19th May – Zhangye to Jiayuguan

Today we have a 230 km drive to Jiayuguan on the highway.

We have the snow capped Qilian mountains to our left and a barren dusty landscape to our right with no trees or agriculture, just a fast train line.  Some of the fast trains in China can reach speeds of up to 400 kph but these regional trains probably only go up to 150 kph.

After morning tea we get back into agricultural territory again with Green vegetables growing.

On the way to Jiayuguan we stop at Guan City of Jiayuguan which was the most western fort of Chinese civilisation, built in the Ming dynasty and part of the western section of the Great Wall of China.  It is massive with an outer & inner wall and huge gates to protect it from invasion by the Huns & Mongolians.

There is also lovely artwork inside the fort.

Next we drive to 11 km from Jiayuguan and climb a section of the Great Wall, called the overhanging wall.  This section was built in 1539-1540 to defend Jiayu Pass.  It has incredibly steep stairs and it has been restored including the watch tower.

  

TV Tonny sends up his drone from the top of the watch tower to film Tony walking across the top of the mountain .

Once at the top another section of the wall is visible that runs up the side of an adjacent mountain.

At the bottom of the wall there is a monument to the Silk Road with many statues in a camel caravan.

There are also sculptures “On the Silk Road” of many famous people who once travelled along it.

We take the opportunity of taking an iconic  photo of our cars below The Great Wall of China.

As we drive to our hotel we pass an enormous power station.

Tonight we have a modern Chinese meal that is cooked at our table, comprising meat, vegetables & a yummy sauce.

Be the first to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.


*


This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.