed of red sandstone cliffs, the entrance through a splintered cliff called Razbitoye Serdtse (broken heart) and seven main bluffs. A 5km drive up over 5 bridges which we had to get off the truck to walk across up to our camping spot which was at the flattish Svetov Dolina (valley of flowers) but was devoid of poppies and other people!
A fancy dress party was had on our second night where we dressed up in costumes bought by other people. I got off, I think pretty lightly, but I did have to wear a rather large purple velour dress. I dressed Norm as an Arabian bumble bee (the warm tights went down very well with him and were apparently kept on that night!)
Next morning, I set off to trek 12 km along the river in the gorge for about 3 hours, up over yet more bridges and through the pine forest, was so nice to spend some time on my own sat down next to the river listening to my iPod.
The ranger had arranged for us to buy a sheep from a local shepherd, this was slaughtered at the camp site and put on a makeshift spit to roast over the camp fire. Then it rained!
Our next camp site was by Lake Issyk Kol. At 170km long, 70km wide, 700m deep, this is the second largest alpine lake in the world. It is normally calm and still, however a wind was blowing a gale on the night we were meant to bush camp on its southern shore, so heading slightly inland to get some shelter from the trees and about to camp in a farmer's field, we carelessly got bogged down in a muddy river pool blocking his driveway. 90 minutes later and by now people are totally hacked off. The farmer was due to have a party that night but cancelled his guests and 8 of us piled into his living room, I didn't get much sleep but at least it was warm and the money we gave him would be very handy for his family over the winter.
On our travels towards Bishkek we stopped to see an Eagle hunter, he was dressed up in full costume and had with him a golden eagle called 'Tamara' and an albino white rabbit to demonstrate the skills of the eagle hunting for food, the rabbit didn't stand a chance!
Next stop Bishkek and back in an hotel 'The Alpinist'. I would cry if it was not so ironic!
Had a relaxed time here for 2 nights, wandering around the town during the day and shopping in the state run department store TsUM to replace the car charger for my phone which broke before I could even use it and to get a card reader so I have at least half a chance of putting pics on this blog! Followed by a night of culture to see the Kyrgyz epic of Manas, a legend of the hero's formation of a homeland for his people.
Now for the border crossing to Kazakhstan.
The scenery is spectacular with massive mountain ranges (dominated by the Tian Shan range in the southeast), valleys, gorges and alpine lakes.
An early onset of snow 2 weeks prior to our arrival meant the nomads had left the area so unfortunately staying in Yurts was out of the question! Instead we were camping out at altitudes around 3,000m in freezing cold conditions at night where icicles formed on the inside of tents and water bottles froze.
A couple of home-stays and an unplanned farm stop gave some respite from the cold, still a number of us were out buying warm clothes once we got to Bishkek. A fleece was just not adequate!
Our first night was at a delightful home stay in Naryn and our first taste of the traditional hospitality with a huge spread of food on the table, mutton soup, kofte, mash, dried fruits, nuts and biscuits. Fed up by now with bland Chinese food and hungry from a long days drive, we scoffed it down. Breakfast the next morning was equally good with pancakes, cheese, bread, local jams and fresh yoghurt. Later in the week our guide Saed told me he was worried looking at us eating and thinking truck food was not going to be good! I picked up some fur lined leather boots at the market for USD20!
Off to our first bush camp, a spectacular location just after the Dolon Pass, colours are amazing with green and brown hills dotted with sheep and ice capped mountains a little further away. A shame about power lines overhead (hoping for a storm not,) but don't detract from a clear and cold night away from light pollution and we sat around the camp fire gazing up at the milky way where a number of constellations could ll.lbe seen.
Next day travelling on the Kalmak-Ashuu Pass, 3450m high, we had to use snow chains on the truck to get us through to the valley at Lake Song Kol, a beautiful location in central Kyrgyzstan with an alpine lake. Well I can only imagine what this place is like in season with herds of animals grazing the grassland, yurts to stay in and horses to be rode, alas not for us! 3 nights here may just be a little long... Brrr, heck the first night was freezing with temperatures at best -5 degrees and I'm sleeping in almost all my clothes!
