Altay City
Altay is a county-level city in Altay Prefecture within Ili Kazakh Autonomous Prefecture, in far Northern Xinjiang, China. The city centre is located on the slopes of Kelan River. Administrative divisions. Subdistricts () Town () Township () Ethnic Township Others Climate. Altay has a cold semi-arid climate (Köppen "BSk"), with an annual precipitation total of only . Winters are long, bitterly cold and dry, with a January 24-hour average of ; however, the presence of the Altay Mountains to the north helps moderate the severity of winter cold as compared to locations further to the east. Spring and autumn are  short but mild. Summers are very warm, but dry, with a July 24-hour average of . The annual mean is . With monthly percent possible sunshine ranging from 50% in December to 74% in August and September, sunshine is abundant and the city receives 2,993 hours of bright sunshine annually. Transport. From Ürümqi (capital of Xinjiang Province) to Altay, it takes about one hour by plane, 9 hours by day bus, 12 hours by night bus and about 14 hours by train (towards Beitun City). Culture. Like other cities in Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, there are many minorities in Altay, in  particular Uyghurs and Kazakhs. The Dundbulag rock carvings () in the (A.K.A. Handagaitu, Handgait; tyv. Handagaity; uyg. Handigati; cmn. Handegate) under this city is an earliest evidence of ski. The term "Mongol" here partially refers to ethnic Tuvans of Mongol nation under Chinese designation. Education. In schools, students are taught mainly in Chinese (Mandarin) and there are courses for Uyghur and Kazakh languages. Tourism. The most important tourist site is Kanas Lake where there is a legend of a large creature.