Silk Magic
Silk Magic
A Silk Road Trip, or I Gobbed in the Gobi, China,1992, by Philip Spires
In August 1992, myself and my wife, Caroline, arranged a trip to post-Tiananmen China. It was in the days when the London China Travel office was on Cambridge Circus, opposite the Palace Theatre on Charing Cross Road. It took me at least twenty books, a late-night Japanese television series and several months to plan and arrange the trip from what was then our base in Balham, south London. In those days, you could arrange the visit via China Travel and then, as long as the itinerary was lodged in advance, you could travel absolutely independently. Everything was pre-paid, but on setting off, we had no tickets or confirmed reservations apart from our air tickets in and out of Beijing. As ever, I kept a journal of the trip, which ran to more than fifty pages. A few years later, I condensed the experience to two sides of A4, ignoring rules of grammar and syntax, and produced the following ramble, a perhaps poetic impression of nearly a month of travel.
Ex-London while the Sun dissected Michael Jackson's nose and praised Boardman's hooterless gold-medal bicycle. Air China to Beijing, where taxis cost more than Lonely Planet predicts. A Chinese character itinerary from one Tim Han of China Travel whilst fellow workers drool over televised lithe Afro-American sprinters at the Olympics. Then to the no-longer Forbidden City. Piles of local tourists to negotiate.
Four hours of Xinjiang Airlines to Urumqi. Signs in Chinese and Russian plus Uigur written in Arab script (a recent innovation). Land lines across Inner Mongolia. Why and how so straight? Urumqi multiple-peaked. Piles of coal, scruffy high rise, snow-capped Bogda Shen at street-end. Pavement fortune tellers, traders. Food stalls. Women washing sheeps' stomachs in a stream, tripe kebabs. Uigur town now Han Chinese, populated by Shanghai overspill, over 2000 miles from ‘home’. The second long march.
Uigur breakfast. Hot sheep's milk, Chinese tea, flat tomato bread, sugared tomato and cucumber, pickled cabbage, thin congee, sheep's milk butter, two giant sugar lumps. Uigur market. Fruits amid a forest of hanging lamb. Chinese market. Live vegetables and meats. Tank over-spilling with energetic eels (unit price). Self-knotting spaghetti.
Woman losing her gold watch at an illegal 'find the lady'. Policeman looking on. Tears when the loss hits home. Renmin Park for noodles and rocket-fuel chili sauce. Bag slashers with finger-ring knives on a crowded bus. Care needed.
Car to Turfan. Fertile valleys. Barren mountains. Occasional snow. Road ploughed. Kazak yurts. Semi-sunken shade-making rammed-earth Uigur villages, invisible at a distance save for chimney smoke. Steep downhill gorge, spectacular river, rocks, white water and slate-grey hills. Into Turfan depression, snow-capped distance surrounding grey stone pit 100 miles across. 42 degrees at its base, 200 metres below sea level. Car ahead leaving tracks on molten road. A hefty gob from the driver irrigates. Gobi means stones. Plenty here. And then green. An oasis. A giant mirage?
Turfan. Latticed vines for street-shade. Hanging raisin grapes. 15 yuan fine for casual picking. Hotel tea in galvanised buckets. Turkish-style dancing and music. Genghiz-sacked rammed-earth cities of Goachang and Jiaohe. Painted tombs and brick minarets. Flaming mountains. Karez underground irrigation system. 3000 kilometres of channels. 1500 years old, gravity-fed from mountains at the depression-edge. Uigur culture's greatest feat, and in full working order.
Bus to Daheyan. Two hours over bumpy stones to depression-edge. Dump of a railway town. Coal heaps, box buildings, waste land. Two women at war on station forecourt. Ramming victim's head onto the ground. Blood. Onlookers. Inaction. A tense town of resentful postees.
500 miles to Liuyuan in Gansu. Featureless flat grey shale stone. Spectacularly unique. Snow mountains to the north. Utterly empty, save for smoking coal towns. 40 above in summer, 30 below in winter. Overnight by train. Dawn reveals same massive scene, now in brown.
Arrive Liuyuan. Daheyan writ similar. 120 miles south across the desert (black at first!), past remnant ramparts of Han Dynasty Greater-Great Wall. Camels and dunes of Taklimakan, world's largest sand desert. Near Dunhuang oasis blossoms again. Sand and scree suddenly crop and tree. Feitian Hotel, with complimentary toiletries labelled Sham Poo and Foam Poo. Lunch. Fourteen dishes. Duck, foo-yong, cucumber, cabbage, oyster mushroom chicken, coriander pork, steamed buns, steamed bread, rice, beef broth and noodles, pork and green beans, pork and sweet chili, chicken and squash, plain noodles, water melon. Then to get the essential torch for the caves. Houses huddled together. Wood stores for winter piled on top. View across the roofs like a scrap heap. Ground level claustrophobic stoneware maze.
