Along the Silk Road - Hotan

Walking along the avenue, what struck me most was not how familiar the scene was, but how unfamiliar I felt being there - a tourist in my homeland…

Different backgrounds, different languages, different religions - all had been colliding here for centuries and eventually left their mark in all kinds of ways in this place called Hotan…

I found myself standing in a real desert.

It was profound, to be someone who had been to the Taklamakan desert, a mythical place that had only ever appeared in stories.

It was vast, like a sea. It was golden, reflecting the sunlight. It was blistering, like nothing could live…