Things to Do in Korla, China

Quick facts: Bosten Lake is China's largest inland freshwater lake, covering an area of 1,228 square kilometers. Each year, over 200 species of migratory birds inhabit the area, including the rare relict gull and black stork.

Highlights: In winter, the lake surface freezes to a thickness of one meter. Locals chisel holes in the ice to fish, and you can also see the unusual sight of camels pulling sledges across the frozen lake. In summer, a kilometer-long boardwalk is hidden within the reed marshes on the west bank. Walking on it, you see crystal-clear lake water beneath your feet, with reeds towering overhead, as if moving through a green maze.

Quick facts: Korla People's Square covers approximately 120,000 square meters, with a green coverage rate exceeding 60 percent. It serves as the core leisure space for local residents. The massive "Soaring" sculpture at the center of the square stands 18 meters tall, symbolizing the vigorous development of this oil-rich new city.

Highlights: Every evening at 8 o'clock sharp, the square's musical fountain dances to the melody of "Korla Night," with water jets reaching up to 25 meters. On weekend nights, you can see hundreds of Uyghur and Han citizens dancing together in the square, the steps of two cultures intertwining harmoniously on the same open ground.

Quick facts: Fed by snowmelt from the Tianshan Mountains, this river flows through downtown Korla, forming a 46-kilometer-long ecological corridor. More than 120,000 trees have been planted along its banks. Each spring, over 30,000 migratory birds pass through, including swans and wild ducks foraging and resting on the river.

Highlights: Standing on the south bank at dusk, the river mirrors the last golden rays of the Tianshan snow peaks, while rows of poplar trees in the distance rustle in the wind. Locals call this river a "breathing landscape," because every morning at dawn, peacocks can be seen flying out of the woods on the opposite bank, their wings brushing the water and stirring up rings of ripples.

Quick facts: Attracting over 3,000 food lovers every night, this night market boasts more than 80 stalls. Xinjiang specialties such as roast whole lamb and yogurt zongzi can all be found here, with most stalls staying open until two in the morning.

Highlights: Every evening at 7 o'clock sharp, a Uyghur uncle sets up a giant roasting pit two meters in diameter in the center of the night market and performs a live roast whole lamb show. The smoky aroma of spiced mutton wafts halfway down the street, and the gathered crowd spontaneously bursts into applause and cheers.

Quick facts: The red mountain appears as if scorched by flames, with the narrowest part of the gorge barely allowing a single person to pass sideways. This was once an important passage on the ancient Silk Road, and Buddhist cave murals dating back a thousand years remain preserved on the cliffs to this day.

Highlights: Walking deep into the gorge, the hundred-meter-high crimson rock walls on either side look as if split open by a giant axe. At noon, sunlight filters through the narrow strip of sky above, dyeing the entire canyon a blazing gold-red. Most striking of all is the naturally formed "Great Buddha" cliff at the end of the canyon, over 200 meters tall with distinct contours. Local herders have revered it for generations as an incarnation of the divine.