The bus ride to remember.

Journal entry 9 September 2010
Arrived Hemi by train early morning then a bus to the oasis of Dunhuang to visit the extraordinary Magoa Buddhist Caves  4th - 14th century home to the greatest collection of ancient scripts and paintings. We plan to visit and move on fast as our time is running out. We depart on the 13th from Beijing and Tianjin and we still have a lot to explore. We are contemplating flights we are never going to make it. The distance is killing us. Read on. 

Our bus from Hemi to Dunhuang

We arrived in Hemi after 5 hours in a hard sleeper. Citt freeked out thinking we had gone past our stop in the middle of the night-morning. 
It is first light as we leave the train at Hemi and walk out of the station. Hemi station is like all Asian rail stations, bursting with humanity. The surrounding shops in the square sell the necessities for long rail journeys with the usual noodle shops.  (yup it is brekkie time) Citt points to a picture on the wall and that is our brekkie. (Yup noodles again) Ugh!  But cost 8Y about $1.20. (Dad get with the program)

The highway A1

The rock strewn toll road

We take stock and have a team session (Me slurping noodles all over my shirt).We realize we have a 7 hour trip ahead of us on a bus. And we want to visit the desert hills of Dunhuang in daylight. We did not know where the bus station was or how to get there. But as always we wing it. You bet! Grab a taxi and show him our lonely planet and all would be good. No taxis. Ooops. --- Finally rounded one up. Travel a good 50 minutes reach our bus station and the bus leaves for Dunhuang in 35 minutes, perfect. The fare is an incredible $4 obviously the tourist police have not been here! The bus is modern and clean the seat jockey puts us in the best seat in  view of the road. I am not sure in an asian bus that is a good thing? I can see death coming faster I think it may be better if I just died without seeing the huge trucks and stuff coming at me. (wimp dad)

The road 

Our journey was not without drama. The toll police took a toll for a road that was not there, Incredible, just a sand and boulder track with wall to wall trucks and stuff, no road and they have a toll gate. Our jockey got so upset, Citt and I enjoyed the shouting match. Wow we thought they were going to kill each other. 
We travelled nearly all day dodging trucks loaded with water melons and tomatoes. Our bus had the best klaxon horn. Did you hear us in Australia? We eventually arrived in Dunhuang kissed the earth and found a hotel. 

 Dunhuang is situated on the edge of the Tuklukaman desert, incredibly a spring feeds the crescent moon lake There is a 12th century pagoda with sacred buildings ringed by sand hills 1350 meters high. This is a famous place on the Silk Road. Just imagine ancient traders with caravans setting off and coming in from the desert and with all sorts of goods. Camels donkeys and mules being watered and traders selling and leasing camels for the onward journey. The road forks here. One route is over the desert the other is around the desert. The one over the desert was abandoned in the 16th century when most of the oasis dried up and the road was too dangerous. Global warming has been around for 300 years but it is accelerating in these parts. The lake is only 30% full.

The sun was fading as we arrived we threw our bags into the room and headed out to capture  sunset on the Crescent Moon lake and the sand hills. We did not make the sunset but enjoy the awesome snap of the crescent moon lake, enjoy. 

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We visit the valley of a thousand buddhas tomorrow,