June 13 – Traveling to Xian
We are flying to Xian to meet Gilbert and continue our travels with him. We thought we’d take the overnight train again but alas, impossible to get a ticket of any kind only 3 days in advance.
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Our flight was on some obscure Chinese Airline with 1 stopover in the middle of nowhere. We flew for miles over deserted looking desert –certainly no roads discernable from the air. The stopover - we had to leave the plane with all our belongings and board again 10 minutes later – just long enough for a few photos and a chance to figure out where we were and why so many travelers were getting on and off. We were in Zhongwei which is a gateway to part of the Yellow River and Tengger Desert. Maybe someday we’ll go back and visit.
Arriving in Xian – we had difficulty finding our hostel, made all the more difficult b.JPG)
ecause the travel book had it on the wrong location on the map. After a good hour of searching in heat and humidity we opted for a Starbucks, counting on Lady Luck that someone inside spoke English. We were aptly rewarded – there was a young, former tourist guide who phoned the hostel, wrote the directions down for a taxi driver and away we went – all of 2 blocks. So close and yet so far. Gilbert joined us later that evening having had his original flight cancelled without being notified until he reached the airport – the joys of air travel.
June 14 & 15 – Xian
Of course, our 1st priority was to visit the Terra Cotta Warriors. We started out early in the morning of Day 1 hoping to beat the hordes of tourists. Getting there was quite sim.JPG)
ple – we boarded a local city bus to the bus station and then transferred to another bus taking us out to the museum. The local bus was interesting as anyone about 5’8” or up has to tilt their head sideways to stand. As the bus was SRO, Gilbert was fortunate to end up in the stairwell. Otherwise I am sure he would have had a stiff neck, not to mention what a few bumps in the road along the way might do. The 2nd bus was ‘normal’ with plenty of seats and head room.
We hired a guide at the Terra Cotta Warrior Museum as she would know all the ins and outs and details of what we were seeing. In perfect Chinese form, she budged us t.JPG)
o the front of the line so we shaved off at least 25 minutes or more waiting in the hot sun for the tram. The 3 different buildings that house the warriors are extremely interesting. The excavation is still currently under way and will probably continue for many years to come. The work is done in the early hours of the morning or later at night when there are no tourists. But you can see where they are working so your imagination and knowledge easily fill in the blanks. It was the right choice to hire a guide, although we sensed her impatience towards the end when she realized we weren’t in the market for souvenirs so the.JPG)
re was no commission to be had. I tried to bargain for a good luck frog that turns colours – max I’d pay was 40rmb, a far cry from their 500rmb asking price. With that spread there was no deal in the making.
For evening entertainment there is plenty of ‘people watching’ as the plazas around the Drum and Bell Towers are crowded with tourists and locals. We enjoyed watching the kite flyers and bought a couple to try. I was totally unsuccessful at launching mine and instead landed it in a puddle of water. Rats, Charlie Brown! I’ll bring it one day on a bike ride around Vancouver.JPG)
where I may have more success.
A visit to the Muslim Quarter is another ‘must do’, especially at night when the street market is in full force. We were fascinated by the guy serving up quail eggs but the stir fry and skewers also looked quite tempting. Since we had just eaten a huge spicy Sichuanese-Cantonese meal, there was no room for these delectable looking delights. A walk down the streets harbouring the stalls is not without its dangers. They have gas flames from propane tanks that shoot a continual.JPG)
stream of fire into the walkway – one trip or shove and you’ll end up quite toasted. And what about the ‘cat fights’ that occur given the hot weather and hot woks – 2 women were really going at each other with shoving and yelling – certainly one way to draw a crowd.
A bike ride along the top of the City Walls is also recommended. It is a 14km, 1 ½ hour ride and offers views of Xian in all four directions. We managed to finish before the heat of the day really took over but it was back to the hostel after that to shower and relish air conditioning.
.JPG)
An aside – it has been great to have Gilbert along as the Paparazzi disappeared. With just the 2 of us in Harbin and Beijing, the Chinese were relentless in taking a picture of Dusty and the blond hair. They come right up and asked to have their picture taken with her, or they take sneak pictures from afar or they hover around us until they have enough nerve to ask or they just stand and stare. One couple almost literally dropped their baby into her arms – it happened so quickly. We can only imagine what they tell their friends about the photos. So in that respect we were now travelling in peace.
.JPG)
We are flying to Xian to meet Gilbert and continue our travels with him. We thought we’d take the overnight train again but alas, impossible to get a ticket of any kind only 3 days in advance.
