Xi'an - the historic capital

Our flight from Beijing to Xi'an arrived much later than scheduled.  There had been a 7.1 earthquake near Chengdu and airplanes were being diverted to that area with soldiers, caregivers and supplies so all the other flights were off schedule.  It was almost midnight when our new local guide, Peter, met us in the airport, got us to our bus and then into our hotel.

Since we had a very busy day planned, we kept our meeting time at 8:30 the next morning.  We were off to see the terra cotta soldiers and it was a Saturday so the displays would be crowded.  The soldiers were discovered when a farmer was digging a well and instead of water, found the soldiers.  He has been relocated to a different farm plot and the whole area has been carefully excavated by archeologists now.  Four buildings have been erected to protect the figures; each has a viewing area for the public with display cases and other explanations of what is there.  Of course, Peter was much more informative, being a historian himself.  He gave us just the right amount of information and guided us to the crucial figures, explaining the differences between the archers and spear carriers, the generals and the servants.  The figures are life size and each is unique.  They have been left where they were found, except for those that needed major reattachment of parts or other repairs.  The public is not allowed to walk among the figures, just around the perimeter of the figures on a raised walkway.  They were put there to guard the burial place of the first Emperor of China, Qin, and so they are in formation, all with their back to the Emperor.  Here are some photos of Building #1:

After visiting Buildings #1 and 3, we had lunch at the restaurant located there at the site.  We were able to watch two experts making noodles.  Northern Chinese eat more noodles than rice and it was impressive to watch these two experts at work.  One made long, thin noodles with dough that he handled like our best pizza makers, throwing it in the air and stretching it.  He then cut it and cooked the noodles in hot water.  The other chef made shorter, fatter noodles with his dough, working it and then cutting little pieces off with flicks of his knife and cooking them in his boiling water.  Both were delicious!

After lunch we toured Buildings #2 and 4.  We saw a "hospital" area where figures were being restored and in Building 4 we saw the famous bronze chariot.  It is quite amazing.  It is life size and has a driver.  It is protected in a big glass case and had so many people packed around it that it was still hard to see.

By this point, we were all pretty tired and a rest period at our hotel was planned because we had a dinner treat that evening.  We went to a dinner theatre called the Tang Dynasty Palace.  The dinner consisted of 18 different kinds of dumplings, served a few at a time, one dumpling per person.  The fillings varied and every one was good!  There was sweet potato, cabbage, shrimp, pork, mushroom - too many to remember!  After the dinner, the dance performance started.  There were 10 different numbers, all reflective of the Tang dynasty, a "golden age" in Chinese history.  Some photos:

Xi'an is the historical capital of China and as such has ancient city walls.  Happily these are preserved, the only ones still standing around a major Chinese city.  We visited the walls the following morning, again with Peter's wonderful explanations.  We arrived in time to see the ceremonial opening of the gates of the walls.  Soldiers dressed in traditional uniforms marched in unison.  We climbed a short flight of stairs and were on top of the wall.  One side of the city is quite modern, with new, high buildings and the other is being returned to the way it looked long ago, traditional architecture required for those buildings.  It was a day of kite flying on the wall, a kite festival, and that added to the sense of history and also gave us a chance to watch Chinese families playing together.  Very nice!

Before we left, we were able to watch another performance.  This time a drum group assembled in the square inside the gates.  Soldiers marched in with swords and performed maneuvers to the beat of the drums.  Impressive!

Xi'an is the center of the jade production in China and we able to visit a Jade Arts Center.  We were given a basic lesson about jade, the different colors (white is the most precious) and types, and then we were given time to inspect all the beautiful pieces for sale and to enjoy some tea.

Our afternoon, following lunch, was spent first in a beautiful park that houses a pagoda and Buddhist gong and prayer area.  After walking through the gardens were were off to the historical museum.  Peter was an expert guide and we spent an hour and a half going from Peking Man through the various ages of Chinese history to what is called the "New Age", the Communist era.  And then it was off to the airport once more for our evening flight to Guilin.

