Day 6 - The Terracotta Warriors

The second of our long anticipated highlights was today - a visit to the excavation site of the Terracotta Warriors.  We started off with a visit to a factory where they make models of the soldiers in the same way as the originals were believed to have been made.  The only difference is that the originals were painted - the models are not.

It was then off to the site - an amazing set up with three pits open for public viewing.  Pit One was the largest and most impressive.  To see the army all lined up in position was mind-blowing.

Later of course we had to have the customary stroll round the museum shop without which no museum tour is complete.  It was clearly our day though for the farmer who made the initial discovery of the warriors (when he went out to dig for a well) was there in the shop signing copies of the guide book.  It was at that point I decided to buy one - well, who wouldn't?

Day 4/5 - Midnight train to Xian

      

      The view from our hotel room 

      on the 11th floor!

      (Orient Hotel, Xian)

      Small Wild Goose Pagoda, Xian

      View from the grounds of 

      the Small Wild Goose Pagoda

Well not quite the midnight train but later in the evening we loaded up and headed off for the next stage of our China experience - the overnight train to Xian from Beijing.  We had the luxury of traveling first class in the 'soft seat' carriages - four people to a cubicle and not so soft really.  It was an experience though and we duly arrived on the next leg of our journey in a new city, eager to get to our hotel for a shower, then off out to see the sites.

We arrived in Xian about 8.30am in a city quite different from Beijing but equally remarkable.  Over three centuries old, Xian is one of the oldest cities in China.  After a brief stop at our hotel (Orient Hotel Xian) we went out for some lunch and then paid a visit to the Small Wild Goose Pagoda which was absolutely stunning.  It was fantastic to be able to walk around after the uncomfortable night's slumber (if you could call it that) on the train.

As we wandered around we became increasingly aware of some familiar sounding accents.  Being the nosy type that I am, we got chatting with them only to discover they were on holiday from Ecclefechan.  Small world eh?  Fancy traveling all that way only to meet people that live just down the road (relatively speaking)!

Our evening meal tonight was to be a rather special affair.  We went to one of those theatre-cum-restaurant places - and very grand it was too.  Unfortunately the food, whilst well cooked, was not quite to my taste.  I've come to the conclusion that dumplings are not my favourite food, especially when I don't know whether they're going to be savoury or sweet.  The show was excellent though - colourful and dramatic and a night I'll remember for a long time to come. 

Tomorrow is one of the big days for us - we visit the site of the famous Terracotta Warriors!

It's all go here.  Catch y'all later.