The World's Highest Salt-Water Lake (Namtso Lake)

One of the most beautiful places I've been to so far. Lake Namtso means “holy lake” in the Tibetan language. It's a mountain lake in central Tibet. At an elevation of 4,718 metres, it is also the highest-altitude salt-water lake in the world, the furthest depth being more than 33 meters.

Of course it's bloody cold at this altitude and on the way, a long 260 kilometers from Lhasa, the road rises to 5,190 metres, before curling down to the lake.

Jumping out at the pass I felt dizzy and even the short walk to the flat viewing area was slow leaving me short of breath. The wind was strong and cutting too, and it was only 10 minutes later that the crew ran back into the minivan to continue the journey to the lake.

We had to wait 3 days before we were given the O.K to go, every morning previous to leaving we were told the pass was snowed over or too icy, plus there was a danger of being trapped at the lake for days, if there is a miss calculation and the snow comes down. We relied on the driver and luckily he rounded us up when he thought we'd stayed long enough, some of the group were treking wit vigour.

This is the picture of our crew from the high pass (5,190 metres), below is Namtso Lake. The rock on the right shows the height, but it's on another picture!

More stuff on the lake:
Wikipedia: Namtso Lake
Most Beautiful Lakes: Top 5

MC
P.S. I'm now in Nepal.

Pictures from China Part II

Journey so far: .. Taiwan > Hong Kong > Beijing > Harbin > Yanji > Songjianghe >Changbai Mountain > Dandong > Dalian > Dandong > Chengde > Beijing > Datong > Hohhot > Huitengxile > Hohhot > Taiyuan > Zhengzhou > Xi'an > Lanzhou > Zhangye > Jiaugyuan > Jingtieshan > Jiaugyuan > Dunhuang > Urumuqi > Kanas Lake > Urumuqi > Kashgar (Kashi) > Tashkurgan > Karakul Lake > Kashgar (Kashi) > Hotan > Qiemo > Ruoqiang > Shimianquan > Golmud > Lhasa (Tibet) ...

The beautiful Hyatt Hotel in Xi'an where we stayed for our combined birthdays.


My gorgeous girlfriend looking for flowers in Mati Si, Zhangye.


Me sleeping with the local migrants, at this point we all smelled the same!


Kate showing how huge the fort walls are in Jiayuguan. (In the desert somewhere)


Our new and sexy underwear for warmth in Jingtieshan, Iron Ore Mine.


The popular and over-touristy caves in Dunhuang.


Me at the Ya Dan Landforms, Dunhuang. Dinosaurs once roamed here.


At the top of the massive sanddunes in Dunhuang.


Kanas Lake at one of the stops.


The lake from above.


The shitty conditions we have to endure, this is a toilet!


Found some new settings on the camera....


Karakul Lake with reflection and the other half standing in the way!


Our new buddy Ally, Scottish, on the road in Ruoqiang....


MC

Golmud to Lhasa

Journey so far: .. Taiwan > Hong Kong > Beijing > Harbin > Yanji > Songjianghe >Changbai Mountain > Dandong > Dalian > Dandong > Chengde > Beijing > Datong > Hohhot > Huitengxile > Hohhot > Taiyuan > Zhengzhou > Xi'an > Lanzhou > Zhangye > Jiaugyuan > Jingtieshan > Jiaugyuan > Dunhuang > Urumuqi > Kanas Lake > Urumuqi > Kashgar (Kashi) > Tashkurgan > Karakul Lake > Kashgar (Kashi) > Hotan > Qiemo > Ruoqiang > Shimianquan > Golmud > Lhasa (Tibet) ...

[I've removed some parts of the original blog as I felt I was ranting rather than giving a fair account of what happened to us... I meant no offence!]

So we arrive in Golmud and sleep the rest of the night, I get some sleep and feel much better in the morning. Kate and Ally are still a little off colour. We are at roughly 3,000 metres, enough to get Acute Mountain Sickness (AMS).

We had no time to feel pleased with ourselves, we did this later, we needed to tackle the next problem, getting into Lhasa without paying for the Tibet Travel Permit (TTP). The TTP includes a tour and is the only official/legal way of entering Lhasa.

The basic permit is Y1700 (115 pounds) per person, this is a 4 day tour including hotel room (dorm) and bus journey of 24 to 30 hours. The cheaper permit is Y1440 (98 pounds) and is the same but 3 days.

