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Xi'an Travelogue
Leaning back in the seat, I relished on the thought of being able to tour Xi'an in a matter of hours. I looked down at my list of possible destinations and found that all of them could easily be described as "relics." A relic is something that survived time; a touchstone of history, and a piece of memory of a long, dark past. Such a trip is ideal for a history buff like me.
Xi'an's airport, Xianyang International Airport, is built near Xianyang, the ancient capital of the Qin dynasty (221-207 B.C.), the first unified empire in China' history. Actually, Shaanxi is also called the land of Qin, because the land belonged to the Qin state since the Spring and Autumn Period (770-476 B.C.).
Some experts say the shape of the map of Shaanxi resembles a kneeling terracotta archer. His head and trunk is the yellow, ragged Loess plateau; his thighs the vast, flat and fertile plain of Guanzhong, the land inside the Hangu Pass. His feet are Hanzhong, a region located in the warm sub-tropical zone full of mountains and rivers. Hanzhong by the way is the last stronghold of China's endangered animal species, home to the giant panda, the golden monkey, the golden takin and the crested ibis.
A shuttle bus picked up us from the airport and in the night we settled on a small hotel near the Xi'an Railway Station. Lying on the bed, holding a Shaanxi tourist map all excited about finally getting to see these “well-known” relics with my own eyes, I began to hum cheerfully...
Day 1
Our first day's itinerary included a tour to the imperial tombs about 100 kilometers to the west of Xi'an and the world-famous Famen Temple with its underground shelter, but what is really important is that the shelter enshrines a finger of Buddha Sakyamuni, a relic in the strict sense of the word.
You can't throw a stick and not hit an imperial tomb in Shaanxi, making the decision of which one to visit difficult. We finally settle on the tombs of the Han(206 B.C.-A.D. 220) and Tang (A.D.618-907) dynasties. Both are located in Fufeng County, about 100 kilometers west of Xi'an.
The most interesting tomb is the joint tomb of Tang Emperor Gaozong and Empress Wu Zetian.
Empress Wu Zetian is the only female emperor in the 2100 years of imperial China. She found her own dynasty, the Zhou, and ruled under the name Emperor Shensheng from A.D.690 to 705. Her rise and reign has been criticized harshly by China's Confucian historians but has been viewed under a different light after the 1950s.
The joint tomb of of Empress Wu Zetian and Emperor Gaozong is built on the top of a hill. A wide and long passageway leads to the tomb entrance. The passage is guarded on each side by stone engravings of courtesans, generals, and animals. They are numerous and exquisite.
The thing that got me most is Empress Wu Zetian's "Stele without Epitaph." The stele has been standing in front of their joint tomb since the tomb was finished. But, unlike other steles erected before an emperor's tomb, there wasn't a single word on it when the stele was completed! The inscriptions we see today were all written later. As to who erected this stele without epigraphy and why he or she did so, this is still a conundrum for archeologists today.
Standing under the burning afternoon sun, our guide tells us three hypotheses. Hypothesis no. 1, Wu Zetian herself erected the stele. But she thought no words could describe her unmatchable exploits, so she ordered not to leave a single word on the stele. Hypothesis no.2, Wu Zetian herself erected the stele, but the once arrogant empress began to realize the sins she committed on her road to power in her old age and thought her sins and exploits canceled each other out, so ordered not to write anything on the stele. Hypothesis no.3, Wu's son, Emperor Zhong Zong, erected the stele, but as he had been so badly treated by his mother in his youth he planned not to erect steles in front of the tomb of his mother. But the courtesans pressured the new emperor, saying an emperor should be an example for every citizen in the empire. If he opted not to show the customary respect towards his mother then everybody would follow his lead and the empire would fall into chaos. Emperor Zhong Zong agreed and erected a stele in front of the tomb of his mother. But he forbade anything good to be written on the stele; thus, the "Stele without Epitaph."
There is an ethnic minority garden not far away from the imperial tombs area, awkwardly called Huangtu Ethnicity Garden. On the recommendation of our guide, we went in. The garden offers a focused display about Shaanxi people's lives, customs, folk traditions, and architecture. There are several yaodong (grottos) in the garden. Though I have seen yaodong many times in movies and on TV, this was the first time for me to walk into a real yaodong. It was very cool inside!
The most impressive part of this tour was watching an Ansai waist drum dance from northern Shaanxi.
To tell the truth, nearly everyone who watched the performance was impressed by it. The drumbeat was hot, making my heart throb. The movements were wild and exaggerated. In the dance, one could sense the bold and unstrained spirit of the northern Shaanxi people.
In the afternoon we headed for the Famen Temple, a pilgrimage site for Buddhists all over the world. The Famen temple is famous for its underground shelter discovered in 1987.
