Kashgar

Kashgar or Kashi is an oasis county-level city in the extreme west of China and the Southwest extreme of Xinjiang. Located near the border with Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan, this westernmost Chinese city is also at a junction between two branches of the old Silk Road.

Kashgar has been an important trading centre since the days of the Silk Road, and still is today. The road from Eastern and Central China branches out to both the north and south of the Taklamakan Desert, and Kashgar is where the two branches meet again in the western part of the desert. With approximately 350,000 residents, the local population is a mixture of Uyghurs, Han Chinese, Kyrgyz, Tajiks and Uzbeks, boasting a colorful ethnic variety. The Sunday Bazaar in the city is said to be the largest bazaar in Central Asia.

Kashgar's Old City has been called "the best-preserved example of a traditional Islamic city to be found anywhere in Central Asia", although it is currently being largely razed by the authorities to make way for 'modern development'. At present, it is estimated to attract more than one million tourist visitors annually.

The huge Id Kah Mosque, the largest mosque in China, is located in the heart of the city. An 18 m (59 ft) high statue of Mao Zedong in Kashgar is one of the few large-scale statues of Mao remaining in China. The tomb of Afaq Khoja in Kashgar is considered the holiest Muslim site in Xinjiang. Built in the 17th century, the tiled mausoleum 5 km (3.1 mi) northeast of the city centre also contains the tombs of five generations of his family. Abakh was a powerful ruler, controlling Khotan, Yarkand, Korla, Kucha and Aksu as well as Kashgar. Among some Uyghur Muslims, he was considered a great Saint (Aulia).
Kashgar Sunday Market or Kashgar Sunday Bazaar is renowned as the biggest market in central Asia; a pivotal trading point along the Silk Road where goods have been traded for more than 2,000 years. The market is active every day but Sunday is the biggest in scale.