Science, Photography, and Trip Reviews
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Xian Tour of Scenic & Historic Sights
Xian City Wall, Terracotta Warriors, & Market
Muslim Quarters & Tang Dynasty Dance Show
Art Ceramics and Lacquer Exhibition Center
Night Lights, Music, & Dancing
Escorted Tour & Wendy Wu
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Tour director and also local Xian guide Addison with flag. |
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Tour Beijing to Shanghai with Yangtze River Cruise
We were on a Wendy Wu escorted tour of China which is reviewed in the China Intro Page. The tour started in Beijing, where there were three nights on the tour including the Great Wall. From Beijing we flew to Xian where we stayed for two nights and saw the Terracotta Warriors, and it is all described here. From Xian we flew to Wuhan where we were taken by motor coach to the Yangtze River at Yichang. There we boarded the Victoria Katarina river cruise ship and stayed for four nights. Both the ship and amazing crew shows are reviewed. For a description of the daily shore excursions see the Yangtze River Excursions. We left the cruise ship in Chongqing. From there we flew to Guilin where we spent one night. From Guilin we took a river cruise boat on the Li River to Yangshuo where we stayed two nights in the presence of gorgeous scenery. The tour ended with two nights in Shanghai. Contact Us for more information.
Xian City Wall
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Walking on top of the Xian City Wall. |
We flew from Beijing to Xian. Because of our early morning departure the hotel provided us with box breakfasts. The flight to Xian took nearly 2 hours. We arrived to encounter light rain. After lunch at a restaurant we went to visit the Ancient City Wall. Our national tour director, Addison, grew up in and lives in Xian. So he also served as our local guide in Xian. He is pictured at the top of this page describing the Xian City Wall to our tour group. It is one of the best preserved walls in China, and surrounds the old part of the city. Construction of the wall began in 1370, and the wall has been refurbished a number of times since then. The picture above shows the top of the City Wall, which is a great place to go for a walk or bicycle ride. The distance around the City Wall is 8.5 miles (13.7 kilometers). In the evening we had dinner at a lovely restaurant. Due to the rain some of the day's activities were delayed until the next day.
Xian Art Ceramics and Lacquer Exhibition Center
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Making miniature Terracotta Warriors at the Xian Art Ceramics and Lacquer Exhibition Center. |
In the morning after breakfast at our hotel we were headed about an hour away to see the famous Terracotta Warriors. We stopped first at the Xian Art Ceramics and Lacquer Exhibition Center where they make miniature statues of the of the Terracotta Warriors. The above picture shows them being made. You wanted to buy, of course, miniature statues of the warriors to take home. They also had life-size statues of the Terracotta Warriors that you could have your picture taken with. In the picture below you can see that we did have our picture taken with them.
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Rebecca and Sunny with Terracotta Warriors at the Xian Art Ceramics and Lacquer Exhibition Center. |
Terracotta Warriors Museum
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Terracotta Warriors on display in large museum. |
From the Exhibition Center we went nearby to the museum where the life-sized statues of the Terracotta Warriors and Horses are on display. They are in large pits in the ground where they have been preserved. There are many warriors on display as well as horses. It is said that there are more than 7,000 warriors, horses, and chariots. Lunch was at the museum.
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Close-up view of Terracotta Warriors. |
The Terracotta Warriors were created for Emperor Qin Shihuang. In 221 BC he united China and became the first emperor of the country as a whole. He had the warriors buried in his tomb to protect him in his afterlife. This task was accomplished by more than 700, 000 workers that built his tomb and the Terracotta Warriors over a forty-year period. The warriors included archers, cavalrymen, charioteers, and infantrymen, and they were buried in the order that they would have served in battle. The warriors were armed with weapons, but through the years the wood has rotted away. Farmers discovered the Terracotta Warriors in 1974 when they were digging a well.
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Side view of Terracotta Warriors and horses. |
The Terracotta Warriors are found in three buildings referred to as Vaults. The main building to see is Vault 1, and the pictures above were taken in this museum building. Many of the warriors in this building have been carefully restored. Vaults 2 and 3 show warriors in various stages of reconstruction.
Market in the Muslim Quarter
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Stretching noodles in the market in the Muslim Quarter in Xian. |
Back in Xian in the early evening we strolled through a market in the Muslim Quarter. Among other things it was interesting seeing some cooks stretch out dough multiple times to make noodles. This is shown in the picture above.
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Pounding Ginger in the market in the Muslim Quarter in Xian. |
Other cooks were pounding ginger. As seen above they were working in pairs. Below is a street scene. The street was closed to cars and was very busy with people, the vast majority being Chinese.
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Street scene in the market in the Muslim Quarter in Xian. |
Tang Dynasty Dancing Show
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Scene from the Tang Dynasty Dancing Show in Xian. |
From the market we went to a dinner theater where we had a great dinner and saw the Tang Dynasty Dancing Show. This show was included in the tour. The Tang Dynasty existed from 618–907. As can be seen in the above picture many of the musical instruments are not like what we see in the western world. With these traditional Chinese instruments the musicians created beautiful sounds. Below is a picture of some of the dancing. They were great at twirling the long sleeves
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Scene from the Tang Dynasty Dancing Show in Xian. |
The show is in ten scenes: Hua Qing Palace, White Sleeve Dance, Panpipe Solo "Spring Orioles Songs," Spring Outing, Prince Qin Breaking Through the Enemy Array, The Red and White Peach Blossoms, Trumpet Solo "Harvesting Chinese Dates," Fairy Dance in Feathered Costume, Percussion Show "Gossiping Ducks" and "Hungry Tiger," and The Great Tang Rites and Music.
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Scene from the Tang Dynasty Dancing Show in Xian. |
It was a beautiful show of music and dance. The costumes were gorgeous and the dancing of high quality. More dance scenes are presented in the pictures above and below.
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Scene from the Tang Dynasty Dancing Show in Xian. |
Tang Ever-Bright City Night Tour
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Beautiful light display seen on night walk in Xian. |
The evening tour ended with an optional excursion, a night walk in Xian to observe the attractive lights around fountains, statues, and a pagoda. The above light show was especially attractive.
Tour Beijing to Shanghai with Yangtze River Cruise
We were on a Wendy Wu escorted tour of China which is reviewed in the China Intro Page. The tour started in Beijing, where there were three nights on the tour including the Great Wall. From Beijing we flew to Xian where we stayed for two nights and saw the Terracotta Warriors, and it is all described here. From Xian we flew to Wuhan where we were taken by motor coach to the Yangtze River at Yichang. There we boarded the Victoria Katarina river cruise ship and stayed for four nights. Both the ship and amazing crew shows are reviewed. For a description of the daily shore excursions see the Yangtze River Excursions. We left the cruise ship in Chongqing. From there we flew to Guilin where we spent one night. From Guilin we took a river cruise boat on the Li River to Yangshuo where we stayed two nights in the presence of gorgeous scenery. The tour ended with two nights in Shanghai.
Photos by Sunny Breeding. Picture of us by tour member. We sell images and prints.