When the gate of the underground shelter beneath the pagoda was opened, people found countless treasure troves and reliquaries. All of them have been sealed up for more than a thousand years. To everyone's great surprise, there was even a finger of Buddha Sakyamuni.
Legend has it that King Asoka of India built the temple on his road to redemption, 1,800 years ago. He left the finger of Buddha to be enshrined here. The Famen Temple was preeminent during the Tang dynasty. The temple has lasted throughout the course of time, but the underground shelter remained unknown after the Tang dynasty.
The original pagoda was destroyed in an earthquake in the late Ming dynasty. Local people, though very poor at that time, managed to repair it, and that's the pagoda we can see today.
The hexagon pagoda has 13 floors, that's the epitome of form for a Buddhist pagoda. Each of the angles is decorated with a bronze bell; altogether, there are 78 bells on the pagoda. When the wind blows, the bells ring out.
Mulling over the temple's history, I stood in the afternoon breeze, closed my eyes and listened to the bells.
Day 2
My second day included a trip to Huaqing Spa Park and the tomb of Emperor Qin Shi Huang and his terracotta army.
There isn't a great deal to see in Huaqing Spa Park, but because a famous story associated with the place, visiting the spa park has become a must-do for nearly every Chinese who ventures to these parts.
The legendary love story between Emperor Xuan Zong and his concubine Yang Guifei is a household tale in China. It is to Chinese what the story of Romeo and Juliet to Westerners. Poets and folk artists are constantly returning to the story for material. As I was touring around the ruins of the former bath facilities, I began to recite the following poem:
On the seventh day of the seventh month, in the Palace of Long Life,
We told each other secretly in the quiet midnight world
That we wished to fly in heaven, two birds with the wings of one,
And to grow together on earth, two branches of one tree."
Earth endures, heaven endures; in time both of us shall end,
While this unending sorrow will go on and on forever.
A little hokey, I know. Call me a romantic. When I think that the fall of the magnificent Tang was all about this romance...
Emperor Qin Shi Huang's tomb and his terracotta warriors are only a few miles from Huaqing Spa Park. Our guide told us the tomb of Emperor Qin Shi Huang doesn't have that much to see. It's just a hill-like tomb, like any other imperial tombs you can see in Shaanxi. But the tomb is seen as a treasure by archaeologists. Not only for the renowned terracotta army, also for fact that this tomb hasn't fallen into the hands of grave robbers and therefore has been left complete. Even today, the tomb of Emperor Qin Shi Huang is a mystery, and it will probably remain as a mystery for future generations.
The Terracotta Army Museum is very close to the tomb of Emperor Qin Shi Huang. There are three pits in the museum, and a display hall of two Bronze Chariots.
Our guide told us the Pit 1 is the largest pit, so we headed there directly. Pit 1 is a combined battle formation of charioteers and infantrymen. At the eastern end of the pit there are three rows of vanguards. Immediately behind the vanguards is the main body of the battle formation. Around the outer edge, there is one row of soldiers facing south, north and west respectively as the flanks to guard the sides and rear of the army.
Rows after rows of soldiers stand vigilantly as if facing the enemy. This group image is utterly awe inspiring. There are at least 3,000 men in this pit, but each is unique, especially in terms of facial expression. No prefab, mass production used in creating this army.
Pit 2 and 3 are full of ruins. As far as I could tell, distorted bodies and fallen parts of the terracotta warriors are scattered at every corner of this pit. Passing through the pit is just like crossing a battlefield of some bloody, terrifying, and decisive battle back in the age of Qin.
Besides the terracotta army, the other treasures in the museum are the bronze chariots that were found together in the pit. The bronze chariots are really refined artwork. The bridles and saddles of the horses are all exquisitely inlaid with gold and silver designs. It is said that the first chariot was for clearing the road for the Emperor's entourage, and the second was his sleeping chariot. As I was reading the illustration, I discovered that these two half-life size bronze chariots are made up of 6,000 small components! I was amazed when a worker in the museum showed visitors how the sliding umbrella stand can be adjusted in accordance to the position of the sun. I could only admire this marvelous Qin technology.
Day 3
On the third day of our visit, we toured around the city on foot. The temperature was still hot, making our last day in Xi'an a bit uncomfortable.
It is said that if you want to see one thousand years of history, you should go to Beijing; if you want to see two thousand years of history, you should go to Luoyang; if you want to see three thousand years of history, then come to Xi'an. This saying is no exaggeration. When Chang'an was the empire's capital, Luoyang was just beginning to rise, and Beijng was no more than a border town. But as time went by, the former cultural and political center gave way to other cities younger than her.
The ancient city of Xi'an we speak of today was rebuilt from a small quarter of the Great Chang'an city, the capital of the Tang Dynasty (A.D.618-907) and of great importance in the early Ming Dynasty. The city's after that was rechristened Xi'an, meaning peace in the west in Chinese, as the Ming emperor sitting in Nanjing hoped the empire's western border would always be blessed with peace and prosperity.
