Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Uighur children, Kashgar
KEREN SU/GETTY IMAGES ©
Kashgar
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Locked away in the westernmost corner of China, physically closer to Tehran
and Damascus than to Beijing, Kashgar (Kashi) has been the epicentre of re-
gional trade and cultural exchange for more than two millennia.
The roads, rail and planes that now connect the city to the rest of China
have brought waves of Han migrant workers, and huge swathes of the old city
have been bulldozed in the name of economic 'progress'.
Yet, in the face of these changes, the spirit of Kashgar lives on. Uighur
craftsmen and artisans still hammer and chisel away in side alleys, traders
haggle over deals in the boisterous bazaars and donkey carts still trundle their
way through the suburbs.
