It was a great feeling to wake up after having a good night's sleep and feel ready to just laze around the town. We hired a couple of bicycles and headed round the dusty streets of China's hottest place (again around 40 degrees) in the world's second lowest depression. It may be an oasis in the middle of the desert, but it certainly felt dry enough to be the desert.

We cycled a rather longer route round to the Emir Hoja minaret where once again a ludicrous entrance fee was charged along with the pleasure of the company of 500 home-grown tourist tour groups. They mostly got in our way and it wasn't long before we were cycling back through the numerous vineyards back to town for a late lunch and then a wander around town before catching our overnight bus to Dunhuang.

Since the chinese students are all returning to University it seems like they have all booked out the trains and so this was another long overnight on a smelly bus. I was pretty tired and luckily slept most of the way, being woken up every few minutes as the bus crashed over large bumps in the road.