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新疆Xinjiang
image of people on a boat in the Three Gorges area of the Changjiang river area

See the 三峡Three Gorges of the 长江Changjiang (Yangzi) River between 重庆市Chongqing city and 宜昌Yichang.

高昌Gaochang's early beginnings goes back to the second half of the 西汉朝Western Han dynasty (206 BCE - 8 BCE) when it was set up as a garrison town in the year 46 BCE. It was then named Gaochang. Down the centuries after the collapse of the 汉朝Han dynasty (206 BCE - 220 AD), when people were fleeing the chaotic fields of the eastern provinces, many settled in this area. By year 460, the first Gaochang kingdom was established. From then on three more successive royal families followed . All were of Han descendents1. The last kingdom came to an end after the establishment of the 唐朝Tang dynasty (618 - 907). In the fourteenth year of 贞观Zhenguan (year 640), the Tang conquered it and renamed it as Gaochang county. Later, as the Tang empire declined after being drastically weaked by the 安史之乱Anshi Rebellion, a normadic group from north of the Gobi, called the 回鹘Uigur, came and annexed Gaochang (year 840) and started the Uigur kingdom in Gaochang. Centuries later, in the early 明朝Ming dynasty (1368-1644), warfare between the Uigurs and remnants of the Mongolian nobles in this now mixed region caused the destruction of the capital city. And thus, the tumbled towers and toppled steles, the collapsed palace and ruined adobe houses were all left to the scorching heat.

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Travel Info
image of a group of houses across a lake in hongcun villageimage of buildings in xidi village

Walk through anhui's pleasant villages that has over 400 years of history. See the idyllic villages of 西递Xidi, 宏村Hongcun, 南屏Nanping, and 关麓Guanlu.

image of a group of Mongolian gersimage of dunes near Baotou city

Enjoy the wide 希拉穆仁草原Xilamuren grassland, the huge dunes of 响沙湾Xiangshawan, and the ancient Wall of the 秦Qin state in 内蒙古Neimenggu (Inner Mongolia).

高昌故城Gaochang Ruins

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     高昌故城 - 驴车 Gaochang Ruins - Donkey Cart

    Tourist donkey carts are readily available. You can hop on for a ride to the palace or anywhere you like. The wheels of these carts are especially equipped with spikes, so they are quick and efficient on the ruins's rough mud road.

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     高昌故城 - 驴车 Gaochang Ruins - Donkey Cart
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     高昌故城 Gaochang Ruins
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     高昌故城 Gaochang Ruins
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     高昌故城 Gaochang Ruins

    The ruins with the 火焰山 Huoyan Shan (Flaming Mountains) in the background.

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     高昌故城 Gaochang Ruins

    The ruins with the 火焰山 Huoyan Shan (Flaming Mountains) in the background.

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     高昌故城 Gaochang Ruins
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     高昌故城 Gaochang Ruins

    The ruins with the 火焰山 Huoyan Shan (Flaming Mountains) in the background.

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     高昌故城 Gaochang Ruins
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     高昌故城 - 驴车 Gaochang Ruins - Donkey Cart
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     高昌故城 - 驴车 Gaochang Ruins - Donkey Cart

    The donkey carts rushing through what used to be the main roads through the old capital city. In the background of the ruins is the 火焰山 Huoyan Shan (Flaming Mountains) Huoyan Shan (Flaming Mountains) in the background.

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     高昌故城 - 驴车 Gaochang Ruins - Donkey Cart

    Some of the ruins are still quite high, But nothing blocks the unique 火焰山 Huoyan Shan (Flaming Mountains) lying in the background.

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     高昌故城 Gaochang Ruins

    In the background of the ruins is the 火焰山 Huoyan Shan (Flaming Mountains) in the background.

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     高昌故城 Gaochang Ruins

    In the background of the ruins is the 火焰山 Huoyan Shan (Flaming Mountains) in the background.

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     高昌故城 - 驴车 Gaochang Ruins - Donkey Cart
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     高昌故城 Gaochang Ruins
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     高昌故城 Gaochang Ruins

    Inside cave-like ruins.

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     高昌故城 Gaochang Ruins
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     高昌故城 Gaochang Ruins
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     高昌故城 Gaochang Ruins - adobe structure

    This building is reconstructed in the 1980's, but I was unable to confirm its identity. Some said it is a General's Headquarter, but that seems too small. It is more likely a reconstruction of a buddhist meditation chamber - more fitting and more important in this once highly regarded buddhist center.