Most trying to bypass this compulsory tour and TTP, bribe the bus driver and hope they don't get caught. It costs from anything you agree on, I have heard Y600 and Y1000 paid to the driver. Some get in with no problem, and some get sent back. It's also about surviving the gruelling bus ride. There are many horror stories of people being put into the luggage compartments, having the driver stop and demand more money and the general foulness of being locked in a confined space with people smoking and vomiting at high altitude.

This interesting and knowledgeable guy is married to a Tibetian women and knows first hand the trauma this journey inflicts:
http://kekexili.typepad.com/life_on_the_tibetan_plate/

So back to Golmud, our Taiwan friend is still with us, so we ask for her help. We decide that given the bus journey's terrible reputation, a train ride on the brand new Qinghai Tibet Train would be lovely. We spent all day looking for a leagal and cheap way in, nothing. So eventually we ask her to buy the tickets, we can't do this as the ticket office staff will ask for the permit.

After a nerve-racking 20 minutes she came back with 4 tickets for the next day! Score! She had decided to come with us too. She was very pleased with herself and so were we. We don't think this is so bad as we have been told that the TTP will be "officially" stopped in January 2007. Good for China!

So the total cost: Hard seat to Lhasa Y143 (9 pounds).

OK, we have no TTP now so we thought about the train staff asking for it. I didn't sleep a wink that night, excited and nervous about the day ahead. We woke at 6:00am got dressed and headed for the train station. We decided to stay seperate from our Taiwan friend, in case we ruined it for her.

The staff check the luggage in the x-ray machine, we queue, the ticket checker comes and looks at the tickets... not us! We are in! What a relief.

The train line was completed in July 2006 to much hype and engineering brilliance. Western engineers said it was impossible and those consulted repeated the sentiment. But it's running, at what cost though is unknown.

The train takes 14 hours, not the 30 hours by bus along bumpy roads. The train is quicker so affects of AMS are less likely to kick in. The journey into Lhasa rises above 5,000 metres for long periods of time, meaning death is a real possibility if not taken seriously. Ben Nevis, the tallest mountain in the British Isles is 1,344 metres.

The train travels some 1,750 miles through permafrost that can buckle the track if not treated, I think they use "Thermorods". For the mechanic nerds, they use 3 locamotives each pulling 3,800hp, needed to pull the train through the thin air.

The train route


On the train I asked for exta oxygen, under all the seats, after I felt a little dizzy. We'd stopped for over an hour at over 5,000 metres waiting for other trains to pass. I took no Diamox, a drug used to lessen the affects of altitude sickness. It was an amazing ride in comfortable surrounds. We met a Tibetian family and saw some wonderous sights outside.

It's official, my girlfriend is more a geek than I! How? Well she has posted our hotley debated journey onto the Lonely Plant Thorn Tree Forum. A brilliant place for up to date information about peoples travels and the changing situations out there.
Kate's Lonely Planet Post on Thorn Tree

Here we are, time to explore this lovely place.....

MC

Southern Silk Road to Golmud

Journey so far: .. Taiwan > Hong Kong > Beijing > Harbin > Yanji > Songjianghe >Changbai Mountain > Dandong > Dalian > Dandong > Chengde > Beijing > Datong > Hohhot > Huitengxile > Hohhot > Taiyuan > Zhengzhou > Xi'an > Lanzhou > Zhangye > Jiaugyuan > Jingtieshan > Jiaugyuan > Dunhuang > Urumuqi > Kanas Lake > Urumuqi > Kashgar (Kashi) > Tashkurgan > Karakul Lake > Kashgar (Kashi) > Hotan > Qiemo > Ruoqiang > Shimianquan > Golmud ....

Bloody hell! What a trip along the southern silk road. No major problems, but a tiring and bumpy journey across some of the most beautiful desert landscapes.

HOTAN - 和田
We left Kashgar on Friday by bus, making our way to Hotan (Y76). We were forced to watch a terrible Uighur movie, with story line and acting ability worse than a porn movie. At one point a women bit a man's ear off and after she stared at the camera with what only can be described as donut jam smudged on her face!

Hotan is a popular spot for travellers wanting to see the southern silk road. We arrived late in the evening and found a hotel. We weren't interested with sight-seeing as we had Golmud as a final destination far down the road and didn't want to waste time on this part of the journey.

View from Kashgar to Hotan bus!


