Tianchi Lake, Heaven on Earth

Day 1: Urumqi (烏魯木齊)

Day 2: Tianchi Lake (2 hrs away from Urumqi via a direct drive, 5 hrs if you get tricked onto a Chinese tour bus...!)

We (me, Gene, Margaret, and Robert) flew out of Nanjing on Friday afternoon but arrived at Urumqi late as balls, sitting on the tarmac for about an hour and making a less than desirable layover at Taiyuan, Shanxi. The actual plane ride went much smoother than I had anticipated, and although Margaret was thoroughly disgusted by being trapped in a flying tin can with people spitting out lugies at constant 30-second intervals, I had a great conversation with the middle-aged woman sitting next to me... who later disclosed that she was a government official. I should have gotten her number in case shit gets down, haha. So Day 1 of our trip was a bit of a wash, but we were on the the only flight from Nanjing to Urumqi available that day.

Boarding our old skool plane.

Did you really think the Chinese line up for anything? Even with reserved seating? No.

Day 2, we woke up early to catch a bus to Tianchi Lake (天池, actually adding "Lake" to "Tianchi" is totally redundant... 天池池?). Tianchi is a small glacial lake nestled between mountain peaks and fed by melting snow. By October, the weather was getting chilly but it was still accessible so long as it was before the first snowfall (then the roads close down). We planned to stay there overnight at a lakeside Kazakh yurt! :)

The ride there was supposedly going to take 2 hours (115 km), but unfortunately the bus we found turned out to be part of a tour group... so we were dragged along one of those abhorrent classic Chinese tours for around 4-5 hours. When the Chinese go on trips all they give a care about are photo ops and tacky souvenirs (like herbal "medicine" mostly). Oh, but don't get me wrong, I'm not elitist. My own mom once brought me back "silver-infused lotion with crushed pearls" when she came back from a trip to China. Yea so... tell me what happens if I smother this on my face and it oxidizes...? Chinese people are so silly.

Early morning in Urumqi, scratching out heads trying to figure how to get to Tianchi.

In one of our many stops on the tour bus, we saw cows.

And cow poop. :)

When we finally got to Tianchi in the afternoon, all our frustrations with the Chinese tour group completely melted away. Our contact for the overnight Kazakh yurts, a man named Rashit (who is avidly recommended on Lonely Planet and Let's Go travel guides for a very good reason), met us at the parking lot and took us to his campsite on the other side of the lake.

Look at this, no Photoshop at all and still SO PRETTYYYYY~~~~~~!!! @_@

Sigh. Computer wallpaper?

Tianchi, Xinjiang... or perhaps Azshara, Kalimdor? :D

I had this epiphany as we were rounding the lake. Then Gene called me a nerd. :(

Walking half-way around the lake took us a good hour or so. The park was very well maintained, with beautiful newly paved paths that weaved through the rocks and trees. One of Rashit's sons (we ended being passed to Rashit's eldest son to his middle son to his youngest son along the way to the campsite) told us that this path was constructed very recently. I was impressed that China's rapid improvements made it all the way up to this 1980m high lake. And that I felt like I was in a MMORPG. ^_^

Rashit's yurts. Highly highly recommended.

Rashit's family are originally from Tianchi, so you could say that this campsite is truly their home. His wife cooked us a delicious lunch and dinner, and we had salty milk tea that hit the spot after a long hike.

When we stepped inside the yurt, we could not believe how beautiful it was! It was completely lined with brightly patterned cloths and rugs, with thick pillows and blankets on the side. Near the door, which was also painted with intricate designs, was a heater. It came into very good use later on that night... brr! (I got a little sick anyway because it got so cold still.)

We stumbled upon some photoshoots while walking around. I estimate around 15 pairs of brides/grooms were around the lake that day taking wedding photos. By late afternoon, the sun was starting to set and the temperature took a nosedive... poor strapless brides! Seriously though, Tianchi would be a lovely place to take wedding photos and I'm sure these pictures turned out fantastic.

Nighttime in our cozy yurt, chatting by candlelight and huddling around our wood-burning stove.

Gene went out to the treeline to forage for fuel for our stove, and we learned about the difference between tinder, kindle, and sustainment wood. Rangers sure come in handy! :D

The moon illuminating the yurts.

As a city girl, I never really got to see a whole blanket of stars before... Before the moon came out, we could clearly see the Milky Way and the sky was literally glittering above us. I can't believe how much city lights wash all the stars out, because in New York you'd have to go upstate to even see the Big Dipper. We all went to bed fairly early because it got really cold, but I woke up in the middle of the night to use the outhouse. I stumbled outside the yurt prepared with my flashlight, but realized that the moon had come out. It was so bright that I didn't need my flashlight at all... everything so clear, except in greyscale. It was so quiet and serene (almost frighteningly so), so I sat at the picnic table for a minute just taking the whole scene in. But then I started to get scared (ghosts, werewolves, rapists oh my!) and scurried back, but not before taking a photo first. :p

Tianchi was an amazing way to kick off our Silk Road trip. The lake was sparkling and pristine, the tree leaves were turning color, and the snow-capped mountains loomed impressively around us. We got to live with a Kazakh household (kind of) in an original and not touristy way. It was a great lifestyle comparison. Rashit's youngest son told us that he and his family wanted to stay in Tianchi forever, and that they're all very happy together just like this.

I can see why. :)