The passengers onboard Dragoman's truck 'Giselle' are a good mix, though rather older on average than one would usually expect. From the the original group that left Dover on the 17th of March, there is just me, and trip-leader Jay. Warren and Jan, who joined the truck in Xian after a mixed itinerary through Indian and Pakistan, are still on board. We have all spent the last 15 days in Beijing, waiting for the new passengers to arrive. All are now here - a mix of Brits, Canadians, Australians, and an American.

I really enjoyed Beijing. It is a fascinating city, though very spread out and rather difficult to get around, as mentioned previously. I got a lot done, though, both looking around the city and onlnie, sorting out the new maps and photos that I hope you have all has a look at.

We are now in Datong, having had to catch the train from Beijing, to meet the truck which had been stranded here. The train trip was excellent, and very interesting - I am really glad that we were able to include it.

I am just posting this little Blog to let everyone know that there is little likelihood of internet access in Mongolia, so if you don't hear from me for a month or so, don't be surprised. Ditto Facebook Friends. I will update this, and that, when it is next possible!!

To view the maps, click on the links below. The map will initially load as a standard roadmap, but you can also select a Satellite view, or a hybrid view of the two, using the buttons in the top right of the screen. The amount of detail that the Satellite view will provide depends on Google's current satellite photos for that area. In the countryside this might just show a general view that identifies built-up and rural areas, whilst in bigger cities you can often zoom in to see individual buildings, and decide which exit we took from a carpark, or even where we parked in that carpark! The detail can often be astonishing. You can click-and-drag to move the map around, and zoom in and out using the +/- slider on the left of the screen. Note that Google provides no maps for Georgia or Azerbiajan (why not?), and the western parts of China are similarly blank, so you will have to use the satellite photos instead.

The Route Reports are stored as PDF files, so to view them you will need a PDF reader installed on your computer. (Available free from Adobe.)

Note: All route and stored position data are copyright 2008 Tim Makins and MapAbility.Com

Robyn (the mysterious) left some days ago to fly to Hong Kong. I saw her a few days later, back from Bangkok, where she had to go for her visa extension. The remaining passengers from Dover: Chris, myself, and Mr & Mrs Upgrade, plus Izzy, Graham and Renee who joined in Istanbul, plus an extra 7 who joined in Xian: Wayne and Dinah, Warren and Jan, Sharon and Colleen who all came on the re-routed Tibet truck (via Pakistan - don't ask!), and not forgetting Peter from Boston who came just for the Xian-Beijing section... all arrived in Beijing by coach, the truck having been safely parked many miles away, in a hotel car park in the city of Jixian. This was due to the current pre-Olympic regulations which ban all Dragoman trucks (and other large vehicles) from coming within Beijing's outer city limits. These regulations are in an effort to reduce the thick pall of pollution that normally hangs over the city, and so stop the athletes wheezing so much. Will it be enough to clear Beijing's skyline? Is there sufficient time for this cunning plan to work? I doubt it. The athletes in the know will have been training for some time in Mexico city. No, not for the altitude.

Most of the above passengers have now flown off, or caught trains to other parts of China. Warren, Jan, and myself have a free 11 days whilst we wait for the other passengers, and a new driver, to arrive for the start of the final 11 week super-tough section to St Petersburg. I am staying at the Huguosi Hotel - not so super-tough, and just 2kms north-west of the Forbidden City. Quite handy for all the sights, plus not too far from the metro and various bus stops either. Beijing is very spread out, so access to public transport is a must. The good news is that public transport is cheap: just 1.5Y for a bus ride, 2Y for the Metro, and 10Y for 3km in a taxi, of which there are quite a few. Amusing little detail: most taxi drivers don't speak English, but their taxi meters do - yes really. When they turn the meter on, it greets you in English, then at the end of the journey thanks you for the ride, reminds you to only pay what the meter says, and then suggestd that you take the receipt, which it helpfully prints out.

