SILK ROAD
The Silk Road was a network of overland trade routes that linked China with the Mediterranean. From the ancient Chinese capital of Chang'an, now Xi'an, the Silk Road went through China's narrow Hexi corridor, before spreading south to India, present-day Afghanistan and Pakistan, or further west to Samarkand, Bukhara, Persia and the eastern Mediterranean.For about a thousand years, caravans of camels loaded with rubies, jade, amber, musk and of course silk made their way along it.
However, this trade route eventually came to an end. When the Byzantine Empire fell to the Turks in 1453 AD, the Ottoman Empire closed the Silk Road and cut all ties with the west. Geopolitical trends turned inward towards isolation.
Xinjiang is located in the northwest part of China with an area of 1,650,257 square kilometers (637,000 square miles), it is a large ihabited area which takes up about one sixth of the country's territory. In its old times, the Silk Road passed through the region. Xinjiang is adjacent to Gansu, Qinghai Province on the east and Tibet on the south. Besides, the neighboring countries have Tajikistan, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan on the west and north, by the Republic of Mongolia on the northeast, and by Pakistan, Afghanistan and India on the southwest. The capital is Urumqi, and the other main cities are Turpan Prefecture, Kashgar Prefecture, Hotan (Hetian) Prefecture, Aksu Prefecture and so on.
When it comes to the beautiful Xinjiang landscape, even a simple camera can produce the most beautiful photographs. Xinjiang, the largest province in China and located in the country’s far northwest, boasts one of the most diverse landscapes: from one of the world’s largest deserts to one of the world’s largest mountain ranges.
Caravans in the heart of a desert in Gansu province (Photo by Hu You)
Crescent Lake
Terracotta Warriors
Ningxia Xiji National Geo Park
Today, tourists from around the world are intrigued by the history and beauty of the Silk Road, and will find magnificent natural scenery, captivating foreign culture and unforgettable experiences along the way. While traveling the Silk Road in its entirety is a longer journey than most tourists have time for in one trip, the vast Silk Road sites throughout China provide visitors a varied sampling of experiences, from cities to deserts, grottoes to Great Walls.