Photos:  first four are at the ancient wall of Xi'an, next three are in the Buddhist park - a plaque with an ancient inscription, red prayer strips and a Buddhist gong - and Peking Man and an ancient pottery piece that looks a lot like what I've seen in the U.S. southwest! - and our guide, Peter.

Beijing - the political capital

After our flight back from Tibet, the bed in our hotel room felt wonderful and we slept well.  We got almost seven hours of sleep and awoke anticipating the breakfast buffet that we had had to rush through the last time we were here.  We were also eager to meet Chris our tour guide and the rest of our tour members.  They came as a group from the midwest, mostly Iowa, having signed up through a bank travel program.  Their organizer, Cindy, was second in command to Chris throughout the trip.

We were ready to meet the group by 8:45.  We were already feeling better with more oxygen in the air and a filling breakfast - my appetite was returning too.  When we walked into the lobby, we could tell right away which group of people was our tour - what nice folks!  We naturally fell into conversations with them and then Chris, our tour director, summoned us all and away we went!  We were so glad to see Wendy again - she was to be our local guide - and her articulate English and friendly personality were a pleasure.

Our first stop was Tian'anmen Square.  Mao's tomb is there and we saw an enormous line of people, Chinese and foreign tourists, walking in a huge procession and waiting for their turn to shuffle past his coffin.  It supposedly took about an hour to get in and we didn't wait.  The square is huge.  It can hold many thousands of people.  We walked toward Mao's famous portrait which is on the wall on one side of the square.  At one point we stopped and there was a photographer to take a group picture with the portrait behind us.  We all opted to buy the picture and accompanying book about Beijing.

After leaving the square, we walked across the street and into the Forbidden City.  It is a huge complex which seems to go on and on.  It is, of course, where the Emperor lived for centuries and looks very much like it does in the film "The Last Emperor".  Parts of the buildings were being renovated but we could see much of it.  The official rooms, gardens and furnishings were visible and quite lovely.  In a strange way, it reminded me a bit of Vatican City - a completely separate physical space where one kind of life goes on and is completely surrounded by an entire other entity.

When we exited the palace, we went on to a nearby hutong neighborhood.  The hutongs are what the city used to look like - little warrens of homes built around central open common areas with narrow alleys to connect them.  We had a bicycle-powered rickshaw tour through the neighborhood.  It reminded me a bit of what one would see in a small Mexican town, with little cafes, carts of vegetables and fruit, open air butchers.  We stopped at one alley and walked through an even narrower walkway to a courtyard.  Opening onto the courtyard was a home that served lunch to visiting small groups.  The wife did the cooking while the husband entertained us with a few English words and gestures about the food we would enjoy, Chinese beer, and later, his prize cricket rearing business.  It turned out that he raises fighting crickets, huge ones that were about 2 inches long, and sells them in the market.  He has quite a reputation and is very proud of this!  Lunch was delicious!

We were in for an even better dinner, however, as this was the night that our authentic Peking dinner was scheduled.  We went to an upstairs restaurant (many in China are a few flights of stairs up from the street level) with a large dining room that was occupied by many Chinese patrons - a very good sign.  We had a private dining room.  We had many courses with the crowning glory being the duck.  It was delicious, moist and flavorful and we were able to watch the chef carve it.  The proper way to eat it was to put some pieces of the meat in the center of a thin, tortilla-like wrapper, add some vegetables (like bean sprouts or cabbage), add some special sauce, fold it over and eat it.  We loved it and ate several of these morsels even though we'd had plenty of other food.

As you can tell, our days were very busy and the next day brought the event that many of us had anticipated most - the Great Wall.  There are many places to access the wall and we drove to one of the more popular, about 45 minutes from Beijing.  The drive gave us a chance to see some of the countryside, including more of the extensive freeway system, farms and small villages.  The wall itself is as amazing, as you might imagine.  It stretches away into the distance as far as you can see, undulating up and down, following the contour of the land.  It is beautiful.  We were blessed with a gorgeous blue sky day, one of only a few that we had in China.  Jon and I opted for the less strenuous
route, which was still amazingly steep in places, literally almost a 45 degree angle long series of steps.  We walked for about a mile and halted before that length of steps, stopping to having our pictures taken and to take photos ourselves.  It was one of those "pinch yourself" moments.

