Day 162: Dunhuang – Day 1
Today was JAM-PACKED with activity. We got up in the middle of the night in order to catch a 4AM Uber taxi to the airport (which our friendly receptionist ordered for us – poor guy slept in the lobby and had to wake-up to let us out!). Our Air China flight was on time, and we landed in Dunhuang around 10AM.
Igor had arranged a 2-day, 1-night camping trip in the desert with Silk Road China Tours, so when we arrived at the airport we were met by our English-speaking guide, Lili. As the driver brought us into town, Lili was very chatty, introducing us to the area and explaining our itinerary. Since our flight arrived so early in the day, she planned to have us walk around downtown and check out some of Dunhuang’s famous silk carpets before heading over to a traditional Chinese restaurant for lunch.
We meet our guide, Lili, at the Dunhuang Airport and drive into town where she picks up our tickets for the Mogao Caves for later that afternoon before taking a walk through downtown
Strolling through downtown Dunhuang
Window-shopping at Dunhuang Carpet
A sample of traditional silk carpet weaving (although the owner admitted all of his carpets are actually factory-made nowadays)
The silk carpets were stunning, with amazingly intricate details. However, at USD $1,000 for a 2’x3′ carpet (a wall decoration – NOT meant to be stepped on!), they were way out of our price range, not least because we would be terrified of ruining such an expensive souvenir during our travels
Lunch stop at a traditional Chinese restaurant
Three-courses, plus rice! So much food, but it was good!
Lindsay is having trouble with chopsticks – this is the second grease stain she’s gotten on her pants from dropping food in her lap. Igor can’t take her anywhere.
Admiring the restaurant’s garden – lots of sunflowers, fresh dates and table grapes
Chinese grapes vines – each bunch of grapes is wrapped with paper for protection
After lunch, Lili brought us to the Mogao Research Center for our tour of the Mogao Grottos, AKA the “Thousand Buddha Caves”. Another of China’s UNESCO World Heritage Sites, the Mogao Grottos are a collection of 492 small temples and caves carved into the mountain side at the edge of the desert. The oldest caves date from 366 AD, while the youngest were produced over 1,000 years ago. The caves contain some of the most spectacular examples of Buddhist art in China and feature a range of styles, reflecting the different artistic tastes of the Wei (Indian inspired) and Tang (the golden age for the Mogao Grottos) Dynasties.
Our tour started with two separate videos at the Research Center – the first was a surprisingly high-quality reenactment of the history of the settlement of Dunhuang as an important outpost on the crossroads of the Silk Road, and the birth of the Mogao caves. We were provided with a hand-held audio guide which dubbed the video into English for us. After the first video, our group (about 100+ people, enough to fill a small stadium!) was guided into an auditorium with a 360⁰ screen which showed a second video of close-ups of many of the caves we were about to see. We realized later that this would have been our only opportunity to take photos of the Buddhist art, as cameras are strictly forbidden inside the caves (they claim it’s to preserve the paint from flash photography, but it reality it’s to protect their copyright to the images).
After the videos, we returned our audio guides and caught one of the many shuttle buses that escort the tourists to the caves. Access to the caves is tightly controlled – it is impossible to visit them on your own, as everyone is required to join a group leader. Lili made sure we got into the English group (which surprisingly only had 2 other Westerners – we suspect the others may have been from Singapore or Malaysia – they must not offer Bahasa-language tours). While 20 caves are open for viewing, each guide only takes his or her group to 10 caves, depending on the traffic flow of the day, making sure to at least hit the most famous caves: #96 with the 35m Giant Buddha and #17 the Library Cave, which contained a treasure trove of ancient manuscripts when it was rediscovered in 1900. The caves were absolutely amazing – it was a bit heartbreaking that we couldn’t take our own pictures to remember them.
After 2hrs of informational films at the Mogao Research Institute, we were bussed over to see the Mogao Grottos in person
The Mogao Grottos – a collection of almost 500 individual temple caves carved into the Echoing-Sand Mountain in the desert
Visiting the Mogao Grottos, in Dunhuang
Of the 492 caves, only 20 are open to tourists – the rest are carefully sealed with temperature and humidity controlling monitors in order to preserve them for research and posterity
The Giant Buddha in Cave 130 was closed, but we got to check out the huge reclining Buddha in Cave 26 (Wikipedia Image here). Due to the tight restriction on photography (actually enforced at Mogao!) the only paintings we could take a picture of were the few frescos of flying apsaras
A few stupas dot the horizon outside the Mogao Grottos
We finished touring the caves around 5PM, and met up with Lili for our transfer out to the desert. When we arrived at the sand dunes, we squealed with delight when we saw our team of camels! Proper, 2-hump Bactrian camels, decked out with carpets as saddles – they were AWESOME! Lindsay and Igor fell in love with them immediately – Igor’s had so much personality (he kept making noises as if Igor was too heavy!), while Lindsay’s was a pretty, prissy princess that would shoot glances at Igor’s camel as if to tell it to shut up.
We rode into the desert for about an hour until we reached our camp, hidden between the dunes. After dismounting, our hosts gave us plastic sleds and encouraged us to climb the highest dune so we could watch the sunset than slide down. Once it started to get dark, we sat at the table and got to know the other three girls on our tour – a small group of young Chinese women (early 20s), two of whom spoke enough English for us to get to know each other a bit. To our horror we found out that the Chinese actually get even *less* annual vacation than Americans – while the standard in the US is a pitiful 2-weeks (which is why we had to quit our jobs to visit the faraway, remote place on our Year Trip), the poor Chinese only get ONE WEEK! We raised a bottle of beer to our new friends and conceded that they had it worse.
After dinner, our hosts turned on the generator for power and we were introduced to the unique entertainment of Chinese camping – instead of reveling in the peace and tranquility of the empty desert, our hosts turned on a karaoke machine, which kept our group up until about midnight! If you’ve ever been out to a karaoke bar, you know “just listening” isn’t usually allowed. Lindsay tried to convince everyone that she’s a terrible singer, but after searching through all the English songs (a very small selection) and threatening to play Adele, Lindsay finally caved and tried to belt out “American Pie”. It might have been an OK choice in the States, since others would have sung along, but when it was just Lindsay…no, just no. The Chinese girls stopped asking Lindsay to sing after that.
Heading into the desert outside Dunhuang on camelback
Lindsay and Igor fall in love with our camels immediately! Igor’s dark camel at the end had so much personality, but Lindsay’s blond camel was just so pretty!
Recreating the Silk Road experience via camel caravan in Dunhuang
After we arrive at camp, our guide leads the camels over the hill so they can rest the night in peace
Climbing the sand dune above our camp (really grateful for the helpful ladder at the top!), we are rewarded with a breathtaking view of the desert
The desert outside Dunhuang – a major frontier settlement of the ancient Silk Road
After admiring the view, the quickest way down the dune is via sand sled!
A teeny little lizard hides in the sand near our camp, nestled within the dunes
As the sun goes down, our hosts cook up some spicy pork and chicken on the open fire
After dinner (and a few Chinese beers) our hosts kick on the generator so there’s power for the karaoke machine!
Our fellow Chinese tourists were very comfortable belting out tunes. Lindsay hoped to get away from the mic, but the girls searched the few English-language songs until she agreed to sing “American Pie” – yeah, they stopped asking her to sing after that…