As promised some time back, I have finally got around to uploading some of my Overlanding photos for you all to check out. More will be added as and when. In the meantime, here's a list of all the new photo pages:

• 2008.04.09: Europe and Turkey Photos


• 2008.04.10: Georgia Photos


• 2008.04.11: Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan Photos


• 2008.04.27: Uzbekistan Photos - 01


• 2008.04.28: Uzbekistan Photos - 02


• 2008.04.29: Uzbekistan Photos - 03


• 2008.05.19: Kyrgyzstan Photos - 01


• 2008.05.20: Kyrgyzstan Photos - 02


• 2008.05.21: Kyrgyzstan Photos - 03


• 2008.05.26: Kashgar Photos - 01


• 2008.05.27: Kashgar Photos - 02


• 2008.05.28: Kashgar Photos - 03


• 2008.06.16: Silk Road Photos - 01


• 2008.06.17: Silk Road Photos - 02


• 2008.06.18: Silk Road Photos - 03


• 2008.06.19: China Photos - 01


• 2008.06.20: Terracotta Warrior Photos


• 2008.06.27: China Photos - 02


• 2008.06.28: China Photos - 03


• 2008.06.29: China Photos - 04


• 2008.06.30: China Photos - 05

What with having so much time here in Beijiing (11 days) and also having free internet access in my hotel room, it gave me the impetus to find the local computer quarter in Beijing, and buy a second-hand A/C power supply that I should have brought with me from England. Anyway, I have thus been able to get a lot done online, sorting out my photos and choosing the best ones to share with everyone. I hope you enjoy them. Comments are welcome. If you haven't already, do check out some of the Blog pages as well - you can see a full list in the Archives.

A couple of days ago, I went to the China Post office on Jianguomen Beidajie to see if there was any mail waiting for me. The service is very good there - I was met at the door by a lady who spoke English. She took me straight to the Poste Restante counter, where there were about 40 letters waiting to be collected. Two of them were for me - hooray - from Rosemary Holland, and Wayne and Dinah Rogers. Thanks, everyone - they are very welcome. If someone else has sent a letter to Beijing then sorry - it didn't get here, or it is still on its way. In either case, it should eventually be returned to the sender's address. My next, actually my final mail pickup on this Overland journey, is in Almaty, Kazakhstan. If YOU would like to send me a card or letter, you can post it to:

MAKINS, T
Poste Restante
Central Post Office
Bogenbay Batyr 134
Almaty
KAZAKHSTAN

You should post letters to Almaty by the 1st of August, or a few days before. I will be arriving there on the 18th.

I have been to see the Forbidden City - made more special by seeing so much of it in the film 'The Last Emperor' - which is a brilliant movie, most colourful and well photographed - if you haven't seen it I would recommend that you borrow it from the library. The site is quite extensive, with supposedly 9,999 rooms, though I didn't bother to count!! There were HORDES of people there, despite going as early as I could. It is the major tourist attraction in Beijing, so hordes are to be expected. Also quite busy was the Olympic site, with its strange 'Bird's Nest' stadium, which I had wanted to take a look at. Construction is still being finalised, though, and finishing details checked, so the whole area is fenced off, despite the opening being in less than one month. I guess they don't want to get the new facilities dirty beforehand, or have people taking souvenirs either. I got a photo or two of the buildings through the fence. Lots of other people had the same idea.

Another site of major interest to me was the Old Summer Palace, which is infamous for having a Marble Boat built by the Dowager Empress Cixi, who used the money that was originally earmarked for building up a new imperial navy. No wonder their empire didn't last long after that! The Summer Palace is a wonderful site, on a really huge scale. The ferryboats across the lake are shaped like dragons, which is fun.

I have met a few of the travellers from another Dragoman truck, which has just completed the trip FROM St Petersburg. They tell me that there is little or any internet access in Mongolia, so if you don't hear from me for a month or two, that will be the reason.

That's enough Blogging for now.
Best wishes to all !
Travelling Tim

Great Wall of China

Great Wall of China

Great Wall of China

Great Wall of China

Great Wall of China

Great Wall of China

Great Wall of China

Gateway at Eastern Qing Tombs

Eastern Qing Tombs

Street of Spirits

Street of Spirits

Street of Spirits

 

These photographs were all taken on my Overland journey from the UK to St Petersburg, via Beijing, in 2008. High resolutions versions are available for licencing - please Contact Me for further details.

