Xian pronounced She An

What a great trip. This post will be kind of long….we did a lot in less then 48 hours.

When we arrived at the airport our driver was waiting with a sign that said “Meets Mr. David Salinger.” Our driver drove us right to the hotel and it was 100 rmb, which is really cheap. The weather in Xian was pretty bad. We did not think we would have the smog here but while we were here all there was were grey skies…you will see in the pictures.

When we got to the hotel we met Ariel and Michelle who took the train up. We checked in and were really impressed. The hotel was gorgeous and the staff was very helpful. While we checked in Ariel and Michelle were negotiating with the driver for a price for the day. We were doing the Warriors, Hot Springs, and whatever else he suggested. The girls pushed hard and got the guy for 400 rmb for the entire day. Tha is 60 bucks and we spent at least 6 hours driving all over the place.

The first place the driver took us was a place we didn’t even ask to go to but he thought we would like it. It wasn’t that impressive. It was some excavation site were this tribe used to live. Some of the things inside were really interesting but it was just ok. I don’t even remember the name of the place.

After the first place we headed to Huaqing Hot Spring. This is where the emperors would go to hang out with their concubines. The grounds were incredible. Despite the weather it was really cool to see.

After the hot spring we made our way to the Warriors. This place was amazing and anyone who is ever in China should come visit Xian without a doubt to see this. We watched a brief movie about how all of this was found. It turns out it was two local farmers getting water from a well and when they pulled the bucket up there were broken pieces of the warriors. We could not get a clear answer for why the warriors were built in the first place but I think it was because one the emperors took over 6 provinces and built them to show how powerful he is. There are 3 pits of warriors. When we walked into the first one (it has 6,000) I was in shock. For the most part they are all still in decent shape. The size of this pit was enormous…I am not even sure what I could compare it to….maybe 3 or 4 football fields. Each warrior depending on its rank was built a different size. Your normal soldier was hollow because he was at the bottom of the ladder and then generals were built to weigh about 400 pounds. It was incredible and so worth the trip.

After the warriors we were all exhausted and the cab brought us back to the hotel. We asked for some recommendations where to eat and they told us this area is known for lamb and noodles and we should go down the street to get it. Most people don’t know this but Xian is one of the oldest cities in China and it still has the original city wall. Our hotel was located just outside of the south gate. We walked through the wall and into the Muslim Area. The Muslim area had this huge street market with people selling all sorts of weird crap that I would never consider eating. It also had a mini silk market with everyone screaming and saying they have the best things for the best price. I did manage to have someone paint my name in Chinese and it turned out really cool.

This morning I woke up kind of early and went for a run. I ran along the city wall. It was a lot of fun because they have all of this exercise equipment along the way and all the old people were using it. There were also large groups doing tai chi as well. I was running with a USA shirt and everyone kept looking at me. This city is awesome. It is not crowded like Beijing, the cabs stop for you, and the people are great. Everyone is really friendly. When I got back from my run we decided to take a tour of the wall. This wall has a moat and everything. We walked through a drawbridge to get inside. After walking around on the wall we went to a pagoda that had a huge Muslim temple. It was nice but since the weather was kind of bad it was not as good as it could have been.

We got back to the hotel around 3 and asked the front desk for a place to get noodles. This province is known for noodles so we figured we have to eat them. The main guy at the desk says, “Mr. David Evan if you would like noodles I know just the place for you.” He called me David Evan because they wrote my name down from my passport. Anyways he told us there is a place behind the hotel known for noodles and its fantastic…or as he said “very beautiful.” It took us a little bit to find the place because Chinese and directions don’t go together very well. When we walked in there were maybe 2 or 3 people eating. This one guy comes up to us in English and says, “welcome to Xian..do you like China?” We said yes and told them we need a table for 2. At the front counter they had a menu similar to one you would see at a McDonald’s or Burger King. We couldn’t figure out how we were suppose to order so we just grabbed a seat and they gave us a menu. The menu was all Chinese with a picture here and there. I saw a giant bowl of noodles with some stuff in it and ordered it. I was facing the front counter and they kept staring at me like I was from another planet. When my noodles came out they handed me a set of chopsticks. This was not your normal size chopstick—probably 2-3 inches larger then normal. I can handle the regular size ones but these..no chance! The girl behind the counter starts laughing almost out of control as I attempt to use these giant chopsticks to eat my noodles. My chopstick skills have improved since being here but some days you just have a bad day. As she continued to laugh I was getting a noodle in my mouth about ever 3 minutes. She walks into the kitchen and comes out with a fork. Once the fork came out it was great and the noodles were amazing. It was noodles, vegetables, mystery meat, and some egg. They were fantastic and all for 7rmb. 7rmb is roughly 1 US dollar.

We are in the lobby now waiting for the driver to get us to head back to Beijing. I am on the home stretch. I have 2 weeks left until I fly home. This trip was much needed. It was nice to get out of Beijing and see another part of China. It was nice walking down the street and not getting bumped into because it is so crowded or being able to drive in a cab without traffic. This gave me a taste of what “real” China is like. If I could stay for a few more days I would.

The Paralympics end tomorrow night and all the athletes will be out by Saturday morning. Hard to believe it is almost over. Jordana arrives tomorrow and is going to stay with me because she is not checking into her hotel until the 18th. Going out to eat with a vegetarian in China should be pretty interest. When I get back I will post pictures so you guys can see my trip.