Rural China, maize fields everywhere, corn drying on the roads, roofs and any flat spot.
After breakfast we went for a walk in the park before having to rush off for the days 'activities'.
It had a lovely atmosphere with ponds and willow trees and people doing exercises, a group playing Chinese instruments and singing, and one guy practising his scales (Western) on a violin.
However there is no loitering and we went off to the Longmen (= Dragons Gate) Caves including the 10,000 Buddha Cave. They were 'built' from 680 AD and feature
grottoes with one Buddha 17 m high, another up to 10,000 images 2 cm and the usual million set of steps.
Then off to Museum of Chariots where the message was dont get friendly with emporers. We understand the horses were bashed on the head to stun them , then buried. The same was done to his concubines and faithful servants. Altogether an impressive and thought provoking exhibition.
After that all aboard for an evening train journey which had us in Xian Sofitel at 10.15 pm.
The weather was a bit dicey although hard to tell if it was the overcast, fog or smog obscuring the scenery.
Next morning after a mostly western breakfast it was off to the Shaanxi Provincial Museum where the main exhibit is the Forest of Steles = about 2,000 inscribed stone tablets. This is a collection recording the most important historical and Confucian texts.
Most inscriptions were worn down by generations of monks doing rubbings for their own records. Very crowded as it was popular with the Chinese tourists as well as the international ones
Xian has an intact set of city walls 12 k in total and up another set of steps found us on the wall. Its difficult to know what is original, what is new and what is 'restored' at historical sites, although most of what we saw of the wall looked the real thing.
Except for the gentleman guarding the steps who was the friendliest warrior we will meet.
We went to the Big Wild Goose Pagoda. Probably has some original 6th century bits and was used to house the documents brought from India by a monk but the building has been added to many times.
Highlights were the Jade Room, which I thought was really something and the piccy doesnt do it any justice, and the bamboo ladder definitely 20th century and as solid as any ladder you will find at. Monks still live there.
Chinese dumpling lunch was a fun meal as the dumplings were made up as chickens and ducks. Skills with chopsticks not improving but getting better at holding the plate to my mouth.
Next stop was the Shaanxi History Museum with classical artefacts including this duck shaped oil lamp, one of my favorites.
A very fancy Chinese restaurant that night - the Tang Dynasty Restaurant and Show. The meal was the usual very good Chinese (rarely as sweet as in Oz) and the show was quite professional with musicians and dancers. And although our group was only about 20% of the audience, this was what came down at the grand finale!!!
Hmm, did I show you the power lines at one of the Xian intersections?
Next day was the highlight of the Terracotta Warriors, now sheltered under a huge roof. About 1,000 have been unearthed but least at 7,000 remain. For the moment they have stopped digging as the colours fade almost as soon as they are dug up. No more will be done till that problem is solved.
The farmer who first came across them was there signing books. He is 75 now and looked very tired. I would be too. No piccy of him as he doesnt like it taken.
As neighbour Vicky already has a warrior from her trip to Xian, we didnt get one.
A sign at the Stone Tablets
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