September 10 (Thursday) – Xian

The first sight seeing stop was the city gate and wall. There is still an intact wall around old Xian, 46 feet high and 49 feet wide. There was a display of old siege and field equipment on the wall…very interesting and some rather gruesome.

Then it was off to the terra cotta factory to see how terra cotta and lacquer ware were made, and of course, there was the usual display of items for sale. It is possible to custom order a terra cotta warrior with your own face on it. We passed.

Next it was off to the real thing…the terra cotta warriors. Pit 1 was gigantic. All the excavated figures were originally found in pieces. The figures had been smashed by looters and a collapsed ceiling.

The best preserved was missing only a hand. A section at the end of the building was the “hospital” where they were assembling warriors and horses. I think they were doing a lot of the piecing together using computers to help find the fit for a piece. Apparently the warriors had all originally been painted down to the last detail but most of the paint was now gone.

It was then lunch and a visit to the Great Mosque. Xian is home to a large population of Chinese speaking Muslims who moved to Xian when the Silk Road was in operation. The mosque looked like a typical Chinese Buddhist temple, but non-Muslims weren’t allowed inside the buildings. More interesting was the street market in the area. There were several streets with cheap tourist fare and lots of stalls with produce, nuts and cooked foods. Grilled or roasted pigs feet seemed to be a common item. There were also kabobs and roasted, salted nuts in the shell. The street market was definitely a colorful feast for the eyes. We didn’t eat anything, just to be on the safe side.

Xian Album

Commentary – Driving in China

• The driving situation in China definitely defies description. There is a definite hierarchy when it comes to right of way. Trucks and buses rule. Then come cars, then scooters and bicycles, with pedestrians at the bottom of the barrel. Even on a green light, cars turning have the right of way over pedestrians.
• Pedestrians would step off the corner into the street, and cars turning will pass within inches in front or in back of them. Jay walking is legal. Pedestrians would go part way across a street and stand on the lane lines as cars zipped passed on either side.
• Watching the traffic is like watching a session of bumper cars without the bumping. I’m amazed there aren’t more bodies and vehicles strewn about the streets. On the way somewhere our driver pulled into a round-about and then did a quick u-turn instead of going all the way around…apparently quite legal but very hair raising. I may start riding with my eyes closed.
• We’ve seen just about everything on the road except donkey or horse drawn vehicles. There are all types of two and three wheeled motorized vehicles. One was pulling a wagon with a double mattress on it and one was stacked high with bags. We saw several three wheel scooters with cabs in the back for cargo or people.