Farewell to Xi'An

We woke up on Monday (our last day in Xi'An) and decided an immediate trip for coffee was in order.  Since Starbucks was right in the heart of town and situated on our way to our first destination it seemed to make sense.  Here I lingered over whether I should buy a Starbucks Xi'An coffee mug.  I decided against it, although it should be noted that later on I kicked myself over not buying it there.  Why?  Because I've decided I love the Starbucks coffee mugs and that they make great souvenirs...so moral of the story...next time you are debating whether or not to buy that souvenir...do it!  You probably won't be back!

Rodney with a local Xi'An Policeman

O.k. after our coffee we decided to head down to a more artsy district of town.  We had seen this portion of the city on our walk about the city wall and decided it would be a good morning trip before our flight back to Beijing.  The little district was great in that it was a local place with almost no tourists.  This provided us with less of the usual tacky touristy items and more authentic Chinese cultural items.  Rodney searched around for some lions and Mao memorabilia and I just pretty much browsed the calligraphy and took in the local art.  After a peaceful morning here we headed back to the hotel to check out and start our journey to the airport and back to Beijing.

At checkout the staff highly recommended for us to take a taxi to a certain part of town and then take a bus from there to the airport.  So we got in the taxi and told him where we were going.  The taxi driver starts talking a little and between the little amount of Chinese we knew and the fantastic sign language type hand flapping he was doing we were able to communicate very well.  He was trying to talk us into letting him take us all the way to the airport.  We played it cool until he finally hit a price that sounded great...and we took it.  Sometimes you just have to love bartering in China.  It is hard to describe, but without speaking the same language...without anybody getting mad or even really confused even...we both came to a deal that made everyone happy!  Gotta love that.  I think Comcast should learn to do the same :-)

It was once we got to the airport that the excitement for the day really happened.  Rodney and I had both decided to take just carry on items so we wouldn't have to check baggage.  I told Rodney I had some chapstick in my bag and they might get mad so I might be a second, so he got into a different line.  My bag went through just fine and I start looking around...but no Rodney.  There is a small commotion going on at the security line next to me...wonder what that could be.  Wait, isn't that Rodney in there?

Turns out Rodney had purchased a couple of long army knives for gifts while in Xi'An and completely forgot that they were in his carry on.  Needless to say...security was not going to let him go through with those.  All in all, it wasn't too bad though as they were super nice and took him back to the front and allowed him to check that bag and proceed.  Phew...disaster averted!  I can only imagine the ruckus that the U.S. airports would have raised over something like that!

Once safely on the airplane we made it back to Beijing in no time at all (sidenote:  flying domestic China really isn't bad at all.  They always provide meals for you on the plane and you can check two bags for free...the only downside...no phones whatsoever!  Even if you just use your iPod touch as a music player...that's a no go...but otherwise...very pleasant!).  Now comes the real test, can I get the taxi driver to get us back to campus?  Well...turns out with a map it isn't too bad.  Next time, I will try it with just words.

Back safely now in my apartment I can't help but think what a great opportunity this semester has been.  I'm very thankful for this time in China, and the ability to explore a little bit on my own.  I can't wait for future adventures...now that I know I can travel pretty well with my limited language skills!

Zaijian for now,
Gary

Xi'An Part San

After a long day of sightseeing yesterday we decided to start out our morning a little slower by walking around downtown a bit and getting breakfast at Starbucks :-)  After some caffeine and a muffin we had a plan for the day and headed out to the city wall with the intentions of renting a bike and riding completely around the top.

Yep, Starbucks is pretty much the same :-)

Once at the wall our hopes were soon dashed as we discovered they had banned bikes on the top of the wall for the month of December in order to finish some construction on one portion of the wall :-(  O.k., no problem (may murrr!).  The bikes were appealing because this city wall goes around the entire city and the bikes would have allowed us to get a 360 of all of Xi'An.  However, we soon discovered that wall is wall is wall :-)  We strolled along about 1/4 of the wall and took in the relatively quiet city (not a big tourist season right now) and scouted out some areas to perhaps try later in the day.  It was a little chilly...but not too bad (well for me at least...I'm pretty sure Rodney froze his butt off!)

