Spring Festival 2011-part 7--Xi'An

We finally finish our flights and are in our second-to last destination--Xi'an, home of the terracotta soldiers and the end of the famous silk road.

Standing in the center of the city (actually just in front of the hostel) the bell tower looms as the center of the Feng Shui oriented city.  Important to Feng Shui is a north-south orientation, thus making Xi'an very logically laid out city.

We've made it to the site of the terracotta soldiers--the protectors of Qin Shi Huang's tomb (the first emperor of China).  Astonishingly, for as large as the soldiers' 4 pits are, they are only a fraction of the believed size of the emperor's tomb.  However, because the emperor insisted on having flowing rivers of mercury, the land is too dangerous to excavate (why did no one tell him that mercury causes cancer!)

The Muslim quarter in Xi'an is known for its array of shopping stalls.  Be prepared to barter, because they start at tourist prices until you show your disgust.  And don't buy their lame excuses "it's winter time and there are so few tourists, so I never sell anything."  They're just trying to sucker you into the sale.  They know it, so you should too.

The Irish and their potatoes (or anything that looks like it).  Part of Chinese traveling is trying food--both classic dishes and street food.  Here I let the Irish girl (Annie) go for the potato cake.

We finally found it!  Shadow puppets were one of the most popular form of entertainment.  Annie was stoked to find them, because her book says they can be found everywhere.  Well, no place we went had them, except, finally, Xi'an.  Being low tourist season, we even got a private show!

China still thinks coffee is for snack time.  Here's Starbucks at 8:00 a.m.  The only person here is another foreigner.  Imagine what this would look like if it were 8:00 a.m. in New York or anywhere. 

Can I keep 'em?  Replicas are available everywhere and in every size.  For different prices you can buy a simple soldier, an archer, a captain, or even a general or emperor...all for a price, of course.

Yep, I'd like to think I'm as important. :-D This statue is one of the few removed from the pits for display.  It, along with the other few, show that the soldiers were all painted in full color.  Unfortunately, light has destroyed the color.  And only one single statue was unearthed fully intact.

Welcome back to Xi'an...and China.  It's always reassuring to see a sight like this near the city center.  Oh, China.

My first Chinese teacher (with whom I'm take classes over Skype) is from Xi'an.  I finally got the chance to meet her in person.  She guided me through the most popular night food market as we sampled her childhood favorite, metal mirror cakes (a stickyrice with seeds on the outside and some sort of jam on top.)

Clara (my first teacher) and I in front of the Drum tower, the entrance to the Muslim quarter.

Next, we're off to Zhengzhou (my home) for the last bit of our 5-week paid winter vacation.  This job rocks!