The silk road diary 1: Do you know the way to Urumqi?

MANILA, Philippines - What is the shortest distance between Urumqi and Madrid?

A hacked email.

As my friends and I were marveling at the wonders along the ancient Silk Road in Xinjiang and Gansu in northwest China, some miscreant in South Africa was sending out emails to all those in my contacts list – and I don’t know how, but even some not in my list – saying I was stranded in Madrid, without funds to pay for my hotel bill, and asking for a loan of 2550 euros.

I was bombarded with text messages, as were some of my traveling companions, letting me know that my email had been hacked. Fortunately, this scam is pretty well known, so no one fell for it, although a few – precious few – expressed concern that I might really have been in trouble.

My Chinese history class at the Confucius Institute at the Ateneo de Manila Salcedo campus undertook an educational tour, and chose the ancient Silk Road in northwestern China. We asked Panda Travel, China tour experts who organize the popular China Panorama tour series (www.chinapanorama.com), to put together a tour for us starting in Urumqi in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region and ending in Xi’an, the old imperial capital of Chang-an, where the Silk Road originated.

The Silk Road was an important trade route between China and the Mediterranean, through India, Persia and other Middle Eastern countries, on to the Roman Empire and parts of Europe and even Northern Africa. The term “Silk Road” was coined by Ferdinand von Richthofen, an eminent German geographer who conducted seven expeditions to China between 1868 and 1872, since silk comprised a large portion of the trade along this road. In addition to silk, China also traded tea and porcelain.

From the time Zhang Qian opened up the Silk Road during the Han Dynasty (202 BC to 220 AD), until the collapse of the Yuan Dynasty, it enjoyed a history of about 1,600 years.

This ancient road begins at Chang’an (now Xian), then by way of the Hexi Corridor, it reaches Dunhuang, where it divides into three: the Southern Route, Central Route and Northern Route. The three routes spread all over the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region and Gansu province, and then extend as far as Pakistan, India and even Rome.

The Dabanzheng wind farm has over 600 turbines

Aside from trade, the Silk Road opened China up to foreign influences, most notably Buddhism from India.

We took an early morning flight from Manila to Xiamen, from there to Beijing, and then took a night flight to Urumqi (a word meaning “beautiful pasture” in the language of the Dzungar people), capital of the Xinjiang Autonomous Region. That last leg of the long journey seemed like it would never end, the four-hour flight stretching on and on, with nothing but darkness outside the plane windows. We finally got in to Urumqi near midnight.

It was just after the Mid-Autumn Festival and sure enough, the weather had turned chilly. But considering that summer temperatures in the area could reach 45 degrees Centigrade, we were delighted with the nippy autumn weather.

This pond believed to be the West Queen Mother’s bathing pool, never freezes over, even in winter. Locals say the color of the water inexplicably changes from green to blue.

First item on our tour agenda – after a good night’s sleep – was Tianchi or Heavenly lake, in the middle of Bogda Peak 1,980 meters up in the Tianshan mountains, about 100 kilometers east of Urumqi. The cable car system has been taken down – a good thing too, because these are open gondolas that look like they came from an old carnival ferris wheel. There are plans to put in a new, modern cable car system. In the meantime, mini buses take visitors up the mountain, with a guide annotating the various sights along the way, including many yurts (tents). At the moment there are unfortunately no English-speaking guides available, so non-Chinese speakers will have to rely on a friendly translator.

From where the bus lets visitors off, it is a good 40-minute walk (or a ride in an electric cart for RMB10) up to the lake. Along the way is a bustling mini market, and we could not resist the aromas of naan (bread) baked in traditional stone ovens and lamb-filled pastries, and a refreshing crushed ice concoction.

A museum on the wind farm is under construction.

There are three rivers and 18 lakes and ponds in the area, all fed by the surrounding glaciers. One particular small pond is believed to be the bathing pool of the West Queen Mother, and is said to never freeze over, even in the deep winter, even as it inexplicably changes color from azure to emerald.

With melted snow as its source, Tianchi’s water is crystal clear – and cold, even in summer, when it offers welcome respite from the scorching heat of the nearby Gobi desert. Taking a boat ride around the 4.9-square kilometer half-moon lake, even at noon it was near freezing. The scenery is breathtaking, with snow-capped mountain peaks crowning thickly forested slopes.    

At a roadside mini market on the way to Tianchi lake, locals bake naan in traditional stone ovens.

The ethereal surroundings easily lend to myth and legend. It is said that the West Queen Mother (Xi Wang Mu) entertained King Mu of the Western Zhou Dynasty (1100-771 BC) with an elaborate banquet at the lake. The West Queen fell in love with the king and asked him in a poem, “The white clouds drift while the mountains reach the blue sky. Passing thousands of mountains, crossing ten thousands of rivers, you come to us from a faraway place. If you are still strong and fine, would you like to come back to us again?”

The king answered in his poem, “After I go back to central China and lead the people to a prosperous life, I will come to you again.” But he never returned, for reasons unknown.

Different kinds of hats and other souvenirs tempt passersby.

The West Queen Mother is revered as a goddess, and there are several temples and pagodas around the lake in her honor, to which pilgrimages are undertaken.

Invigorated by the crisp mountain air and a vigorous walk, we stop for a very late lunch at a local house in Sankong village, where many artists were sent for re-education during the Cultural Revolution. We headed back to Urumqi, passing through the Dabanzheng wind power project, with over 600 turbines currently providing 600 kilowatts of electricity. With vast tracts of open land, wind power forms a significant part of China’s power generating capacity. Last year, China became the largest wind energy provider in the world. By 2015, China aims to generate 190-billion kilowatthours of wind power annually. It significantly brought the cost of wind power down by manufacturing its own turbines, and today there are about 15 companies manufacturing turbines.

Naan sells for RMB8 each, while lamb-filled pastries sell for RMB10 each. Both are delicious.

We got back to Urumqi by late afternoon, encountering light rush hour traffic on the main road called Friendship Highway, built in 1954 during the period of cooperation with the former Soviet Union, hence the name. But in 1970, when the relationship between the neighbors soured, it was re-named – I kid you not – Anti-Soviet Road. Around 1980 the road reverted back to its original, less conflicting name.

We had just enough time for a shopping blitz – saffron, lavender, wild roses, dates, figs, raisins, almonds and other treasures – in the market before an overwhelming, boisterous dinner buffet and cultural show hosted by Bravwin Tan, representative of Carlos Chan of Oishi, which has a factory outside Urumqi. As eventful and eye-opening as this first day had been, it was just the start of an amazing journey.

Different variety of raisins a specialty of the area, on display at the market in Urumqi.