Upal (s=乌帕尔镇; ) is a town in Shufu County in Western Xinjiang, China.
Karakoram Highway
Upal is on the Karakoram Highway, which follows the old
Silk Road route from
China to
Pakistan. Travelling from China, it is about 50 km southwest of
Kashgar or about 180 km north of
Tashkurgan (which is about 120 km over the
Khunjerab Pass from
Sust in Pakistan).
Mahmud al-Kashgari
Mahmud al-Kashgari died in 1102 at the age of 97 in Upal. There is now a mausoleum erected on his gravesite. He is remembered as a prominent Turkic language scholar.
Monday Bazaar
A bazaar () is held every Monday. Being that this village is along the Karakoram Highway, it is frequently visited not only by local people but also by the tourists on their way back from Karakul Lake, a popular sightseeing site in Kashgar.
[ A Traditional Bazaar and Karakul Lake in Heaven (in Japanese)]
This simplistic, but colorful bazaar is held along the national highway, especially under the large tents in the back of the houses on the western side (the left side as you go back to Kashgar) of the highway. The animals market is located in the southernmost part of the market.["KARAKORAM HWY - Kashgar to Karakul Lake" in the guidebook Lonely Planet - China (2005).]
