|
|
| |
|
| Brief Introduction of Turpan |
Turpan is a remote desert city
in the far west of China, one of the lowest places on earth,
where rain never falls and summers are scorching hot.
Located three hours drive East of Urumqi in Xinjiang Province,
some 250 miles inside the Taklimakan Desert, Turpan, which has
a long history, was once an important staging post on the ancient
Silk Road. It is one of Xinjiang's most fascinating cities,
known for its strange landscape, wealth of places of historical
interest, abundance of fruits and rich resources of ethnic culture.
Many monuments bear witness to the importance of Turpan as a
Silk Road city.There are 14 unites of the cultural relies, which
are the protected by the country. The Flaming Mountain, the
artistically built Imin Minaret, the ancient cities of Jiaohe
and Gaochang, the ancient tombs of Astana, the Beziklik Thousand-Buddha
Grottos and the special underground irrigation system-karez
are of great value and enjoying value. Besides, the folk customs
such as folk dance under grape trellises. |
|
 |
| Turpan Sightseeing Highlights |
 [Ancient
Astana Tombs]
40 kilometers (25 miles) southeast of Turpan, 6 kilometers (3.7
miles) from the ancient city of Gaochang, this Tang-dynasty
burial ground known as the "Underground Museum" attracts
stream of archaeologists both at home and abroad Astana means
"capital" in Uigur and Karakhoja is the name of a
legendary hero of the ancient Uigur Kingdom who expelled the
evils by killing a vicious dragon.
The tombs range 2 kilometers (1.24 miles) from north to south
and 5 kilometers (3.1 miles) from east to west. The imperial
dead of Gaochang and noble officials were buried here. However,
curiously, the tomb of King Gaochang has been found nowhere
in the tombs. |
[Ancient City of Gaochang]
46 kilometers southeast of Turpan near the "Flaming Mountains"
seats an impressive ruin of the Ancient City of Gaochang. Built
in the first century B.C., it used to be a garrison town and
later became a key point along the ancient Silk Road. The city
was burnt down around the 14th century.
The ruins originally consisted of three parts: the inner and
outer cities, and a palace complex. Nine city gates were built
on cardinal points, three in the south and two in each other
three directions respectively. Visitors are usually suggested
to enter the best preserved one in the west to the core. The
best preserved structures in the ruins are two temple/monasteries
in the southwest and southeast corners of the outer city section.
In the southwestern temple, the front gate, courtyard, lecture
hall, main hall, and monastic dormitories are relatively intact.
The southeast temple has the only preserved fresco in the ruins. |
 [Ancient
City of Jiaohe]
The Ancient City of Jiaohe stands isolated on a 30-meter-high
plateau in the Ya'ernaizi Valley, 13 kilometers east of Turpan.
The city is situated on an island between two rivers and was
initially built about 2000 years ago and for a long period of
time. The city, situated along the silk road, was of great military
significance and played a pivotal role in the economic development
of Western and Eastern countries. Since its decline, what was
left of the city has steadily deteriorated. At present, natural
forces threaten the site erosion by gale force winds which blow
dust and sand against the walls and fill the streets and courtyards
with sand. Erosion of the cliffs by floodwater, threatening
them with collapse, is the most serious and urgent threat to
the ruins.
Today, this is a well preserved site and a more atmospheric
spot to wander and imagine times gone by then the city at Gaochang.
Well preserved temples, pagodas and streets are dotted around.
A Buddhist monastery marks the center of the city and there
are some ancient filled wells here too. The crumbling sand colored
walls of the buildings reflect the color of the desert and the
surrounding sand dunes. Allow at least one hour to explore this
intriguing city. |
 [Ancient
Karez System]
The Ancient Karez system is comprised of a series of wells and
linking underground channels that uses gravity to bring ground
water to the surface, usually far from the source. In Turpan
city there are more than 470 systems, totaling over 1,600 kilometers
of tunnels. It is considered as one of the three great projects
in China with the other two being the Great Wall and the Grand
Canal. The history of Karez can be traced back to the Han dynasty.
