YiLi
Ili Kazak Autonomous Prefecture

        Located in the northwestern border area of China , and with its capital, Yining City , 702 kilometers away from Urumqi , the prefecture is contiguous to Russia , Mongolia and Kazakhstan . Covering an area of 350 thousands square kilometers, the prefecture has Ili, Tacheng and Altay prefectures and Kuytun City under its jurisdiction. There are 13 nationalities inhabiting here, namely Kazak, Han, Uygur, Hui, Kirigiz, Mongol, Xibo, Man, Tatar, Uzbek and Russian, and the total population is 3820000. The mineral resources are very abundant in the Tianshan Mountains , Altay Mountains and Tarbahatay Mountains within the prefecture. The Ili River , Ertix River and other tens of rivers bring up thick woods and vast pastures, providing advantaged excellent conditions for the development of industry, agriculture and stockbreeding. After the foundation of the New China , the prefecture has been built as an important base of the petroleum industry and nonferrous metal industry of Xinjiang. Besides beautiful and attractive natural scenes, such as the Hanas Lake, Ulungur Lake, Sayram Lake and Fruit Gully, numerous stone statues of grassland, ancient tombs, rock carvings, ruins of old-line ancient cities and temples make it a famous scenic spot for tourists.

Ili Prefecture

      Located in the west of Xinjiang and 700 kilometers to Urumqi , Ili Prefecture covers an are of 96832 square kilometers and has a population of 2060 thousands. With the regional administrative office stationed in Yining City , Ili Prefecture is composed of Yining City , Qapqal Xibe Autonomous County and Yining, Huocheng, Gongliu, Xinyuan, Zhaosu, Tekes, and Nilka counties. Ili was the part of the state of Wusun in the Han Dynasty, and in the Qing Dynasty the Office of Ili General was set up here. Possessing a suitable climate and fertile soil, Ili has a quite developed economy and is one of the main producing areas of grain, cotton, edible oil and livestock in Xinjiang. The mineral deposits here are more than 100 sorts, including coal, iron, copper, manganese, aluminum, uranium, gold and silver, etc. Ili Prefecture borders on Kazakhstan and the Korgas Pass is one of the main ports of border trade to Kazakhatan, Uzbekstan, Kyrgyzstan, etc. The transportation via highway and air is very convenient in Ili . The abundance tourist resources, especially the cultural relics of the state of Wusun, Chagatai Khanate and the Qing Dynasty, as well as vast beautiful pastures and fragrant fruits, attract numerous tourists domestic and abroad every year.

 Scenery of the Narat Prairie in Xinyuan County

The Narat Prairie is as beautiful as in a poem or a picture. There are springs densely distributed here. Every year, from May to September, with flowers all blossoming out here and numerous herds gathering around, a great number of tourists domestic and abroad are attracted here. The Narat Prairie is also called “ Deer Garden ” in history and an ideal place for people of the pasture to exchange materials and hold cultural activities.

The Ili River Bridge

        The Ili River Bridge was built in 1975 over the Ili River 5 kilometers to the south of Yining City . A double arch bridge of armored concrete structure, the bridge is 300.8 meters in length and 8.5 meters in width. There are nine bridge opening is 30 meters. Viewed from a distance, the openings looks like nine huge bows supporting the straightforward bridge across the natural moat. The Ili River is an inland river with the biggest flux in Xinjiang. With a total length of about 1500 kilometers, the river is a conflux of three tributaries and flows to Kazakhstan , and infloods into Balkhash Lake at last. The abundant water conservancy and fishery resources of the Ili River bring infinite vital force and everlasting hopes.

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