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Photos: Tashkurgan, Xinjiang, China | Mountains and Valley (Pt. 2 of 4)

These photos were taken in Tashkurgan, Xinjiang, July, 2010. For more details, see Photos: Tashkurgan, Xinjiang, China, Part 1.

Photos: Tashkurgan, Xinjiang, China | On the outskirts of town (Pt. 1 of 4)

These photos were taken in Tashkurgan, Xinjiang, July, 2010. We arrived in the high elevation Tajik town after a spectacular drive of several hours on Karakoram Highway from Kashgar.

Tashkurgan township (seat of Tashkurgan Tajik County) is nestled in a corner close to the Chinese borders with Pakistan, Afghanistan and Tajikistan and near the Khunjerab Pass.

There is not much of note in the town center- it is essentially composed of two or three main streets- but there is some beautiful scenery surrounding it. On the northeast side of town travelers can find the ruins of Princess Castle and also wander through the immense valley below it, also populated by yaks (we visited the valley first).

The valley has a sign that proclaims, "WELCOME TO ALAER GOLDENGRSS LAND LOCALFOLK PAR." There are some tents in the valley. They look like they may cater to tourist picnics but we were unsuccessful in my efforts to procure any merchandise from the proprietors (like a bottle of water). Still, sometimes it is nice to be in a quiet area.

Tashkurgan, Xinjiang: Mountain Photo in Black-and-White

More photos from Xinjiang can be seen here.

View from a bus window

Guangxi, China

Scandal-tainted Florida Republican wants to make photographing farmland a felony

The Florida Tribune reports:

SB 1246 by Sen. Jim Norman, R-Tampa, would make it a first-degree felony to photograph a farm without first obtaining written permission from the owner. A farm is defined as any land "cultivated for the purpose of agricultural production, the raising and breeding of domestic animals or the storage of a commodity."

More details here.

A Chinese person asked me today what the word "anus" means. Tampa has a handy definition.

Norman should meet his Georgian colleague Bobby Franklin for dinner since they've been out to lunch for sometime already.

 

Sanya, Hainan captured by Vignette for Android: Photo Gallery (HTC Desire)

 

 

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Sanya, Hainan (China) is a nice place to be in December. These pictures were taken using Vignette for Android on an HTC Desire mobile phone.

 

Karakoram Highway

The Karakoram Highway is the highest international paved road in the world. These photos are from the stretch connecting Kashgar to Karakul Lake and Tashkurgan, a popular route for travelers in China's far northwest.

Discovering a Lost Tribe of Tibetan Pygmies

Related: Hidden Waterfalls of Shangri-La