Putuozongcheng Temple, Chengde

Empress at Putuozongcheng Temple, Chengde

Putuozongcheng Temple, Chengde

Putuozongcheng Temple, Chengde

Dancers at Putuozongcheng Temple, Chengde

Putuozongcheng Temple, Chengde

Dancers at Putuozongcheng Temple, Chengde

Dancers at Putuozongcheng Temple, Chengde

Dancers at Putuozongcheng Temple, Chengde

Dancers at Putuozongcheng Temple, Chengde

Monk at Putuozongcheng Temple, Chengde

Putuozongcheng Temple, Chengde

Putuozongcheng Temple, Chengde

Putuozongcheng Temple, Chengde

Picture taking at Putuozongcheng Temple, Chengde

Temple of Sumeru, Chengde

Temple of Sumeru, Chengde

Temple of Sumeru, Chengde

Temple of Sumeru, Chengde

Temple of Sumeru, Chengde

Pagoda at Temple of Sumeru, Chengde

Temple of Sumeru, Chengde

Deer in Summer Palace, Chengde

Boy and grandfather

Umbrella and lotus leaves

Girl eating noodles

Feeding the fish

Pagoda in palace gardens

Pagoda in palace gardens

 

These photographs were all taken on my Overland journey from the UK to St Petersburg, via Beijing, in 2008. High resolutions versions are available for licensing - please Contact Me for further details.

Dazhao Lamasery

Dazhao Lamasery

Dazhao Lamasery

Dazhao Lamasery

Dazhao Lamasery

Dazhao Lamasery

Dazhao Lamasery

Yungang Caves

Yungang Caves

Yungang Caves

Yungang Caves

Yungang Caves

Yungang Caves

Yungang Caves

Yungang Caves

Yungang Caves

Yungang Caves

Yungang Caves

Yungang Caves

Hanging Monastery, Datong

Hanging Monastery, Datong

Hanging Monastery, Datong

Hanging Monastery, Datong

Hanging Monastery, Datong

Hanging Monastery, Datong

Hanging Monastery, Datong

Hanging Monastery, Datong

 

These photographs were all taken on my Overland journey from the UK to St Petersburg, via Beijing, in 2008. High resolutions versions are available for licencing - please Contact Me for further details.

Rickshaws on Xian city walls

Xian city walls

Buildings old and new

Gatehouses and cyclist

Chinese farmer

Inflatable boats - Pingliang

Inflatable boats - Pingliang

Farmland and clouds

Yellow River, at Shapotou

Climbing dunes at Shapotou

Incense burner, Gao Temple, Zhongwei

Monk at Gao Temple, Zhongwei

The Future Buddha

Buddhas at Gao Temple, Zhongwei

Gao Temple, Zhongwei

Gao Temple, Zhongwei

Gao Temple, Zhongwei

Farmer working in paddy field

New museum at Hohot

Girl with umbrella

Dragoman truck

 

These photographs were all taken on my Overland journey from the UK to St Petersburg, via Beijing, in 2008. High resolutions versions are available for licencing - please Contact Me for further details.

Its not easy! First of all, very few people understand English, and most menus are only in Chinese. Some restaurants have a picture menu, which is great to give a rough idea of the dish, but useless when it comes to deciding if it is safe for a vegetarian to eat. It is therefore vital to carry a small note that explains exactly what you can and can't eat. The Vegan Society in the UK produce a very useful Vegan Passport which explains, in every language that you can think of, what vegans do and do not eat, but if, as a vegetarian, you want to include eggs or cheese in your diet, you will need something different. Unfortunately the UK's Vegetarian Society doesn't do anything similar - perhaps YOU can email them and suggest that they do?

