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.