China Part 7 - Dunhuang, Gobi Desert and flight over Tibet

After leaving Xiahe we made our way by bus back to Lanzhou and then took another sleeper train to Dunhuang, which is in the very north of China beside the Gobi desert.  I woke up on my birthday with views of the desert outside the train window.  

We went on a 2 night camel trip into the desert and it was a lot of fun.  When we first entered the desert and the landscape suddenly changed from green to brown it felt very strange and the desert seemed very bland and inhospitable but after a while you see beauty in the strange shaped dunes and the patterns on the sand.  Our guide was Mr Li; he was a lovely gentle man who sang to his camels and really looked after us.  God knows how he navigates his way around the desert with absolutely no landmarks - incredible.

On the first night there was a group of us but on the second night there was just, Mr Li, Nic, myself and our 2 camels, whom we named Elvis and Derek.

On the first night we climbed a very big, steep dune to watch the sunset.  It was really hard work and took me ages (Nic was much faster) but it felt good to finally reach the top.

On the first night, once we'd settled in our tent, there was a big sandstorm and due to the wind and the sand falling in on us through the air vent nobody got much sleep.  A new experience which we're not in a hurry to emulate. 

Entering the desert

Nic at the top of the big dune

Taking a break near the top of the dune

Taking another break on the dune

Sunset in the desert

Mr Li with Elvis and Derek (they'd just tried to sneak off)

Nic cleaning up!

Whilst in the desert we took a break from the camels and went to visit the extraordinary Mogao caves, a UNESCO world heritage site and one of the greatest repositories of Buddhist art in the world.  There are over 700 caves and over 400 have decoration/art work inside.  The first cave dates back to AD366.  We saw a few of the caves and were blown-away by the detailed wall paintings, statues and huge Buddhas.  Because of the dry conditions and lack of light you would think that the paintings were finished last week, not over a thousand years ago. 
 
In 1900, the self-appointed guardian of the caves, Wang Yuanlu, discovered a hidden library filled with tens of thousands of preserved manuscripts and paintings dating back to AD406, including the oldest printed book in existence, The Diamond Sutra (AD868).  Word quickly spread about the discovery and Wang Yuanlu became very popular and was courted by rival archaeologists.  Close to 20,000 of the manuscripts were taken to Europe for just 220 pounds.  Nic and I plan to visit the British Museum when we get home to see these 'stolen' treasures.

The mind blowing Mogao caves

Sunrise in the desert

Strange graves

After returning from our camel trip and having a nights sleep in a comfy bed we went on a day trip to see the Jade Gate, Han-dynasty Great Wall and the Yadan rock formations.  These places are miles into the desert but it was well worth the hours spent in the minibus.  This part of the great wall dates back over 2000 years and it stretched for over 11km.  It seems bizarre that a wall would be needed in the middle of nowhere to keep people (the Hun) out.  The Yadan rock formations cover a huge area; it used to be a lake but the evaporation and erosion have left weird and wonderfully-shaped formations.

Jade Gate

Ancient Great Wall

Getting stuck in the sand and being rescued

Yadan rock formations

We then left the desert and headed back to Chengdu so we could catch our flight over Tibet to Nepal.  The journey involved 2 back to back sleeper trains and took 2 days but it wasn't as bad as we'd expected.  

The views from the plane as we flew over Tibet were spectacular and we were lucky enough to see Everest on the way.  This didn't quite make up for the fact that we couldn't go to Tibet but it made the cost of the expensive flights worth it.

Mount Everest

Please continue to follow our travels in Nepal.