The morning of December 5 we arrived in Xi’an via the train. It was a relief to get off the train and have more space. We arrived at the hotel and had breakfast, freshened up (since there was no shower on the train) and headed off for our day. This day we spent the majority of the day learning about the Terracotta Warriors, which are ancient pottery soldiers that were buried during the Tang Dynasty.
First, we visited the workshop where all of the new warriors and souvenirs are made. They are all made using molds, and the excess clay is trimmed off by workers. The larger models are still done by hand.
After that we went to the actual museum itself to see the buried warriors. It was said that a bunch of farmers discovered the warriors when they were digging for a well. Now it is a national museum and see millions of visitors each year.
The warriors and horse sculptures are pretty neat to see. For me it was mainly because they are so old, and it was kind of crazy to think about how long ago they were created and that they were each created by hand. It took some 700,000 people to make the mosuliem and everything that the emperor at that time demanded, and many people died building it.
That evening we had a dumpling dinner (18 different kinds) and watched a show by local dancers that showed the history of the Tang Dynasty. This was very cool as they were dressed in local costumes and performed some beautiful dances. The dinner was not my favorite, because dumplings are not my favorite. But the show was good so it made it worth it.
On Dec. 6 we spent the entire day at Xi’an International Studies University. This was a very good experience I think. The university provided a student for each of us to talk with and to show us around the campus, so I got about 2 hours of one-on-one time with a local student. The girl that I was paired with was named Snow, and she was a junior in college and 20 years old.
She has already traveled a lot, and it was fun to talk with her and see how much we had in common. We both love Harry Potter, but it was much easier for me to get ahold of the books and movies than for her. Most of the time she had to do her things on the internet or go to Hong Kong since it’s illegal in China.
The internet is very censored here, as the Chinese government does not want its people to see everything out there. Google doesn’t work very well, and both Facebook and Twitter are blocked. That doesn’t stop the people, however. Most of the students that we talked to had a Facebook and use Twitter, and also use Instagram. They find ways around the block either through VPNs or proxy servers.
It’s interesting that no matter how hard the government tries to shield people from information outside of China, they still find a way to get it. Our general tour guide, Mr. HQ, said it best. “Information is power. Information is security. Information is knowledge.”
That afternoon we were given a lecture by a local government official. It was one of the roughest lectures I’ve ever had. The gentleman who spoke talked more circles without saying anything than I’ve ever heard anyone do. He is clearly a very well trained government official and only says what he is supposed to without really saying anything at all.
That evening we flew from Xi”an to Guilin, which was also an interesting experience. Airport security is way less strict than in the U.S. You don’t have to remove anything from your body, and you go through a metal detector and then they wand you. You put your bag through the scanner, but I have a feeling they don’t search nearly as many bags or people as they do in the U.S.
When we went to board the plane, we had another treat. We took a bus from the main terminal to the plane. It was terrifying. They pack the people on very tightly and the bus was very dark. After traveling in what seemed to be endless circles, we finally reached the plane and boarded and then we were on our way to Guilin!