Dunhuang

We took the overnight sleeper train from Lanzhou to Dunhuang (actually to Liuyuan in the middle of nowhere, and then another 2 hours by car to Dunhuang). Despite this being a desert with almost no rain, we arrived at Liuyuan in a heavy downpur, and got quite cold looking around for the waiting car. Dunhuang is an oasis in the harsh desert, and was an important town on the Silk Road. The main reason for going there is to see the amazing Mogao Caves - hundreds of caves carved out of the soft sandstone, with Buddhist figures lavishly decorated with colorful art from the 4th century onwards. Due to the isolation and dry climate, the paintings are well preserved, and much survives unretouched from the original times. The caves are now all enclosed for preservation, and only a few are opened each day for guided tours - with no photos allowed inside.


Dry Desert near the Mogao Caves


Cliff of Mogao Caves
In the evening to fill out the day we visited the Singing Sands Mountains (Mingsha Shan) just south of Dunhuang. These are impressive sand dunes, with the highest one rising to 1700m. They have been turned into a desert playground, with sand slides, camel rides, dune buggies, hang gliding, and any other desert activity you can imagine.


Dune Playground: Tour Bus, Sand Slide and Staircase


Camel Depot


Camels Preparing to Depart


Camel Ride


Camel Closeup
My host Wenshan and I climbed part way up the dunes, and enjoyed the views, and watching the avalanche patterns form in the sand after our foot steps.


Sand Patterns
(The "cliffs" are about 1cm tall)


Crescent Lake and Pavilion



Sand Dunes