Tuesday, November 22, 2016

Day 16 Xi'an

(This entry was part of a letter to my step-mother Marguerite, herself an old China hand.)

Today we went to see the Terra Cotta warriors. The highway was closed because of snow and ice that had accumulated over the past 24 hours.  Nothing like the storms in North America, but, given the driving here we were glad to be travelling slowly.   Our little bus held a guide and eleven people picked up from our hostel and two others. 

Did I mention yet that it was cold? Good thing we had our Changchun winter layers which seemed ridiculous last week in the south. 

First  stop was the terra cotta factory where we saw how the figures were made.  This led, of course, to a sales room where replica figures were available, of any size up to100%.  Packaging and postage included, buy a set of soldiers and get a free emperor,  20% off this week only.   Fortunately,  you and Harry  gave us a set many years ago so we were not tempted. There were also beautiful carpets, other ceramic items and more souvenirs. We were given enough time to consider and resist then back to the bus.

First stop at the site,  an hour later,  was the mausoleum of the Emperor Qin. We had 20 minutes so were able to walk briskly to and on the mound where it is located but not to the actual site.   David, as you know, spent about ten summers working on archaeological digs in Israel,  and also wrote a book about ancient pottery  so he knew a lot about what we were seeing. 

By the way,  it was cold.   Blowy and snowy. Walk, walk, walk on slippery marble paths for half an hour. People were sliding as if on a skating rink. There were people with twig brooms effectively clearing snow. 

Bathroom stop then the big show.  The weather must have discouraged many people from coming:no lines or crowds 

You've seen the photos. (Marguerite,  of course you have seen the real thing!) It is still an amazing sight.  Hard to believe that the first artifact was discovered in 1974. (Also hard to believe that the old guy signing copies of the official guidebook is really the farmer on whose land they were found.) Huge building and rows of clay warriors.  Of course,  by this point we had already seen hundreds at the factory,  for sale at outdoor markets along the road,  at the hostel ...you get the idea.   But it is still amazing. David had knowledgeable insights about the process of excavation and, despite the fact that our hands were frozen, said that his fingers were itching to hold a brush or trowel. 

There are three buildings with excavations underway and very good explanations.   At no time did we have to wait to see the displays.   The last stop was a short film in a 360 degree theatre,  the kind where you stand and lean on a bar for  support.  Very  Expo 67, or the Canada pavilion at Disney World. Then another walk back to the bus, and an hour later, back to the hostel. Very glad we had each other to lean against during that chilly ride. 

We changed then had dinner downstairs in the inviting eating, drinking and chatting area. 

Tomorrow's plans will depend a bit on the weather.  Hopefully they will include a meal or two in the Muslim quarter  which is a 15 min walk away. 

Almost forgot.  During one of the many times today when we had to wait outside,  David kept first me,  then many of the group,   warm and entertained by teaching us some simple martial arts moves. A man of many talents. 

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