The Gobi Desert – “Very full of dreams that desert, …” –

“Past the Barrier of the Great Wall into the vast and always mysterious waste of Gobi.
Here are the hidden records of the past, the art treasures, palaces and ruined cities, highways, homes and people of the place called desert.”

“After living for more than twenty years in the province of Shansi in North China, I took the old trade-route and, with my companions Eva and Francesca French, trekked north-west past the Barrier of the Great Wall and into the country which lies beyond. For many years we travelled over the Desert of Gobi and among its oases as itinerant missionaries, and we came  to know the country and its people intimately. …

Once the spirit of the desert had caught us it lured us on and we became learners in its severe school. The solitudes provoked reflection, the wide space gave us a right sense of proportion and the silences forbade triviality.”