Let's talk now about vegetarian eating in practice. Here's the big problem: in China there is a general idea that whilst vegetarians don't eat meat, there's no trouble if the sauce or stock that the dish is cooked in has meat or livestock origins. Therefore, you will need a note that states that not only do you not eat meat, chicken, fish or seafood, but that you don't want the dish to contain any meat stock or juices of any animal, bird or fish origins either. Armed with such a notice, you are more likely to get the restaurant to understand you. It is also useful to have the following translated into Chinese:

RICE
NOODLES
EGG
RICE with EGG
VEGETABLES
MIXED VEGETABLES

You can then point to these words, and see what the reaction is. Sometimes the restaurant will be happy to suggest something, or to ask the chef if he will help, but quite often restaurants will not deviate from their set menu. They may suggest items on the menu that will fit in with your requirements, but they won't make a special dish for you, even though its obvious that they already have all of the ingredients.

I have often found that requesting 'mixed vegetables' gets no results. Why is this a problem? Well, the way food is normally served in China is in a situation where a group of people will order a number of dishes, then everyone will try a bit of each dish. If you are by yourself it means that you are unlikely to be able to eat more than 2 dishes, each of which will be based around one item. You'll thus find yourself eating, say, rice and a big dish of spinach with mushrooms. This is rather monotonous, no matter how much you like spinach and mushrooms. Mixed vegetables would be more fun. What a pity the Chinese haven't thought of the Indian 'Thali' concept, where a single diner gets a bit of everything. It is possible, sometimes, to ask for a half dish of whatever, but unless you have that request written down, or the waiter speaks english, it can be hard to get the concept across.

Although lunch and dinner can be chosen quite easily by the above method, breakfast can be much more problematic, and I have found that apart from some grated raw vegetables, there is unlikely to be anything on offer that I can eat, even if a restaurant is found that is open. Some hotels have a breakfast included in the room rate, and some do not. The more 'touristy' the city, the more likely the hotel is to have a Western choice for breakfast. My usual remedy is to find a small bakery or supermarket and buy some bread or wheat product, to have with fruit. There's always plenty of fruit available, of many sorts. It will be a lot nicer than you are used to, too, as its all ripened naturally. You won't find cheese, apart from in the very big, touristy cities. Even then it will be sliced, in individual portions of tastelessness. Milk and yoghurt are a bit more common, though not in restaurants. Nuts are available everywhere, and can of course be used as a useful source of protein for both vegans and vegetarians.

You are probably wondering why I haven't mentioned foreign food. Italian, Mexican, Indian, Thai - those choices are available everywhere in the world, surely? Sorry to disappoint, but not in China! The Chinese are incredibly insular when it comes to food, and although every town will have 100s of restaurants, they'll all serve Chinese food, and only Chinese food. The few exceptions to this are in the bigger cities, where some of the large foreign chains have started to get a foothold. Before you get excited, let me tell you that the foreign chains you will see are MacDonalds and KFC. Yuk, and double yuk! Nothing for a vegetarian or vegan there, even if you DID approve of the company politics, which as a vegan or vegetarian I would very much doubt. Occasionally you might come across a Pizza Hut, but the prices there are very high, similar to what you are used to in the west. A vegetarian backpacker eating there would soon find that his budget had blown apart.

This is all very sad. The only things that the Chinese know about foreign food is from McD, KFC, and PH. No wonder they just stick to their own cooking!! As for backpackers, unless you are very lucky, you will just have to manage from the ideas given above. Self-caterers would have a much better time, as many sorts of vegetables are available in every market. Some pulses too, normally mung beans, and those little red ones. I've seen yellow split peas, and green lentils, once. Red lentils not at all, which is a shame as they are so easy to use. Tofu is commonly available, if you are a tofu fan.

The Chinese are great snackers, and the average supermarket will contain a huge variety of snacks. Check the packets carefully - they often contain animal products, even if the picture on the front looks OK. Some items are definitely best avoided - I've seen packets of pre-cooked hen heads, and pre-packed duck feet. Some packets you just don't WANT to know any more about!

