China Ancient Trip, Day 4-5: Xi'an

Don't get confused with Renminbi and Yuan, the PRC's (People's Republic of China) currency. It is similar to that between "sterling" and "pound," which respectively refer to the currency and primary unit (source: Wiki). I got so confused when the tour agent, Kathy, quoted me in RMB, whilst upon checking on the conversion, it stated CNY. It is not Chinese New Year; it is Chinese Yuan.

The fourth day of the trip was mostly a free & easy traveling day. Our two-and-a-half-hour flight to Xi'an departed from HK airport in the afternoon. We only arrived at our hotel in the evening. It was a spacious room with two queen beds and a small kitchen complete with the necessary utensils. But the real catch is that the hotel is located within the ancient Xi'an city wall. It was said that this city is the end of the ancient Silk Road.

The Muslim street, or Huimin Jia, is located a 10-minute walk from the Citadines Central Hotel. While we were heading to the Muslim street, we were greeted by a Malay-speaking guy! He was the owner of the well-located restaurant at the corner of the street. He used to run a business in Shah Alam for several years. We had delicious food for our dinner, where most of the noodles were made at the instant.

Standing at the payment counter is the owner, who used to work in Shah Alam

I can't remember the food that I had ordered. I should snap the menu

Anyway, all the food we ordered was delicious.

Buying some snacks for tomorrow's backpack

The next morning, our tour guide, Fang, greeted us in the hotel's lobby. We know that was the moment we can't wait for. Fang took us for the terracotta army visit. This could be the best thing to see when in Xi'an. The museum of Qin Terracotta Warriors and Horses is located to the northeast of the city wall, about a one-hour drive.

Having watched the movie The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon, I wish that I could see the real terracotta clay army. I'm kind of a historic-plus-adventure guy :) who appreciates the like. There were three pits containing the terracotta army in that mausoleum; Fang gives some brief updates. It has more than 8,000 soldiers and horses. And we spent more than 2 hours just to explore this protruding ancient artifact.

Sorry, I can't read Chinese...

Nu'man playing around with Fang

We'll catch the movie later.

The main pit was really big!

Family photo frame

This site was accidentally first found by a farmer

Excavation works are still going on...

Managed to snap pictures from a close range

I touch the army!

There were red, blue, and green...

The horse and its riders without the carriage

Another excavation works in the second pit

Some of the army clays were kept in the nearby museum

It was a gloomy museum.

It was actually a big area, as you can see the mausoleum from far on the right side of this picture. There were buggy cars at the entrance tickets, but we had to walk to the exit.

Anyway, we enjoyed the garden view and the art crafts

We head back to the city center, where the driver took us to the Xi'an Great Mosque. It is the oldest mosque in China, founded during the Tang Dynasty. It was actually located very near to the Muslim street where we had our dinner last night. However, the experience of visiting the street in both day and night would be different. Fang suggested a local lunch meal in one of the Muslim street's restaurants. For most of our stay in Xi'an, we did come back to this street for lunch/dinner, as it was very near to our hotel.

Next, to further dampen our day, Fang took us to the Xi'an City Wall. While googling for things to do in Xi'an, one of the suggested activities was to cycle around the city wall. However, my wife reluctantly got along with my idea, but I think it's quite difficult to hover on the tricycle :P.

Muslim Street in the afternoon

Lunch for the day!

Another family photo frame

I like this setup

One of the wakaf (rest area) in the Great Mosque

I think this was the tombstone of the religious teacher

Can you read it? This mosque is dated almost 1,250 years old.

A nice and beautiful local hand-made craft

A South Gate Barbican entrance of Xi'an behind us

The guard tower, in its Chinese construction and architectural style, 

Tourist cycling on the walkway of the Xi'an City Wall

The watchtower model

Though it was only three places visited in a 6-hour trip, the best part was that it was very flexible, as we could see as much as we liked. Here is the adult ticket for the sightseeing. Children below 7 years are free.

The museum of Qin Terracotta Warriors and Horses: RMB 150
Xi'an City Wall: RMB 50
Xi'an Great Mosque: Free