Into the New Frontier

Emerging on the other side of the Kunlun Mountains, mountains gave way to desert and soon we found ourselves in Xinjiang.

Although a part of China, in much the same manner that Tibet is, Xinjiang shares more in common with Central Asia than with the rest of China.

In the southwest, Xinjiang borders the Central Asian countries of Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Afghanistan, and Pakistan. The people there are primarily Uyghur. Their ethnic and cultural roots are Turkic rather than Chinese. Their script is Arabic, their customs and clothing heavily influenced by Islam.

I had seen Uyghurs throughout China before. They are often found in bigger cities, selling amazing lamb kabobs at street side food stands.

But arriving in Xinjiang for the first time felt like being in a whole new country. As we pulled into the first small village, my eyes were agape as my brain processed all the new sights and sounds. Donkeys pulling carts down the main road... Street vendors selling freshly baked naan... Women covered in burkas... Bearded old Uyghur men wearing western suits with stylish round Muslim caps...


We sat for lunch at a roadside eatery, Islamic music from the local mosque blaring in the background, dining on fresh hand pulled noodles and mutton. I've never been to Central Asia before, but in my mind, this is what I might have imagined.

Arriving in the first major town of Karghalik, our Tibetan tour group was thankfully disbanded. My friend, Naz, and I set about on our own to explore the city. We strolled around the local night market, sampling the street food and people watching.


Now Karghalik is quite a ways off the beaten tourist track. Far removed from any major tourist attractions, on the map it looks like just another non-descript town in the middle of nowhere. In fact, during our time there, we did not see any other tourists. What's more, the locals seemed so unaccustomed to foreigners, that they were just as amused with us as we were with them.

Naz, who is a second generation Afghan-American, was practically granted celebrity status. Every few minutes someone would approach and ask, with me acting as interpreter, where she was from and whether or not she was married. At one point, as we were eating kabobs and chatting with the locals, a random Uyghur man came up and handed her his baby.

Later that evening, a Uyghur kid invited us to dine at his family's restaurant. Before we knew it, another crowd had gathered around us. While Naz was given yet another baby to hold, I showed the children pictures from my Ipad. We stayed until late in the evening making smalltalk and joking around with the kids.


What on the map had looked like just another non-descript town in the middle of nowhere, ended up being one of the best nights of our trip.

Can you guess which one of us below is not Chinese? (Hint: it's the one with the hideously sunburned face)