Flight Details : Kuala Lumpur ~ Shanghai MU 540 0200/0720 Shanghai ~ Urumqi TO BE ADVISE Xian ~ Shanghai TO BE ADVISE Shanghai ~ Kuala Lumpu MU 539 2000/0050+1 ANCIENT SILK ROAD CULTURE The Silk Road is a historically important international trade route between China and the Mediterranean. Because silk comprised a large proportion of trade along this road, in 1877, it was named 'the Silk Road' by Ferdinand von Richthofen, an eminent German geographer. History:From the time Zhang Qian opened up the world-famous Silk Road during the Han Dynasty, until the collapse of the Yuan Dynasty, it enjoyed a history of about 1,600 years. Route: This ancient road begins at Chang'an (now Xian), then by way of the Hexi Corridor, and it reaches Dunhuang, where it divides into three, the Southern Route, Central Route and Northern Route. The three routes spread all over the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, and then they extend as far as India and Rome. Scenery along the Road: The scenery and sights along the Silk Road are spectacular and intriguing. There are well-known Mogao Caves (Mogao Grottoes) in Dunhuang, the bustling Sunday Bazaar in Kashgar and exotic customs in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region and more
Kuala Lumpur / Shanghai Depart flight to Shanghai Shanghai / Urumqi ~ International Grand Bazaar Then transfer to beautiful Xinjiang capital ~ Urumqi **Urumqi means A beautiful Pastureland in ancient Mongolian. It is the educational, cultural and political centre of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, The city now has a population of 1 million and 80% of them are Han. The city is located on the west of Bogda Mountain (a part of the Tianshan Mountain). For the past 2000 years, this area around Urumqi has been lush pastures inhabited by many minorities who raised sheep and cattle. The best season to visit Xinjiang is between July and October. **The International Grand Bazaar of Xinjiang is an Islamic bazaar located on Jiefang Nan Road ( 解放南路 ). It is one of the most attractive tour sites in Xinjiang and Urumqi. Urumqi ~ TianChi /Turpan ~ Karez Well ~ Sugong Pagoda **Tianchi is a lake in Xinjiang, China,The name literally means "Heaven Lake" or "Heavenly Lake" (in Mandarin Chinese) and can refer to several lakes in China and Taiwan. This Tianchi lies on the north side of Bogda Peak of Tianshan Mountains, about 40 km east of Fukang County and 110 km east of Urumqi, in China. (Bogda is a Mongolian word, meaning "God".) **Turpan is located in the Turpan Basin at the southern foot of the Tianshan Mountains. The City has a population of nearly 200000, most of whom are Uygurs. Called Gaochang in ancient times, it was a major stop on the northern route of the Old Silk Road and is the hottest. Lowest and driest place in China. It is also the hottest place in China. Turpan is most famous for its splendid grapes. Every household has a ventilated barn on the roof, and some of the world s finest grapes are produced here. Turpan is about 182km from Urumqi and 2.5 hours by drive. **Karez System - is an irrigation system which has been listed as one of the greatest irrigation projects of ancient China, apposing the Dunjiangyan Irrigation Project and the Ling Canal. "Karez" means "well" in Uyghur language. In ancient times, Turpan people made use of the special landform and created this special canal to bring in water for irrigation and living. This project represents the wisdom of Chinese people thousands of years ago. **Sugong Pagoda, As the largest ancient tower in existence in Xinjiang, Sugong Pagoda is also the only Islamic tower in China. There are 14 windows on the tower body in different directions. On the surface, triangular patterns, quatrefoils, water ripples and lozenge patterns are layered. You can feel the typical features of Islamic architecture from it. Turpan ~ Gaochang Ruins ~ Flaming Mountains ~ Grape Valley / Hami **Gaochang Ruins - is located to the east of Turpan city, about 40 kilometers (24.9 miles) away. It was an important gateway on the ancient Silk Road. In Uyghur, Gaochang means "City of King", because Gaochang was the capital of Gaochang Huihu Kingdom in the past. Once an archaeologist said, "If you want to know how the Chang'an City looks like in glorious age of Tang Dynasty (618-907 AD), come to Gaochang Ruins." Though a thousand years passed, you can still feel the prosperity of Gaochang in those days. **Flaming Mountain -is the hottest place in China. All over the bold and rough hill, there is no sign of life and it is mainly covered by weathered sand. In summer, in the searing sunlight, deep-red smoke wreathes and thermal current keeps rising. The luminous red sand stones look like the burning flame, so the mountain is called Flaming Mountain. **Grape Valley - With its shady vineyards and trees, this provides a welcome place of relaxation amidst the hundreds of square miles of sand. You may take a seat under the vintage frames, savor various grapes, enjoy the beautiful Uyghur girls in their ornate costumes, and be fully intoxicated by this refreshing palace of grapes. Taking a walk along the grape corridor, you will find drying rooms on nearby slopes. Every year over 300 tons of raisins are made here. **Hami ~ Called as the eastern gate of Xinjiang, Hami was an important town on the northern route of the Old Silk Road. It is also famous for its Hami melons. In Hami, you can find many beacon towers, ancient cities, tombs, stone tablets and rock carvings. Some beacon towers still lie along the northern and central sections of the Old Silk Road. The Karlik Glacier in Hami, at 4888 meters above sea level, is still an unclimbed virgin peak. The Ice and Snow Tour in Hami is a hot winter holiday program.
