Things to do in Jimsar

The Buddha statues inside are well-maintained, majestic, and gilded, which feels great.

It may seem dead and silent from the outside, but if you go deeper into the hinterland, you will see Mongolian wild donkeys. In winter, wild donkeys will form a mighty herd, running at a maximum speed of 60 kilometers per hour, which even wolves cannot catch up with.

This year, I worked six days during National Day. I wanted to relax for the last two days of the long holiday. I came here alone, in my own car, with a single heart, admiring the city's reputation. I returned to Jimsar, a key city in the Beiting Protectorate, to fulfill a wish I left unfulfilled after my last trip to Jiangbulake! To understand the history of the Western Regions, one must delve into this place. To understand Beiting, a visit to the Thousand Buddha Caves was merely a learning experience. My visit to the ancient city of Beiting was merely a superficial study! Beiting is a thousand-year-old city, a junction of several roads, one of the Tang Dynasty's most important military and political institutions in the Western Regions, and a center of cultural fusion in the northern borderlands. Here, there are horns blowing in the cold, passionate poetry, the sound of reading, and graceful singing and dancing. This is a snapshot of a medieval northern border city, a magnificent chapter of frontier culture. The frontier of the Western Regions, home to passionate soldiers, has also nurtured magnificent poetry. "Drunk in a village in the borderlands, I feel no sorrow, yet I yearn to build Luntai for my country." "Suddenly, as if overnight, a spring breeze arrives, and thousands of pear trees blossom." For millennia, the rugged, vigorous, and fantastical culture of the Western Regions has nourished Chinese culture, providing every scholar raised in the "gentle and honest" Confucian tradition with a reason to travel far and wide, and becoming one of the most romantic and fantastical elements in the DNA of Chinese culture. As the largest central town in the northern foothills of the Tianshan Mountains from the 7th to the 14th century AD, the remains of the Beiting Ancient City bear witness to the Tang Dynasty's significant efforts to manage the Western Regions and ensure the smooth flow of the Silk Road through the oasis and grasslands through the establishment of military and political institutions such as Tingzhou, Beiting Grand Protectorate, and Beiting Jiedushi. Its remains as the secondary capital of the Gaochang Uighurs, along with the ruins of the Gaochang Uighur royal family Buddhist temple, bear witness to the ancient Gaochang Uighur civilization in the Western Regions. The remains of the Beiting Ancient City from the Tang Dynasty and the Uighur period, as well as the ruins of the Gaochang Uighur Buddhist Temple, bear witness to the intermingling of various ethnic groups in the northern foothills of the Tianshan Mountains. Beiting Ancient City was the primary central town along the Silk Road in the northern foothills of the Tianshan Mountains from the 7th to the 14th century AD. It served as a crucial military and political center and transportation hub for the region north of the Tianshan Mountains. Approximately 1.5 kilometers long from north to south and 1 kilometer from east to west, its layout, influenced by the Tang Dynasty's Chang'an City, consisted of two inner and outer walls, both with an irregular rectangular plan. To the north of the city lies the Yangma City, within which 12 building foundations have been discovered. 700 meters west of the city, on the terrace east of the Xihe Dam, stand the ruins of the Gaochang Uighur Buddhist Temple (Beiting West Temple). Beiting belongs to China, to the Silk Road, and to the world! Bring your children here when they're older to learn more about its history!

Cheshi Ancient Road, the former Toudao Bridge, was a place where the local and surrounding Kazakh Aken played music and raced horses when I was a child. I don’t know when it became a place for raising wolves to attract investment, and later it was renamed Wild Wolf Valley. This is only part of the Cheshi Ancient Road. The Cheshi Ancient Road is also a popular place for hiking and adventure. I will come and see it later.

Tianchi Lake in the Tianshan Mountains truly lives up to its legendary reputation as a fairyland on earth! However, getting to the scenic area is highly dependent on the weather. The shuttle bus takes you up the mountain, and upon arriving at the lakeside, you're instantly awestruck. The crystal-clear lake rests serenely amidst the mountains, with the majestic Bogda Peak standing tall in the distance, surrounded by a vast forest of spruce trees. The snow-capped mountains, the lake, and the blue sky frame each other—a breathtaking panorama that needs no filter. Strolling along the lakeside boardwalk, the air is fresh and invigorating. You can also take a boat trip on the lake for a closer look at the scenery. The scenic area is clearly marked and well-equipped, combining natural beauty with the mythical significance of the Queen Mother of the West. The mountain breeze soothes all travel fatigue, making it a must-visit destination when in Xinjiang.

Huoshao Mountain is a reddish-brown sintered rock. At dusk, under the reflection of the morning sun or the sunset, the mountain seems to be burning, and all the mounds are painted with a golden hue, which is magnificent and rare.

The Ulagai Wolf Valley Scenic Area aims to create a national 4A-level tourist attraction, with wolf watching as its core product, enriching tourism formats and innovating tourism products as its means, and relying on word-of-mouth marketing and service-oriented services to upgrade the internal sightseeing roads of the scenic area.

I visited this place last July, and it was lush and green. This October, the wheat harvest was complete, and some late-season wheat remained; the scenery was beautiful in its own way. Ascending the winding mountain road, towering spruce trees pierced the sky, their deep green layers creating a magnificent landscape unique to Xinjiang. The mountains, snow-capped peaks, wheat fields, and grasslands displayed varying shades of green and yellow, interspersed with touches of red—a breathtaking sight. Reaching a high vantage point, gazing at the winding mountain road, the towering spruce trees, the majestic snow-capped mountains, the vast wheat fields and grasslands, dotted with clusters of white Mongolian yurts and scattered flocks of sheep, a sense of grandeur welled up within me. The beauty nourished my soul. Even the harvested Jiangbulak was breathtaking.

There were so many people visiting during the National Day holiday. 90% of the grapes had already been harvested; the remaining 10% were quite unique. However, the sightseeing bus service was extremely chaotic, with pedestrians everywhere and no order whatsoever.

It's a great place to experience the rich ethnic culture of Xinjiang. The architecture is very unique, and the atmosphere is especially wonderful when the lights come on at night. The food, handicrafts, and song and dance performances are all quite local. If it's your first time visiting Xinjiang, it's definitely worth a visit. However, the area is quite commercialized, and many goods and restaurants are on the expensive side. I suggest you shop around and compare prices before making any purchases. It's better to treat it as a place to experience local culture and take photos.