With water comes an abundance of fruit, particularly melons, apricots and grapes. Grapes grow so well here that they provide shade for the city center streets. The local population is overwhelmingly Uighur and Muslim. Consequently they use all those grapes to make raisins instead of wine. Several ancient sites in the region attract enough visitors to make the tourist industry a major source of income. Prices are very reasonable however. My dormitory bed here at the Oasis hotel cost only 2.70 US$. Other travellers staying here and I formed a group of six to hire a minibus for a day's sightseeing.
