This is all that’s left of the world’s largest, oldest and best preserved city made of earthen buildings.⠀ ⠀ The natural fortress was once the capital of the Jushi Kingdom, and sits atop a high plateau, between two deep and steep river valleys.⠀ ⠀ Made from Turpan’s desert stiltstone, you can walk along a path that mimics the old main street and duck into the shells of old temples and houses.⠀ ⠀ 📍Jiaohe Ruins, Turpan, Xinjiang, China #leaveyourmark

Turpan Self-Drive/Private Car One-Day Tour Detailed Guide, with a Map of Turpan Attractions Distribution

Turpan travel guide, this article is enough: what to eat, what to play, introduction to attractions, travel transportation | with a map of Turpan attractions distribution. 1⃣ Transportation For a day trip to Turpan via Urumqi, you can choose to arrive at Turpan North Station (the new station is closer to the downtown area). For the return trip, you can choose from Shanshan North Station to Urumqi. 2⃣ One-Day Itinerary (for reference only) Turpan North Station ➡️ Jiaohe Ancient City ➡️ Local market next to Karez Well Park (free) ➡️ Turpan Museum ➡️ Internet-famous antique shop (free to take photos outside) ➡️ Flaming Mountains ➡️ Tuyugou Mazha Village ➡️ Kumtag Desert ➡️ Return from Shanshan North Station to Urumqi 3⃣ Cuisine There aren't many food options along the way, but you can find breakfast and lunch near the downtown area and Tuyugou Mazha Village. If the itinerary includes the desert, dinner can be had in Shanshan County. Downtown: The baked buns opposite the Turpan Museum are very delicious, with thin skin and juicy filling, and not greasy at 3 yuan each. After visiting the museum, you can buy some to try (locals buy them by the box, and you can pick up the last one or two left from the oven). 4⃣ About the Attractions ① Karez Well Park The attraction is relatively old, with vineyards inside. Before the grapes grow, it takes 5-10 minutes to visit, and 10-25 minutes for photos and play when the grapes are out. The free market across the street is more interesting. ② Flaming Mountains You can drive by from the outside, the view from the outside is enough, and you can take photos there. If you want to mimic the shadow with a banana fan, you can buy a ticket to go inside. ③ Kumtag Desert It's recommended to wear shoe covers, buy a ticket, and casually climb a small sand dune for photos and to watch the sunset. If you've been to other deserts, you can skip this one as they all look quite similar. ④ Tuyugou Mazha Village Mazha Village is the filming location of Dilraba's 'Anarhan'. Continuing towards the desert from the village leads to Tuyugou. ⑤ Thousand Buddha Caves Free to visit, recommended by other bloggers as good, but it was under repair when I visited. It should be open by May Day. 5⃣ Other ① Attractions in Turpan downtown are relatively scattered, so renting a car for self-driving or sharing a private car is more convenient. ② Xinjiang's cold skin noodles have a sour taste. ③ The best photo spot in Mazha Village is at the parking lot at the entrance of the scenic area. ④ Aerial photography spots: Tuyugou, Kumtag Desert. Remember to hand-launch and catch when flying over the desert.

In Jiaohe Ancient City, attend a date with the sunset

❤Recommended reason: From an aerial view, Jiaohe Ancient City looks like a large willow leaf. The two rivers intersecting around the city are natural moats; due to the erosion of the river, the edge of the platform has formed cliffs up to tens of meters high, and the towering cliffs are city walls. The fortress built of raw soil, the 'fully armed' city, even allowed the Cheshi small country sandwiched between the Han and Xiongnu to enjoy a national dynasty for more than 500 years, creating a beacon legend on the Silk Road. At dusk, the golden sunlight coats Jiaohe Ancient City with a layer of gold film, adding to the historical heaviness of the ancient city. 🗓Itinerary: It is recommended to go to the scenic area at six or seven in the afternoon, when it is relatively not so hot and the light is better. The tour lasts about 3 hours. 💰Tickets: The ticket is 70, and the shuttle bus is 25. 📝Note tips: Aerial photography is not allowed in the scenic area, but it is possible outside the scenic area. For the location address, use the mobile map👉🏻There is a country road on the north side of the ancient city. You can park on the side of the road to overlook Jiaohe Ancient City (p1/2, p5/6 perspective), or you can fly. The surrounding area is all vineyards, and there are houses for drying raisins.

Jiaohe Ancient City

Turpan has two famous ruins, one is Jiaohe Ancient City, and the other is Gaochang Ancient City. Jiaohe Ancient City is recommended because it is the largest, oldest, and best-preserved raw soil building city in the world. It is also the most complete urban relic preserved in our country for more than two thousand years. The ancient city once had a complete social system, such as residences, pagodas, and official residences. Some parts of the once prosperous blocks and temple halls are still preserved, and some structures can be imagined now. Walking to the center of the main road of the ancient city, looking from the viewing platform, Jiaohe immersed in the long river of history, only left with mottled and old, also hides a huge mystery. In addition to the ancient city, there are ancient villages, ethnic architectural features, which are artificially built later, not strong in ornamental, can be skipped. Tour tips: Main road: The ancient city scenic area is very large, first take the electric car, to reach the farthest ancient city area, the general tour group's route is along the scenic area sign, walk the middle viewing route, reach the viewing platform and return to the entrance immediately. Auxiliary road: If you are free to travel, you can take an unusual road, in addition to the middle section can be visited, both sides of the main road can lead to different places. The farthest place can reach the square of the Buddha Pagoda Temple ruins, where there are few people and quiet, you can take some big shots.

