SILK ROAD - CHINA

An important location on the 'Silk Road'.

Jiayuguan Pass was chosen by 14-17th C Ming Dynasty China as a strategic location to block off & control entry into China.

The impressive Jiayuguan Fort was built in the middle of the pass & the Great Wall extended between the mountains to the North & a river gorge to the South.
Aerial photo of Jiayuguan Fort. Snow-capped Qilian mountains of the Qinghai/Tibetan plateau to the South beyond.
This designates the 'No.1 Beacon Tower', seen in the background, not much remains.
A glass floor cantilevers out over the Taolai River gorge! The No.1 Beacon Tower can be seen on the cliff edge beyond.
Modern road cuts through a section of the Great Wall.
Outer walls
It was a cool & misty morning :-)
An Inner Gate.
Gateway cobblestones.
The great inner courtyard - that's Lily down there...
Wax figures depicting life for a garrison General's wife.
The Great Wall stretching off into the Gobi Desert
At the mountains to the North, the Xuanbi 'Overhanging Great Wall'.
It's a steep climb!
Puff...puff....

Arriving by cab for departure at Beijing Airport at 0700... leaving China :-((

Express Train hall, that leads to BJ subway train system - that's Lily wheeling green trolley-pack.

Shuttle train between terminal buildings at T3, heading for NZ86 Departure Gate E09

Taxi-ing on arrival at Kashgar Airport

Kashgar Airport terminal

Urumqi Airport, much bigger, the capital of Xinjiang

Lily err.... quick power-nap in the Gate Lounge before boarding Air China A321-200 connecting flight URC-PEK.

Boarding 737-800 en route from URC-KHG. No air-bridge at Kashgar... US or AWOL? ;-))
Capital Airlines...beautiful hosties, rubbish food.

Beijing Shopping malls!

Beijing's Wangfujing pedestrian shopping street, at night... full of tourists!

Chinese Foot Massage has become an addictive experience for Lily... a massage session lasts around 90mins & includes back, neck, calf & thigh(!) massage & if required, callus removal... aside from full foot massage. All for ~90-150 Yuan (NZD 20-30). Note... take care not to confuse with men-only type 'massage' parlours ;-)
(This pic actually taken in Kashgar).

Lily supervises preparation of her order of mutton soup noodles, outside a busy lunchtime restaurant in Kashgar old city.

'Pulor' rice for Owen (with mutton & capsicum).