On top of the City Wall of Xi'An

After our adventure on the wall we decided to try to find a couple of the more local attractions we had searched out via Rodney's trusty travel guide.  The first item on Rodney's list was a local flea market/antique fair which is only held on Sundays in Xi'An.  I have to admit...I had little faith that we would find the right alley for this market (or even if it still existed given the book was published in 2007)...but...Rodney had faith and we soon found ourselves smack dab in the middle of a pretty cool local antique market.

Local Antique Flea Market in Xi'An

I wasn't really sure I was looking for anything here but Rodney had his heart set on finding some swords/knives for a relative.  We bartered some and looked around and eventually I spotted a pair of walnuts I thought would make a good stocking stuffer.  (O.k. it is hard to describe the fascination with walnuts here...but...you see them all over the place, people buy them in a set and twirl them around in their hand...I think it is supposed to help circulation or something??)  I asked how much...200 RMB!!  What?  Here's the other thing about these walnuts, depending on (apparently the sellers opinion) they can range in price from pretty cheap...to outrageously expensive.  Supposedly the more expensive ones are almost identical in size, shape, weight, and markings.  I quickly moved on to the guy right next to him where I got a set for 20 RMB.  Good enough for me!  Rodney bartered for awhile and soon had himself a couple of nice knives and a bracelet of some sort...all in all, a pretty good find!

As Rodney was finishing up one final transaction I wandered out and noticed a temple nearby...and heck...that seems touristy right?  So we went and visited what apparently is a pretty famous Taoist temple.  Here's the thing with me and temples though.  In China...there are a LOT of temples.  And to some extent...a temple is a temple is a temple.  So it was cool to see the Taoist temple...but, we didn't linger for long.  The one thing I found fascinating about this one is that you could buy fake money outside of the temple to leave for the temple Gods apparently.  I had a pretty good laugh about this.  For 10 RMB you could buy 10,000 fake RMB to leave for the temple Gods.  Why not leave the 10 RMB?

An alter and statue where you can leave fruit and fake money.

After the temple we decided to hit up the Big Goose Pagoda.  We weren't really sure what to expect...other than a Pagoda, but it turned out to be a really good choice.  The area around here looked almost like a Disneyland of Pagodas.  Tons of vendors, outdoor fountains going off, rides and of course the usual pagoda and towers to explore.  We decided to make our way to the huge tower and start our way to the top.  After what seemed like 25 flights of stairs we finally arrived to the top!

The Big Goose Pagoda in Xi'An

We got to the top just in time too!  There was a window at the top where you could look out upon the whole square and just as we reached the top they started a fountain show in the square below (very similar to the fountain shows in front of the Bellagio).  After enjoying the fountains we headed back down and explored the square a bit more before deciding it was time for a little dinner.

I had my heart set on a local dish, Yang Rou Pao Mo.  This is essentially pita bread that you tear up really small into a bowl and then they pour either beef or mutton soup over top and let it soak into the bread.  I had found the 'best' place in Xi'An to find this dish (supposedly it has been serving the local specialty since 1897...there was even a famous poem and song written about it that basically says something like everything in the world is changing, but once we go home to this restaurant in Xi'An the Yang Rou Pao Mo never changes) and armed with iPhone pictures I had taken of the address in Chinese and the dish name in Chinese we set off on an adventure.

