Somali National News Agency
So
Ar
Search
  • Home
  • Local News
    Local NewsShow More
    New Water Well Project Breaks Ground in Somalia’s Bakool Region
    August 1, 2025
    Somali Parliamentarians Visit Chinese Science and Technology Center
    August 1, 2025
    Somalia and ASEAN to Strengthen Diplomatic and Economic Ties
    August 1, 2025
    Somali Federal Government Pledges Special Support to Northeast Administration
    August 1, 2025
    Banaadir Region Pledges $200,000 for Drought Relief in Somalia’s Awdal Region
    August 1, 2025
  • World News
    World NewsShow More
    Seven people in critical condition after car ramming at LA nightclub
    July 20, 2025
    Tourist boat capsizes in Vietnam’s Ha Long Bay, killing 37
    July 20, 2025
    Israel kills more than 50 in Gaza as UN warns of ‘catastrophic hunger’
    July 19, 2025
    Nairobi is locked down as Kenyan police clash with protesters
    July 8, 2025
    Texas floods leave at least 51 dead, 27 girls missing as rescuers search devastated landscape
    July 6, 2025
  • Articles
    ArticlesShow More
    National ID Enforcement in Somalia: A Strategic Plan to boost the Country’s Economy
    July 31, 2025
    The Return of the White Star: Somali Airlines Resumes Operations After Three Decades
    July 29, 2025
    Somali Parliamentarian Drives New Governance Efforts in Contested Laascaanood
    July 25, 2025
    Somalia Boosts Its Diplomatic Presence in the Region and Beyond
    July 15, 2025
    A Somali Lens on Xinjiang: Shared Prosperity, Cultural Vitality, and Triumph Over Adversity Offer Lessons for the World.
    July 11, 2025
  • Business
    BusinessShow More
    Somalia Unveils the Blueprint for a Modern and Sustainable Mogadishu
    December 21, 2024
    Djibouti Launches $57.4 Million Youth Entrepreneurship Project to Combat Climate Change
    November 25, 2024
    FM meets Minister of Investment of Saudi Arabia
    October 28, 2024
    President Hassan Sheikh Inaugurates New LPG Storage Center in Mogadishu
    May 12, 2024
    Collaboration of ICT transformation for digital Infrastructure
    October 24, 2023
  • Sports
    SportsShow More
    Mogadishu Stadium to Host Star-Studded Match Featuring Somali Legends and International Football Icons
    May 27, 2025
    Arsenal held at Brighton while Man City bounce-back continues
    January 5, 2025
    Galmudug wins the Inter-State Football Tournament
    January 29, 2024
    Somalia set for two int’l friendlies ahead of WC qualifier clashes against Algeria and Uganda
    October 10, 2023
    Chicago woman, 104, skydives from plane, aiming for record as the world’s oldest skydiver
    October 3, 2023
  • Tenders
    TendersShow More
Reading: Exploring cultural richness of ‘pearl of Silk Road’ Kashgar
Share
Font ResizerAa
Somali National News AgencySomali National News Agency
  • SOMALI
  • ARABIC
Search
  • Home
  • Local News
  • World News
  • Articles
  • Business
  • Sports
  • Tenders
Follow US
©2023 || All rights reserved SONNA
Somali National News Agency > Blog > Articles > Exploring cultural richness of ‘pearl of Silk Road’ Kashgar
Articles

Exploring cultural richness of ‘pearl of Silk Road’ Kashgar

By Khadar Aweys
Last updated: July 8, 2025
6 Min Read
Share

Located in the southwestern part of Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, Kashgar sits on a lush oasis nourished by the Yarkant River, which flows from the Karakoram Mountains. Since ancient times, traders and travelers crossing the Pamir Plateau have stopped here to rest, trade, and connect. This made Kashgar a key hub along the ancient Silk Road and one of Xinjiang’s earliest international trading posts. Historical figures such as Zhang Qian, Xuanzang, Faxian, and Marco Polo all left their footprints in this storied land.

Today, Kashgar stands as China’s gateway to the west, an international corridor leading to Central, West, and South Asia, and the starting point of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor. Departing from downtown Kashgar and heading south along the Karakoram Highway, known as the “China-Pakistan Friendship Road,” one can reach Taxkorgan Tajik autonomous county after a 300-kilometer drive.

Just north of Taxkorgan lies the Ruins of Stone City, a site with more than 2,000 years of history. When Buddhist monk Xuanzang in Tang Dynasty (618-907) returned from his journey to India, he passed through the site and later described the ancient stronghold in his travelogue “The Great Tang Records on the Western Regions.” Weathered by time, the ruins still stands with quiet grandeur.

In downtown Kashgar lies the ancient city of Kashgar, which dates back over 2,100 years. Known as a “living city of antiquity,” it begins each day with a ceremonial opening: at sunrise, dancers emerge from its streets, greeting visitors with cheerful music and vibrant performances.

Wandering through the ancient city, one encounters 99 alleys that twist and turn, lined with earth-toned buildings decorated with flower pots, intricate wood carvings, colorful domes, and overhanging eaves. As families expand, new generations add floors to their homes, creating a unique and compact architectural landscape with hanging houses and enclosed passageways. Over time, more than 20,000 residences have formed a dense, labyrinthine urban layout – one of the largest inhabited clusters of earthen buildings in the world.

