Where are the Communists?

Greetings from Communist China!! Or is it still Communist China? After a few weeks in this perplexing country, I'm beginning to wonder. We've been playing the game 'Spot The Communist'. So far, there's been no winners. Actually, there's been no entries, either. No one has seen one. Turn on the TV, and there's plenty of information about the Chinese Stock Market. Swap channels and you can watch the adverts from all the private Chinese companies. Walk down the streets and all you can see is private commerce. This isn't the Communism that I used to read about, but still, it seems to suit the locals. The fact is, everyone is so busy making money that they haven't much time for anything else, these days. Oh, except the Olympics, of course. The Olympics are very big here at the moment. There's a special Olympic channel on TV, to get everyone in the mood. Olympic signs and stickers are everywhere. Official souvenirs will be available shortly, in a range to suit all pockets. There's even a special set of 5 Olympic FUWA emblems for sale - they're the official mascots, made out of jade, and can be purchased for just $41,000. If you are the person who just purchased the famous £1M handbag that's been in the news from London, they could be just up your street.

Some things obviously come from our Bigger Brothers. The BBC can't be watched on TV. Normally there are no foreign channels at all, though here is Xian there is CNN and TVE to add a bit of variety from all of the local channels - that's a first. Some web sites are rather hard to access, so if you need to checkout Blog Spot or Face Book whilst in China, you need a lot of patience. You might never get there at all, actually. BBC News coverage is a bit patchy, too, but apart from these, I've managed to get all the things done that I needed to. Our news comes courtesy of the Chinese government, who have a channel in the English language called CCTV9.

For all my regular readers, you are probably wondering if we've reached the end of another section yet. Well, the answer is yes, we, have, and are sorry to be losing quite a few of the passengers. Out of a total of 14, 6 are leaving the truck here in Xian, and 8 are continuing on to Beijing. We also have some newcomers joining us: 6 people from the Kathmandu to Kashgar truck, including my very good friends Wayne and Dinah Rogers, and 1 guy who is just doing the Xian to Beijing section. More details when I have them.

What have we been up to recently? In short, finishing the Silk Road. Whoohooo - yes, we've got here at last. Here being Xian, the official end, or start, of the Silk Road(s). What an expedition it has been. We've journied through Central Asia, following the routes taken by the camel caravans of old, crossing mountains, high plains, and mountain passes. We've spent a lot of time in the desert, including a crossing of the infamous Taklamakan Desert, and a skirting of the also infamous Gobi Desert. We've braved mountain wilderness, and travelled along the Karakoram Highway to well above the limit that altitude sickness sets in for many. We went to see the stunning Mogao Grottoes, a UNESCO World Heritage Site which contain some of the finest examples of Buddhist art in China, all beautifully preserved. Finally, at Jiayuguan, we arrived at the first section of the Great Wall of China, which you can read more about if you click this link. Since then, we've followed the wall for quite a way as it snakes its way across China, before heading south to the Yellow River and the super Buddhist statues at Bingling Si. Now we're in Xian, and a chance to see the Terracotta Warriors. More news as I get it, and whenever internet access is available.