"The Imin Ta Mosque, buit in 1779 on the outskirts of town, had this unique 44 metres high minaret. The oasis town of Turpan lay in a fertile valley some 400ft below sea level, the lowest town in China, and reputed to be the hottest, though at the time of my visit the temperature was quite bearable. I was to find much of interest in the valley, but it was perhaps the people who were the main attraction. The Uyghurs, a Turkish speaking group, and predominantly Muslim, are in the majority in the area. The women were colourfully dressed with scarves on their heads and long pantaloons under their shorter dresses. A welcome sight, I felt, after the drab dresses worn in the rest of China." - MH