In the early Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368), Italian traveler Marco Polo described Kashgar in his travel notes as a city with beautiful gardens, orchards, vineyards, and merchants from every corner of the world.

In August last year, Italian hiking enthusiast Vienna Cammarota visited Kashgar. Before her trip to China, she had read about the city in The Travels of Marco Polo. Upon arrival, she was thrilled to discover that Kashgar was not only a vital hub on the ancient Silk Road but also a place brimming with vitality today.

“The streets are lively by day and poetic at night,” she said. “There’s a constant hum of voices and the air is filled with the aromas of spices, freshly baked bread, and sizzling barbecue.”

In the ancient city of Kashgar, there is a cafe named Dili & Diya, run by a young local man, Dilxat Tursun, and his Tanzanian wife Hadiya.

Hadiya attributed her opportunity to live and study in China to the Belt and Road Initiative. She met Dilxat Tursun while both were students in Fuzhou, southeast China’s Fujian province. In May 2020, the couple returned to Dilxat Tursun’s hometown Kashgar.

“The moment I arrived in Kashgar, I fell in love with it,” Hadiya said. “The city has a rich history, and the people are warm and hospitable. In my hometown of Zanzibar, there’s also a Stone City, which feels quite similar to Kashgar. That connection made me feel even closer to this place.”

Their cafe features hand-crafted pottery cups from Kashgar and wall decorations from Africa. “Tanzanian coffee beans are well-known in the Chinese market,” said Dilxat Tursun. “So in March 2023, we opened this cafe together. Hadiya taught me how to grind beans and brew rich, flavorful coffee. Our lattes are made with local milk and Tanzanian coffee beans, a fusion that reflects the East-meets-West charm of Kashgar ancient city.”

“With China’s visa-free policy expanding its coverage, we’re seeing more and more international visitors at our cafe,” he added.

As the business grows, securing a steady supply of coffee beans has become a top priority. “When we first started, we would bring beans back with us during family visits to Tanzania. Now, they’re shipped via a more stable route – from Africa to Europe, then to Kashgar by China-Europe freight trains,” he explained.

At the end of last year, construction began on the China–Kyrgyzstan–Uzbekistan Railway. Dilxat Tursun was among the first to celebrate the news. “This railway starts in Kashgar. We hope for its swift completion and operation, which would make coffee bean transport even easier. More importantly, I believe this project will open up more trade opportunities and improve daily life for people in the countries along the route,” he said.

The ancient city of Kashgar. Photo by Yumit Qadir

Performers dance outside the ancient city of Kashgar to welcome tourists. (Photo by Wang Zhenqiang)

Photo shows Dilxat Tursun (right) and Hadiya. (Photo provided by Dilxat Tursun)

Photo shows a street in the ancient city of Kashgar. (Photo by Che Bin/People’s Daily)

By Che Bin, Li Yanan, People’s Daily

Share This Article
Facebook Whatsapp Whatsapp Email Copy Link Print

MORE NEWS

Official Reopening of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Archives

CultureEducationLocal News
November 23, 2024

Kenya’s small farmers find respite in avocados amid changing climate

NAIROBI(SONNA) As crop diseases and pests rise in Kenya amid a rapidly changing climate that…

March 11, 2023

New Water Well Project Breaks Ground in Somalia’s Bakool Region

HUDUR, BAKOOL REGION — A new deep water well project has been initiated in the…

August 1, 2025

Nimcaan Hilaac appointed to lead Waberi National Band

Mogadishu (SONNA)-Minister of Information, Culture and Tourism of the Federal Republic of Somalia, H.E. Mohamed…

March 3, 2020

YOU MAY ALSO LIKE

Silenced by fear: Al Shabaab’s extremist tactics leave Somali people afraid to express religious beliefs

In Somalia, the simple act of saying "Salam Ailaikum" (peace be upon you) can send shivers down the spine of…

Articles
March 9, 2023

China Prepares Spring Festival Celebration with Spirit and National Unity

As China prepares to welcome the Spring Festival, or Chinese New Year, on January 29, the nation is immersed in…

ArticlesWorld News
January 26, 2025

How Somalia’s Artists and Musicians Are Using Art as a Tool for Unity to Fight Back Against Al-Shabaab

Somalia has a long and rich history of using art to convey important messages and promote national unity. From literature…

Articles
March 21, 2023

RADIO MOGADISHU: SAVING HISTORIC AUDIO RECORDINGS FOR FUTURE GENERATIONS OF SOMALIS

Mogadishu – Sitting in a small, windowless room in a government building in the Somali capital, Mohamed Yusuf Mohamed loops another audio tape…

ArticlesCulture
October 23, 2023

Somali National News Agency established in 1964. It is one of the main pillars of the Ministry of Information, Culture, and Tourism.

  • Home
  • Local News
  • World News
  • Articles
  • Business
  • Sports
  • Tenders
  • SNTV
  • RADIO MOGADISHU
  • DALKA JOURNAL
  • TOURISM DEPARTMENT

Follow US: 

  • MoICT
  • VILLA SOMALIA
  • OPM SOMALIA

All rights reserved SONNA

©2023

Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Username or Email Address
Password

Lost your password?