Needing to keep warm, 3 of us completed the 14km trek down to the lake and back over some boggy ground, about a 3 hour round trip. By the lake was an old boat with 2 homemade oars, not the time for some sailing, parts of the lake was iced over. Back in time for lunch and later some scones, badminton and frisbee to take our minds off the cold.
After 2 nights enough was had and time to head back over the pass again with the snow chains and it's starting to snow, the sky in the distant mountains looking ominous. A quick trek for an hour up the valley for me carefully avoiding the large marmot holes before heading back to pack up my tent.
Off then to a home stay in Kochkor for a couple of nights, I could have stayed under the hot shower for hours but after some food it was good to climb into a warm bed.
The next morning we went to a felt making factory, to see a shyrdak womens cooperative, traditional hand made felt making, it takes 800 sheepskins to make just one wall of a yurt, not enough time for us to see a one being made as takes months, however, we did design a felt pad using our truck as the motif and enjoyed some rather interesting singing and dancing!
After lunch Jacqueline, Nigel H, Andrew E, Ann H and I went with Saed up to the mountains for a 3 hour horse trek. Hmm no helmets, dodgy saddles and my horse didn't want to do as it was told, I guess she knew I was inexperienced lol, this was my first time ever on a horse.. The guide gave me his horse to ride and all was well even when she stumbled on the rocks down the steep hill, I managed to stay on.
Next up more bush camping for 4 nights and it's still freezing! But some pumpkin soup and mulled wine to keep us warm, just a shame I was feeling nauseous hmmm.
A drive up to Jeti Oghuz, which is a beautiful gorge formed of red sandstone cliffs, the entrance through a splintered cliff called Razbitoye Serdtse (broken heart) and seven main bluffs. A 5km drive up over 5 bridges which we had to get off the truck to walk across up to our camping spot which was at the flattish Svetov Dolina (valley of flowers) but was devoid of poppies and other people!
A fancy dress party was had on our second night where we dressed up in costumes bought by other people. I got off, I think pretty lightly, but I did have to wear a rather large purple velour dress. I dressed Norm as an Arabian bumble bee (the warm tights went down very well with him and were apparently kept on that night!)
Next morning, I set off to trek 12 km along the river in the gorge for about 3 hours, up over yet more bridges and through the pine forest, was so nice to spend some time on my own sat down next to the river listening to my iPod.
The ranger had arranged for us to buy a sheep from a local shepherd, this was slaughtered at the camp site and put on a makeshift spit to roast over the camp fire. Then it rained!
Our next camp site was by Lake Issyk Kol. At 170km long, 70km wide, 700m deep, this is the second largest alpine lake in the world. It is normally calm and still, however a wind was blowing a gale on the night we were meant to bush camp on its southern shore, so heading slightly inland to get some shelter from the trees and about to camp in a farmer's field, we carelessly got bogged down in a muddy river pool blocking his driveway. 90 minutes later and by now people are totally hacked off. The farmer was due to have a party that night but cancelled his guests and 8 of us piled into his living room, I didn't get much sleep but at least it was warm and the money we gave him would be very handy for his family over the winter.
On our travels towards Bishkek we stopped to see an Eagle hunter, he was dressed up in full costume and had with him a golden eagle called 'Tamara' and an albino white rabbit to demonstrate the skills of the eagle hunting for food, the rabbit didn't stand a chance!
Next stop Bishkek and back in an hotel 'The Alpinist'. I would cry if it was not so ironic!
Had a relaxed time here for 2 nights, wandering around the town during the day and shopping in the state run department store TsUM to replace the car charger for my phone which broke before I could even use it and to get a card reader so I have at least half a chance of putting pics on this blog! Followed by a night of culture to see the Kyrgyz epic of Manas, a legend of the hero's formation of a homeland for his people.
Now for the border crossing to Kazakhstan.
Monday, 29 October 2012
Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region. Turpan & Kashgar
A long drive day on the way towards Turpan, road is dominated by Tian Shan (heavenly) mountains and the harsh terrain of the desert and not too much in the way of civilisation. A rocky bush camp on dry river beds for the night arriving a day later in the leafy vine covered roads of Turpan, this place is 500m below sea level and known to be extremely hot, said to be the hottest place in China (aka Huo Zhou: a place as hot as fire).