On our way back to Beijing, we stopped at a cloisonné factory.  This is a dying art since the time and precision needed to create a single piece is overwhelming.  Not many workers can be found who are willing to do the work for the pay that is offered.  The process involves attaching a metal strip to a clay form in a complicated pattern and then filling in the spaces with up to 8 layers of paint, firing the piece between each layer.  Good eyesight, well coordinated hands and the patience of Job are required!

And then we were on to another big name in Chinese tourism, the Summer Palace.  This is located in the heart of Beijing, just far enough away from the Forbidden City to have cool breezes and a bit more moderate climate in the summer.  The largest feature here is the manmade lake, only 5 feet deep, and its wonderful dragon boats.  These open air vessels hold about forty people and crisscross the water ferrying visitors to different points on the lake.  There is also a walkway all around the lake.  We rode across to the Stone Boat where we disembarked and walked back to the entrance area.  On this day, the breeze was cool but we could see how welcomed it would be in the summer heat.

The next day was a travel day, to Xi'an, but first we visited the Temple of Heaven.  The weather had turned cold and rainy so our visit was a bit hurried but we had time to watch an elderly gentleman do some calligraphy on the pavement, some folks do tai chi, some musicians make music together and to try out some of the adult playground exercise equipment.  All of this on the way to the actual temple. We were quite cold by the time the visit was finished so we were grateful for some hot tea when we stopped at a pearl shop on our way to lunch.  And then it was on to the airport.

Our time in Beijing had come to an end, all too soon.  We were not aware of the air pollution while walking around the city and breathing didn't seem to be a problem.  We were aware of the green spaces and trees that have been planted to help the issue.  We saw some folks with masks but they were a definite minority.  The people were friendly and the architecture was unique.  We wouldn't want to live there but we are glad that we had visited!

Photos: (above) pearls in the oyster; (below) Tian'anmen Square, Jon posing for a picture for a new friend, inside the Forbidden City, part of the grounds of the Forbidden City, ready for our rickshaw ride, the chef carving Peking duck, the remains of our dinner, a cloisonné worker placing metal pieces, our great Beijing guide Wendy in action, the entrance to the Great Wall, proof that we were there!, those stairs were STEEP!, a dragon boat on the lake in the Summer Palace, Beijing architecture, the "Bird's Nest", calligraphy with water, the adult playground, tai chi.

Lhasa, Tibet - the beginning

Our China adventure began with a direct flight from Seattle to Beijing.  We left shortly before 8:30 pm and landed in Beijing at 11:30 pm the next evening, having crossed the date line.    The flight was actually about 11 hours.  We had booked Delta's "economy comfort" seats - a bit more money but the extra inches were worth it.

Of course we were very tired when we got off the plane.  Our tour company, ChinaPlus, had given us a detailed explanation of what to expect, how to fill out the entry card etc. and so the process of immigration, baggage collection etc went fairly smoothly.  I think one of the reservations I had about the entire trip was worry about the attitude of the Chinese officials with whom we would have to deal.  Right away we had to be admitted to China via the immigration officials and my fears were eased.  They were pretty much like our TSA/Immigration officers and even spoke a little English.  My worries continued to abate as the trip continued.  They were not to be messed with or joked with, but were always courteous and trying their best to do their job while being respectful.

Our local guide, Wendy, met us just outside baggage claim and led us to a waiting car to begin the drive to Beijing.  Most Chinese airports are well outside the cities and Beijing is no exception.  It took us about 45 minutes to get to our hotel, The Beijing International Hotel, and by now it was close to 1 am.  Wendy was very concerned that our visas to enter Tibet were waiting for us at the hotel.  As soon as we got there, she left us to finish checking in and went to find the documents.  It took a few minutes and her face reflected great concern but they were finally located in a drawer.  We could finally head to our room after receiving the information about breakfast (where and when) and when to meet her in the lobby the next morning.

