Ürümqi (pop 3.5 million) - Uyghur name

Wūlǔmùqí – Chinese name

Xinjiang – Uyghur Autonomous Region

Peoples Republic of China

June 24, 2017

Hello and Welcome to Nan Shan – The Southern Mountains,

In the parking lot of this popular tourist area seventy-five kilometers (46 miles) south of the city, young Kazakh women offer to take us to their summer yurts for tea or lunch.  Horseback rides are available as well as hikes through the grassland meadows up the mountainsides.

(Between May and October Kazakh families move their yurts into this area to graze their herds. Kazakhs are an important minority group in this area of China.  The border of Kazakhstan is just beyond the mountains.)