Turpan... uh yeah.

At the moment I am in Turpan in the Xianjiang Province, the second lowest point in the world, second only to the dead sea in Jordan. Right now I'm experiencing the shock I ran into when I left the areas that were inhabited by Tibetan people. It's really a hard to be in areas controlled by Han Chinese, and then different places which are much more inviting. I do understand that there are significant cultural differences that account for behavior, but even though that's the case, I don't think I can stand current Chinese culture. No one ever smiles (except small children) everyone is at each others throat one moment and then nice the next. I've seen more violent fights here, and screaming, than I have ever seen in my life. Also, there is more exploition of people, and trying to cheating others out of money than I imagined was possible. I know I see the worst side of Chinese people because I am a westerner, but it still makes me feel very drained to have to deal with it every day. But I'm in Xianjiang now and everything is different here. Uyger people are so goddamn nice its almost nauseating. They give you gifts, smile, wave, don't try to rip you off. Its almost like ascending too fast in water and getting the bends. In other words its a little discombobulating to see such a significant change in people over such a short distance.

I stick by my former statement. Uyger food is some of ther best food ever.

Unless I have visa problems, it seems like a sure thing that I will be riding a bicycle from Kashgar(China) to Giglit(Pakistan). Tommarow I will go to Urumqi to buy a bicycle.