Hami ~ Balikun Grassland /Dunhuang ~ Echoing-Sand Mountain (MingShan) ~ Crescent Lake **The Balikun grasslands have abundant water and green grass all year round. The Kazak nomads herd their animals on the rich grass. With an elevation of 1650 meters, surrounded by snow-capped mountains and dotted with verdant pine trees, the scenery in the Balikun grasslands will fascinate you. **Dunhuang ~ Dunhuang City is located to the west part of Hexi Corridor, Gansu Province. It was once called Shazhou (sandbank) in ancient time. Dunhuang City is famous for its historical culture of China and an important ancient city on Silk Road in ancient time. The caves of Mogao have showcased the achievements of ancient architecture, painting and sculpture. This is the treasure-house of arts, biggest and richest in content reserved in China now. Now main communication of Dunhuang City is highway. **Echoing-Sand Dune - The whole Echoing-Sand Dune is composed of rice-like yellow sands. The name of Echoing-Sand Dune in Kazakh means "the voice of desert". When strong wind blows, the dune roars like thunder. If it is just breezing, sands can also sound like light music. **Yueyaquan is a crescent-shaped lake in the oasis, 5 km southwest of the city Dunhuang of Gansu province, China. It was named Yueyaquan since Qing Dynasty. According to measurement made in 1960, the average depth of the lake was 4 to 5 meters, with maximum depth 7.5 meters. In the following 40 years, the depth of lake continually declined. The lake and the surrounding deserts are very popular with tourists, who are offered camel and 4 x 4 rides. Dunhuang ~ Mogao Grottoes /JiaYuGuan Pass **Mogao Grottoes have 735 caves, 45,000 square meters murals and 2,415 color Buddha statues. It is impossible to look around all the caves in a short time and only several caves are open for visit each day. The site guide will take you to visit the main caves in the grotto and give you detailed commentary. As the photoflash lamps do great harm to the murals, tourists are not allowed to take photos for protection while visiting and the cameras are forbidden to take in. Because there is no light in the caves, we suggest you take a flashlight with you to look more clearly at the murals. JiaYuGuan Pass / ZhangYe ~ Great Buddha Temple/ WuWei **Jiayuguan Pass - Jiayuguan Pass was constructed on the middle part of the narrowest valley of Jiayu Mountain, with walls passing across the gobi and desert, adjoining the Overhanging Great Wall to the north and the First Fire Tower of Great Wall to the south. It is the western starting point of the Great Wall constructed in Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). With its precipitous terrain and majestic spectacle, Jiayuguan Pass is crowned as the Greatest Pass under Heaven. **Zhangye is a town with a long glorious history. It is located about 450km northwest of the capital Lanzhou of Gansu Province. It is a most small station on the Lanzhou-Urumqi rail line. This city is famous for its wine --Zhangye Rice Wine,Zhangye Nan Wine. This small city is home to China s largest Reclining Buddha 35 meters long, 7.5 meters high. **Giant Buddha Temple - Built in 1098, the Giant Buddha Temple was said to be where Kublai Khan was born. This is the only religious palace hall of Western Xia in the country. It collects the largest indoor clay reclined Buddha in Asia, the rare hand-written classics of Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) and thousands of cultural relics. In history, the Giant Buddha Temple was one of the ancient temples which were closely related to the Western Xia and Yuan's royal family. WuWei / Lanzhou ~ White Pagoda Hill ~ ZhongShan Bridge ~ Waterwheel Garden ~ The Mother River Statue **In the past Wuwei was called Liangzhou. It was an important post on the ancient Silk Road. It is located between Qilian Mountains to the southwest and Tenggeli Desert in the north. Today Wuwei is a historical and cultural city. Its ancient Liangzhou used to be a prosperous city with great number of merchants moving the Western Region. Monk Xuanzang once preached Buddhist doctrines here. Wuwei has many historical sites, such as the Eastern Han Tomb and Confucius Temple. **White Pagoda Hill ~ Located in the north of Lanzhou City, the White Pagoda Park owes its name to the amazing White Pagoda within it. With images of Buddha on its eight sides, the seven-story pagoda with a height of 17 meters (about 55.8 feet), is a pure white from top to bottom with the exception of the green top which greatly enhances the glamour of the whole building. Legend has it that the White Pagoda was built in honor of a well-known Tibetan Lama who died of an illness in Lanzhou when on his way to Mongolia as representative of the leader of Sakyapa in order to meet Genghis Khan, founder of the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368). Unfortunately, the original pagoda later toppled down. The present White Pagoda was constructed by an official in the reign of Emperor Yingzong of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), and later extended by an imperial inspector in Qing Dynasty (1644-1911).
