April 24-Day 10 Urumchi

                                                       Day 10 Turfan to Urumchi

URUMCHI   This morning you visit the ruins of Jiaohe. Built on a bluff bordered by two rivers, Jiaohe is protected by sheer cliffs (it was known to the Uighurs as Yarkhoto, or "cliff city"). Built in the 2nd century B.C. and abandoned in the 14th century, this Silk Road metropolis remains in good, evocative condition.

Later this morning, embark on the approximate three hour drive through a cleft in the Tian Shan to Urumchi, Xinjiang's capital. Situated on the northern slope of the Celestial Mountains, Urumchi (2997 feet) commands an outstanding view of the range's easternmost peak, Bogda Ola (18,132 feet). Urumchi is a distinctly modern city, notable chiefly for being the most landlocked place on earth. Unlike the rest of Xinjiang, which is heavily Uighur, with dollops of other Muslim peoples, Urumchi is roughly 90 per cent Han (which accounts for the pronunciation "Uru-muchi," or "Wulumuchi.") 

Enjoy a delicious Uighur lunch at Miraj Restaurant followed by a visit Urumchi’s Xinjiang Autonomous Region Museum to see its outstanding archaeological and ethnological collections, including the remarkable“Xinjiang Mummies,” some of which date back 4,000 years. In a remarkable 

state of preservation, these prehistoric people are not Asian but Caucasian — tall, large-nosed and blond or brown-haired. Archaeological clues, such as their pottery, tools and especially their clothes of dyed woolen twill and felt, have shown that they migrated from the northern steppes and ancient Iranian lands well before China established its claim to the region in the first century BCE.

Dinner tonight is at your leisure and you may wish to head to the lively People’s Square, an ideal meeting place for families and young people, and a perfect place to sit and watch folks learning tai chi and ballroom dancing.

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