The Silk Road is among the world’s most storied trading routes, conjuring up images of camel caravans trading wares between Italy and China. In the 14th century, Marco Polo travelled the length of the dusty road as the guest of Mongol Emperor Kublai Khan. Our own — and far humbler— mini-Silk Road adventure took us west from Beijing via Xi’an and Lanzhou to the ancient Chinese trading post of Dunhuang.