Qinghai

Qinghai is a high desert with an average elevation of 3000m. The desert is composed of mostly yellow clay instead of sand. The landscape is very dry and barren, yet nevertheless beautiful in its own right. Here is the Qinghai part of the famous Yellow River that connects the centers of civilization in China.

Qinghai is famous for the variety of minority groups living together. Coincidentally it is also the poorest province in China. Here is a Hui Muslim asking for alms outside of the mosque in Xining (the capital of Qinghai).

Welcome to a small farm owned by a Hui Muslim family. The sheep are looking at me sheepishly while the cows wouldn't care less. And the family did not know that I was trespassing.

Tibetans have several ways to say good bye to the dead. One way is to burn the body on a high mountain and pile rocks over the burnt spot. Piled rocks is a common sight in Tibetan areas. Another way to say good bye to the dead is to chop up the body in the high mountain and feed the pieces to the vultures. Sorry, I don't have any picture of the second kind.

Here is a Tibetan woman fulfilling her life long dream of bowing all the way from where she lives to Lhasa (the capital of Tibetan Buddhism). The pilgrimage will cover at least 2000 kilometers in her case because this picture was taken near Qinghai Lake.

The Qinghai section of the Great Wall is still very well preserved.

Tibetan monks and nuns spend a great deal of their time collecting alms. Here are two Tibetan nuns with the fruit of their labor (a bag of cash) sitting in front of them.

The Tibetan market is a must-see if you ever visit Xining.

Rumor says that Tibetans don't like to have their pictures taken. Rumor is wrong for more than once in my experience in Qinghai.

Tibetan kids all have red cheeks and are very cute.

The simple of joy of life is always very inexpensive and readily available.

Xining has the largest mosque in China.

An old Hui Muslim in the mosque.

I make friends easily in the most unlikely places with my killer smile.