[desertblues]

( excerpts from my travel journal; please excuse grammar and other)

About the Uyghur in Kashgar and Xinjiang. Before the Chinese, Timurlane rules in 1219 and next the Mongols. In 1865 it is incorperated in the Chinese province Xinjiang, although they want an independent Turkestan. In 1930-1940 Kashgar wants to establish anew an independent Eastern Turkestan, but the Chinese Kuomintang promises them real autonomy if they give their new republic up.
Since 1949 China imports many Han Chinese in Kashgar and Xinjiang: this reduces the Uyghur population from 90% to 50%. So: ethnic unrests; street protests and bombs attacks. Last time in 2009, with 200 persons dead.

Uyghur are discriminated against and their culture is at stake. They must learn mandarin,to get a decent job. Uyghur is a Turkic language and manderin difficult. Last year in the Autonomous Region Museum in Umruqi and in the Turpan museum, I actually saw the role of the Uyghur in the region's history minimized and the Chinese part in it upgraded. I see that as falsification of Uyghur history.

There are signs in front of the new houses in the old town of Kashar proclaming these are build in the best Uyghur tradition. But that is a farce. This 'traditional' Uyghur style is made with prefabricated coarse concrete forms. Not near as refined and elegant as the lace like woodwork of the ancient Uyghur buildings.I took photo's of these buildings last year and now many are gone. I can imagine that what happens here is not right and will lead to further resentment in due course

(04-04 Kashgar. Train to Turpan through the Taklamakan desert.)
The Taklamakan Desert, 337,000 km2 (130,116 sq. mi.), is situated in southwest Xanjiang. It is bordered by the Kunlun Mountains -south, the desert Pamir Mountains and Tian Shan -west and north, and the Gobi Desert -east. It’s name: "The point of no return" or "The Desert of Death".It is the world's second largest shifting sand desert with about 85% made up of shifting sand dunes. In recent years, the desert has expanded. Being in the rain shadow of the Himmalayas,Taklamakan is a paradigmatic cold desert climate; extreme lows in wintertime −20 °C (−4 °F).Its extreme inland position accounts for the cold nights even during summertime.

By train to Turpan will be a 22 hours journey.
Ho...the train doesn't run, so I board a sleeping bus; dirty bunks, carpets, a fur on the stairs, and a place to recline. I just hope they understand that Turpan is my destination. For my outdoor shoes I get a plastic bag. There are two drivers; Uyghur, I think, for they frequently roll down their prayer mat in the direction of Mekka.

After 6 hours driving through dry scenery/ mountains, someone bullies the busdriver in making a first toilet-stop; near some run down houses and a fruitstall. A hole in the ground and a fierce wind that blows the toiletpaper in my face. Excuse the details, but I want you all to have 'a first row' view. Every 5/6 hours the bus stops for a toilet break; all hurry with their plastic bag+shoes to get out; in the night we just sit in the desert. I am determined to drink as little as possible, and I see most do.
There is little to see as the wind blows the sand up and around. Sometimes I see some men with heavy machinery working on....? And there are a few stops along the way, with small sand coloured houses. The wind has abated, but the sky is a yellowish/ grey.

(05-04 bus to Turpan)
It cools down at night as we cross the desert. Men hawk, spit, snore,sing or shout. The drivers smoke punguent Chinese cigarettes. It is a friendly group of travellers. All are tired and frumpy. 17 hours after boarding it is getting light again and we are in the bare yellow/brown mountains. No vegetation.
23 hours is the journey by bus, but Turpan is here.

Turpan is a fertile oasis, lots of fruit trees, and an important trade centre from old. It's*karez water system is a system of horizontal series of vertically dug wells that are linked by underground water canals to collect water. This water comes from the base of the Tian Shan Mountains and the nearby Flaming Mountains.
Throug the downward slope of the desert, the Turpan Depression, the canals channel the water to the surface;mostly underground to reduce water evaporation.
There are wells, dams and underground canals to store the water and control the water flow. The irrigation system began during the Han Dynasty (206 BCE – 24 CE).Today's system is over 1100 karez wells/channels with a length of 5,000 kilometres.

Tomorrow morning the early train to Dun Huang with its famous Buddhist caves.

In my cup: nescafé and lots of water, now that I have a toilet.
And sketchy wifi; I thought China was better equiped, but I guess we're in the backwaters.