The Terra-Cotta Warriors

So, here we are once again back in Shanghai. We had an amazing time seeing the Terra-Cotta warriors in Xi'an, China. We were in Xi'an on Monday. It turned out that we got a really good deal on plane tickets so we were really happy. The only downfall was that Giles and I both came down with a cold/flu the day before we left. We were lucky, though, because it only really affected us on Monday and didn't get in the way of any fun. We spent Monday evening looking through the market and angering the locals with our skillful bargaining.

On Tuesday, we took an overpriced tour package to a variety of places. We were picked up from our hotel and our "English" speaking guide ask us where we would be going that day. Needless to say we were a little concerned with our guide's abilities. Perhaps we misunderstood her question. I think her English may have been a little off on that one. Anyway, we started by visiting The Ban Po Museum. It is the remains of an ancient village that was discovered when the city of Xi'an attempeted to build a power station. The village was very interesting because we learned how the ancient people built their houses and cooked their food 6000 years ago. The houses were mainly constructed of wood and mud. There was also a fire pit in the middle for cooking. We were also able to see how they buried their dead and the ceremony that was involved.

Next, we were taken to see the place where a variety of people constucted the "real' knock-offs of the Terra-Cotta Army. It was interesting because we got to see how the miniature warriors are constructed. The people made it look like a breeze. After, we were shown a variety of Gucci, Louis Vutton, and Chanel wallets that we could have purchased if we wanted. We were in awe with both the authenticity and history of the factory.

After, we went to the tomb of Emperor Qinshihuang. We were a little confused when we walked into a room of miniature figurines. We found out quite soon that the real tomb had not been excavated yet because of poisonous gas and we would be welcome to revisit the area when they developed the technology to open it with only minor reprocusions. Shall do. In the mean time the Chinese people have done a very good job of recreating what they think the real tomb may look like. It is very elaborate. Like other emporers, Qinshihuang was buried with a variety of artifacts to aid him in the next world. Our guide explained that many people no longer believe in a world after this one. She was a little unsure how to answer our German tourmate's question of whether there is an afterlife or not.

Finally, we got to see the much anticipated Terra-Cotta Army. They were discovered by a farmer trying to build a well, for his farm, in the early 70's. Since then, his farm land has become a giant museum visited by millions of people each year. When we asked how the farmer was compensated for his find we were told that he still lived somewhere on the museum grounds. The Museum was separated into three buildings, 1, 2, and 3. The first contained thousands of Terra - Cotta army including their horses. The second was not as massive but it did contain more of the army and horses. A lot of the third remained under the rock that covered it but they had placed a few of the warriors in display cases. We got some really great pictures of them. My favorite was the archer. The really cool thing is that each warrior is different. There are different poses, faces, and even facial expressions. Apparently they were based on real warriors. The Chinese governement has decided to leave the remaining soldiers unexcavated until they have the technology and skill to remove them with their colour still intact. Giles and I were in awe the entire time.

Our last destination was the Hua Qing Hot Spring. This area was a winter getaway for previous emperors. It was a beautiful garden with statues of the Emperors concubines throughout. The most famous concubine was named Lang and was considered to be the most beautiful of the Emperors concubines. We were really lucky to see the dance group practicing for the evenings performance.

The next day, after a frustrating morning, Giles and I rode bicycles around the inner-city wall. Surprizingly, the inner-city was really big and almost took us over the 100 minutes we were given with the bicycles. The reason that it was frustrating was because we had originally rented bicycles from our hostel only to find out, after purchasing tickets while on our bikes, that they would not allow them on the wall. As a result we wasted much of our day riding to the wall, riding back to the hostel, and then returning to the wall once again on foot to rent the wall provided bikes. Yay for tourist traps!

In the evenings, we ate the most delicious food. There was a Muslim area near our hostel, so we munched on lamb, beef, noodle and vermacelli dishes. It was a real treat and we will be sad to say good-bye to all the good food when we leave for Vietnam on Sunday or Monday.

Hope you are all well.

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