Cave day. Mogao Buddhist caves - closed from 12 to 2, full day needed for perhaps the most stunning sight on earth. 400 'caves' (some cathedral size) in a sandstone gorge, between 400 AD to 1100 AD. Utterly dry, always dark, perfectly preserved. Everything painted. Tang period complex and colourful. A world of scenes by torchlight. Buddhas reclining, sitting, standing, posing. Thirty metre seated figure with thousands of unsmoked cigarettes and coins on his lap as offerings. Shock of Qing-renovated cave with Taoist figures. Ghoulish features, contorted, and a face in the groin. 40 caves seen in the day, archaeologist as a personal guide. Stunning. Fourteen dishes for dinner.
Desert bus back to Liuyuan. Always a fight for seats. Three dusty hours. Train to Lanzhou. 800 miles along Gansu-Qinghai mountainous border. More black desert, then yellow earth. Jaiyaguan fort at the limit of the Ming empire. Overnight by train. Country changed. Mountain pass, green rolling hills and stepped fields. Wheat harvest in. Straw dollies like children at assembly. Houses still of rammed earth. Lanzhou a thriving industrial city. Thirty hours of travel. Walk by Yellow River.
Fish in hotel restaurant tank all dead. Lanzhou bus expensive. 50 fen per trip. Radios and knitting banned. Han dynasty flying horse and bronze warriors. Steamed carp with rape on menu. The fish comes first. Train to Xian through yellow loess country. Deep furrows and gorges. All flat land cropped. 500 miles overnight.
Terra cotta warriors facing east to guard Qin Shihuang's tomb. Made in pieces. Assembled in situ. Partly excavated section where piles of dismembered limbs emerge from the earth. New terra cotta warriors for sale from the factory behind the museum. Exact replicas of originals. Wheeze at the thought of the whole thing as a sham for the tourist trade.
Xian, like all Chinese cities, a square. Roads straight, intersecting always at right angles. Ancient centre walled, Ming rebuilt. Old mosque exquisite. Xianyang nearby, with Seventh century Qian tombs, museum with another 3000 Han terra cottas like a football crowd. Train to Beijing. 800 miles, 26 hours. Houses often caves in valley side. Later immense flat land, maize everywhere.
Temple of Heaven, Tiantan, and then Beijing Opera. Pause for beer at wayside stall. Served by moonlighting trainee stockbroker! Breakfast pickle amazing, like four year old camembert out of a shotgun. Takes the head off. Great Wall. Mucho touristico, but still stunning. Like climbing a giant ladder in places. "I climbed the Great Wall" T-shirts, prices lower the further you climb. Must be the air. Ming tombs dismissed by guide-book. Wrong. Amazing barrel vaulted rooms nine stories underground. Jade doors, carved thrones, marble, marble, marvel. Reminiscent of renaissance Italy. Everlasting bricks etched with names of their makers. Souvenir jade boat for 55000 pounds.
White drapes over erotic statues in Tibetan Lama Temple. Same bestial content in wall paintings. 24 metre gold Buddha through the incense-blur. No smoking signs everywhere.
Mao's Maosoleum an emperor's tomb. Lines for queues painted across the square. Feet pointing north towards Tiananmen Gate, upside-down feng shui. He is shiny, waxy and painted about the face. Moving lines file past on either side. No pausing. Outside, stalls with Mao T-shirts, Mao key rings, cuddly toys, post cards, magic lantern shows. Mao Zedong candy floss by the armful. Then Great Hall of the People. Dining room for 5000. Now fast food for tourists. Great Hall chop sticks, cigarettes, T-shirts. Great Hall of the People cuddly toys.
2500 miles. Three and a half weeks. 5 destinations. 50 caves. 6000 terra cotta warriors. 1 each Great Wall, Forbidden City, Beijing Opera, Mao Zedong. Hundreds of tombs, temples, pagodas, parks, bendi-buses and bicycles. 3 silk shirts on the Silk Road. One amazing trip.
About the Author
Philip Spires
Author of Mission, an African novel set in Kenya
http://www.philipspires.co.uk
Michael, a missionary priest, has just killed Munyasya. It was an accident, but Mulonzya, a politician, exploits the tragedy for his own ends. Boniface, a church worker, has just lost his child. He did not make it to the hospital in time, possibly because Michael went to the Mission to retrieve a letter from Janet, a teacher, and the priest’s neighbour. It is Munyasya who has the last laugh, however.
