One year on, Urumqi shakes off riot shadow
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Ma Ming, from northwest China's Gansu Province, sells lavender oil in the International Grand Bazaar in Urumqi, capital of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, in China's far west.
He says he's on good terms with neighboring Uygur vendors. "We usually look after each other's businesses when either of us is not here."
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People stroll through the Wuyi Starlight Night Market in Urumqi, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, June 2, 2010. The Wuyi Starlight Night Market, the biggest and most famous night fair in Urumqi, boasts it's over 500 stands selling Muslim food and snacks from all over the country. |
The landmark Bazaar, with 4,000 shops and booths, is a 100,000-square-meter complex in an Islamic-style building that includes a banquet hall, food court, viewing tower, open-air stage and a mosque.
Also home to a KFC outlet and a branch of Europe's largest retailer, Carrefour, the Bazaar is considered Urumqi's main business area.
It was closed the day after the riot in Urumqi that left 197 people dead and more than 1,600 others injured on July 5 last year. It reopened 17 days later, but stall-holders were exempted from rents for much longer to make up for the downturn in trade.
A year on, Unity Road in front of the bazaar is crowded with people and vehicles. Two tour buses are parked at the roadside. A guide, with a flag of his travel agency in hand, is followed by curious visitors, taking in the first stop on their city tour.
Officials reckon the city's major hotels have a 60-percent occupancy rate since the government unveiled a major support package to boost development in Xinjiang in May. Airlines and railways have increased services to Urumqi, carrying government delegations from other Chinese regions and business travelers.
And the tourists are everywhere. At Red Hill Park in central Urumqi, the best place for a bird's eye view of the city, they climb to the top of the hill to take pictures.
Wu Yi Night Market, where mutton shashliks and Xinjiang rice (to be authentic, one eats it by hand) are served up with beer, is expecting 40,000 people a night from July to October.
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