Today’s Silk Road travels bring us to Turpan, a small city and former oasis on the Silk Road. With the construction of the new high-speed railway in 2015, this city is now only an hour by train from Urumqi. The train was scheduled to leave Urumqi at 9:07 a.m., so Read more…
Greetings, Off the Silk Road readers! I write to you with some very exciting news. For the first time, Off the Silk Road is actually on the Silk Road! For the next five days, I will be embarking on an expedition to the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region. Xinjiang (新疆), meaning “new Read more…
I can’t believe I’m doing this again! Next week, I will be in China on my 16th trip to the Middle Kingdom. Like most trips, this trip will have a few phases and purposes. Return to the Capital: Beijing Bai the Lakeside: Dali with the Middlebury School of the Read more…
Day: 3 Current Location: Kunming (昆明) Miles traveled: 1518 Hello from Kunming, the City of Eternal Spring. After taking a car to Lijiang airport where the driver proceeded to shave himself during the trip and flying on a plane where the safety demonstration was still playing as the wheels lifted Read more…
Day: 2 Current Location: Lijiang (丽江) Miles traveled: 1318 (approximately) When we travel, we sometimes form strong relationships with the people of our host country. So when the opportunity came for me to return to the Nan Yao village (南尧村), where I stayed in a homestay two years ago, I Read more…
Day: 1 Current Location: Lijiang (丽江) Miles traveled: 1318 (approximately) Hello from the Mama’s Naxi Guesthouse in Lijiang’s Old Town! The real journey began today, as I left the comfort of and excellent city view from my Beijing apartment for my home on the road for the next week. After Read more…
Day: T-1 Current Location: Beijing (北京) Hello friends! It’s been 30 days since I arrived in Beijing and I have written 0 blog posts. My days have been filled with work, learning and exploration. With the Beijing part of the trip behind me, I now turn to the second part: Read more…
Long time, no update! I’m heading to China Thursday for 6 weeks. Itinerary and updates to come, so stay tuned. First stop, Beijing! “I now walk into the wild.” — Christopher Mccandless 一路顺风 (may the wind be at your back)! Benjy
你好 from Shanghai! You haven’t heard from the blog in a while. We’ve been really busy traveling throughout China! I would like to take this post to introduce this trip’s itinerary. This trip is unofficially named “Expedition 13,” as it is my 13th trip to China. More notes from the Read more…
Long time, no update! I’m heading to China tomorrow for 7 weeks and 1 day. Itinerary and updates to come, so stay tuned. First stop, Kunming! “I now walk into the wild.” — Christopher Mccandless 一路顺风 (may the wind be at your back)! Benjy