Deep into the Taklimakan Desert with the drizzle

I walked around the Taklimakan Desert. During the three-week journey, I saw all the beautiful scenery in southern Xinjiang. Autumn colors. When I passed by Hotan, the deepest impression I had was the most delicious cut cake in Xinjiang that I bought at the entrance of Hotan Grand Bazaar. This kind of cut cake made of sugar boiled from walnuts and grapes is called "maren candy" in Uyghur. It has been featured in "A Bite of China". It tastes sweet but not greasy, and it is very cheap. It is not popular with the outside world at all. Demonized appearance.

How delicious is it? I bought a lot at that time and ate all the way from Hotan to Qiemo and Ruoqiang. When the sweetness made my teeth sore, I brushed my teeth and continued eating. It was as if I was poisoned and couldn't stop at all. Finally, on the day I arrived at the 32nd Regiment Field, I unfortunately got food poisoning. I vomited for a day, felt exhausted and exhausted. After a sleepless night in a shabby guest house called the Tarim Hotel, he recovered as before.

What I am looking forward to most when I go to Hotan this time is undoubtedly the taste of cut cakes!

However, the trip that arrived in Hotan in the evening and set off the next day did not leave me time to buy cut cakes.

On the second day after arriving, we set off in an off-road vehicle. It is said that we will drive for a whole day and go directly to Dali Yabuyi.

When the famous explorer Sven Hedin crossed the Taklamakan Desert, he discovered this small oasis "Tungus Bazt" hidden in the "Sea of ??Death", which is now called Dali. Yabuyi, the Keriya people have lived here for generations.

On the day of departure, there was a rare light rain in Hotan, which has an average annual precipitation of only 35 mm and an average annual evaporation of 2,480 mm. I have been to the desert many times, and it was the first time I saw a cloudy desert sky. It was very refreshing. In addition, I chatted with two media friends in the same car about why Douyin videos are popular, the role of media, and the era of rapid consumption. The pros and cons and other interesting but not superficial topics, time flew by, and after more than two hours of normal road driving, we happily entered the desert.

Before entering the desert, the sun came out. When I first entered the desert, the off-road vehicle drove among the large tracts of reeds. It made me feel like I was on the filming set of Zhang Yimou's "Red Sorghum". These reeds are the raw materials for the sand-fixing grids commonly seen along desert roads.

Then the road became more and more crazy. Our car was the last one in the convoy, and there was always someone driving the road ahead, but bumps were still the norm.

The road in the desert is the most swaying. Sometimes I pass some dead poplar trees, sometimes I pass by clusters of red willows, and sometimes I go to the Kriya River. Although I have long known that the road is far away, I also really know that it is a long way. Unexpectedly, we were still on the road after dark. The driver masters deliberated over and over in the night, rolled up their trousers and went into the river to test, and finally decided to cross the river at a certain place.

Shortly after crossing the river, we finally arrived at the camp in Dariyabuyi, and nearly 12 hours had passed since the departure time. We drove for more than 9 hours just to cover the 155 kilometers of vast sand sea.

"Tiandi Tanmei" introduces the concept of European "luxury camping culture" and sets up camps far away from crowds to provide a warm and comfortable wilderness home for people who love the wilderness. Daliabuyi camp is the third camp they built in the west. The first two are respectively located in Lop Nur Bailongdui and Taxkorgan Kukoshiluk Township.

Although it was already dark when we arrived, when I opened the tent door and saw the small and exquisite lanterns and the comfortable and neat bedding, I felt warm in my heart. Especially for someone like me who often travels to the wilderness, camps and cooks, such conditions are really touching.

Although it was dark, we were still excited to visit everywhere. The toilet tent in the camp successfully attracted everyone’s attention. Two toilets, one black and one white, sit quietly in the tent, and a small candle even creates a romantic and warm atmosphere.

This Finnish-made Biolan waterless environmentally friendly toilet uses sawdust, leaves and active composting bacteria to replace flushing water. It can loosen and breathable the soil, balance carbon and nitrogen, and increase soil moisture. organic matter content and nutrients.

After putting down our luggage and visiting in the dark, we gathered at the camp tent. Dinner has been prepared and served on the table. The steaming hot mutton and carrot soup dissipates the fatigue of the day's journey (although I am not tired at all). There is tea, rice, vegetables, and even cakes. All of this makes "wilderness survival" "It becomes as comfortable as city life, the only difference is that there is no network here.

Steaming mutton soup

On a desert night, the lowest temperature is about minus five degrees. The windproof, sandproof, fireproof and waterproof luxury tent designed by an Italian designer is slightly higher than the outdoor temperature. Coupled with the thick quilt and blanket, it is extra warm and comfortable for me, who is not afraid of the cold. .

Our camp is backed by Populus euphratica and faces the desert. From the camp, we have to climb over a sand dune and walk for about 15 minutes to reach Liyabuyi. In the early morning, before the sun came out, I walked towards the village alone.

Daryabuyi has no roads or electricity, and only solar energy. It is an outright poor village. Today, there are more than 50 households left in the village. They lived in houses built of red willow branches.

The main function of the house is to prevent sand and provide shelter. In arid desert areas, there is basically no need to consider the rainproof function, so the gaps between the red willow branches are acceptable. For houses that are a little more particular, mud from the Kriya River will be used to paste a layer outside the red willow to fill the gaps in the red willow branches.

Towering Populus euphratica surrounds the courtyard, and the breeze spreads golden color all over the place. The village is very quiet, except for a few cock crows in the early morning, there are no unnecessary sounds.

Every day starts with sweeping the sand. Women are sweeping sand in their own yards and on the "Nanjing Road" in the village, and children on duty are sweeping sand in the corridors of Hope Primary School... In short, even if there is not a spring with poor sandstorms, sweeping sand is a daily routine. The sand in the desert is useless. It cannot build stoves or build houses. Its only function is to bury everything. Many ancient cities that were once glorious are buried under the Taklimakan Desert. Only scattered wooden piles are exposed, reminding people that today's "Sea of ??Death" was once full of life.

This land cannot even be called "barren". Just surviving is not easy. The only food of the Keriya people is naan, mutton and Cistanche deserticola, the "desert ginseng".

The internal structure of Hongliu House is very simple. A platform is built about 30cm above the ground, and people cook, eat and sleep on it. People who were born in the desert have long learned to live in harmony with the sand. Every household has a sandpit in their home, which is used to make the unique naan here - "Kumachi".

First, use dried Populus euphratica to heat the sand pit, then put the prepared Kumaki into the sand pit and bury it. The heated carbon ash will evenly transfer the heat to the "Kumaki" ", wait for a while, take it out, pat off the sand, and enjoy the steaming deliciousness!

We watched the whole process of making "Kumaiqi" ??in Dariyabuyi. The villagers made us mutton-filled Kumaiqi. After being buried for a while, the aroma of the mutton came out from the sand. It popped out of the gap, making everyone salivate.