Turns out, the photos helped immensely and we found the restaurant, no problem!  Once inside we ordered up our soup and tried to order several other dishes because we were starving.  But each time we were brutally rebuffed and directed to a counter where cold unappetizing dishes laid.  We soon got the picture, as foreigners we were allowed to have the soup...and pick dishes that were already made...but not order anything else...lol.  O.k. no problem, we came for soup anyways.  As we sat painstakingly tearing up our bread a young Chinese boy joined us at our table.  We seemed to get along just fine...well the conversation was a little lacking (him not speaking any English...Rodney using 'Wei Wei' to convey everything from excuse me to go straight ahead and myself knowing only food words and numbers...lol)...but I do enjoy how they do it in China...if there is room at your table...sit somebody else there!

Our soup soon arrived, and it was worth the wait.  If you should ever find yourself in Xi'An you will certainly need to try out this local specialty :-)  After dinner we were pretty exhausted so we headed back to the hotel and called it a night.  Tomorrow we shall return to Beijing, but will have a little time to explore the artsy part of Xi'An and perhaps do a little more shopping.

Zaijian for now.
Gary

Xi'an Part Deaux-The Terracotta Warriors

We arrived late last night to Xi'an after our plane had been delayed a few hours because of a light snow in Beijing.  After catching a bus from the airport near Xi'an to downtown we bartered with a taxi/random van driver to get us to our hotel (turned out he was a little crooked...oh well...they always are).  Once in the hotel we made a rough plan for the next day and hit the sheets shortly thereafter.

One of the many Terracotta Warriors

Bright and early the next morning we met Patrick, a driver recommended to us by several faculty at ICB who had previously visited Xi'an.  Since the Terracotta warriors are a great distance away from downtown Xi'an, a private driver or a vast knowledge of the local transit system is needed.  Since Peter quoted us a price of $50 for the entire days worth of driving...we decided to go with that option :-)  Once in Peter's car he asked us if we would like to visit a Bamboo village.  Rodney was very non-committal about it...but I was excited...YEAH!!  Bring on the Bamboo village!

After a short while we pulled into the 'Bamboo village' and I realized why Rodney had been so non-committal.  Turns out Peter wasn't talking about a Bamboo village...but rather the Banpo village, an archeological site of sorts where they think the oldest Chinese civilization once lived.  Hmm...still I guess when in Xi'an...might as well see all the sites right.  Anyways...we roamed around looking at the outlines of old huts and visited the museum with tons of old pottery and weapons and stuff of that nature and it was pretty cool.  Probably the most eventful happening was when Rodney and I were actually looking for Peter after we were done at the 'village'.  Rodney was down on the path looking around and I was on top of a set of stairs looking for Peter.  Apparently I decided to walk while not looking at the ground and fell face first off the set of 6 stairs...right on my face...yep.  Rodney saw the whole thing and in his defense only laughed a bit.  Bam...nothing like falling on your face to wake you up and get you ready for the rest of the day right.  Right.  O.k. we found Peter and were soon off again.

Banpo Village...no Bamboo to be found

After the Banpo village Peter drove us to 'the official Terracotta Warriors souvenir place.  I think this stop is mandated and helps keep the cost of his services down.  Rodney and I looked around and actually did barter a few items.  I found a little teapot Christmas tree ornament for my mom for Christmas and was pleased with the price...and then back on our way to the actual warriors :-)

In Pit 1 with the football field full of warriors :-)

Peter dropped us off for a quick lunch on the outskirts of the Terracotta Warriors and then we were off inside to start our viewing of the three different pits.  For those unfamiliar with the Terracotta Warriors (the 8th wonder of the world), an ancient Chinese emperor believed that an individual could take with them all items buried with them into the afterlife.  So he had his people construct an entire army out of stone to bury with him for him to have in the afterlife.  Crazy right!  Football sized fields full of soldiers, horses, carriages and regalia...all handcrafted with the most intense detail you could ever imagine.

They are still working on unearthing some of these warriors here

There are three pits of soldiers and each was incredibly impressive and well worth the trip to Xi'an just to see the warriors.  Lighting was a little low so the pictures didn't turn out that great...but it was the type of experience that one can never forget.  If you want to read more about the warriors click on Terracotta Warriors :-)

These are all life-size warriors...incredible!

