My trip Kelamayi to Urumqi
June 30, 2009
8:45 - 14:05
Kelamayi - Urumqi ( 320km )- Heavenly Lake (Tian Chi, 120km)
We leave our lodging hotel in Kelamayi - Bo Da Yin Du Hotel for Heavenly Lake (Tianchi) in Urumqi. Again a long march - 440km from Kelamayi to Heavenly Lake via Urumqi.
We don't drive along the National Road No.217 to Kuitun and from Kuitun to Urumqi. Instead we take the short-cut and drive along the highway from Kelamayi to Changji and from Changji to Urumqi, and further to the Heaven Lake, totalling 440km. On the 440km-long road, we only have one stop at Wugongtai for relaxing( Toilet!).
14:00 - 15:00 Lunch in a yurt in the Tianchi area
We reach the reception center of the lake at 14:00. We are offered a yummy lunch in a yurt. It is an interesting experience of having a lunch in a yurt. We have nang bread, fruit, yogurt, lamb kebab,¡°shouzhuafan¡±, or ¡°mutton with rice that you eat with your fingers¡±...
15:30 - 16:30 Visiting Fu Shou Taoist Temple in the Tianchi area
After the delicious lunch, we first visit Fu Shou Temple. Fushou Temple was first built during the reign of Emperor Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty. It was a taoist temple very rare in the Islam dominated region like Xinjiang. The temple was first built with black bricks and iron tiles, once called ¡°the iron-tile temple". "Fu Shou" is the new name given to the newly rebuilt temple, adding much humanistic charm to Tianshan Mountain.
17:00 - 20:00 Boating on Tianchi, Heavenly Lake
Then we walk to the lake pier to take a 40-minute boat ride on the lake. It is a pity that it is a cloudy and we cannot see the Bogda Peak (5545 above sea level). The Tianchi Lake is located north of the highest peak on the east of Tianshan Mountains - Bogda Peak, an ever snowcapped peak.
Tianchi Lake is 1,900 meters above sea level and as deep as 90 meters. The crystal-clear lake water is made up of melted ice and snow. The lake is like a big mirror reflecting the snow-white peak and emerald-green spruce trees. This is my second trip to Tianchi Lake. My last trip dates to the year 1993.
20:00 - 21:30 Drive from Heavenly Lake to Urumqi
Again it take us about one and hour hours driving from Tianchi to the city center of Urumqi. Stay at the 5-star hotel - Hualing Hotel.
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