We loved our time in Beijing – it was an incredible city and we had so many amazing experiences! We originally were going to only stay for 4 days – but extended our stay to a week so we could see as much as possible. We then were faced with the dilemma – should we try to do 2 days in Shanghai and 2 days in Xi’an – or just select one and go a bit deeper? In the end, the kids were tired from travelling so much, so we decided to go to Xi’an and put Shanghai back on our “bucket list”.
We decided to try the train system and we were not disappointed! The bullet trains were incredibly fast and went almost 300km per hour. The only thing we didn’t like was the price…way more money than Indian trains!
Once settled into Xi’an, we went out to see the big metropolis of 8.6 million people! One of the major landmarks is the Big Pagoda. It is considered to be the “Eiffel Tower” of the city with a night show with lots of laser lights and colour. The city square centres around the Pagoda and is surrounded by a all kinds of high end shops.
The girls bought some neat “wheelers” that could be attached to their shoes and had a great time rolling around the Pagoda square.
From there, we went to the Old City to explore. It was neat to see all the aged courtyards.
We rented bicycles to cycle around the ramparts of the castle. We all enjoyed riding around and seeing the hutongs in the distance.
Once through the gates, we visited the Bell (1384 Ming Dynasty) and Drum Towers. It is tradition that in every Chinese city there is a Bell Tower to ring in the start of the day, and a Drum Tower to close off the night.
One interesting thing we found in the Old City was the Muslim Quarter. It was an amazing marketplace filled with different food carts and stalls, as well as interesting people!
Another thing we found fascinating was the Great Mosque within the Muslim Quarter. I was surprised to find a Mosque in the middle a Chinese city, but Zoe said…”I don’t understand why you are surprised…we’ve seen different religious buildings in every place we have visited.” I totally agreed with her and once again had to check my stereotypes at the door:)
The Mosque was built in 742 and is the oldest Islamic Mosque in China. It is a very peaceful place designed with Chinese architecture (there are pavilions instead of minarets). There are only a few places where Arabic lettering is used throughout the entire property. The further one wanders into the numerous courtyards, the quieter and more serene the experience.
In Xi’an we had quite a few people stop us to chat. This was quite common in India – but in Xi’an, it wasn’t to take our photos – it was for people to practice their English. We had a great time chatting with people and letting them interview us and ask us all types of questions. The girls especially enjoyed when parents would send up their kids to talk with us. It was lots of fun and great practice for the girls to support English Language Learners.
We finally made our way back to our hotel with a tuk tuk and enjoyed another fabulous experience in a China! We are loving our time here!
Comments
6 responses to “Exciting Xi’an”
I’m loving your posts from China. So interesting to see different things through your eyes. Our tour included different sites. Make sure you go to see the Terra Cotta Soldiers. One of the highlights of our trip.
Travel safe
Sharon
Hi Sharon,
Would love to hear your thoughts on some of places you visited…where do we need to go back and visit? We did see the soldiers and were totally blown away!
Take care,
Kat:)
Tell us more about the peanut pounding!
Xian …is that the city with the warriors?
Sounds like you are enjoying the experience of ‘teaching’ English…that is one thing that I also remember ….the young people loved to practice on visitors. And questions! So many questions!
HI Herta,
We saw the peanut pounding and dough making throughout the Muslim Quarter. A couple of men pound the peanuts and then they are mixed into a dough. They are twisted and twisted continuously and then made into almost a peanut fudge. It was very popular. We saw it at a number of stalls. The smell was amazing…fresh peanuts!
And yes…Xi’an is the city of the soldiers!
Cheers,
Kat:)
Hi Kat,
Very interesting! What do they make with the peanut dough? I really like the look of the train! It looks very modern, Thanks very much for sharing. Love, Mom
Hi Mom,
The peanut dough is turned into squares of fudge….the Chinese don’t like a lot of sweet desserts, but this seemed to be very popular with the locals. We were able to sample it and it was a very fresh peanut taste.
Cheers,
K:)