The city appeared to be very pleasant, just with the usual chaos and traffic problems one would expect from a second tier city in China.
Uyghurs, other minorities and the Hans appeared to be living fairly peacefully together. All staff at my client's office in Urumqi are Hans who have lived in Urumqi for most if not all of their lives. They all told me that the relationship between the minorities and Hans have by and large be good in the past, as most of the minorities are in fact very friendly and easy people. Last month's incident happened in the Tianshan district where a lot of minorities engaged in various type of trade, some of them more legal than the others. When the riot broke, most people in the city were in fact shocked.
The weather in the city has been very nice during my visit. The air quality is something that people in big cities like Shanghai and Beijing can only hope for.
The only "inconvenience" we have experienced was that there was absolutely no internet connection, we could not send or receive any SMS, and GPRS connection on the PDA cell phone was neither working.
Entrance to the largest night market in town. You can see the security guards checking people's bags before allowing them to enter.
A young Uyghur in front of his shop, promoting the barbeque food he was selling. Can you see the roasted lamb??
Erdaoqiao Market in Tianshan district. This handicraft and souvenir market was quite seriously affected during the riot, but is basically back to normal order. But according to the shopkeepers, business has dropped significantly...
This observation tower and the mosque in the background are part of the "International Grand Bazaar" which is a large tourist district near the Erdaoqiao Market. The ground level of the mosque is another handicraft market. The observation tower was not operating during our visit, likely because of security reasons...
A street scene in the Erdaoqiao area. You can see people from different minority groups...
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