China is an extensive and fascinating country. It's impossible to fully explore it and visit all the desired places in just a few days. To deeply understand China, one must gradually immerse themselves in its culture, philosophy, and daily life. Only after this can one claim to have truly seen China. Unfortunately, our group of Azerbaijani journalists only had seven days to get acquainted with this marvelous country. However, thanks to the organizers, we were able to grasp and appreciate its essence. We left with the most pleasant impressions of the country, its people, the atmosphere, and the sense of continuous progress.

Let's go through everything in order.

During the first two days of our stay, we were in Urumqi, the capital of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (XUAR). We visited the Urumqi Urban Planning Museum, explored the exhibits of the Xinjiang Institute of Arts, and also visited local branches of the Guangzhou Automobile Group Co., Ltd. and Asia Innovation Energy Co., Ltd. In addition, we paid attention to the Museum of the Fight Against Terrorism and Extremism. Our acquaintance with the city also included a walk through the Xinjiang International Grand Bazaar.

Viewing the exhibits of the Museum of the Fight Against Terrorism and Extremism, we understood how important overcoming this problem is for Chinese authorities and how much effort was put into solving it.

From the 1990s to 2016, brutal terrorist attacks in Xinjiang cost the lives of many innocent civilians and police officers. Armed attacks and explosions caused tremendous damage to the region, as well as grief and panic among the population. It took significant efforts to stop this wave of violence.

The museum showed us videos that allowed us to fully realize the extent of the problem that Xinjiang faced.

According to local officials, there have been no terrorist attacks in Xinjiang since 2016, which has freed the people from fear and opened new opportunities for the region's development. In 2023, the number of tourists in the XUAR reached 260 million, including both domestic and foreign visitors, testifying to the region's safety.

Xinjiang is a place with many attractions and beautiful landscapes. Over the last 10 years, about 70 percent of the region's budget has been directed toward improving the welfare of the population and development. Urumqi is a major industrial center in Xinjiang, showing signs of rapid development while maintaining historical ties to the times of the Silk Road.

An interesting fact about Urumqi: the cultural center, which includes the Urban Planning Museum, was built during the pandemic, demonstrating the city's dynamism and resilience. The central part of the massive cultural center is shaped like a flower, around which are six separate buildings. One of these buildings is reserved for the Urban Planning Museum. The other buildings house an art theater, a fine arts exhibition center, a music center, and other cultural facilities. Each of these places offers a unique experience.

The exhibition at the Urumqi Urban Planning Museum is organized in a way that allows visitors to travel through time from antiquity to the present. The museum features many unique exhibits from various eras, showing how the city has changed over the centuries. Special attention in the exhibition is given to the period of the Silk Road, which was of immense importance for the development of Urumqi and the entire region.

The exhibition was particularly attractive as it combined artifacts with wax figures, traditional costumes, and domestic scenes, creating a vivid picture of the past.

Additionally, our Azerbaijani media delegation visited the Xinjiang Institute of Arts, where we were introduced to Chinese culture and provided with detailed information about Muqam. At the end of the visit to the institute, Xinjiang artists staged a performance with various musical instruments.

One of the most interesting industrial sites we visited in Urumqi was the local branch of GAC Group, one of China's leading automobile manufacturing companies. During the tour, we saw the process of assembling cars, which was a fascinating spectacle. GAC Group is a large and successful company, occupying leading positions among Chinese automakers in terms of sales volume.

The company produces passenger cars, light and heavy-duty vehicles, SUVs, and buses. The company's management expressed interest in entering the Azerbaijani market.

The Xinjiang International Grand Bazaar is the largest retail and wholesale market for local goods in the XUAR. Opened in June 2003, this bazaar is a blend of Chinese and Central Asian cultures with elements of Islamic architecture and modernity. Here, not only can one purchase a wide variety of goods on an area of 100,000 square meters, but also immerse themselves in local industry, culture, and cuisine.

The bazaar is not just a trading place, it is a whole cultural arena where one can see workshops for creating unique handmade items, such as embroideries, headgear, clothing, and musical instruments.

Seymur Mammadov is director of the international expert club EurAsiaAz and editor-in-chief of Azerbaijan news portal Baku Tribune.

Planner: Jie Wenjin

Reviewers: Hou Weili and Cheng Li