※ This video is part of <World Theme Travel - 6400km of the Abyss, China's Western Regions Parts 1-4> broadcast on August 26, 2024. - Part 3 The Road to Heaven, Dukugonglu A road buried in snow that opens for only 4 months a year Dukugonglu (独库公路). It is the name of the 561km national highway connecting Dushanzi (独山子) and Kuche (库车). This road, which runs through the Tianshan Mountains (天山山脈) from north to south, is famous for its beautiful scenery. The scenery of this road, embraced by the valley, changes every moment. After the majestic valley, a jade-colored mountain lake, and a snow-capped mountain range covered with glaciers appear one after another, making travelers' hearts flutter. Stand helplessly in front of the secret landscapes that unfold everywhere and forget your worries. Half of the road section is over 2,000m above sea level, and the place we arrived at along the Dukugonglu, a true sky road, is the heavenly grassland, the Narati Scenic Area (那拉提旅游风景区). This alpine grassland with a total area of ​​1,850㎢ has various landscapes such as snow-capped mountains, forests, rivers, and lakes. Narati Grassland is a popular summer vacation spot and photo spot in China. It is the land where the Kazakh people lived as nomads since ancient times. The Kazakh people still maintain their traditional nomadic lifestyle here, and on the other hand, they also work as tourists who visit the grassland. Among them are Kazakh children who came to the summer nomadic area for the holidays. They bring newborn lambs from their homes to take pictures with tourists, experience horseback riding, sell horse milk, and help with household chores. Here is the Kazakh girl we met, 'Asimo'. Visiting the ger where the girl's family lives, he teaches Korean to Asuimo, who says she wants to live in Korea when she becomes an adult, and spends a day on the grassland eating ramen on a thunderous and rainy night. Finally, he tastes honey made from wild flowers in the vast Narati Grassland and takes in the peaceful scenery of the sky grassland in his heart. - Part 1 Summer on the Frontier In the past, it was a strategic point on the Silk Road, and the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of China, also called the Western Regions, begins its journey in Urumqi, the gateway to the Western Regions. The journey begins here along the 'S101 Road'. This road is famous for its beautiful terrain, with snow-capped mountains, valleys, and grasslands every hundred li. The excitement is short-lived, as the first heavy rain in 28 years closes many roads, leaving them stranded. However, finding new paths and joys is 'travel'! Turn north and head to Kanas Lake, a masterpiece of nature. On the way to the lake, you will be captivated by the magnificent canyon you come across by chance. The intense red color of the Anjihai Grand Canyon, a thousand-foot vertical canyon created by the river, is impressive. It takes 10 hours of nonstop driving to reach Kanas Lake. In the meantime, the scenery outside the window changes frequently. After passing the red and rugged Moguicheng (魔鬼城), which looks like Mars, and driving for a while, a green carpet of grasslands unfolds. Kazakh nomads live in the grasslands. The Kazakh people have raised horses and sheep for generations and lived in harmony with nature. We will spend a day in their traditional dwelling, a ger (Bao in Chinese), and experience the nomads’ daily life. Immerse yourself in the history, culture, and proud singing of the Kazakh people, and look back on the origins of the Ancient Tea Horse Road while watching the unfamiliar sight of blood pressure being measured in a ger. Finally, you arrive at Kanas Lake, the most beautiful place in northern Xinjiang. Designated as the highest-level tourist destination in China, this is the only place in China that has the natural environment of Southern Siberia. With Siberian conifers boasting greenery and jade-colored glacial waters flowing leisurely, you will briefly feel as if you have come to the Alps. Climb the 1,000 steps to the observation deck of Kanas Lake, the Observation Tower, and enjoy the magnificent view of the jade-colored lake. -Part 4 Desert Flower, Kuche and Kash Another grassland you meet in Dukugonglu, passing through the Mongolian Bayinburuke grassland, you come across the last scenic spot of Dukugonglu, the Mysterious Grand Canyon of the Tian Shan. The numerous red and gold ridges and the