Xi'an is a very, very smoggy city. In China's efforts to modernize before the 2008 Olympics, it's building coal-fueled power plants in the countryside, which contributes to the smog.
Believe it or not, that's a sunny day in Xi'an.
Anyways, the terra cotta warriors was a great museum. It's stunning to realize that all of those statues were different in facial features. What's even more impressive is the restoration work going on after the tombs were looted.
We also saw the guy who found the tombs back in the 1970s. Apparently, when he found them, a bunch of his neighbors got sick and they thought he unleashed a curse. He fled to the caves to hide out until some foreign dignitary came to visit and asked where he was. That person also asked for his autograph. Because the farmer was illiterate, the government taught him how to write his name -- the only three characters he can write.
A little old guy, he was sitting at a table and would put his autograph in a book about the tombs. If a person tried to take a picture of him, he's grab a sign that said "NO PICTURES" and cover his face. Heh. I don't blame him really. The paparazzi must've been a pain in the ass.
After the terra cotta warriors, the tour group shuttled us out to see a real rural farming house (sorry for the sarcasm). Part of the home was in a cave, which was pretty cool in the warm weather. When we were there, three boys who wouldn't stop asking us for money as other people offered to sell us cutout profiles of ourselves for $1. They seemed amused by Jeff (something that common during the trip, but I'll talk about that later).
That was the weird part. I mean, it's like having a tour group come traipsing through our homes: "Come see a real American middle-class family!" But I have a feeling that the family received some cash from our group wandering through (and more than people giving $1 for cutout profiles). I suppose that in a country where the median income is approximately $6,000 and rural people are basically dirt poor, you hustle where you can. In a weird way, I liked the kids for their enterprising spirit.
We also saw a dance and music show that was quite good. The dances are replicas of those performed in the Tang Dynasty. I was also amused to find out that the idea Tang Dynasty woman had long hair, a thick figure, pale skin and a double chin. I am the idea woman -- just during the Tang Dynasty.
But the best part was the dumpling dinner afterwards. Eighteen courses of dumplings were presented. At first you don't think it's a lot because they're small, but as the night went on....whoa. I forget how those little dumplings fill you up.
And there was also the Big Wild Goose Pagoda that we visited before heading to Gulin.
I enjoyed being at that temple. Hearing the monks chant and pray gave me chills and a weird sense of calm. I had that feeling before when I traveled to Taiwan when I was 20 and we'd visit those temples.
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