Changji

Changji is a county-level city situated about 40 km west of the state capital, Urumqi in northern Xinjiang, China. It is the seat of Changji Hui Autonomous Prefecture. At the northeast corner of the modern city are the walls and other archaeological remains of the Tang dynasty city, usually referred to as Ancient Changji. China's central government of the day extended its sphere of influence to Changji with the establishment of the Protectorate of the West Region (Xiyu Duhufu) in 60BC during the Western Han Dynasty (206BC-24AD). In 1884, a province was set up to administrate Xinjiang, and this area belonged to Dihua Fu.

Bogda Peak is the highest peak in the eastern part of the Tianshan Mountain range. Multicolored Bay is located in the north of Jimusar County, Changji Autonomous District, in the Gurbantunggut Desert. Tianchi Lake, like a silver mirror, lies in the valleys below Bogda Peak, and was included into the Bogda Biosphere Reserve in 1990. Various colors in the bay account for its name. It is multicolored because of the burning of coal.