The next day our flight to Lhasa departed at 9:00 am.  Therefore, we had to meet Wendy at 7:00 in the lobby, having had breakfast.  We got very little sleep that night, which was an often repeated event.  We staggered up, repacked, dressed and managed to wolf down a little food - such a shame because the buffet was awesome! - and made it to the lobby on time with our bags.

When we got to the airport, Wendy got us our boarding passes and warned us strongly about there being a special security line that we had to find to get to our flight to Lhasa.  She couldn't go with us to that area because it required a boarding pass. After inquiring about which line to go to - "Lhasa??  Lhasa??" - we went to one line only to reach the attendant who told us we were in the wrong place.  Happily, the next try was successful.

As most of you know, Jon uses a C-PAP machine to ensure his breathing when he sleeps.  For this he needs distilled water.  He has a small zippered bag that his machine fits in, along with two one liter bottles of water.  China has the same rules as we do about liquids.  We were doing fine in the security check - baggage screened and we were patted down which is usual Chinese procedure -  until they discovered the water and then things broke down.  Jon tried to explain that it was special water for his machine but the language barrier was too much.  It took several tries and folks being summoned but finally an English speaker (sort of) arrived.  She understood the situation but still insisted that he drink from both bottles.  After he did, we were free to go.

Our China Air flight was ready to depart on time but had to wait for quite a while before it could take off due to many planes ahead of us, another oft-repeated occurrence.  I would recommend China Air to anyone.  The flight attendants were courteous, food and beverage were good and served often and the plane had good leg room.  It was relatively new and clean.  We had an aisle and a window seat with no one between us and the flight was pleasant.  It was longer that we expected but we were flying across most of the country.  We stopped at Chengdu, the last major city before Tibet, for about half an hour and then continued on.

I had the window seat and enjoyed being able to see the landscape.  I was appalled to see how far the smog from Beijing followed us across the country - almost to Chengdu!  Brown air everywhere.  This is a huge problem for the Chinese government and they are trying to reduce it but it still pervasive.

After taking off from Chengdu, again with a major (20 minute) delay, the view out the window began to change.  The terrain became more mountainous.  And then we were flying over the Himalayas - beautiful!  There were clouds in the way about half the time but I still tried to take photos.  These were the highest peaks we had ever seen and were so spectacular!  After a bit, the air got quite turbulent, understandably, and I did a lot of self talk about how the pilots that fly this route do so all the time etc. etc.

China is all on the same time zone.  By the time we landed in Lhasa, it was 3:30 pm and we had been on this journey from Beijing for over 8 hours.  Our guide, Yang Dron, met us after we left the airport building and went across the street.  She got us to our mini van, had water for us - the air temperature was quite warm, amazingly - and also gave us each a pilgrim's shawl.  They are white and soft and are left often at temples by the pilgrims who arrive constantly in this Buddhist community.  We liked Yang Dron immediately.

Again the drive from the airport to the city of Lhasa and our hotel took an hour.  Since we were pretty tired from the previous day, and the altitude was already effecting us, we decided to have dinner on the way to the hotel so that once we were checked in, we could stay there until morning.  It was after 5 by this time and so dinner wasn't totally out of the question.  We went to the Tibetan Steak House where Jon and I both had yak meat, in different preparations.  It was delicious - not gamey or tough at all.
Then we were off to our hotel, the Xin Din Hotel, owned by the government and run by a private company, about six years old.  Our room was great and finally could unpack, settle in and sleep.  We decided to meet our guide at 10 am the next morning.

By the next day, the altitude was really bothering us.  It is 11,000+ feet there.  We decided to pick up a bottle of oxygen to help us adjust.  It was a good idea.  We both made use of it over the days we were there.

Our first stop was the Potala Palace, former home of the Dalai Lama.  It sits on "Red Hill" in the center of the city and rises about 13 stories.  Our trip to Lhasa was a pre-trip, not part of the regular tour we were on, and Jon and I were the only ones with our guide.  Yang Dron planned for all three of us to climb to the top of the palace but early on Jon decided that it would not be wise for him to continue.  We agreed on a meeting place and time, and he turned back.  The two of us kept going.  In hind sight, I should never have attempted this the morning after we arrived.  Between the jet lag and altitude change, we were not at our best.  However, I was determined!  I had to rest several times (happily other climbers, native Tibetans, had to also) but I eventually did it!!!  I am still proud of that accomplishment! Along the way, I learned a lot about Buddhism and Tibet from Yang Dron.  I am so impressed by the devotion of the people, their perseverance and their timelessness.