On our way out of seeing the warriors Rodney and I stopped and bartered quite a bit.  It was here that I had my first bartering experience where the ENTIRE transaction was done in Chinese...from start to finish.  It was a great feeling to know that I actually could barter the whole way through without the seller flipping over into English (which they will do in a heartbeat if they feel your Chinese isn't good enough)...so woohoo!!  Ended up buying some shadow puppets as Christmas presents, some ginger taffy, and some other local Xi'an treats.

After our bartering we found Peter and he graciously took us back to our hotel (seriously if anyone is going to Xi'an this guy was fantastic).  By the time we got back it was 5:00 and we were feeling like another adventure.  This time we wanted to find and explore the Muslim Quarter of Xi'an.  Rodney's impeccable directional skills quickly got us there and we were soon immersed in the lights, sounds, smells and vibrant nature of the street life here.

Mmm...muslim food...BAA!!

Food was the #1 priority on our agenda and Rodney soon found a restaurant with great smelling food out front that we had to try...but one small problem...they spoke neither English...nor Chinese!  And there were no picture menus...uhh...I'm about ready to abort mission when Rodney and the waiter start in on some sort of baaaaing mooing routine and before we know it Rodney has successfully ordered us mutton, beef, and lamb chuar, bread, and rice...score!  The food was delicious...and the experience was even better.

Slightly out of focus...or perfectly capturing the mood?

We left with our bellies full (well not full enough to prevent me from trying many other great street food items...yum) and began to just stroll and do some light bartering.  I found a set of China dolls for another Christmas present that I liked and some other novel items...but decided that rest was important than bartering and we were soon back to the hotel to wrap up a GREAT first night in Xi'an.  I'm looking forward to tomorrow where we will get to explore the rest of the town, the city wall, and many of the pagaoda's around.  If the weather is nice we hope to bike around the entire city wall...so fingers crossed.

Zaijian and Wan An (Good night)
Gary

Xi'An or Not to Xi'An

With only one week of classes left (and then finals) my friend and fellow faculty member Rodney came up with the idea (on Monday) to take the upcoming weekend and head to Xi'An.  Since I've been meaning to get out of Beijing and travel a bit...I decided this opportunity could not be missed.  Within a day the plan was set, plane tickets were bought, a hotel was secured and lesson plans and grading were caught up.  Friday rolled around and I found myself slightly queasy as I overheard Rodney saying something about me being the one who spoke Chinese...'gulp'.  This could be interesting...

Traveling in China is something I certainly want to do and I believe this trip will be great for giving me confidence in doing that.  It is just that there are so many things that come up that are hard to deal with if you do not have good language skills...we will see how we do :-)

Xi'An Bell Tower at Night

What is in Xi'An you may ask (and I asked some students as well).  Well, Xi'An is home to the Terracotta Warriors...one of the greatest sites in China and considered the 8th Wonder of the World.  In fact, most people say if you have not been to Xi'An to see the warriors...then you have not even been to China!  They also have a very vibrant Muslim Quarter, a huge city wall that goes around the entire city, and several other temples, pagodas, sites and food to explore and see.

Big Goose Pagoda

As I sit here in the Beijing airport waiting to catch our delayed flight (it snowed today for the first time in Beijing...and apparently snow stops planes in China) I have a few main thoughts running through my head.  1.  We managed to get from our apartment to the airport without a hitch (thanks to a student who helped me write out in Chinese 'Please take this man to the airport Terminal 3 :-), 2.  I love Burger King!  The airport has all sorts of delicious American food...and by delicious I mean they have real meat!  3.  The internet here is FANTASTIC!  Way better then on campus or in our apartments.  4.  I am thankful for this opportunity to get out and explore a country with such vast history as China.  It should be an epic weekend :-)

Zaijian,
(Learn Chinese:  T-San-Terminal 3)
Gary