Boarding planes in Chengdu

Xi'an

---

September 21st 2007
Friday night we arrived in Xi'an and "Raphael" (our Chinese tour guide) picked us up at the airport. Rush hour in Xi'an made for an interesting and long trip to the Youth Hostel where we had reservations for the weekend. Dinner at a restaurant in the Muslim Quarter replenished our tired and hungry bodies--Raphael took us and ordered for us. He is friends with the owner and got us a great meal f ... read more

Asia » China » Shaanxi » Xi'an

---

For centuries China stood as a leading civilization, outpacing the rest of the world in the arts and sciences, but in the 19th and early 20th centuries, the country was beset by civil unrest, major famines, military defeats, and foreign occupation. A... ... read more