Meanwhile, Jon had connected with two women doctors who spoke English.  He was waiting for us outside the entrance to the palace and since it was obvious that he was either European or American, they decided to converse.  He wishes now that he had had a camera with him since he enjoyed them so much.  It was one of the highlights of the entire trip for him.

After the three of us met up again, we went to lunch at a private (non-government owned) hotel restaurant and then on to the Jokhang temple.  This temple houses the holiest relic in Tibet, a statue of Buddha made during his lifetime and actually blessed by him.  Five of these were made but this is the only one that survives.  This temple was heavily damaged during the Cultural Revolution of the 1960s and 1970s but monks were able to hide the statue and the temple has been rebuilt.  Thank goodness!

There is a noticeable Chinese presence in Tibet. They have occupied Tibet since 1959.  The army is visible and there are military buildings with guards.  There are also Chinese areas of the city where the restaurants have Chinese food rather than Tibetan etc.  There is construction everywhere - roads are torn up to replace pipes, housing and buildings are in process of repair or being built.  According to our guide, most of the Tibetans are happy with some of the changes that make their lives more comfortable but not happy with the constant dust and confusion.  It is an occupied city and the Chinese are very concerned with security since a year or two ago there were some protests.  We were glad that we had the opportunity to visit.

We rested at our hotel for a while and then enjoyed a nice dinner, although my appetite was suffering due to the altitude.  I took 600 mg of ibuprofen as recommended by the Group Health travel nurse, which helped with the headache and the oxygen helped with my slightly blue fingernails.  We also tried to drink lots of bottled water.  A good night's rest helped too.

The next morning our first stop was the Sera monastery.  It currently houses 400 monks, although in the past it has had as many as 7000.  Many Tibetans bring their children there for a special blessing.  We saw many babies, toddlers and primary age children with a black ash smudge on their noses!  The monastery also has a print shop where wood blocks are used to print holy scriptures, sayings of Buddha or commentaries.  Another room held beautiful sand paintings - mandalas - which reminded me of Navajo sand paintings from our southwest.

After lunch we went to a village outside of Lhasa.  It was a farm village of several hundred people.  The houses were built of cement block.  There was a stream running along one side.  Nearby were chickens, scraggly looking dogs and yak dung which would be used for fuel.  One had the impression that life here hadn't changed for generations.  Then back to the hotel and dinner there, on our own.  The hotel had very few English speakers which made for an interesting experience when we tried to order off the menu.  Jon's lamb chops were good as were my pot stickers, although the filling in them was unidentifiable.

Our last day in Tibet began slowly as we had the morning to ourselves to pack etc.  We had a leisurely breakfast, including a nice conversation with an Irish couple who sat near us.  We had previously visited with an aunt and niece from Chile and a Polish man who had lived in the US earlier in his life.  Tibet is not a major tourist spot and those who go there are adventuresome and have lived interesting lives.  When Yang Dron arrived to meet us, Jon asked her to write an explanation for his water for his C-PAP in Chinese to help us avoid the issues we had faced earlier.  She was happy to do so.  Then we were off to the airport.  She got our boarding passes for us and got us headed to the departure gates.  As we went up the escalator, we looked back and there she was, smiling a waving at us.

We had an hour and a half flight back to Chengdu, a layover and then a longer flight back to Beijing.  We arrived at about 9:45, got our luggage and then a taxi to our hotel.  We were staying at the same hotel as before, happily, and got into our room at about 11:30.

Tibet: a holy people and place, spectacularly simple and graceful, maintaining dignity while in the grip of an iron fist.

Photos:  mountain peaks from the plane window, Jon and Yang Dron, the Potala Palace, we're ready to climb, beautiful temple eaves, gilded Jokhang temple roof, on the third floor of the temple, a mandala sand painting, and a yak in the Sera monastery grounds.