Altay آلتاي

Flew on the plane again today to Altay, my second hometown. I don't have any memories of the airport from the last time I came here, but it sure is small! The airport building is just like a fancy government edifice and since the planes don't have a jet bridge that connects to the building, you actually board and exit the plane directly on the runway.

The baggage carousel was also really tiny. You could see them load and unload the baggage from the plane compartment.

Lunch♪♡

I really do love the food here. Above is a dish called 辣子雞 (left), basically chicken cooked with peppers. The chicken is wild chicken, so the texture and taste is completely different from the fine white chicken that we have in America. I can't describe it. =\ The peppers are spicy, but also kind of sweet. The right is what we call 湯飯, which literally means "soup meal". I guess it could be the equivalent of chicken soup in America. I used to think that soup was all liquid, with the occasional veggies and ingredients because that's what the soup Chinese people drink is like (if meat is used, we don't usually eat the meat). That's why my whole life I thought "chicken soup" was just soup made with chicken; I didn't know it was so thick or that people actually put noodles or pasta in it. Anyway, the soup we have here must have tomatoes and celery and/or cilantro–it would not be the same otherwise! It's a homely soup (meaning usually cooked at home and not really in restaurants) that can serve as a whole meal as well, so you can put whatever you want in it, such as mushrooms, carrots, potatoes, etc. For carbs, we eat a lot more flour than rice, so chunks of dough (pasta?) called 揪片子 (because the dough pieces are pulled by hand) are cooked in it. 

Altay has become a really beautiful green city. This park wasn't here thirteen years ago, so it's fairly new, but I like the direction that it's heading towards (more environmental) because China really needs more of this.

There are many bronze states and figures that tell a lot about the history and culture. Xinjiang is a land inhabited by only 41% Han Chinese people, so the rest consist of ethnic groups such as the Uyghur, Kazakh, Tajiks, Hui, Kyrgyz, Mongol, etc., therefore, a lot of the population is Muslim. Instead of pork, which Muslims do not eat, lamb is to them what chicken is to Americans. Sheep are also used as sacrifices in a lot of their religious rituals, and is a main source of many things besides meat such as wool, hide, and dairy.

Camels are another important part of Xinjiang culture. Before the Han Chinese settled in Xinjiang, the ethnic groups had a very nomadic lifestyle. They move to an open place that has access to a body of water and grassland (for their cattle) and settle there. They live in yurts, so it's fairly easy to just up and move when they run out of resources. Camels are important for moving and carrying things.

You can see here, as a Kazakh woman is carrying her child and the camels following are carrying the yurt and other belongings.

將軍山

Jiangjun Mountain

Thirteen years ago, you were also unable to climb to the top of this mountain, either. Now that it has developed, people are able to easily go out for a walk or a hike and admire the city view.

 

The sides of the mountain is filled with these yellow chrysanthemums❀.

After climbing a thousand something steps, you reach the top of the first level, where you'll find a big manmade pond.

Keep climbing up and see the view from each observation point. There are rest stops every couple hundred steps.

And, alas, a view of Altay city, a city enveloped in mountains.

At the foot of the mountain is a rushing river. The water looks really muddy right now because it just rained and washed down a lot of soil and dirt from the mountains. This is the result of human destruction. Since all the trees were cut down, now there's nothing holding back the soil and the river becomes muddy every time it rains.

Altay means "mountain of gold" (金山) in Mongolian. The root of the name comes from the fact that the city is very plentiful in resources (such as gold). As a matter of fact, the bottom of this river is filled with gold, hence the name.

A beautiful plaza within the park.

I can only imagine when it fills with water–should be really pretty!☆

After following my blog for a while, I think you guys may have noticed by now that I really love nature! and flowers✿
I love all different types of flowers, no matter the size, shape, or color–I just find them all so beautiful. Though I don't know many of the names (and cannot remember them even after learning them, either! ><), I really do enjoy them. For some reason, though, I can't seem to grow them really well, though. Even with me constantly caring and watering (if necessary) them, they quickly shrivel up and die when coming under my care (in my room). I wonder why?

By the way, this tree here on the left is the birch tree (樺樹). These are the best of China. The bark of the tree appears to be peeling and takes on the shape of an eye, doesn't it?

And~ of course, we can't end the day without dinner! We went to an open tent shop run by a Kazakh family. Needless to say, these are the best places for kebabs! And I can do just kebabs for dinner. xD The top left is the appetizer, peanuts soaked and cooked in spices. The lamb kebabs are on the top right. The kebabs at the bottom right is lamb kidneys and liver. That might sound quite unappetizing to some, but I'm an adventurer. It wasn't as bad as you might think, but I can do without it. :) And my favorite naan (饢). This one I had today was grilled with cumin, so it was extra crunchy and tasty. yummyyy♡♡