Why the rush? Well we were concentrating on getting into Lhasa (Tibet) before the weather changed in late October/November and make the overland trip through Tibet into Nepal, impossible later in the year, due to snow and other weather-related problems.

So we left Hotan the next day. We bought our ticket to Qiemo (Y130), the next stage of the journey. This was a sleeper bus which set off in the afternoon, and we met a Scotish fella called Ally. We chatted through the whole journey about the rest of the trip. According to the Lets Go and Lonely Planet this part of the journey takes roughly 48 hours and is long and arduous. So we were prepared! We stopped every 10 metres for this and that. About 11:30pm of that evening we arrived at another stop, and we presumed it was for food. So we get out and start looking for food. At the restaurant we ask for a plate of lovely looking meat and noodles.
We talk to a local Chinese man and we ask out of interest where we are, his reply, Qiemo! SHIT! What about the two nights and one day ahead of us???? We run for the bus, ask the driver and yes we have arrived! I nearly threw my "guide' in the bin.

Qiemo - 且末
We dragged our bags out and thought about hotels quickly! We got into a taxi and he took us to the local hotel, very plush for our standards, with a shower and toilet (clean) in the room!

We got a little bit of sleep and then got up early to buy the next bus ticket to Ruoqiang (Y57). An uneventful 6 hours to Ruoqiang.

What most the journey looked like.


Ruoqiang - 若羌
In Ruoqiang we slept in the hotel next to the bus station. It was a musty smelling room, like old wet socks. Kate and I shared a bed while Ali got his own! Kate and I got no sleep, Kate was being sick and pooing all night and I was of course awake. She felt terrible in the morning and I was dizzy from tiredness. However we continued our journey!

From Ruoqiang there are NO buses to Shimianquan, the terrain is too crazy. So we got a ride, from just outside the bus station in a 4X4 jeep. The driver bought the tickets (Y100) from the bus ticket office. All official, so we felt good. We shared the ride with a Taiwanese woman, and we talked about lovely Taiwan for a bit. We also had some scabby locals, getting the ride for less than we paid, by arranging to be picked up outside the bus station. The driver opened the door and asked us to squish up, Kate, me and the Taiwan woman already seated. I decided to make a stand and told the new arrival to sod off saying, "No ticket no sit here!" and "We pay you no pay, not sit here!" in bad Chinese.

So he was relegated to the back with the luggage. Oh, that felt good!

The scenery was amazing, we seemed to ride around and then drive over a mountain range, sometimes getting precariously close to the edge. We stopped twice to take pictures, it felt like we were on top of the world surrounded by snow peaked mountains. I was getting no sleep on the journey and Kate still felt bad.

Shimianquan - 石棉矿
It's late when we arrive, and we have missed the bus to Huatugou so prepare for a night. Shimianquan is a small place built around a mining area. We saw tons of grey dust pluming into the sky on the way in and JCB's and workmen scattered around the town. It was freezing cold, not sure of the altitude, but Kate and Ally started to feel sick. I was fine, my asthma seems to be protecting me from altitude symptoms.

The unnerving Asbestos Mine....


Anyway Ally had only a T-shirt, so he bought a nice puffer jacket! The beds were very cheap, 10Y each. No shower.
We eat with the locals, not used to Chinese speaking westerners. Kate goes all gooey for a puppy and we chat to the locals in the restaurant for some time.

Later we discover that Shimianquan in English means Asbestos Mine! Shit a brick, we've spent the night surrounded by a cloud of asbestos and were totally unaware of it.

Next morning we get up early again! Now fatique is affecting everyone and Kate and Ally are possibly getting mild symptoms of Altitude Sickness.

We buy our bus ticket for Huatugou (Y15). We drive through Shimianquan and pick up the local miners. After inhaling cigarette smoke for an hour or so we arrive at Huatugou 11:00am.

Huatugou - 花土沟
First thing we do is buy our last, final, absolute ticket for Golmud (Y175). A sleeper that leaves 3:00pm the same day. Time to rest before the overnight to Golmud, we eat and stock up.

Kate is now feeling much better and we are feeling hopeful that the southern silk road is coming to an end. However we still can't shake the trouble we will encounter getting into Lhasa after this is over!

The journey was terrible. I looked like death from lack of sleep, but felt perky, and everyone was feeling the effects of the last week on the road. The sleeper was bumpy and filled with men who just love to smoke (they smoke cigarettes that taste of grit and choking dust). I slept for about 10 minutes. We arrived in Golmud at 4:30 am the next morning. Shattered and wanting to just sleep!