rocks strangely carved by wind erosion are engraved with the power of nature and the passage of time. The final destination of Dukugonglu, Kuche, is a city that means 'crossroads' in the Uyghur language, and has been called an oasis city since ancient times, a crossroads of civilizations. Indian, Persian, and Chinese civilizations met and dispersed here. They say flowers bloom at the border. As various cultures mixed, Kuche's culture blossomed anew. The most representative of these is the local dance, Hushunmu. Walking through the alleys of the old city, you can find traces of the old splendid culture everywhere, and wherever you go on the streets, you can hear music and see people dancing. The journey continues to the Taklamakan Desert. Running through the desert, you will reach the ancient city of Kashgar, the hometown of the Uyghur people. Following the traces of the Silk Road remaining in the alleys of Kashgar, you will come across the Bailaoyedejia (巴依老爷的家), the house of Bai Daishi, where you can get a glimpse of the life of the old merchants. It is time to end the journey. Passing through the Karakoram Highway starting from Kashgar, you will be enchanted by the absolute beauty of the Pamir Plateau, Baisha Mountain (白沙山) and Karakul Lake (喀拉库里湖). Standing before this magnificent nature, I conclude the time of the realm of no-self (無我之境) that I encountered in the unknown land of the West. - Part 2: Turpan, the burning land. Turpan (吐鲁番), known as the "Land of Fire", has an average summer temperature of 40 degrees. Located in the Turpan Basin, the lowest point in China, it is a desert and city of fire with lots of fire, sand, and wind. The way the people of Turpan spend their summer is literally "fighting heat with heat" (以熱治熱)! They go into the hot sand and take a steam bath, melting away the heat. In addition, the heat in the sand, which is 70-80 degrees, is transmitted to the muscles and joints, and various diseases are cured, and the body becomes healthy without catching a cold, according to the locals' experience. It is said to be a traditional treatment in Turpan that has been practiced since long ago. There is another place where more and more people visit as it gets hotter. This is the Flaming Mountain, Huoyan Mountain (火焰山), which was the setting for the classic novel Journey to the West (西遊記). The 'Burning Mountain' that Tripitaka and his party encountered in the novel Journey to the West while going to retrieve Buddhist scriptures is none other than Huoyan Mountain. At the Bezeklik Thousand Buddha Caves (柏孜克里千佛洞) located behind the mountain, you can see the Buddhist art of Gaochang, which flourished for about 800 years since the 6th century. However, the scars of grave robbery remaining here, which is a representative Buddhist relic of the Silk Road along with the Mogao Caves in Dunhuang (敦煌), weigh heavily on your heart as you appreciate the murals in the grottoes. Here, you can read about the twists and turns of history, where both the splendidly blossoming culture and the scars of plunder are engraved. On the way out, you meet a street musician who has been playing traditional Uyghur instruments for 30 years in front of the Thousand Buddha Caves. The music that contains the traditions and history of the Uyghur people soothes the bitter heart. The journey continues to the west of Huoyan Mountain, the grape valley of Putaogou (葡萄沟). This area is famous for its high-sugar grapes, so much so that it is called the grape valley. This area, located between two grand gorges, is like an oasis with clean glacial water flowing. The reason why this area is covered in vineyards is because of the irrigation canal, Kan'erjing, that brought water from the Tian Shan Mountains to Turpan and other places. Because of this canal, Turpan, the city of fire, could flourish as an oasis city on the Silk Road. Another history of Turpan, once a strategic point on the Silk Road, is preserved in Gaochang Gucheng (高昌古城), the ancient city of Gaochang. Here, we visit the temple site where Tripitaka and Monk Xuanzang, who appear in the novel Journey to the West, actually gave sermons and imagine the most brilliant days of Gaochang. ✔ Program name: World Theme Travel - 6400km of the world without self, China's Western Regions Part 1-4 ✔ Broadcast date: 2024.08.26 #TV's Choice Documentary #China #Frontline #China Travel #Remote #Unknown Land #China's Remote Area #Ethnic Minorities