Research · 4 min · EN
Spinning Gold from Straw
I have yet to fully immerse myself in the subject, but there is a fascinating case here of entrepreneurial grit, reconstructed myth, and the rebranding of a tea once considered among China’s worst.
Writing
Essays and field notes
Essays, field notes and research by Noam Backner on China, Inner Asia, Buddhism, the Silk Roads, food, agriculture and the lived experience of place.
Research · 4 min · EN
Turks and Poets: From Skulls to Goblets
Shah Ismail, the first Safavid King of Iran, dragged Persia by its dusty neck across the threshold of the Shiite faith. He was also a man of elegant taste and, evidently, a wicked sense of humor.
Research · 3 min · EN
Taming the Snow Leopard: A Central Asian Mystery
With the Asiatic lion and Caspian tiger long gone, and the Persian leopard clinging to the margins, the snow leopard now reigns as the undisputed, if elusive, king of the Central Asian mountains.
Research · 3 min · EN
Rebels of the Black Tent
Five days of searching, ridge by ridge and town by town, as the silence of the grasslands closes in.
Research · 4 min · EN
The Exiles of Samarkand
In a year long lost to memory, a lone Turkic tribe set out from the outskirts of Samarkand to find a new home.
Research · 3 min · EN
God’s Bonsai
He Long lives near the Great Mosque of Xining, the capital of Qinghai Province, but spends his days running a small food stall on the city's southern edge.