Whilst in Beijing, I have been looking around for vegetarian restaurants. The one mentioned in the Lonely Planet book: Gongdelin Vegetarian Restaurant at 158 Qianmen Dajie, near the Temple of Heaven, seems to have disappeared. I did find two others, though, and would recommend them both.

The first, which has its own website, is at a hotel at 103 West Dianmen Street, Xicheng district, and not far from the northern entrance to the Beihai Park and Lakes. Their phone number is 010-665-71898. The restaurant is Buddhist-based, and serves a large variety of vegetarian dishes, many of which are cleverly made to look (and taste, apparently) like meat or fish. They have vegetarian shrimps, fish, pork, even vegetarian pepper steak and fries! Quite why the Chinese do this I am not sure -it seems rather bizarre. However, the restaurant also does a range of more normal Chinese vegetarian dishes, which do not pretend to be like anything else. The price range is Medium, with dishes from about 20 Yuan to 80 Yuan. There is no alcohol for sale. Buses that pass the restaurant include the 13, 107, 111, 118, 204, 810, 823, and 850.

The second restaurant, a personal favourite, is called 'Xu Xiang Zhai'. Its located at 26 Guo Zi Jian Street, in Dongcheng district. Telephone 010-640-46568. Fax 010-640-46566. Its easy to find, as it is right opposite the famous Confucian Temple, and just a minute away from the Lama Temple on Yong He Gong Street. There's a subway station just 5 minutes walk away - its called Yonghegong. One of the best things about the restaurant is that it has an all-you-can-eat buffet that runs twice a day - at lunch time, and in the evening from 17:30-21:00. There must be about 50 different dishes to choose from, including sushi, soup, salads, fruit and deserts. You can keep on eating, but if you leave anything on your plate, they charge you extra! The price for the buffet is fixed at 68 Yuan, approximately 10USD or 5GBP. There are some soft drinks, plus beer if you pay extra. The restaurant also has a separate dining room if you want to choose dishes from a menu, but I prefer the buffet.

Terracotta Warrior

Terracotta Warrior

Terracotta Warrior

Terracotta Warrior

Hall 1 - Terracotta Warriors

Hall 1 - Terracotta Warriors

Hall 1 - Terracotta Warriors

Hall 1 - Terracotta Warriors

Hall 1 - Terracotta Warriors

Hall 1 - Terracotta Warriors

Hall 1 - Terracotta Warriors

Hall 1 - Terracotta Warriors

Hall 2 - Terracotta Warriors

Hall 2 - Terracotta Warriors

Hall 2 - Terracotta Warriors

Hall 2 - Terracotta Warriors

Hall 2 - Terracotta Warriors

Hall 2 - Terracotta Warriors

Hall 3 - Brass chariot

 

These photographs were all taken on my Overland journey from the UK to St Petersburg, via Beijing, in 2008. High resolutions versions are available for licencing - please Contact Me for further details.

Temples on Kong Tong Mountain

Tree on Kong Tong Mountain

Taoist statue at Kong Tong

Taoist monk at Kong Tong

Taoist statues at Kong Tong

Painting of water birds

Taoist monk at Kong Tong

Temple roof tiles

Tree with good luck threads

Taoist monk at Kong Tong

Taoist monk at Kong Tong

Taoist statues at Kong Tong

Light down temple stairs

Big Goose Pagoda, Xian

Big Goose Pagoda, Xian

Lighting incense at Da Cien Temple

Lighting incense at Da Cien Temple

Statue in Da Cien Temple

Incense burner at Da Cien Temple

Statue of Xuan Zang

Xian museum - Buddhist temple

 

These photographs were all taken on my Overland journey from the UK to St Petersburg, via Beijing, in 2008. High resolutions versions are available for licencing - please Contact Me for further details.