**Zhongshan Bridge, also called the first bridge over the Yellow River, lies at the foot of Bai Ta Mountain and in front of Jin Cheng Pass in Lanzhou city, the capital of Gansu Province. Before Zhongshan Bridge was built there were many floating bridges over the Yellow River, but only one existed for a relatively long period. This bridge was called Zhen Yuan Floating Bridge and was made up of more than 20 ships, tied up by ropes and chains. It floated on the river in order to help people pass over, but it was neither solid nor safe enough. Almost every year floods destroyed the bridge or even killed people. Problem also arose in the winter, when ice would build up on the river, so the bridge would have to undergo the costly process of being disassembled and then re-built in the spring. Used for over 500 years, the Zhen Yuan Floating Bridges was finally retired in 1909, when an iron bridge was built. This new bridge is what we call the First Bridge over the Yellow River. **Waterwheel Garden - The wheel in the Garden was invented in Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) and is the oldest one as known. The designer, Duan Xu, modeled this from the irrigation machines in Yunnan Province. It resembles a chariot wheel with a diameter ranging from 10 to 20 meters (32.8 to 65.6 feet). The wheel was driven by water flow and those buckets fixed along the brim could carry water one by one in order to irrigate crops. **The Mother River Statue ~ Traditionally, it is believed that the Chinese civilization originated in the Yellow River basin. The Chinese refer to the river as "the Mother River" and "the cradle of the Chinese civilization". During the long history of China, the Yellow River has been considered a blessing as well as a curse and has been nicknamed both "China's Pride" and "China's Sorrow". LanZhou / TianShui ~ MaiJi Caves ~ FuXi Temple **MaiJi Caves ~ 40 kilometers (25 miles) southeast of Tianshui City, the Maiji Caves features one of the four famous grottoes of China, which were built between 348 AD and 417 AD. Today thousands of statues and frescoes remain in the grotto. **Fuxi Temple: This temple was built during the Ming Dynasty, as a means of appeasing Fuxi in hopes that local prayers for happiness and safety would be granted. Today, the Tianshui Fuxi Culture and Tourism Festival is held here each year. TianShui / BaoJi (by Train) ~ Famen Temple / XiAn **Famen Temple was established in the Eastern Han Dynasty (25--220), for carrying forward Buddhism. The most representative structures in the temple are the Famen Temple Pagoda and Famen Temple Museum. At the center of the temple is the 13-tiered octagonal pagoda under which it is said, a sliver of the finger bone of Sakyamuni buried. In 1981, subsidence of the pagoda led to reconstruction, during which, an Underground Palace was discovered unexpectedly in 1987. Many royal treasures and jewelry were found here-more than 2,000 pieces surrounded the Tang mandala (geometric designs, usually circular, symbolizing the universe). The most precious one is the veritable Finger Bone of the Sakyamuni Buddha. At present, this is the biggest Buddhist underground palace so far discovered. From the grand architectural style, it is said to have been established in the Tang Dynasty (618-907). But why, and how such precious treasures were stored under the pagoda. Tracing back to a most flourishing time in Chinese history, formerly, Famen Temple was the royal temple during the Sui Dynasty (581-618) and Tang Dynasty. Emperors in Sui and Tang believed that enshrining and worshiping the bone of Sakyamuni would bring riches and peace to the land and its people. So an offering of treasure to the finger bone was made, it was housed in the Underground Palace. XiAn ~ The Terra Cotta Warriors and Horses ~ **The ancient city lies in the center of Xian, which is circled by the city wall. The ancient city proper has four must-tosee