The vast western half of this great country contains such exotic cities as Kunming in the south, Lhasa in Tibet, and the fabled Silk Road cities of Kashi, Aksu, and Urumqi, as well as the enormous Taklimakan Desert and the high, isolated, Tibetan Plateau. Never has this part of China been better mapped, with all new highway projects prominently noted as well as the new train line into Lhasa.