We left Hulunbuir, Inner Mongolia on a 2 hour flight to Xian, the capital of Shaanxi. Xian is one of China's oldest cities and has a population of about 9 million (14 million including the surrounding area). We were met at the Xi'an Xianyang airport by my friends Star and David....they had hired a taxi that took us the 40 kms to the city center, and our pre-booked hotel. At least 30 construction cranes dotted the skyline and that was only the one's we could see; it is a busy place, thank goodness we had our friends to make our stay smooth. We had a nice dinner and got settled into our new, and reasonably priced hotel.
The next morning we left the hotel with our friends and headed to the Lintong District and the world famous Terra Cotta Warriors. Lying about 40 kms from the city center, the warriors are at the base of these hills.
Young emperor Qin Shi Huang who reigned from 247-220 BC is said to have had an army of life-size pottery sculptures made up to protect his tomb and serve him in his after life. Farmers discovered some pieces of pottery in 1974; now tourists from around the world come to view the 7,000 soldiers; emperors, horses, and chariots in the 3 pits that are open to the public. Turned out that the warriors were hidden under ground in pits that were covered with wood roofs with matting, and a bit of dirt to hide them. There is a lot of history to be uncovered involving the young emperor, his unopened tomb and the Terra Cotta Warriors; I find it very interesting.
Pit #1 was the highlight of this day and perhaps one of the best experiences in China; at least in the top 5 for me.
It is hard to explain the sensation I had when I walked into this #1 pit.....excitement was paramount. The other 2 pits were incredible also but because they were not showcased as the #1 pit is, AND they are works in progress, they may not be viewed as equal. One can see how long the slow, tedious dig can be as experts unearth and tag segments of the artifacts....many parts are glued together.
The next day was great, although no match for the warriors. We walked to the Xiaoyan Pagoda (small wild goose pagoda) which was built between 707-709. This pagoda, that sits across from the Dajianfu Temple, has stairs inside where one can climb up and get a good view of the park and different temples in the compound.
There is also a tower here at the Dajianfu Temple.
Since our walk was pretty long we decided to take a taxi, through the rat race of traffic, to the Dayan Pagoda (Big Wild Goose Pagoda).
This larger pagoda was built in 652 at the Da Ci'en temple site...some 4 years after the temple was completed. The large complex that houses the pagoda is similar to others that have temples surrounded by a park. What made this area unique was the large water fountains that were out front. At 12 noon every day there is a show where the water flows from all the different fountains in unison with music, it was very enjoyable and the crowd loved it.
After the 2 pagoda's we boarded a crowded bus, all taxi's were full, and we headed to a site that was supposed to have many ancient buildings, but there were only mounds of rubble. Like in many cities the government is making replica's of what used to stand. We boarded another bus and rode about an hour, only to witness the same demolition; the travel guide noted this area as if these old buildings were still standing.
The next day we spent around the old city; the city wall's, built during the Tang Dynasty (618-907) and then enlarged during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) were in very good shape. The main gates of this most complete city wall are enormous and really a spectacle to see.
If one would walk the 13.7 km on top of the wall she/he would see that within the walls the apartments are rather old.
Often around China you can see streets loaded with older people playing the board game mahjong.
Other attractions for this ancient city are the bell tower that was built in 1384 and the drum tower which was built in 1380. My daughter and I listened to a live drumming performance in the drum tower, it was a good experience.
For the most part the Xian experience was exceptional, could have been a little better if we were not looking for what was not there; and having to watch out for our lives constantly (inconsiderate drivers) . For the tourist there is plenty to see......some artifacts like the Terra Cotta Warriors cannot be found very often in this world. I returned again to this ancient city about one year later, it was good to be familiar with my surroundings.
