Excavations Galore in Xi'an

From Pingyao we got on another fast train to head southwest to Xi’an.  The fast Chinese trains are so comfortable and ride so smoothly.

Xi’an is a city of about 7 million people and is best known as the home of the Terracotta Soldiers.  That was our main reason for going there, but Xi’an had more to offer than just the Terracotta Soldiers and we filled our 3 ½ days there.

After finding and getting settled at our hostel within the ancient city walls, we took a leisurely walk through Xi’an towards the Big Goose Pagoda.  Traffic in China can be chaotic, and this really became clear in Xi’an.  Maybe it was the cars that seemed perfectly willing to run us over, even when we were in a pedestrian crossing with a green walk light.  Or maybe it was the mopeds and scooters that would come almost out of nowhere, zipping past us and going against pedestrian traffic on the sidewalk.  Or perhaps it was the bikes and three-wheeled cart drivers in the small market streets who would push past us (often with only a hair’s distance between their wheels and our feet).  This video, shot from above an intersection, gives a small glimpse of the Chinese traffic (lack of?) rules.  Maybe the only rule is “don’t get hit”?  We’re doing our best, but it’s definitely an adjustment.

We made it to the Big Goose Pagoda area without getting run over, and we stopped into a well-known Xi’an restaurant for dinner.  First Noodle Under the Sun’s signature dish is biáng biáng miàn.  This is a 3.8 meter (12.5 feet) long noodle that you cut into pieces and dunk into 2 different bowls of soup.  It was so good, we ordered a second helping!

After filling our bellies with 7.6 meters (25 feet) of noodles (all 2 of them), we watched a water, light, and music show that takes place every evening.  Depending on what you read this is the world’s largest/Asia’s largest water, light, and music show…..no matter what, it was quite large and really pretty, especially with the pagoda lit up in the background.

The next morning, we got up bright and early to take a guided tour to the Terracotta Soldiers—something that’s been on my travel bucket list for years.

The Army of Terracotta Warriors is one of the world’s premier archaeological sites.  The creation of thousands of pottery soldiers began in the late 3^rd century BCE under the orders of Qin Shi Huang, the first emperor who unified the lands and people that would become China.  His tomb is about 2 km to the west of the pits.  They were discovered in 1974 when a peasant dug a hole for a well and found the first of these amazing treasures (in what would become known as Pit 1).

We started our tour in Pit 2, which contains about 1300 warriors.  There was some work going on in the pit when we arrived, which was interesting to see (and apparently rare, since most work is done in the evenings).  In Pit 2, we could see how the pits were constructed and to understand why most soldiers are broken into pieces.  First, 7 meter (23 feet) pits were dug and  paved with tiles.  The soldiers were placed on these tiles, and wooden beams were erected to serve as pillars for a roof of mats and soil.  Qin Shi Huang wanted to keep the pits a secret, so after construction they were covered with more soil until the ground was flat. 

After the Qin dynasty was overthrown, the pits were entered and vandalized.  People stole many of the bronze weapons that the soldiers were originally buried with, and they set fire to the pits as well.  This caused the roof to collapse onto the soldiers, shattering many of them into pieces.

In Pit 2, we could also see 5 soldiers that have been fully put back together.  There was a standing archer, a calvaryman with his horse, a high ranking general, a middle ranking officer, and (our favorite) a kneeling archer.

Interestingly, the only soldiers that have been found intact are the kneeling archers.  This is because they were below the level of the other soldiers, and so when the roof collapsed they were shielded from destruction.

The detail in all the soldiers was incredible.  Their faces, their hair, their clothes…you could even see the detail of the tread of their shoes.

Next we went on to Pit 3, which was quite a bit smaller and is referred to as the headquarters of the Terracotta Soldiers due to the number of high-ranking officers found there.  There were also calvarymen with horses—the carts were made of wood which has disintegrated, which is why there is a space between the men and their horses.

This is also where bones of the workers have been found.  Qin Shi Huang had them killed so as to protect the secret of the pits.

