Routes that connected East and West
For more than 1,500 years, the Silk Road carried silk, spices, ideas, and religions between China and the Mediterranean world. Its northern route threaded through the Gobi Desert's oases — Dunhuang, Turpan, and Kashgar — cities that grew wealthy as caravans rested at their gates.
Dunhuang's Mogao Caves, with their 45,000 square meters of murals and thousands of statues, are the Silk Road's greatest treasure, a Buddhist art treasury accumulated over a millennium. The haunting dunes of Mingsha Mountain and the crescent-shaped Crescent Moon Spring surround the cave site.
Traveling the Silk Road today means crossing dramatic desert landscapes, staying in oasis towns, and tasting the melons and dried fruits that once traveled these routes. It is a journey through the meeting of civilizations — and some of China's most awe-inspiring scenery.