Great Wall and paddy fields

Great Wall and paddy fields

Bronze warrior horsemen

Chinese girl smiling

Incense burner

Chinese characters - Fishing

Temple incense seller

Boy in orange teeshirt

Old Chinese lady

Three Buddhas

Statue with silk background

Yellow River at Liujiaxia

Yellow River at Liujiaxia

Yellow River at Liujiaxia

Yellow River at Bingling Si

Yellow River at Bingling Si

The Bingling Si Buddhist Caves

The Bingling Si Buddhist Caves

Buddhist prayer flags

Blue-haired Buddha

Chinese Buddhist monk

Bingling Si Upper Temple

Bingling Si Upper Temple

Recling Buddha - Bingling Si

Giant Buddha - Bingling Si

Mountains at Bingling Si

Mountains at Bingling Si

 

These photographs were all taken on my Overland journey from the UK to St Petersburg, via Beijing, in 2008. High resolutions versions are available for licencing - please Contact Me for further details.

Boys eating noodles

Walking on sand dunes

Jay feeds wandering camel

A typically huge Chinese service-station

Mogao Caves near Dunhuang

Mogao Caves near Dunhuang

Dunhuang, where you pay to see sand

Great Wall at Shiguan Gorge

Great Wall at Shiguan Gorge

Great Wall at Shiguan Gorge

Jiayuguan Fort, Xinjiang

Curio seller, Jiayuguan Fort

Temple figures, Jiayuguan Fort

Jiayuguan Fort, Xinjiang

Jiayuguan Fort, Xinjiang

Jiayuguan Fort, Xinjiang

Jiayuguan Fort, Xinjiang

Great Wall at Shiguan Gorge

Statue of travelling Monk

Great Wall at Shiguan Gorge

Statue of travelling Monk

Great Wall at Shiguan Gorge

Chinese men playing cards

Dragon and temple bell

Cockerel and red door

Chinese good luck ribbons

Chinese good luck ribbons

Dragon and incense

 

These photographs were all taken on my Overland journey from the UK to St Petersburg, via Beijing, in 2008. High resolutions versions are available for licencing - please Contact Me for further details.

Preparing silk cocoons, Hotan

Silk weaver prepares warp, Hotan

Colored silks, Hotan Silk Factory

Silk weaver prepares warp, Hotan

Silk weaver at loom, Hotan

Hanks of raw silk thread

Silk carpet weaver at loom, Hotan

Carpet weavers with baby in cot

Weaving a 34 metre wide carpet

Weaving a 34 metre wide carpet

Chairman Mao is watching you

Sand dunes in the Taklamakan Desert

Desert bushes to stop drifting

Truck with valves on Chinese expressway

Truck on the Taklamakan Highway

Old Chinese coins and tokens

House and balcony at Turpan

Turpan covered walkway

Young girl in Turpan

The 2nd lowest lake in the world

Statue at the Astana graves

Viewing platform, Astana graves

Emin Minaret and Su Gong Ta Mosque, Turpan

Gaochang ruins, near Turpan, Xinjiang

Gaochang ruins, near Turpan, Xinjiang

Gaochang ruins, near Turpan, Xinjiang

 

These photographs were all taken on my Overland journey from the UK to St Petersburg, via Beijing, in 2008. High resolutions versions are available for licencing - please Contact Me for further details.

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.

Horse trading, Kashgar Sunday Market

Horse seller, Kashgar Sunday Market

Sheep seller, Kashgar Sunday Market

Butcher with sheep, Kashgar Market

Kashgar Bazaar - selling cloth

Selling cucumbers

Kashgar Sunday Market

Hardware selling at Kashgar

Kashgar Sunday Market

Kashgar Sunday Market

Man with cot - Kashgar Sunday Market

Men bargaining - Kashgar Sunday Market

Children with toy - Kashgar old city

Children playing - Kashgar old city

Bicycle and doorway - Kashgar old city

Foodstall with Uighur men eating

Coloured powder for sale

Kashgar market stall

Uighur men read the days newspaper

Uighur men bargaining in Kashgar

Chairman Mao statue, and red banner

Chinese market vegetable stall

Nectarines with leaves

Nuts and raisins, Yengisar market

Uighur man in hat, Yengisar

Uighur man in hat, Yengisar

 

These photographs were all taken on my Overland journey from the UK to St Petersburg, via Beijing, in 2008. High resolutions versions are available for licencing - please Contact Me for further details.