Finally, we visited Pit 1—the largest and most impressive pit.  It’s about the size of an airplane hangar, and 6,000 soldiers have been discovered there (of which 2,000 have been fully reconstructed).  They are all facing east, ready for battle.

This video clip shows the soldiers of Pit 1.  The Terracotta Soldiers were an incredible sight!

That evening, we walked through and ate in the Muslim Quarter.  Xi’an has a Chinese Muslim community, and the area is full of bustling streets with shops, restaurants, and plenty of interesting street food and commotion.  It was a bit of a sensory overload but definitely a fun place to wander.

We saw interesting street foods for sale (we ate the yellow stuff on a stick, which was a sweet rice cake).

We watched guys kneading a taffy-like dough, which was then pounded out into huge sheets and mixed with nuts and seeds.  

This guy was the most showy in his kneading display, and the dough may have touched the ground a time or two (we did not buy from this store)….

We passed by the Bell Tower on our way out of the Muslim Quarter, which was beautifully lit up.

And we passed an Apple Store with a well known greeter, so we had to take this picture...

The next morning we headed to another archaeological site, one much less visited than the Terracotta Soldiers but every bit as impressive.  While the Terracotta Soldiers is all about the warriors, the Tomb of Emperor Jingdi (also called the Han Yan Ling Mausoleum) is where, in 153 AD, Emperor Jingdi buried everything he’d need in the afterlife.  Thousands upon thousands of terracotta pots, appliances, animals, chariots, and figurines have been discovered in these pits.  Excavation is still ongoing, and it is believed that there are even more pits that have not been discovered.

The people all appear armless and naked because their arms (which were made of wood) and their clothes (which were made of silk) have deteriorated over time.

We all liked the animals the best—the figurines included horses, cows, goats, sheep, chickens, and dogs.

We saw the mound that contains the tomb of Emperor Jingdi, as well as the South Gate that was erected as part of the wall that surrounded the tomb long ago.

One difference from the Terracotta Soldiers is that we were able to walk directly above (via a glass walkway) and next to the actual pits.  We were able to get much closer to the actual excavation sites and relics.

There was also a great museum with lots of pieces that have been excavated.  It was fascinating to see the detail of the figurines up close, as well as figurines that were crafted with terracotta clothes.  One display showcased the oldest tea leaves In the world, which were found in the pits earlier this year.

Off completely on its own in a separate field was the oldest measuring device in the world.  It is a pelorus that was used to measure distances in the construction of the tomb.  Pretty impressive.

On the way back to Xi’an, we passed massive apartment complex after massive apartment complex.  The scale of the cities here in China is incredible, and it is hard to fathom how many people live just in relatively small areas like this one.

The next day, we took a short walking tour of Xi’an that was offered by our hostel.  We waited until our last day in Xi’an to do this because on Thursdays there is a bird market, which was our first stop.

We saw all kinds of animals being sold in the Bird Market, including lots of worms and even scorpions.

We also walked through a different part of the Muslim Quarter, and the guide from the hostel was able to explain some of the different foods and items that were being sold. 

We went to the Temple of the City God, another Taoist temple.  The Yin Yang symbol that is familiar in the Western world was visible everywhere.

After the tour was over, we stayed in the Muslim Quarter to eat lunch.  Previously we had seen a long line at this stand, which only sold one thing—shredded meat in pita (our guide called it a “Chinese hamburger”)  The line was just as long this day, which we took as a good sign.  The sandwiches were delicious!

We tried these persimmon cakes, which were filled with different things and were all delicious.

We also stopped at an ice cream shop that our guide highly recommended.  We thought we were getting two scoops of ice cream each, but for whatever reason the guy gave us each 4 scoops, plus all kinds of extra goodies.  The ice cream flavors were very unique—we had local walnut, red peanut, grean tea, black tea latte, cucumber and honey, and orange.  All very yummy.

For our last night in Xi’an, we stopped by a Belgian restaurant/bar.  Turns out they weren’t serving food that night (???), but they did have La Chouffe…so all was right in the world.  We ordered food from the restaurant next door to go with our Belgian beers and enjoyed a few last views of the Xi’an city wall.