John Houdi - Comedy silk magic
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More Mistletoe Magic: Swingin' Holiday Jazz [Vinyl LP] $59.45 VINYL LP! More Mistletoe Magic: Swingin' Holiday Jazz! TRACKS: 1. Little Drummer Boy - Rare Silk; 2. The Christmas Waltz - Phil Woods / Steve Gilmore; 3. O Come, O Come, Immanuel - David Friesen / Jeff Johnson; 4. God Rest Ye/We Three Kings - Sheila Jordan / Harvie Swartz; 5. God Rest Ye Swingin' Gentleman - Chico Freeman Quartet; 6. Silent Night - McCoy Tyner Trio; 7. The Light of Christmas - Bob... |
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MD MOMS Baby Silk Gentle All-Over Clean Cleansing Towelettes 72 ea $9.00 Keep baby clean from nose to toes! These soft, luxurious cleansing towelettes are effective enough to use nose to toes yet gentle enough to use even on irritated or sensitive skin. An alcohol-free blend of marine silk, vitamins E and B5, organic aloe and comfrey provides moisturizing and antioxidant benefits, while ginger and chamomile soothe and calm irritation. Baby's skin on both sets of cheeks... |
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Buddha on the Silk Road [Blu-ray] $13.92 In 1907 explorers discovered a vast treasure of ancient scrolls, some of which were Christian. Dating from the 7th century, the Jesus Sutras are Chinese accounts of the life and teachings of Jesus. The legendary Chinese monk, poet, and scholar Xuan Zang traveled the Silk Road to India and back approximately 1,400 years ago in search of the teachings of Buddha. When he returned to China, he b... |
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Buddha on the Silk Road $10.77 In 1907 explorers discovered a vast treasure of ancient scrolls, some of which were Christian. Dating from the 7th century, the Jesus Sutras are Chinese accounts of the life and teachings of Jesus. The legendary Chinese monk, poet, and scholar Xuan Zang traveled the Silk Road to India and back approximately 1,400 years ago in search of the teachings of Buddha. When he returned to China, he b... |
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Color Changing Hanky $2.60 Highly recommended-easy to do! This beautiful effect is a stage favorite with some of the best magicians. A large yellow and green silk that is knotted together, is shown freely on all sides. In plain sight, it instantly changes to red and blue scarves and back to yellow and green again!! May be repeated as often as desired. So easy even a three year old can do it and fool everyone!... |
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SILK Micro G-String Thong Panty Y-Back 3 Color options Red Black or Cobalt $15.99 100% Silk Stretch Knit Micro G-string thong pantie with Y-Back. Elastic waistband for comfort. Narrow cotton lined crotch. One Size fits Small to size 12. Silk is a Magical natural fiber of unmatched beauty and comfort. Because no two pieces of silk are alike, each silk garment has its own subtly unique qualities. Machine washable.... |
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The Silk Palace $4.99 Imagine...your name is given to you from the dying breath of a semi-sentient jewel--and that to change it is heresy...a world where the gods walk among us...where hot-air balloons and hang-gliders co-exist with magic...a small city-state perched atop a giant albino rock, between two great empires...a young woman whose foolish prank may cost her life at any moment... Imagine you are in The Silk Pa... |
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The Yellow Silk: The Rogues $6.99 He told stories... he told even more lies.He told people what they wanted to hear... he told himself he wasn't doing anything wrong.He told the mysterious stranger from Shou Lung that he'd help him...He told the most dangerous man in Altumbel that he would deliver a fortune in gems...He should have kept his mouth shut.A series that brings to life the people who survive on the fringes and in the sh... |
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Silk and wool shawl, 'Magic Colors' $56.99 Imtiyaz combines delicate pastel tones that shade from blue to mint green and amethyst. Woven by hand, this versatile shawl is created in natural silk and wool. |
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Silk And Magic: Book 2 $10.51 No Synopsis Available |
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Silk cushion covers, 'Magic Forest (pair) $39.95 Nina's design transforms shimmering silk into a pair of elegant cushion covers. The appliqu� motifs can be seen in Thailand's hill tribe textiles, and the combination of colors is beautiful. Created in shades of green, blue and violet, they fuse modern styling with traditional art. |
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Silk and cotton shawl, 'Lapis Magic' $49.95 Shimmering shades of turquoise, emerald and lapis lazuli come together in a combination of magical beauty. By Bina Rao, this lovely shawl is skillfully created on the traditional handloom. |
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