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You can lose everything, but nobody will take away what you saw and what you experienced...
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Oct 01, 2010 02:00 PM Wild West of China?
This was very hard day. I started from Hotan early in the morning and they promised that after 7 hours on the Silk Road we will reach Kashgar. Now I know that 7 hours means 10 hours in China. Can you imagine 10 hours in the stinky, dirty, cramped bus with crying kids, broken seats on the bumpy road? Desert on the other side of the window... Takla Makan.
They built a new road from Kashgar to Hotan but the speed of development here, in the Wild West of China is quite different that in the East!. They built also railroad, but is seems that works are stopped somewhere in the midway of this 500-kms stretch... I arrived to historic Kashgar at 7.30. Motocycle-taxis work here (2 yuan per ride) so it was easy to get to the well known Chini Bagh hotel. From the first look I see that Sinnce my first visit Kashgar changed a lot. Years ago I have been here on my way to Khunjerab Pass. But the food stalls on the streets still work! Bon apetit!
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Sep 30, 2010 02:00 PM On the edge of Takla Makan Desert
Just near the Hotan bus station I found a room in the Jiaotong Hotel. Single room cost 140 yuan, but there is limited choice of the cheapies in this old town, located just on the egde of the desert. No, no camels on the streets but dondey carts are poular... Hotan is famous for the jade stone, silk workshops and carpet workshops. Tours are offered but if you are on the budget like me you can take the bus 10 just for one juan to get to the other side of the river and visit for free impessive carpet factory and silk workshop.
Today is a national holiday here but I was lucky - the workshops worked anyway! People are nice and helpful regardless the language barrier. I took a lot of pictures. Jade stone you can find just on the streets of Hotan - there are many sellers, but it is necessady to bargain. Fruts and vegies (tomatoes, apples, bananas, grapes) cost all about 4 juan per kilo - I enjoy very much thich chep fruit diet! Yes, you can join the camel tour throu the desert if you want to ride the camel and sleep on the sand, but this will cost you minimim 50 USD per day and you must complete a group...
I tried desert thek in the past so it is not for me...
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Sep 29, 2010 02:00 PM Embarking the bus take your shoes off!!
It takes 18 hours to get from Urumchi to Hotan (Ho-tien) throgh the Takla Makan desert. I bought the ticket 2 days in advance to make sure that I will get the space. It cost 360 yuan. There are strict security procedures at the South Bus Station in Urumchi. The bus was waiting. I soon recognized that it is sleeping bus. At the begining they ask me to get off the shoes. They provide plastic bags for them!
What do you think: what is the average height of the Chinese? 150 cm? Well, I am 182 cm and the bunks is the bus were OK for the Chinese, not for me. Too short! Little comfort...
We started with one hour delay. Nobody knows why...
The journey was attractive regarding the landscape: mountains, gorges, then the desert with a great sunset. It was my first time on Takla Makan desert... The road crossing the desert is OK, but narrow. Very few settlements on the way. Finally after 18 hours we reached Hot-an - the old town on the southern branch of the Silk Road. Lets have a rest!
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Sep 28, 2010 02:00 PM Back on the Silk Road
Urumchi where I stay is on the famous Silk Road. They have here a great museum (free entry) where you can study the history of the region, excavations and the culture of the nationalities living in the west of China: Ujgurs. Kazakhs, Uzbeks, Tajiks... The museum is definitely worth a visit.
Urumchi today is a modern town with more then 2 million inhabitants, it is hard to move around - fortunately city bus ride costs just 1 yuan (they pay 6,22 yuan per USD) so you can use them assuming that you know the bus number... It is not easy for the foreigner to comunicate with locals, phrasebook is worth to bring... I stay in the centrally located youth hostel Maitian - just near Parkson Shopping center. They charge 55 yuans per bed in 4-bed room.
Tomorrow I will try to cross Takla Makan Desert...
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Sep 27, 2010 02:00 PM Quick transfer to China
Brrrr。。。。 My 2000-kms sailing down the huge Yenissey was exciting but I will tell you the true： I have enough of cold，snow and FSB。S7 airlines （former Siberian）took me to the Western China。They offer quite good web tarrifs！ I already safely landed in Urumchi。It is 18 degrees here!
I stay in 他和 youth hostel 安顿覅好沟通我 安顿 and -as you can see - I fight with the Chinese i呢色 keyboard and software ：））
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Sep 26, 2010 02:00 PM Norilsk - gulags, precious metals,snow...
There is not much to see in polar Dudinka except the museum and the new orthodox church。 Dudinka works as the port for the nearby rich Norilsk。 Twice a day there are public bus going from Dudinka to Norilsk， it costs 220 roubles one way。The first part ofthe 100kms road built on the permafrost is horrible to drive。 It is hard to maintain this polar road -they say it is northernmost highway of the world. Bumps, bumps and very strange landcape of tundra with ice on the ponds and waterholes.
Yes, I saw Norilsk - itis huge， 200 000-people town - probably the biggest in Arctica。 Mines， industrial blocks and
towers。And a lot of pollution。 Snow，below zero。Norilsk has also his sad story：thay say that during Stalin times more that half a million people died here due the harsh conditions and terror， also Poles。I visited Norilsk's Golgota - monument built at the bottom of the mountain to remember them。In the mouintain there are still plenty of nikel， platinium， gold。。
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Sep 25, 2010 02:00 PM I crossed again the Polar Circle
We crossed Polar Circle in the middle of the night near the little village of Kuryeika。Captain said that there is no reason towait for the circle because there is no single sign on the bank of the river。Kuryeika itself is famous because in the past Stalin spent there some time in exile. Soon he escaped. Today the thick forest of taiga slowly dissappeared. Then I saw only tundra. We reached Dudinka at 9 pm in the dark... Dudinka is closed town. I was surprised because on arrival nobody except the captain checked my permit issued by FSB. Probably it does not happened at all that the foreigners arrive to this remote place...
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Sep 24, 2010 02:00 PM Last boat to Dudinka
The sailing season on Yenisset lasts from June to the end of September. I sail on the last sailing in this season。Every few hours we are calling the Siberian villages. People are coming to the ship on their boats to collect passengers and goods. There is a lot of time for the talks with the locals - I already have many friends on the ship - my knowledge of Russian helps to broke the ice.
It was snowing today and it gets colder and colder。Only 2 deg Celsius in the morning。 The plate of the soup in the ship's restautant costs from 60 roubles，the plate of potatoes with meat -from 250。 The big river is getting wider and wider。There are still great fall landscapes on the banks of Yenissey。
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Sep 23, 2010 02:00 PM 2000 kms down the Yenissey。。
When I came in the late evening to the prichal-little jetty of Yenisseysk it was rainy and very windy。 The ship - Alexander Matrosov arrived 11 pm。 And it was drifting about anhour expecting improvement of the weather。Fortunately we
did not wait till the morning。。。 At 1 am I was already in the cabin and we departed soon.
It is 2000 kms from Krasnoyarsk to my final port of Dudinka at the mouth of Yennissey. Great river adventure - I am the only foreigner aboard Matrosov!
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Sep 22, 2010 02:00 PM Getting ready for the Far North of Siberia
I the morning I visited local museum (20 roubles entry fee). It is worth regarding the history on display. Nansen was here and there were gold rush in the middle of 19th century.
Then I met descendent of the Poles sent here during Stalin regime - what a pleasant surprise! T
The boat to the north is departing today late in the evening.
I have 3 days and 3 nights of sailing on Yenissey to Dudinka - it is more then 1500 kms.
I boutht already 3 loaves of bread to take it to the ship - the food aboard is expensive! Ahoy!
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