Jiaohe Ancient City

Jiaohe Ancient City, located in the Turpan Basin, at the foot of the Flaming Mountains. If you have seen its aerial view, you will find it is like a giant aircraft carrier, cruising in the vast Turpan Basin. The millions of years of river erosion have made it unique. Jiaohe Ancient City is currently the largest, oldest, and best-preserved earthen architecture city in the world. It is the only most complete site of a Han Dynasty city in China, and it is also one of the only specimens in the world famous for studying ancient cities. It can be said to be the "most perfect ruin in the world."

Jiaohe Old City is a city without walls. It is located in the two riverbeds of Yalaiyugou Village, 10 km west of Turpan. Because the two rivers meet around the city in the south, it is called the river. And the city, and the locals are called "Yal and map", meaning "Yaer City." Jiaocheng is not a brick and a tile, but a piece of land that has been pulled out one inch and one inch on a loess platform with a gully and a ridge. It is built on a willow-shaped platform above 30 meters high, surrounded by cliffs and walls. The cliff wall is a natural wall. The layout of the city is compact and patchy. Most of the buildings in the city are also made into solid walls in the native soil. The sorghum is located on the spacious terrace in the city center; the Dongcheng District is a residential area with deep winding paths and dense houses; Xicheng is a poorly constructed slum and commercial city, hand workshop; Nancheng is a deep house compound and a high-rise Hongyu The residence of the official residence; the north city is a temple area and a tomb area. There are more than 50 large and small monasteries in the city, and you can imagine the prevalence of Buddhism at that time. More than 300 ancient wells have been detected, and the depth of the well is 40 meters.

Jiaohe Old City is located on an island-shaped platform 13 kilometers west of Turpan City. Because the river flows around the city, it is called the Jiaohe River. It was the capital of the former country of the 36th country of the Western Region. Jiaohe Old City is the largest and oldest preserved earth-building city in the world, and the most complete urban relic of China for more than two thousand years. Entering the scenic spot, you need to pass through a promenade, on both sides of the promenade, detailed introduction of the history and development of the Jiaohe Old City in the scenic area you can take the shuttle bus to various attractions. The first attraction after entering the scenic spot is the detailed description of the local customs and special lifestyles in Jiaohe Ancient Village Gucun. Leave the ancient village, continue to take the shuttle bus, go to the essence of the scenic area, pay the river to the old city. Before entering the ancient city, there are very strict security checks, tripods, drones, etc. can not be brought into the scenic spot. After thousands of years of wind and rain, the city of Jiaohe, due to the high temperature and drought in the Turpan area, was able to be completely preserved. The buildings were all built from the earthenware version, and the layout was similar to that of Chang'an City in the Tang Dynasty. City towns, pagodas, streets, and mud bodhisattvas in workshops, houses, and monasteries can also be found.

Walking into the ancient city, I found that it was too big, and there was only one broken piece of soil in the building inside. The streets in the city are criss-crossed, and the streets are narrow and deep, like a tortuous war. The temples, government offices, residential areas, handicraft workshops and other houses are all relatively well preserved. Basically, they are dug up from the surface of the shingles by means of reducing the wall and leaving the wall. At that time, the population of 6,500, it is bound to be densely populated here, business travel gathered. In fact, it is more like Pompeii than the Devil City, because most buildings have traces of burning fire. According to archaeologists, the Jiaohe Old City was indeed destroyed by a fire. But even when the sun is shining, I still feel the chill in the baby tomb area. Although no one knows why more than 200 babies have been sleeping here, the bleakness here is self-evident when the sun sets. Under the accumulation of more than 2,000 years of history, we stopped and thought about the prosperity and prosperity of the past, and we couldn't speak for a long time. Can only pick a few historical backs and record ancient life

The history of the Tuofu Jiaohe Old City has been more than 2,000 years old. The whole city is like a big fortress. It was first created and built by the car masters. It reached its peak in the Southern and Northern Dynasties and the Tang Dynasty. It is exquisitely constructed and easy to defend. Later, due to the war in the Turpan area, it was abandoned. The ancient city site still preserves the design and structure of the original ancient city. This is the world's largest and oldest preserved dwelling-built city. When the Chinese summer was flourishing, the river was swallowed up by the river and the Anxi Dufu, the highest military and political institution in the Western Region. In 2000, the time was long, the sea was sacred, the ancient city still existed, and the old-fashioned, but it was a different kind of emotion. In 2014, Jiaohe Old City was selected as a World Heritage Site as an important site of the Silk Road.