Silk Road Trip‏

My Dear Family and Friends:
We have been gone for the past 8 days on a most interesting journey across China. We left last Sunday, September 28 and returned October 6 at 1:00 a.m.(our flight home was delayed 4 hours!)
The day we left on our venture we arrived in the city of Urumqi at 1:00 a.m. to meet the other 40 BYU teachers from all over China. It was such a pleasant surprise to get to the bus, that was to take us to the hotel, and see other BYU "family" waiting for us. We have not seen them since our 2 week training at BYU in August and it was good to see them.
Monday morning we met in the Hotel lobby and boarded the tour bus to Heavenly Mountain. We all felt like we were back in Utah, the terrain was so mountainous and cool. However, when we arrived at Heavenly Lake, we knew we were in China, as there were pagoda's scattered on the mountain. It was gorgeous. We ended up at the Er Dao Qiaro Market, which we heard was a great place to shop. I bought some dried tomatoes that were so good-one could never imagine that tomatoes taste so sweet.
Tuesday morning we headed out to the ancient city of Jiaohe. It is a city that was located on a cliff. The archaeological finds reveal that the Cheshi people had lived there in the second century B.C. It was so hard to imagine that it was still standing. We also went to see the ancient irrigation well system in Karze.
Wednesday on to Turpan to visit the Tuyugou valley village and see the original Ughur customs. We were asked not to photograph the people in the village, as we were special guests there by invitation. That little village really made us feel like we were in a village that was similar to the villages at the time of Christ. All the "streets" were very narrow and the buildings about 7 feet tall. The wells were just like the ones described in the scriptures. We all felt a special reverence while we were there. The spirit was very strong.
Next we went to the Pachikli grottos on the cliff and took a ride on a donkey cart. It was fun!
Wednesday night at 10:30 p.m., we boarded the train for the overnight trip to Dunhuang. We spent the night in a "soft sleeper" with another couple in the same berth. It was like a giant "sleep-over". We all laughed and had a crazy time. The little beds are so quaint and "fun" to sleep on. The men slept in the upper bunks and the women, on the lower bunks. We all slept surprisingly well and arrived in Dunhuang around 10:30 a.m. where we went to the hotel for showers. NOTE: No showers on the train and the bathrooms were somewhat frightening. But, we survived...
Thursday we went to the desert for a ride on the camels... I was feeling a little sick - so I opted out on the camel ride.:( Rog agreed to stay with me and not ride the camels also.
But the highlight of the day, was the trip to the wall paintings at the Mogao grottos. Scholars estimate that the original date of building the caves is in the period of 460-640 A.D. So hard to imagine that they have been preserved for so very long. The caves were seriously damaged by the religious conflicts when Islam entered the territory in the 14th century. Also, many explorers from other countries stole or destroyed some of the treasures. So magnificant... There are many Buddha's there - the biggest one,35 meters tall (approximately 90-97 feet tall or 7 stories tall!) The paintings are so hard to imagine. It is hard to comprehend that they are so very old and still so defined. AND, they are still unearthing more of them. I would love to go back there to visit again. I could have stayed there for hours. Awesome.
Friday was the highlight of the Silk Road trip - the Terra Cotta Warriors and the horses at the tomb of Qin Shi Huang who was the emperor who unified China in 221 B.C. WOW!!!! It is everything I have ever read about or seen concerning the warriors. As we wandered around the ruins, I found it hard to imagine that I was there witnessing them. A feeling of reverence came over all of us - to imagine what had taken place in that location, so many centuries ago...
Saturday night we went to a fancy dinner and show at a swanky hotel and dinner club in Xi'an. By the way, Xi'an is pronounced, "Che - an. The food was all Chinese dumplings. The fillings were of many consistencies and textures. All of which, were very good. The show was great - alot of singing, dancing, instruments and acrobatics. A great way to end the trip.
Sunday morning was another highlight of the trip, for me. We decided that we should hold a special Sacrament meeting, in a hotel room, before we left to go home. It was one of the most spiritual meetings I have ever attended. So simple, but so very special! It was fast Sunday, as well as General Conference in Salt Lake City. We opened with a prayer and a song and then the Sacrament was blessed and passed, so humbly. Then, another song, which we could hardly sing, because of the feelings in that room. The Bishop bore testimony of the Atonement of Jesus Christ and one sister bore her testimony. A closing song was sung and a closing prayer offered. It lasted about 25-30 minutes, but it was one of the most spiritual meetings I have ever attended. The Lord is very mindful of what we are doing here in China. We are not even aware of the job we are doing, but He is, and it is times such as this that we know we are here for a very special purpose.
We were delayed 4 hours on our way home and we came home tired, some of us sick and somewhat homesick. But, we all are keenly aware that we belong here and we have a love of the Chinese people that is unbelieveable.
We are grateful to our Father and all the protection we get from Him, and the prayers offered in our behalf - from all our friends and family. Thank you - all of you. We can feel of your prayers and we appreciate you.
Much Love,
Jane