Golmud
Our lovely Taiwanese friend took control, after I decided in Qiemo she was a wet fish! She threw the taxi drivers aside and marched to the nearest hotel, just in front of the train and bus station. We follow like disciples. At the hotel, the shitty taxi driver is waiting telling the receptionist she can't take foreigners. Turd Face! The receptionist says it's OK, and I shout at the driver to GET OUT! We all laugh and get two rooms, two single beds, Y20 per bed. What a star!

No we are here... exhausted, filthy and feeling slightly uptight about getting into Tibet! I smell of stale sweat, covered in crud and am in need of a shower!

To Be Continued..........


FOR OTHER TRAVELLERS ON SOUTHERN SILK ROAD:
We used this blog to help us through the journey. Excellent information:

http://www.ttwhy.org/home/blog/2004/10/20/at-last/


MC

Mountain Journey to Karakul Lake and beyond

Journey so far: .. Taiwan > Hong Kong > Beijing > Harbin > Yanji > Songjianghe >Changbai Mountain > Dandong > Dalian > Dandong > Chengde > Beijing > Datong > Hohhot > Huitengxile > Hohhot > Taiyuan > Zhengzhou > Xi'an > Lanzhou > Zhangye > Jiaugyuan > Jingtieshan > Jiaugyuan > Dunhuang > Urumuqi > Kanas Lake > Urumuqi > Kashgar (Kashi) > Tashkurgan > Karakul Lake > Kashgar (Kashi) ....

We just got back from an amazing 3 day journey in the mountains and as far as the last Chinese town before the Pakistan border, Tashkurgan.

We started in Kashgar, rushing to the bus at 10:00am, as the Seman Hotel decided it would be fun to make me wait and deal with everyone else first. One of the checking out donuts broke the hot water bottle and refused to pay the damages. So we rush and make it to the bus station with a few seconds to spare. I get pushed roughly to the passenger seat alongside the driver. Squashed, uncomfortable and baking in the sun, but this turned out to be the "panoramic-viewing" seat! Excellent for picture taking, if you don't mind reflections in glass all over the pictures. :0)

The Karakorum Highway


It was a 6 hour drive, not long in Chinese terms, taking us high up into the royal blue skies. Mild altitude sickness is common for travellers luckily I had no breathing problems. I thank my asthma as my weak lungs deprive me of oxygen, so my body didn't register any change!

We stopped at Tashkurgan. A small town still doing the same thing it did 1,500 years ago, housing travellers heading into or out of Pakistan/China.

The Chinese Moon Festival starts on October 1, so millions of Chinese jump aboard tour buses and roam the land. Some came as far as Tashkurgan, which made it hard to find anywhere to stay. We had made friends with a lovely Italian lady of around 50 years, she trotted along behind us with a strong Italian accent asking, "Where we going?".

After much trouble, stress and moaning we got a small partitioned cave in the "Dirty, Disorganized Hotel". Kate and I (not the Italian lady) had to share one bed, a hard up-turned box with cloth draped over it. Nothing else fitted into the room except a broken chair with cigarrette burns and enough dust to build a sand dune. We had looked forward to sleeping after a day in the bus and were benefited with no sleep at all.

Tashkurgan stop-over, the picture of the Stone City and Fort


Early o'clock we woke up, puffy-eyed, grumpy and smelling of sweat and lumbered to the bus. We headed back on the Karakorum Highway towards Kashgar, stopping after 2 hours at Karakul Lake, to spend the night in a yurt.
Useless Factiod: YURT, A circular, domed, portable tent used by nomadic peoples of central Asia, from the Russian `Yurta` of Turkic origin.

The lake and yurt, just like the one we stayed at


Karakul Lake is stunningly breath-taking. Here we were standing at 3600m and around us the snow-peaked mountains rise for another 4000m. At the lake it's possible to see the mountains Muztagata (7546m), Kongur Tagh (7649m) and Kongur Tiube (7530m). These are perfectly reflected in the lake and give the place a strange postcard beauty that is difficult to absorb at once. I sat and stared in relative quiet and considered this one of the most naturally beautiful places I've ever been to.

The lake and Mount Muztagata behind


We avoided the crazy 50Y entrance fee, which allows you to hang out with 1,000 Chinese tourists spitting and shouting all over the place. So we walked 1km down the road, found a small opening in the fence and made our way with purpose to the yurts.

