Day 18 : Hotan

On reaching Hotan the previous night most surprising thing happened to me, I got down from the bus and caught a taxi to reach the hotel that was booked for me by my friend after tirelessly checking through a lot of hotels to find one that takes in foreigners. To my pleasant surprise when I got into taxi I heard Bollywood music, which made me really happy and made me feel at home. 
But that joy was replaced by a little shock when I realized that taxi driver could not understand a word of Chinese or read the address of the hotel I showed him on the mobile. Even more shocking was when he stopped the cab right in the middle of a 3 lane road and jumped out of the cab with my mobile, for a moment I thought he was stealing my phone but then when I jumped out after I saw he was talking to another taxi guy behind asking for directions. So after such an eventful ride I reached my hotel that looked a bit shady. Since I had no options that late in the night I checked in. 

Day 18 started early with a search for a bit more better hotel that might take foreigners. After searching and checking with a lot of hotels I realized either they are even more expensive or else they don't take foreigners even some of the most plush looking hotels. Some of them turned me away with a strange looking expression on their face as if they are scared. Anyways I gave up the hunt after walking for half a day. I decided to head to a local attraction called "Mazar of Imam Asim" the tomb of a saint called Imam Azim sitting at the edge of the city right in the desert. According to what I read Thursday was the special day there so I wanted to go and see for myself. 

That journey to the Mazar was the most memorable experience of the whole trip, I got to experience the generosity of Hotanese people first hand. So to get to the Mazar I took a city bus to a bus station that has shuttle buses heading to my destination. But strangely neither did I see the bus station nor could I find the shuttle bus number that takes me to the Mazar. I strolled around looking for either of that, eventually asked a local who was walking by me carrying his lunch for directions. After hearing a foreigner speaking in broken Chinese he also tried to tell me directions in his broken Chinese. Then after a brief pause with something in his mind he asked me to follow him. He walked into a workshop and was discussing something with a couple of guys there in a very animated fashion, then he gave his packet of lunch to one of the guys and got a key from him and pulled out a car that was parked there and asked me to sit. I was in two minds that a complete stranger is asking me to sit in a car in a city that I have no clue of, but still I got in. He drove me all the way to a bus stop and just at that time there was a bus pulling in. He asked me to get on it and explained to the driver very clearly where I had to go and made sure that he understood that well. When I was about to offer him some money he just said Goodbye and drove off.

The bus took me to where I had to go from there it was around a km walk according to my map, I asked for directions to be doubly sure. A lady showed me the road and said just head straight and you will reach there. I started walking through the dusty village road with Huyang trees on both sides. I got to see very modest but nicely kept houses. As I walked past I saw these 2 small kids with an old man and as I turned around with my cam he was giving me a salute while trying to get one of them to do the same.

Teaching him to salute....Loved the look on their faces...

The old man and the kids...

After that I walked in the shade of the trees slowly to my destination, I could see the signs of desert around me. Just then a motorbike went by with 4 people on that and suddenly it stopped, I noticed that the lady whom I asked for directions was on it with 2 kids. She got down and took the kids off and was telling something to the bike rider. Then she turned to me and told me to sit on the bike, I felt so bad that she got off with her kids to send me to where I wanted to go. I tried hard with my chinese to convince her to sit but she was very sure and she made sure that I took the ride. The rider of the bike took me right up to the gates of the Mazar. I thanked in him Uyghur and said good bye, when I pulled out my wallet he said "No no" with his hands and just left.

A scene right by the gates of the Mazar

Way to Mazar

Mazar of Imam Asim