Xi'an - First Trip to mainland China

Well, again it has been a long time since I have written anything on this blog. I guess I have been busy. However, this entry will talk about my trip to Xi’an. During the 4 day Easter weekend, Jack and I ventured off to Xi’an, PRC.

Perhaps many of you have not heard of this place, as it is much smaller than the likes of Shanghai and Beijing. However, Xi’an has a lot of historical significance. It is one of the oldest cities in China and was the capital of China during multiple dynasties. We were there for three nights and found some tours to join through our hotel. We saw many smaller attractions, although still significant in importance, such as the Bell Tower, Drum Tower, and Wild Goose Pagoda. We even rode bikes on top of the ancient wall that surrounded the city. The wall is pretty large, to where two lanes of traffic could drive on top, if they desired. However, you may only bike, have drivers take you around on rickshaws or golf carts, or simply use the two legged system of getting around. It took about an hour and a half to ride around the entire wall; stopping for some picture along the way of course.

The first tour that we went on took us to the site of a 6,000 year old village that had been unearthed and to the Wild Goose Pagoda. However, in between these was the world wonder known to many as the Terracotta Army. In 1974 (or such) a farmer had found a piece of a pottery statue while digging a well. Researchers began uncovering the remains and unearthed thousands of warrior statues; many of which had been broken and have since been restored. (there are still many that have yet to be uncovered)
The story has it that Qin Shi Huang (the first emperor of China, who ruled from Xi’an) was a paranoid man. He knew that he would someday die and wanted an army to protect him in the afterlife. Therefore, he started the construction of an Army made entirely out of clay. He wanted them to look realistic so that others would think they were an actual army. (However, he wanted them bigger than his actual soldiers as he thought Chinese people’s build was too small) The process involved thousands of people and various processes of moulding, carving, and painting; which took around twenty some years to complete. The soldiers were then placed in rows as if they were ready for battle and were eventually entombed underground after having been damaged in a peasant rebellion. During the unearthing process, the paint fades as it hits the oxygen, having been buried for so long. (However, some small painted parts have been seen)

Note the first emperor above was also the one who ordered the construction of another world wonder… the Great Wall of China. (I guess this guy was compensating for something)

The following day we went on a separate tour. This one was an hour and a half bus ride away, to a mountain known as Mount Hua in Hua Shan. This is one of the most sacred mountains in China because of Daoist significance. We climbed up the mountain towards the South Peak which was about 2,100 meters above the ground. (um, trying to explain this height, um, about 6,900 feet, um 4 times that of the Sears Tower) So, what do you do when you are this high up on a mountain? Well, you climb on the side of it of course. Haha, we paid 30 yuan and got strapped on to a metal wire which followed down a metal ladder and across some plank boards on the side of the mountain. This didn’t seem too risky, as you were attached, even when you looked down. (please see my pictures) However, when you came to one of the wire attachments on the side of the mountain, you had to unhook your chord and put it on to the next wire. This means that a certain points, we were not protected by anything and could have fallen… to our death!! (ok, enough of the drama I guess. It was simply pretty high up and most people with a fear of heights would not be able to do it.)

Well, those are the major things in Xi’an. This was my first time to mainland China. Everything gets dirty in the Mainland and any slight manners that may have existed in Hong Kong were non existent here. I don’t want to write too much, but you can see in the pictures what everything looked like. (pictures coming soon; watch for link) By the way, I ate Chinese food for all but one meal during this journey. Even from street stalls. Craziness