Enjoying Eid feast in Kashgar
Print Edition
CHEN Liang had a lamb slaughtered and treat his guests to some delicious meat for Eid al-Fitr, the festival marking the end of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan yesterday.
Chen has operated a youth hostel for eight years in Kashgar, a city with a high concentration of Muslims in northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.
Last year, he had three pots set up in the hostel yard to boil the lamb. “Our guests are very interested in the festival and Uygur culture,” he said.
Muslims do not eat or drink from dawn to dusk during Ramadan. They look forward to a feast on Eid al-Fitr.
Chen’s guests are not all Muslims, but a varied bunch of travelers hungry for a taste of local culture at this special time of year. Chen describes his hostel as the “United Nations,” as the guests, mostly tourists, are from around the world.
“Many of them are Europeans and Americans teaching English in Xinjiang, and some of them are from Central Asia,” he said.
Kashgar, meaning “the gathering place of jade” in Uygur, used to be a trading hub along the Silk Road.
As time went by, historic sites and the integration of Eastern and Western cultures have attracted numerous tourists to the city. The old Kashgar town, composed of traditional streets featuring Uygur architecture and shops, has become a big draw.
“Kashgar is different from the rest of China. It is safe here, not like what I have heard before I came here,” said Angela Perry, a backpacker from California.
Ma Like, from Gansu Province, does not make profit out of his hostel as he offers free accommodation to backpackers in return for doing odd jobs. The 37-year-old likes the deal.
“By making friends with them, I can learn about a life I am not able to experience myself,” he said.
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