Walking along the streets of Xi'an, for most of the time, it is easy to forget the fact that you are walking through a 3,000 years old city. Wide roads and refined city gardens, business districts and fashionably dressed girls… All these make you feel like you are walking along the streets of a young and booming city elsewhere in the country. But in some other aspects, especially in the downtown area, you can still find traces of the old city to remind you of its true age. The street names ring familiar to Chinese as they have been in existence thousands of years and are taught in history books in Chinese middle schools. There are some extraordinarily old trees, and the city's chessboard way of construction--the capital way. As Beijinger, I was at home the moment I walked out into this old city. The two cities' layout is practically the same! A vender at a roadside shop even told me that strangers from other provinces never get lost in Xi’an, because the city's building pattern is so clear and easy to remember. I laughed and replied, "I am a prime example of this!"
Besides the old city's chessboard layout, the city has the largest surviving ancient military defense system in the world and the most complete city wall in the country. We even planned to go on top of the wall to get a panoramic view of the old city on a good day. But we didn't get around to this, partly due to the oppressive heat, partly due to the ticket price hike. It was a little too expensive for what it was.
After a brief visit along the city wall, we decided to return to the hotel to escape the heat and wait for night to fall.
Nightlife and Where to Eat
Xi'an is probably the only restless city at night in the northwestern part of the country. After night fell and the temperature dropped, we came out again, this time, to visit Xi'an's renowned Muslim quarter and try its northwestern delicacies.
Historical records show that there were thousands of households from other nations in the Chang'an city during the Tang dynasty. At that time, many foreigners chose to stay in Chang'an because it was a great medieval metropolis. Many of such permanent immigrants are the Hui people. The Hui tended to live together and their residential area finally grew into the city's Muslim quarter which is near the Drum and Bell Tower.
We consulted our guide beforehand and decided the right places to eat are in the city's Muslim quarter with the Drum Tower as its entrance. As we entered from the Drum Tower gate, we immediately found ourselves in a crowded street filled with snack stalls, traders, hawkers and tourists from home and abroad. For a few minutes, I felt like I had walked into the market of a medieval castle.
An old Hui man caught my eye. He was standing in front of his tricycle beneath the entrance of the drum tower selling a kind of local cake called "Linglonggao." I bought one and ate it, only to find out its looks is more appealing than its taste.
One food universally offered on this snack street was Xinjiang-style kebabs. Many restaurants put their kebab grill outside, partly to escape the heat, partly to draw customers. As soon as I was in this atmosphere, I felt like eating like a horse. And I did. I ate tons of kebabs that night. The kebabs were no big deal. They were just like those sold in Beijing, but the way of they sell kebabs here is much different and got me. The meat on each skewer here is generally smaller than their Beijing counterpart. Instead of selling kebabs one by one, the Hui boy here holds a large bunch of kebabs, hundreds maybe, and asks you "How large a portion do you want from this bunch, sir?" The best way to answer him is to say in a forthright way: "Hey, boy, give me one quarter of your share!" And when you are finished, they will come over and count the number of skewers to calculate how much you should pay for the bill. In other words, the style of ordering food instead of the style of the food is the highlight of eating in Xi'an. Now you can get northwestern food anywhere in the country but you can only order food in such an "impressive" way in Xi'an.
Of course, there are other choices. Like the renowned Paomo (fried cake soaked in mutton soup), Guantangbao (juicy stuffed bun). But my advice is to eat them during winter, because they are all much too heavy for a hot summer night!
Travel Essentials
Hotels
The city has hotels of various kinds to cater to travelers needs. They can be found easily within the old city. As for the hotel we lodged in, it looks more like a small inn, a standard room with double beds and a private toilet and bathroom cost 100 yuan per day. There is also a youth hostel near the southern end of the old city, though I heard that the cost is a little higher and you probably will have to share your room with strangers.
City Transportation
At any rate, I have to say Xi'an's transportation control is much better than that in Beijing. The number of private cars in the old quarter is strictly controlled to make transportation easier. The city's main force of transportation, I mean, in the old quarter, is composed of public buses and cabs. The cost of taking taxi is also much lower than that of in Beijing. For 6 yuan you can almost take a cab to anywhere in the old quarter and a large part of greater Xi’an city itself.
Travel Service
To my surprise and delight, Xi'an's travel services are well organized and closely related to volunteer work. Food, souvenirs, and service fees are all marked with clearly readable prices; there should be no confusion over prices when buying things. Volunteer work is another good thing to mention. On our way to the Terra Cotta Army Museum, some university grads or tourism school apprentices offered to be our guide, for free. This should really make you feel good; not only for the free price tag, but also to know that the travel services are so well-organized travel in Xi'an.
