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황혼에서 신장의 teeming 회교도 시장에 있는 새벽이 동부쪽과 서쪽 문화의 고대 혼합에서 당신 가라앉힐 때까지'

아마 이렇게 몇몇 여행자가 중국 북서부의 신장 지방에 여행을 만드는지 왜 최초 이유는 확실히 간단하게 그것의 광대이다. 자체 긴 여행이 비행기로 조차 인 베이징에서 국가의 반대 측 정확한 것에 있기을 제외하고, 건조한 지방 자치는 세계에 있는 두번째로 큰 대륙의 1/6 이상 뼘으로 재는 중국에 있는 가장 큰 영토 이다. 또한 특히 사람이 그것의 거리 시장에 있는 하루종일을 쓰는지 때 여행자가 경험할 문화적인 교대의 점에서 긴 여행이다. 그리고 신장이 인민 공화국의 가장 작은 touristed 지방다고 역으로, 로 국경을 공유하는 중앙 아시아에 그것의 근접을 고려하면 놀라게 하는 8개의 다른 국가, 사람은 믿지 않을 것입니다. 그러나 지방 사막에게 아시아에 있는 명료한 오아시스를 하는 실제로 이 고독이다.

데게 하는에서 멀리 아닙니다 Tarim 물동이의 모래는 지구의 정치 및 상업적인 센터, Kashgar이다. 무슨 Marco Polo가 부른 Kashi가 Karakorum 공도의 대신으로 북부 파키스탄 및 동부쪽 아프가니스탄과 중국을 연결하기 실크 로드의 생명 국제적인 기로의 한으로 아시아 전초 세기 내내 모양 짓기 때문에 Cascar와 한은 지금 언급한다. 등과 같은, Kashgar는 우리가 에 익숙한 한 문화 보다는 더 가깝게 중동을 닮는다; 도시는 그것의 다량 주간 바자에서 반영되는 것과 같이 중앙 아시아 문화의 진실 태피스트리 이다. Located in the Kona Sheher old town, the famous Sunday market is, like all things Xinjiang, China’s largest.

Approaching the market district, one is immediately beset by a commingled scent of smoke and fruit. If China is famous for its cuisine, then Xinjiang is responsible for half of its success. Lamb kabob roasted throughout the day over sizzling coals against an undulating landscape of spicy lamian noodles topped with peppers, tomatoes and garlic, goat’s head soup, deep-fried fish and yellow mountains of pilaf rice, all washed down with boiling vats of satiating cinnamon tea.
There may not be as much bread in the whole of China as there is in Kashgar and one is oft tempted by stacks of lightly seasoned nan or pyramids of sesame seed bagels fresh out of the oven. Scarlet slices of watermelon, Xinjiang’s most abundant fruit and pink peaches blushing like a child’s cheeks are the perfect desert dessert, with market patrons walking away with comically dripping chins.

If China is famous for its cuisine, then Xinjiang is responsible for half its success

Gorged on the regional fare, one must then dodge the merchant calls of "kilinglar!" (Turkish for "come!") while browsing the endless displays of useful household wares, useless souvenirs (genie lamp anyone?), outdated electronics, knockoff clothing and eye-catching textiles, the latter being the most popular among the women of Kashgar. It’s quite a sight to see a Muslim lady shrouded in an hijab headscarf burrowing through hills of shimmering silk and other fine fabrics to further veil herself in.

Xinjiang’s predominant nationality, the Uyghurs, flavor the region with both their unique Turkish-influenced culture and devout religious faith. With more then twelve million Muslims in China, Xinjiang naturally accounts for over half the national total. Kashar’s Id Kah is the largest mosque in the People’s Republic; the city literally comes to a halt five times a day when the faithful respond to the calling of the adhan and rush to mosque for a congregational series of Mecca-facing prostrations and Islamic prayer. Half an hour later, the city is again screaming with activity and commerce.

Despite the traditional lifestyle of the Uyghurs, Kashgar has developed itself over the years into a white-tiled mercantile metropolis, where even the famed weekly bazaar is now held in a modernized indoor facility of thousands of identical stalls. Though still quite a spectacular site, this refinement has left many enthusiasts desiring something a bit more…authentic. Not to be discouraged, the answer to anyone dissatisfied by the comparatively tamer and more contemporary Kashgar is Xinjiang’s lesser known, yet arguably more impressive souk in Hetian, a day’s scenic drive south along the lethally hot Taklamakan, the second largest desert in the world. The shaded, tree-lined respite is renowned throughout China for its jade, silk and carpets – the three treasures of Hotan (as the Uyghurs spell it), which translates into "place that abounds in jade".

Beyond the medieval blacksmiths pounding on their anvils asphalt turns to dust

Hetian- A souk beyond

Indeed the first site anyone will happen upon at the Hetian marketplace is an entire street of jade dealers, either from storefronts, on blankets spread out on the ground, in the trunks of cars, or out of their pant pockets. The rabid riots of precious stone peddlers and prospective buyers haggling in their Turkish tongue over every size and color of jade imaginable add to the chaos that is only the beginning of Hetian’s bazaar. Extending countless kilometers in all four directions, the traffic-stopping market literally takes over the city streets; ass-drawn carriages contending with big bad buses and motorcycle taxis navigating through scores of preoccupied people. An entire boulevard of fragrant fruits and prismatic vegetables intersects an avenue lush with carpets and rugs, which is then separated by the canals of the Hotan River.

Beyond the medieval blacksmiths pounding on their anvils asphalt soon turns to dust. Livestock both alive and freshly slaughtered trample the dirt or turn it into crimson mud, and baying horses, camels, mules and bulls excrete freely onto the ground while being industriously inspected by interested human parties. To a pulsating background score of 200 beat per minute Arabic tabla drums and the two-stringed dutar, the bizarre bazaar dramatically segues into heaps of faux jewelry, henna hair dye and cheap cosmetics ravaged by young, olive-skinned women wearing heavy black eyeliner who prefer neck and arm-revealing (gasp!) western fashion to their more conservatively concealed counterparts. Meanwhile the local men get a shave and their head scalped by an outdoor barber or go browsing for a new knife or an embroidered dopi cap.

The blazing desert climate begins to cool at sunset, which in the summer months is about 11pm, and the mad market in Hetian winds down. Beggars seek those last few alms, exhausted vendors relax with a few chapters of the Qur’an, and the rest of us return home to look through our treasures.

Tom Carter, http://www.tomcarter.org/