Urumqi is a melting pot! 

Urumqi is a melting pot! The population is made up of Uyghur, Kazakhs, Chinese, Afghans, Uzbeks, Turkmen and others. The end result is a rich blend of many foods and cultures. Good place to see all that of course is at the markets so we visited the Xinjiang International Grand Bazaar, the Erdaoqiao Markets. This sits side by side with a large mosque and minaret.

No idea what these  fungi were or what they were used for  

Dried something with fur still attached one end

These were the biggest dates I have ever seen

 We wandered through the old bazaar which was a bit disappointing as it is being renovated. But then we walked through of the new bazaar. I saw banks and banks of dried fruits and nuts - tried a local almond and bought a small bag of dried grapes. The other absolutely fascinating things to see were the Chinese herbal ‘medicines’. From dried unidentifiable animal ‘bits’, dried tendon of antelope with hoof still attached! through sea creatures of various species to flowers, roots and fungi - all dried. Some were local but others came from places like Tibet and further afield - I was reluctant to ask!
Jade and trinkets, clothing, silk and musical instruments. It was an interesting few hours. Sadly we’re buying nothing as our bags are too heavy already and we’re only 10 days into our 3.5 month journey!
That night we shared a delicious noodle dish with some mince lamb pastry parcels at a tiny cafe. It was yummy!

This guy and his mate treated us to a small performance. Haunting sounds from these traditional stringed instruments - dobra I think

Jade trinkets of all shapes and colours looked like boiled lollies albeit big ones,