丝绸之路南道

右边是塔克拉玛干，左边是阿尔金山，我们现在从若羌去且末。我们在走丝绸之路南道，就是唐僧西天取经回来走的路。要是现在是唐期，就可以见到孙猴子了。

丝绸之路南道起点，古时能通14辆马车，相当于双向6车道，可见当时的繁华，地壳运动以及历史原因，丝绸之路逐渐淹没在历史的黄沙之中。

Having travelled the Southern Silk Route for several years the changes are amazing. A mere matter of twelve years ago the eastern part had no roads connecting the oases and it really was an adventure. These days with a road connecting every oasis you can get round the entire Taklamakan Desert in no more than a week. Whereas it used to be a very cheap option and you could stay pretty much anywhere, these days government requirements mean that foreigners are watched like hawks and have to stay in three star places with minimum prices of around £10 a night. It's certainly not an off-beat destination any more and surrounded by plastic furniture, chandeliers, flat screen TV's, and hot and cold running water, you could pretty much be anywhere in the world....apart from of course the raining dust, hot fresh flat bread every morning and the amazing bustling bazaars. These days you have to pick your places and what you want to do if you want to really get inside the heart of the Uyghur people and their lives. There are a few tourist sites worth visiting where they don't rip you off. Steer away from the centuries old walnut tree in Hotan where you have to pay to walk around a beautiful tree which is fenced off. Steer away from Buddhist caves which cost an arm and a leg to visit...but make a bee-line for village markets, main mosques on Fridays around noon time, and village lanes where you can wander at will and maybe even get an invitation in for tea. The renovation of Kashgar is a pleasant surprise and it's certainly worth a visit despite the rumours that it' s all been rebuilt. It has of course, but wonderfully tastefully and in keeping with the age old Uyghur styles. It's also worth remembering that after a few months nothing really looks new here any more and within a year the place will look as dishevelled and chaotic...in the nicest possible way! As it always has. Definitely a trip to do. There' she added bonus now of being able to take a bus directly from Ruoqiang (Uyghur-Charkalik) to Golmud. There is a direct bus which takes twelve hours every afternoon around four O'clock local time ( two hours behind Beijing time)