xian, china:

After spending five days in Beijing, we caught an extremely comfortable and efficient overnight train down to Xian. Xian marked the start our our Silk Road adventure, once being the capital of China and a massive trade destination. Today, Xian is most famous for the iconic Terracotta Warriors. I'll be sharing a few snaps from our visit the warriors tomorrow, but I firstly wanted to share photos  from our time spent at the night markets, which are located in the Muslim Quarter. (lots of food shots!)
China has a small but vibrant Muslim population (called the Hui), which was brought about by the traders on the Silk Road travelling from the Middle East and Central Asia. The further west we headed in China, the more prominent the Muslim culture became. It was really, really interesting to see the shift, and it's also a part of Chinese culture many people are unaware of. So keep an eye out on our photos in the next couple of days/weeks so you can see the change as we headed towards Central Asia.

Next: the Terracotta Warriors and then on to the Tibetan town of Xiahe.

cold, spicy noodles - very refreshing on a warm evening

lots of kebabs with all sorts of ingredients available

sweet potato cakes - very sweet

quail eggs

beef noodle soup with bread

more beijing, china:

Some more photos from Beijing, this time of the more historical Temple of Heaven park and the Forbidden City. Enjoy!

Next: Xian

where we're at:

Greetings from Uzbekistan! So excited to be here. We arrived on Sunday, crossing over the border from the Kyrgyz city of Osh, before driving through the Fergana Valley to Tashkent. We are now in the famous silk road town of Samarkand, home to many, many architectural gems. We will be in Uzbekistan for around eleven days, before flying home via Istanbul and Singapore. Very sad the trip is coming to an end...

798 art district, china:

The 798 art district is a complex of disused factories that have been converted into art galleries, in the Chaoyang area of Beijing. There are also cafes, boutiques and a whole lot of street art and installations to explore. We spent nearly a whole day here, gallery hopping and just taking in the atmosphere.
It's a really interesting area, and we fell in love with many of the old factory buildings, wishing we could convert something similar to live in! There are dozens upon dozens of galleries and we were a little overwhelmed at first, having absolutely no idea where to start. In the end we followed our noses and asked the locals of where they recommended.
If you love galleries or being in creative areas/spaces, be sure to visit 798 art district.