Kashin' in my chips

I had great fun at the Sunday Market, mercilessly hassling the traders over the price of jade jewellery, and stocking up on supplies to camp out in Tibet. Which is the immediate benefit of having a 4WD vehicle, you can fit loads in without worrying about overloading. The price difference for the Jade was staggering, some pieces were four times the price of almost identical pieces. I did realise that slightly lighter green fetched higher prices, whether or not they actually looked as attractive. With the help of my guide I could carry out three different tests to ascertain whether or not it was actually jade and to check for flaws in the stone. It was actually much more fun shopping for food though, not allowing the stall holders to fob me off with second rate vegetables. Whenever they filled my bag I'd check it over, taking out any with soft or rotten patches and replacing it with my own choice. Generally I insisted on picking my own anyway, slowly sifting through a pile to get to the best. I spent a fortune on dried fruit and nuts, a kilo of dates cost me £6, the priciest was a kilo of Pistachios at £9. Each stall I bought stuff at a small crowd would gather round, watching me taste the different foodstuffs before committing to buy. I'm not going to go hungry in the near future anyway. (Photo: Uigyr gentleman - Sunday market, Kashgar)

(Photo: I bet he doesn't get a parking ticket - People's Square, Kashgar, China)

Kashgar is indeed in the grip of ethnic tension, as is so much of Xinjiang. The journey to down to Tibet takes me through constant areas of Uigyr majority, despite them being termed as a minority ethnic group, this is their heartland. The statistics are only when seen in China as a whole, here it is the Han Chinese who are the minority. When seeing any Han, they are generally in a uniform and body armour, armed to the teeth with lethal firearms. LIttle wonder my Han guide feels a tad insecure! I think it makes him relieved now I've let my hair down. With the dreads in their full glory a million eyes stare in amazement as I walk down the street, it certainly takes the attention away from him. There is a complete absence of hostility, their warmth and happiness is exceptional. As we travelled further east the situation didn't change, bright smiles and curious locals closely followed my progress. No matter how small the town or village the sight of my caught everyone's attention. (Photo: They may not be too clean, but boy are they friendly - Zepu, Xinjiang Province, China)

As for the guide himself, he's trying hard but not quite measuring up to the job. For him I'm an enigma. I moan at staying in hotels, and he can only think it's because of the price.Slowly, by persisting, I'm getting the point across. I must keep stressing the nature of my travels, my joy at total isolation in nature. Though he thinks this is crazy he is starting to get the idea, the trouble is his headset is so deeply ingrained it's like banging my head against a brick wall. I do think I'm starting to make an impression, though the resulting headache is inevitable. Explaining that his boss has become a personal friend helps massively, also that she has told him to forget being a tour guide and he's here to assist me. My tactics are to remain calm, and put things in a way that will cause him to lose face if he doesn't comply with my wishes. He isn't a bad guy really just very sheltered from the ways of the world, though if he spoke to me the way he does to hotel and catering staff I'd punch his lights out. The withering looks I've given at his racist remarks have had a positive effect, so he isn't totally ignorant. (Photo: Hells Grandad - Road to Yechang, rural Xinjiang, China)