The long sweeping Kongur peaks


We spent one night in an authentic yurt (the hosts lived there). Unlike the concrete ones, this yurt was made with animal skins and other naturally found things. No electricty, no boiler, no TV, no computer room, just the way it's meant to be.

The yurt woman cooked us a nice evening dish of rice and a few vegetables fried in spices. It took ages to make and she did everything methodically, but I was so hungry I enjoyed watching the whole procedure with salivating delight.

In the morning the bus back to Kashgar was full. No problem! I was excited by my morning idea. Cover the 200km to Kashgar hitch-hiking. Kate was less enthused. We began to walk, with the moutains ahead and thumbed all the passing traffic. After an hour or so walking and sweating in the heat, a van pulled up and we got a lift. After another 4 hours heading towards Kashgar we pull up and he gives me the rude and greedy finger rubbing to indicate money. Bastard! We ask how much. He wants 150Y. I laugh angrily, snarling, wanting to bite his head off. The bus is 40Y each. Anyway I offer 30Y each and he accepts. Bargining over. It leaves a sour taste in my mouth, but we are back and it was cheaper than the bus. The locals paid him for the ride, but we'll never know how much.

Now we're ready to leave Kashgar, heading through the southern silk road to Hotan. We've already travelled the northern silk road, which goes as far as Kashgar, then circumnavigates the Taklamankan Desert south, heading back into east China. This road is under-developed and dusty which means the journey we are now taking to Golmund will take days on a bus (no trains).

A map showing the oval-shaped silk road travelling around the desert, coming from the east of China. From Kashgar the silk road continues into central Asia.



MC

Kashgar Bazaar

Journey so far: .. Taiwan > Hong Kong > Beijing > Harbin > Yanji > Songjianghe >Changbai Mountain > Dandong > Dalian > Dandong > Chengde > Beijing > Datong > Hohhot > Huitengxile > Hohhot > Taiyuan > Zhengzhou > Xi'an > Lanzhou > Zhangye > Jiaugyuan > Jingtieshan > Jiaugyuan > Dunhuang > Urumuqi > Kanas Lake > Urumuqi > Kashgar ....

So after Urumuqi we decided it was time to get further west, in fact to the border with Pakistan.

But first we have stopped in Kashgar, an amazing and dusty city, full of Uighurs (native to this area before China claimed it) and many others from neighbouring countries. All totally different in look to the Han-Chinese. So strange I don't even know what language to speak!

Our hotel is cheap and teaming with tourists, our dorm is Y20 for a bed. Basic but adaquate for our meager needs. We live paltry lives, making ends meet by starving ourselves and using public transport.

Today we went to the Sunday Market, where lots of locals meet foreigners and exchange goods for money. In fact it's a local market that's become famous. We bargain at one point when we find some nice things to buy our families. (Not saying what that might be). We work hard, Kate plays hardball and I look uninterested in the wares. We struggle.... taunt and shake the seller... we see his weak spot for Kate's smile and pounce like wild tigers on him.... suddenly we've hacked the price down and everyone is happy, grinning and jolly. What fun, what fun!

We wander some more, maybe 5 hours, take pictures of some old men and donkeys. The place is chaos, full of Uighur women, children and B.O scented men. Finally we head back to the Seman Hotel for a rest.

A lot of women cover their face in this brown cloth


Local man sells stuff like a pro


If you play silly games, these people will cut you up


As we have limited time and no visa we are taking the scenic ride to the Pakistan-China border, staying the night in the town Tashkurgan and then heading back down the way we came. The mountains reach over 4km into the sky, making the journey very memorable. Finally on the way down we hope to stop at the famous Karakul Lake, staying for one night before heading back to Kashgar.


MC

Good Books, Shit Books

Two of the best books I've recently read:

1. The Bonesetter's Daughter - by Amy Tang (Emotional book about Chinese and American culture and mother/daughter relationships, beautifully written)


2. The Perfect Execution - by Tim Binding (Set in post-war England, a fantastic perspective of a man and his job as public executioner)

Two of the shittest books I've read:

1. R is for Ricochet - by Sue Grafton (This terrible pile of poo was so bad in parts it became comical)


2. Blood Hunt - by Ian Rankin (SAS bloke with 'man issues' fights the baddies, the baddies die and you're left wondering how you just wasted so much of your time)

Now I'm reading Catch 22, again, and I think it's a great synical look on war. An average man trying to stay alive.

MC