Xinjiang: Travel: Silk Road

The Silk Road is a trade route in China. A German geographer Ferdinand von Richthofen, was the one to name the route. This route leads to the Mediterranean, where the Chinese would trade. This trade route was used for around 16,000 years. It begun during the Han Dynasty, when Zhang Qian opened it up. The Silk Road's fall was ultimately the same time of the fall of the Yuan Dynasty. The trade route starts in Xian and at Dunhuang, it splits three ways (North, central, and south). The Silk Road is spread all over the Uygur Autonomous Region in Xinjiang. The split routes go as far as India, Pakistan, and Rome. There are tour plans made for traveling the Silk Road, many, in fact. We recommend, looking at www.travelchinaguide.com  for tour plans and travel guides.