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     高昌故城 Gaochang Ruins-adobe building
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     高昌故城 Gaochang Ruins - adobe structure

    This structure is reconstructed in the 1980's, but I was unable to confirm its identity. Some said it is a General's Headquarter, but that seems too small. It is more likely a reconstruction of a Buddhist meditation chamber - more fitting and more important in this once highly regarded Buddhist center.

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     高昌故城 Gaochang Ruins - adobe structure
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     高昌故城 - 地方美女 Gaochang Ruins - Local Beauties

    Three local beauties to keep the tourists busy.

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     高昌故城 Gaochang Ruins - Palace area remains

    The surviving remains of the palace area. A large temple was also in the area.

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     高昌故城 Gaochang Ruins - Palace area remains

    The surviving remains of the palace area.

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     高昌故城 Gaochang Ruins - Palace area remains

    The remaining walls of the palace complex.

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     高昌故城 Gaochang Ruins - Palace area remains

    The surviving remains of the palace area.

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     高昌故城 Gaochang Ruins - Palace area remains

    The remaining walls of the palace complex.

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     高昌故城 - 游客 Gaochang Ruins - Tourists

    Tourists exploring the palace complex.

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     高昌故城 - 城墙 Gaochang Ruins - City Wall

    The thick city wall. Although parts of the wall had crumbled, it's remain size is still impressive.

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     高昌故城 - 骆驼 Gaochang Ruins - Camel

    A camel tied to the outter city wall.

    Notes:
  • 1A dynastic chart of the four kingdoms can be found at 维基百科 the Chinese site of Wikipedia, in the article on 高昌Gaochang.
  • 2.The city layout data are derived from 百度百科Baidu Baike's article of the same subject.

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From the days of the 丝绸之路Silk Route (or Silk Road) Era, starting from about the same time as the beginnings of Gaochang, this oasis town had been a favorite stop for monks and merchants. In time it became a prosperous and populated town with thousands of households within its walls. And as a well-trafficed site, by people from much further distance and with larger cultural influences, this sunken desert spot became a crossroad for the transmission of ideas and transaction of materials. Although other religions coexisted in this area, Buddhism was by far the largest and most active. Eleven years after the creation of the Tang empire, the monk and traveller 玄奘Xuan Zhuang stopped here and lectured Buddhism. The then Buddhist ruler was so fond of the young monk that he kept him for a month, not allowing him to continue on his journey to India. But the king finally gave in after Xuan Zhuang staged a hunger strike. In his farewell, Xuan Zhuang promised the ruler that on his return he will stay with the king for a year; then, he left with the men, camels, horses, and passports provided by the king. On his return trip 17 years later, Xuan Zhuang learned that the king had died — because just 6 years before, the Tang army had annexed Gaochang. And so ended an everlasting friendship that has been much sung about.

Gaochang's city layout was modelled after the Tang capital, 长安Changan (modern day 西安Xian). It consisted of an outer wall, an inner wall, and a palace. The outer wall is rectangular and has a perimeter of five kilometer surrounding a 2 million square meter area; its walls are 12 meters thick and equally high. Its western wall had two gates, including one with a 瓮城barbican. The south and southeast section was the monks district with its monasteries. The southwest section was more important, with temple gates, temples and Buddha sculptures and frescoes. The inner city was in the middle of the outer city. The palace was north of the inner city.2.  

portrait of a Uygur girl

Travelogues and travel notes

Travel Information

Getting There:

高昌古城Gaochang's Ancient City is located inside 二堡乡Erbaoxiang Township, which is about 45 kilometers east of 吐鲁番市Tulufan city. A few kilometers to its north is 火焰山Huoyan Shan (Flaming Mountains). The easiet way to get there is to hire a taxi(Y7-Y8) or a minivan, which will take you there in less than half hour; however, waiting for it to pool enough people may take longer. Normally, the driver will gather 4 - 5 passenger before heading out of the city, unless you are willing to pay Y40 - Y50 for the private ride there. Most of the passengers will be local Uygur heading back to town; so, the driver will make go around a few places before dropping you off at the site's entrance. A public bus also stops at the township, but the station is outside next to the highway, so you will have to hire a motuo bike to the ruins. This may be inconvenient, especially if you are carrying more than one bag.

Entrance Ticket:

30 Yuan. (summer 2006).

Restrictions:

Because the protected site is delicate, tripods are not allowed inside its areas. If you have a tripod, the ticket office will hold it for you.

Miscellaneous:

In the fiery summers, bring plenty of water as there are no vendors inside the site. Although walking around the site is easy, letting a donkey pulls you while sitting on a cart may be fun experience.