Tianshui

Gansu Province

China

September 2, 2016

Ancient trade routes were much more than just a highway for the exchange of materials and goods from one distant place to another.  Ideas and culture also traveled with ships and camels and horses. The Silk Road is certainly a prime example of the exchange and dissemination of culture. 

Buddhism flowered in South Asia and eventually “traveled” to Central Asia and China.  Here in Gansu Province, the Maijishan Grotto Complex is one of several grotto sites lying on the trade routes between northwest China and Central Asia.

Tianshui

(pop 3.5 million)

Gansu Province.

People’s Republic of China

The aroma of fresh baked bread draws my attention as I wander through the noisy food market here in Tianshui, the second largest city in Gansu Province.  My eyes bulge as I encounter a pile of huge watermelons – the largest I think I have ever seen.

The bakers smile and also the lady who slices chunks of tofu and the man who sells noodles.  An elderly lady ignores me as she makes her selection from a truckload of pears.

Labrang Monastery

Xiahe

Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture

Gansu Province

People’s Republic of China

September 4, 2016

Hello,

After I purchased a small Tibetan painting, I said to my guide, “You just saved me an expensive trip to Tibet.”  He responded, “Jan, you are in Tibet.”

Tibet.  It’s confusing.

Tibetan Grasslands

Gansu Province

China

September 5, 2016

Hello,

Readers Choice... Click on the "Grasslands Links" or scroll down to the end of the letter and join a Yak Herd.

Please enjoy my photographs of the vast expanse of the Tibetan Grassland, the gazing livestock, and a monastery enroute to the nearby mountains:

Located in Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, southwestern Gansu Province, the Gannan Grasslands cover an area of 37.58 million mu (2.51 million hectares) (6.2 million acres) and primarily stretch out through Gansu's Maqu, Xiehe and Luqu counties.

Lanzhou

(pop 2.1 Million)

Gansu Province

China

September 2, 2016

Hello,

When I return to China, I will head straight for Lanzhou and then directly to the Night Market.

The Muslim Halal Night Market is crowded and fun.

At one stall I purchased a portion of seasoned potatoes that were the best I have ever eaten.

Next time I'll try the fish and vegetable stir fry.  

Or maybe a lamb kebob or two

Jan

Bingling Temple

Linxia Hui Autonomous Prefecture

Gansu Province

China

September 3, 2016

For more than a millennium, the Bingling Temple was a work in progress.  Inside natural caves and grottoes, artists and craftsmen carved their venerated Buddha statues according to the current stylistic attributes.

I suppose it takes a lifetime of research and scholarship to ascribe the origin of a carving to a definite century or dynasty.