Flaming mountain is near, on a hot day flames can be seen flickering on the red sandstone hills, maybe today was just a little too cool!
Some confusion over the time, the official time is 'Beijing time' used in most hotels, banks etc but local time 'Turpan time' is 2 hours behind so when making arrangements always need to ask which time!
Largely inhabited by Uyghur people,the easternmost branch of the extended Turkic people who are apparently short tempered?!?!.
Leaving Turpan, another long drive to Kashgar. A stretch of barren road 200km with high concrete walls in part is declared as 'non stopping' by the Chinese government, a bit touchy of ? Oil reserves, economic potential for gold, military ops ? Who knows but they are trying to increase the Han population in this area which is considered sensitive and the government aren't that keen on foreigners coming here.
Bordering on the Taklamakan desert, the roads are hazy and very dusty with small villages scattered along the road, signs now in Arabic some cultural differences creeping in.
Taklamakan: 'The sea of death, go in and never come out. Just as well we are skirting around it then..
And we had to find a bush camp before dark on a small stretch of land between a railway station and the main road which made for a very noisy night, not much chance of getting any decent zzzz's.
Kashgar (means a gathering place of boulders) a tale of 2 cities, the old town in Uyghur style and the newer Chinese (Mao) style town with big wide roads.
 |
| Old Town |
 |
| New Town |
A visit to the famous Sunday Livestock market was not to be missed. On sale were camels, horses, donkeys, cattle, yak, sheep, goats alongside knifes and there being some grub to be had. Interesting forms of transport for the farmers to get their wares to market and a hop in a motorised cart for 9 of us on leaving.
Next stop for the Sunday Market although
this is actually held everyday selling anything you could want from carpets to washing powder and a good place to stock up on the fancy dress items for a bush camp night!
Strolling in the old town
The last day in China and crossing the border through the Tougart Pass, 100km between border checkpoints and no stopping in between! The queue getting into China was much longer than getting out!
Sunday, 28 October 2012
The Yellow River and Bingling Si caves
Leaving the delights of Xiahe behind, a 6 hour journey and a bogged truck arrived at the aromatic place called Yongling, although I prefer to call it the 'sewer town' maybe due to its close proximity to a water and waste treatment plant! A beer at a local cafe reminds me of 'The Ship, Hart Lane' due to the smells emanating from the manhole beneath the table.
However the journey on route was stunning, with sheer drops down the mountains aand changing scenery from barren arid mountains on one side and lush green hills on the other, autumn is clearly starting to set in.
However on a more positive note, this put us much closer to the launch pad on the 'Yellow River' for our 45 minute journey by speedboat to Bingling sea caves, a group of Buddhist caves carved in a canyon which are only accessible by boat. A stunning journey even on a drab and misty dull morning although the sun shone on our return. The caves are about 1 mile long and walking through the lower temples it was a shame some were closed off for renovation, a shuttle bus took us up to the upper temple to see more Tibetan statues.
First bush camp followed, my tent is called 'peninsular' after the hotel in Hong Kong, not nearly as luxurious though! Not much of a camp to write about but was certainly a cold night that's for sure.
However the journey on route was stunning, with sheer drops down the mountains aand changing scenery from barren arid mountains on one side and lush green hills on the other, autumn is clearly starting to set in.
However on a more positive note, this put us much closer to the launch pad on the 'Yellow River' for our 45 minute journey by speedboat to Bingling sea caves, a group of Buddhist caves carved in a canyon which are only accessible by boat. A stunning journey even on a drab and misty dull morning although the sun shone on our return. The caves are about 1 mile long and walking through the lower temples it was a shame some were closed off for renovation, a shuttle bus took us up to the upper temple to see more Tibetan statues.
First bush camp followed, my tent is called 'peninsular' after the hotel in Hong Kong, not nearly as luxurious though! Not much of a camp to write about but was certainly a cold night that's for sure.
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