Dunhuang

 We asked for a spoon but they wouldn't give us any. For soupy noodles, you are supposed to pick up the noodles with the chopsticks and slurp. Then you are to hold the bowl to your mouth and drink the soup.

 Chinese women like fair skin and they are usually all covered up. It's not a religious thing. They are all covered up even during the hottest summer days.

We are here in the oasis town of Dunhuang to see the Mogao caves. The whole area is desert but in a small section there is a slightly elevated area which has been pockmarked with some 800 caves which are filled with Buddhist frescoes and sculptures. This was an important intersection during the active days of the Silk road. Here a Chinese monk went to India to learn about Buddhism and came back and started a monastery in Dunhuang which was among the most active in recorded history. It is as interesting as the cave churches in Cappadocia, Turkey. The town, Dunhuang is a sleepy outpost with nothing much going on. There are huge organised tours visiting the caves but everyday on the small main street, minibuses takes people out there for very little money. They take you back too. We flew into Dunhuang from Urumqi. One can also take the sleeper buses. I popped my knee in Urumqi airport and was in pain the whole trip. It was a good thing I recovered enough to climb up and down the stairs connecting all the caves.