Margen
From east to west, China stretches some 5,000 kilometres: easily enough for five time zones, like the United States. Yet since 1949 the entire country has run on just one — Beijing time. The measure was meant to reinforce national unity; the result is a fascinating everyday experiment.
In Xinjiang, at the far western end, the sun can reach its highest point after three in the afternoon, and in summer night doesn't fall until close to midnight. Life adapts: offices and shops open and close later than on the coast.
And there's a political detail beneath it all: part of the local population unofficially keeps "Xinjiang time", two hours behind the official clock. Asking someone the time there can be, without meaning to, asking something else entirely.