Land of passion and peace

Before you can bat an eyelid, he can leap from a tall building to another, sprint on a narrow parapet wall, vault over a flight of stairs, jump-spin through an open window and land on his feet outside. Meet 29-year-old Parhat Arkin who has a fetish for extreme sports like parkour, and loves filming his own daredevil routines and that of other athletes.

Growing up near the vast Gobi Desert in Aksu prefecture, Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, Parhat always had the gift of an indomitable spirit. The other qualities needed to become a traceur－balance, strength, dynamism, endurance and precision－came with practice.

In 2008, when he was just 15, Parhat saw French actor and stunt coordinator David Belle－popularly known as a "demigod of parkour"－display his phenomenal skills in a television documentary. The gutsy teenager decided to give parkour a go.

Along with his peers, he followed Belle's routine of free running, vaulting, rolling, climbing and more to move through obstacles in their neighborhood in the most fluid way possible. "We would fall down most of the time, but we never gave up. We scoured for better locations to try out new movements. It was a huge adrenaline rush," he recalls.

During his senior middle school years, Parhat began using a camera to record their parkour practice and soon got to know many other extreme sport buffs in Aksu.

In 2012, he got into the Civil Aviation Flight University of China in Guanghan, Sichuan province. He managed to save money and buy himself a single-lens reflex camera in his sophomore year. Shortly afterward, a friend offered him an opportunity to fly to Beijing and film a parkour competition.

Parhat got a golden chance to network with organizers of extreme sports, and later, was given opportunities to film many such events, including a hiking race in the Gobi Desert and an expedition to summit the 7,500-meter-high Mount Muztagh Ata, also in Xinjiang.

True to his spunky nature, Parhat always tries an extreme sport before he films other athletes. So, from snowboarding, surfing and skateboarding to BMX racing, off-road motorcycling and wingsuit flying, he has done it all. "Firsthand experience helps me understand the spirit of the game, which in turn helps me film or photograph all the action better," he says.

Being an extreme sports photographer or videographer is no mean feat, Parhat warns. "One has to work under harsh conditions. The credit for my endurance goes to my hometown. I have seen nature at her best and worst," he says, adding that, thanks to his childhood near the desert, he feels safe and at ease outdoors.

To acclimatize himself further for the job, Parhat moved to a stone house tucked deep into the mountains earlier this year. Every day, he sets off into uncharted territory with his dog, enjoys nature's raw beauty and uploads videos of their survival skills on social media. "Someday, I want to be an influencer in the fields of extreme sports and outdoor survival," he says.

Asked what is next, Parhat says he plans to make documentaries on youths who hail from Xinjiang's diverse ethnic backgrounds and boast unconventional talent in music and arts.

The wild, wonderful west

The vast wilderness of Xinjiang, with its rugged mountains and desert basins, makes its indigenous population tenacious and allows them to coexist in harmony with nature. The region's spectacular landscapes and exotic customs are, on the other hand, a big draw for young people from outside.

In 2015, university graduate Wang Li, from Northwest China, took a trip to Xinjiang's Kashgar prefecture, where she found her Mr Right in a fellow traveler. The adventurous couple decided to settle in downtown Kashgar. In 2017, they opened a public WeChat account, Wild West Explorer, to share their daily lives and travel through southern Xinjiang in both words and images.

Before long, the duo was setting up a cozy space where tourists could better experience the local culture. "Bazaars always provide the best glimpse of local lifestyle," says Wang. She and her husband bought knickknacks from the bazaars to embellish their little tourism nook, which also boasts a collection of local magazines, music albums and films.

"It is like a living room, where visitors can read books, watch films together or chat with one another. We offer them fruits, nuts, herbal tea and some local delicacies," Wang says. Activities like painting and photography exhibitions, and open mic sessions are on the cards. "We want to bridge the gap between locals and tourists," she adds.

Xia Hong, a young woman who grew up in Sichuan province, has been living in Tashikurgan Tajik autonomous county in the southwest of Xinjiang for the past six years. Her love for the cold and remote county stems from her unforgettable trips to the Tajik villages. She had been overwhelmed by people's kindness and hospitality. Nights spent camping on the Pamir Plateau, staring at the starry skies, too left an indelible imprint on her mind.

During her first visit to the county, the owner of the hostel she had booked allowed her to accompany him to villages where he delivered goods. "The children were adorable, their eyes so innocent and their smiles so pure. The villagers welcomed us with the best food they had," Xia recalls. "I have been to many places in the country and abroad, but the hospitality here was unmatched. I knew this was the place for me."

After she relocated to the county, Xia opened a cafe that overlooks snowcapped mountains. She blends her coffee with local produce for refreshing flavors and also gives her concoctions exquisite names for a lasting impression. For instance, her black goji berry coffee is called the Sky of Pamirs. "The juice lends the coffee a bluish-purple color, similar to what the horizon looks like from the Pamir Plateau at twilight," she explains.

Besides managing her cafe, Xia loves traveling around the county, reading books, holding barbecue parties for friends and posting articles and videos online to share her experiences.

Lack of conventional means of recreation implies that residents of the county have to endure long-term solitude. Xia finds the laid-back lifestyle peaceful. "Sometimes, I just sit outside the cafe and stare at the mountains or clouds. It feels so good to be able to hear my own thoughts. I am lucky to be so close to nature," she says.

Xia hopes that her cafe and its special drinks become part of "unforgettable memories" of travelers who visit the county.