Most of karezes existing today in the Turpan were built in the
Qing dynasty. |
 [Aydingkol
Lake]
Located approximately 40 kilometers southeast of Turpan, with
the beautiful wilderness area and the peculiar geographical
surroundings, the Aydingkol Lake attracts many foreign and local
tourists to see the splendid vivid reds, greens, yellows and
purples presented by the many plants that thrive here such as
reeds, tamarisks and the many other shrubs and plants. There
are also several Han Dynasty beacon towers overlooking this
beautiful scene.
This lake, now only a salt puddle, millions of years ago was
a fresh water lake a thousand times larger than it is today.
The lake’s continental basin at 154.33 meters, is the
second deepest below sea level after the Dead Sea at 391 meters. |
[Astana Tombs]
These graves lie 40 kilometers (25 miles) southeast of Turpan, 6 kilometers (3.7 miles) from the ancient city of Gaochang. The imperial dead of Gaochang and noble officials were buried here. The tombs have been blessed with centuries of dry weather. |
 [Bezeklik Thousand Buddha Caves]
56 kilometers (35 miles) northeast of the Turpan, Bezeklik Thousand
Buddha Caves contain 67 caves dating from the Northern and Southern
dynasties (317 - 589) to the Yuan dynasty (1279 - 1368). In
the Uigur language Bezeklik means "place where there are
paintings" It used to be an important center for Buddhist
worship under the Xizhou Huigu government of Gaochang Kindom,
which built the royal temple of the King of Huigu at this site.
The caves are well hidden and rest on a long ridge overlooking
a valley where the monastery was located. Originally it is accessible
via a winding pathway to the cliff top, and a steep stairway
led down to the monastery 30 feet below. Among 83 numbered grottoes,
about 40 of them have rich remains of murals. Some murals present
clearly the figurines of the Huigu people; some showed Indian
monks and portraits of Buddhas at different periods throughout
history. They are briefly divided into four periods chronologically. |
 [Emin
Minaret]
The Emin Minaret (Emin Ta), just 2km east of Turpan, consisting
both a mosque and a minaret tower built in 1778 by the local
Muslim ruler, Emin Hoja. Also known as Sugong Tower after Emin's
Chinese name, the minaret was built in a simple Islamic style.
It is circular, 44 meters in height, and 10 meters in diameter
at the base. Unfortunately, the minaret is no longer open to
the public in an effort to preserve the structure; however,
you can view the surroundings from the roof of the mosque. As
for the mosque, although it is rather bare inside, services
are held every Friday and on holidays. |
 [Flaming Mountains]
The Flaming Mountains are one of the branch ranges of the Tianshan
Mountains, lying in the middle of the Turpan Depression and
running from east to west for about 100 kilometers with its
extreme width of 10 kilometers. Its highest peak is 40 kilometers
east of the city of Turpan and 831.7 meters above sea level.
Crystal movements and years of efflorescence fashion its unique
geological feature. When the sun rays beat down in mid-afternoon,
the red rocks on the crisscross gullies and ravines reflect
and the heat is intense as if the hillsides were engulfed by
tongues of fire, hence the name. |
 [Grape Valley]
Lying at the base of the western end of Flaming Mountains
is a world of unique with vineyards and fruit trees - Grape
Valley. The Grape Valley of the Flaming Mountains, fifteen
kilometers from the city center, is a world of unique beauty,
presenting a striking contrast with the hot, dry and barren
outside.
Cushioned by green grass and graced with green trees, the
valley is a world of green wit brooks, canals and sparkling
springs; there is a poetic flavor to the idyllic beauty of
the valley. Scattered everywhere in the valley are trees:
mulberry, peach, apricot, apple, pomegranate, pear, fig, walnut,
elm, poplar and willow; also watermelons and muskmelons, making
the valley into a "garden of one hundred flowers"
in spring and an "orchard of one hundred kinds of fruits"
in summer. In the valley there is a reception center where
dense grapevines interweave with each other and winding paths
lead to secluded places with clusters of grapes within easy
reach.
Top
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 more turpan tours
|
| |
|
|
|
Tour Search