.JPG)
Our flight was on some obscure Chinese Airline with 1 stopover in the middle of nowhere. We flew for miles over deserted looking desert –certainly no roads discernable from the air. The stopover - we had to leave the plane with all our belongings and board again 10 minutes later – just long enough for a few photos and a chance to figure out where we were and why so many travelers were getting on and off. We were in Zhongwei which is a gateway to part of the Yellow River and Tengger Desert. Maybe someday we’ll go back and visit.
Arriving in Xian – we had difficulty finding our hostel, made all the more difficult b
.JPG)
ecause the travel book had it on the wrong location on the map. After a good hour of searching in heat and humidity we opted for a Starbucks, counting on Lady Luck that someone inside spoke English. We were aptly rewarded – there was a young, former tourist guide who phoned the hostel, wrote the directions down for a taxi driver and away we went – all of 2 blocks. So close and yet so far. Gilbert joined us later that evening having had his original flight cancelled without being notified until he reached the airport – the joys of air travel.June 14 & 15 – Xian
Of course, our 1st priority was to visit the Terra Cotta Warriors. We started out early in the morning of Day 1 hoping to beat the hordes of tourists. Getting there was quite sim
.JPG)
ple – we boarded a local city bus to the bus station and then transferred to another bus taking us out to the museum. The local bus was interesting as anyone about 5’8” or up has to tilt their head sideways to stand. As the bus was SRO, Gilbert was fortunate to end up in the stairwell. Otherwise I am sure he would have had a stiff neck, not to mention what a few bumps in the road along the way might do. The 2nd bus was ‘normal’ with plenty of seats and head room.We hired a guide at the Terra Cotta Warrior Museum as she would know all the ins and outs and details of what we were seeing. In perfect Chinese form, she budged us t
.JPG)
o the front of the line so we shaved off at least 25 minutes or more waiting in the hot sun for the tram. The 3 different buildings that house the warriors are extremely interesting. The excavation is still currently under way and will probably continue for many years to come. The work is done in the early hours of the morning or later at night when there are no tourists. But you can see where they are working so your imagination and knowledge easily fill in the blanks. It was the right choice to hire a guide, although we sensed her impatience towards the end when she realized we weren’t in the market for souvenirs so the.JPG)
re was no commission to be had. I tried to bargain for a good luck frog that turns colours – max I’d pay was 40rmb, a far cry from their 500rmb asking price. With that spread there was no deal in the making.For evening entertainment there is plenty of ‘people watching’ as the plazas around the Drum and Bell Towers are crowded with tourists and locals. We enjoyed watching the kite flyers and bought a couple to try. I was totally unsuccessful at launching mine and instead landed it in a puddle of water. Rats, Charlie Brown! I’ll bring it one day on a bike ride around Vancouver
.JPG)
where I may have more success.A visit to the Muslim Quarter is another ‘must do’, especially at night when the street market is in full force. We were fascinated by the guy serving up quail eggs but the stir fry and skewers also looked quite tempting. Since we had just eaten a huge spicy Sichuanese-Cantonese meal, there was no room for these delectable looking delights. A walk down the streets harbouring the stalls is not without its dangers. They have gas flames from propane tanks that shoot a continual
.JPG)
stream of fire into the walkway – one trip or shove and you’ll end up quite toasted. And what about the ‘cat fights’ that occur given the hot weather and hot woks – 2 women were really going at each other with shoving and yelling – certainly one way to draw a crowd.A bike ride along the top of the City Walls is also recommended. It is a 14km, 1 ½ hour ride and offers views of Xian in all four directions. We managed to finish before the heat of the day really took over but it was back to the hostel after that to shower and relish air conditioning.
.JPG)
An aside – it has been great to have Gilbert along as the Paparazzi disappeared. With just the 2 of us in Harbin and Beijing, the Chinese were relentless in taking a picture of Dusty and the blond hair. They come right up and asked to have their picture taken with her, or they take sneak pictures from afar or they hover around us until they have enough nerve to ask or they just stand and stare. One couple almost literally dropped their baby into her arms – it happened so quickly. We can only imagine what they tell their friends about the photos. So in that respect we were now travelling in peace.
.JPG)
For more photos go to:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/chrisfick/sets/72157624809555004/
I swear I ended up on the very same bike as you. I also had a picture taken with the Canadian Totem pole on the city wall but they were way more weather-beaten by the time I was there. I was brave enough to try the quail eggs. Wasn't great. Prefer them hard boiled. :-)
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