attractions. The Great Islamic Mosque was set up during the Song Dynasty (960-1279). **The Terra Cotta Warriors and Horses are the most significant archeological excavations of the 20th century. Work is ongoing at this site, which is around 1.5 kilometers east of Emperor Qin Shi Huang's Mausoleum, Lintong County, Shaanxi Province. It is a sight not to be missed by any visitor to China. Upon ascending the throne at the age of 13 (in 246 BC), Qin Shi Huang, later the first Emperor of all China, had begun to work for his mausoleum. It took 11 years to finish. It is speculated that many buried treasures and sacrificial objects had accompanied the emperor in his after life. A group of peasants uncovered some pottery while digging for a well nearby the royal tomb in 1974. It caught the attention of archeologists immediately. **Entering the gate which bears the inscription 'Huaqing Chi' (Huaqing Hot Spring) by Guo Moruo, a noted literary in China, visitors are greeted by two towering cedars. By continuing inward passing two symmetrical palace-style plunge baths and turning right, you will see the Nine-Dragon Lake. Despite the fact that the lake is artificial with an area of 5,300 square meters (6339 square yards), it constitutes one of the main enchanting sceneries in the Huaqing Palace. You will see lotus floating on the water and emitting sweet fragrance, and a white marble statue of Yang Guifei - recognized as one of the four most beautiful women in ancient China - stands tall by the lake like a shy and appealing fairy.
**The Big Wild Goose Pagoda, located in Ci'en Temple, is about 4 kilometers south of Xian City. In 648 AD Tang emperor Gao Zong (Li Zhi), then still a crown prince, had it built to memorize his mother. The Temple then obtained its name Da Ci'en Temple, meaning the Thanksgiving Temple. According to the records, the temple, with more than 10 courtyards, contained 1,897 marvelous chambers all together. Taken Chenwei as his popular name, Monk Xuanzang was a very famous Buddhist Master and the founder of Faxiang sect of Buddhism. He went to India to research the Buddhist doctrines in 629 AD (the 3rd year of Zhenguan period), and then he came back in 645 AD with 657 volumes of Buddhist scriptures. In the temple, he translated 74 volumes in 1,335 chapters of the Buddhist scriptures into Chinese. He was the best one of the four famous translators of Buddhist scriptures, because his translations were the largest in quantity, the best in quality and the greatest in influence. XiAn/ Shanghai / Kuala Lumpur After Breakfast, take fly to Shanghai and then transfer to Kuala Lumpur. Days Itinerary Breakfast Lunch Dinner Hotel/ Similar 1 Kuala Lumpur ~ Shanghai Own Own Arrangement Own Arrangement Arrangement 2 Shanghai ~ Urumqi Meal on board Meal on board Table Meal Miramar Hotel 3 Urumqi ~ Turpan Hotel Breakfast Table Meal Bulk lots chicken flavor Turpan Guesthouse 4 Turpan ~ Hami Hotel Breakfast Flavor roasted entire sheep Table Meal Adds the Geda Guesthouse 5 Hami ~ Dunhuang Hotel Breakfast Table Meal Table Meal International 6 Dunhuang ~ JiaYuGuan Hotel Breakfast Table Meal Snowy Mountain camel palm 7 JiaYuGuan ~ ChangYeh ~ Hotel Breakfast Table Meal WuWei WuWei sand rice noodle JiaYuGuan Guesthouse Splendor Hotel 8 WuWei ~ LanZhou Hotel Breakfast Table Meal Mediates the flavor Three continent good Run Hotel 9 LanZhou ~ TianShui Hotel Breakfast Table Meal Mediates the flavor Jinlong Hotel 10 TianShui~ BaoJi~ XiAn Hotel Breakfast Table Meal Stuffed dumpling Sunlight International feast flavor 11 Xi An Hotel Breakfast Table Meal Table Meal Sunlight International 12 Xi An~ Shanghai~ Kuala Lumpur Hotel Breakfast Meal on board Meal on board Warm Family TOUR FARE : DEP DATE : TOUR FARE EXCLUDED ALL TAXES TIPPING VISA TOTAL The above itinerary is for reference only, and is subject to any necessary changes in accordance to local requirements 9C TOUR CODE : 12 SIK (Updated : 10 MAR 2013)