The Ghost of China Past

Before this trip, we both developed a list of must-see places that we just had to check out during our 3 weeks in China. Due to Jody’s childhood dream of swinging through the jungle & digging things up, the Terra Cotta Army was added to the list. Needless to say, we decided to make the ancient capital of Xian a major stop on our Chinese tour.

With over 3000 years of history, Xian is one of the oldest cities in China. Considered one of the great four ancient capitals, it was the backdrop for some of China’s most powerful & influential dynasties. We arrived bright & early via train after a 15 hour overnighter from Datong. After checking into one of the nicest hostels during our trip, we were off to see what these Terra Cotta warriors were all about. Getting to this one of China’s wonders is actually quite comfortable & affordable despite being located an hour away. We hopped on a nice, air conditioned tour bus for only $1 and were there in no time. We met a great German guy named Felix and headed through bunches of tourist stalls & restaurants selling ticky-tacky stuff. I must admit, the first impression wasn’t that great because they force you to buy the entrance ticket (expensive) then walk 30 minutes through all this rubbish just to get to the place!

Discovered in the 70’s by a local farmer who stumbled upon stone fragments in the ground, the Terra Cotta army is now one of the most well-known archaeological sites in the world. It really needs no introduction, but I learned some interesting things I didn’t know before. First off, it’s now a surprisingly developed & modern facility split up into 4 separate pits that are still actively being excavated. In 246 BC, the newly ascended Emperor Qin (who was 13 years old at the time) started construction with the help of 700,000 workers on his future mausoleum! This same kid started construction on the Great Wall and greatly increased China’s power by amassing an army of 1 million soldiers. Quite a legacy for China’s 1st Emperor if you ask me! His burial site is protected by thousands of extremely detailed clay figurines in an effort to protect him in the afterlife. Current estimates put the numbers at 8000 soldiers, 2000 horses and 130 chariots with the majority of them still buried beneath the ground waiting to be unearthed. It’s an amazing find and even more amazing when you see it for yourself! So fascinating to see all the bits of clay armor, body parts & horses scattered around a giant pits waiting to be put back together in the most complex 3D puzzle ever! As we watched some workers excavate one particular soldier, we wondered how they figure out which pieces go to which people. I thought it must be impossible. Yet, all the assembled warriors look perfect & the warriors in the rebuilding process look on that same path. It’s an amazing undertaking which requires an unbelievable amount of skill. I though the excavation efforts were nearly as impressive as the army itself!

Originally, all the warriors were painted in contemporary military regalia giving them an even more lifelike appearance. However, nearly all the paint has eroded now leaving them with a dull, monotone appearance despite the amazing detail and uniqueness to each individual. Apparently, once exposed to oxygen for the first time, the lacquer curls in 15 seconds & flakes off in 4 minutes! Crazy!! Everything from the facial expressions to the hairstyles to the body positions & weapons is absolutely unique for every figure. Spectacular when you think about the grand scale of the project & the small fact that this was all done 2300 years ago! I enjoyed trying to figure out the ranks of each soldier. Some of the weapons discovered are actually authentic weapons used in battle that long ago! A lot of them are coated with chromium oxide preventing them from rust & deterioration after thousands of years. Incredible ingenuity.

We spent a good amount of time wandering around each pit and marveling at it all. It was a special place. The largest pit #1 was the most impressive with the majority of the assembled “foot soldiers” arranged in battle formation. I kept thinking what it must have been like for that farmer who discovered that first soldier. A little freaked out perhaps? Does he get any royalties from his amazing find? His farm is certainly no longer in existence due to the massive development of the site. It’s considered to be the greatest archaeological find of the 20th century.

Back in Xian in the afternoon, I really wanted to bike around the ancient city wall. We absolutely loved it! Re-constructed during the 14th century Ming dynasty, it is remarkably well-preserved. We rented bicycles for 90 minutes and slowly meandered around the 15KM square during sunset. Viewing the city from above was a unique experience. We relished the opportunity to relax in relative isolation despite being smack-dab in the middle of a bustling metropolis.
















After sunset, the wall was beautiful! All the lanterns & towers that lined it were brilliantly lit up. With the full moon above on such a clear night, it was another memorable experience for us in Xian!

After the warriors & biking on the wall, we were on a bit of a high. We strolled around the Drum Tower & Bell Towers which were similarly illuminated & impressive in their own right. Our destination for the evening was the Xian Muslim Quarter.

We enjoyed browsing & sampling Xian’s unique food scene. Homemade noodles & Shaanxi meat sandwiches everywhere! We played our favorite game at a local Muslim noodle shop. Randomly choose & point to one of the items on the all Chinese menu! Because of the impossible language barrier in some situations, how else do you order? Turned to be out to be one of my favorite meals in China (more on food in a later post).

We both really enjoyed Xian. I think it was my favorite city out of all the places we went! I wish we had spent some more time there. Our time in the city proper was limited due to our excursion to Mount Huashan yet there’s no way I regret that trip.

Splendor Amidst the Rubble

After 5 awesome days in Beijing to start off our Chinese adventure, it was time to move on. We decided to take an overnight train to the city of Datong (9 hours southwest) in the Shanxi Province and see a different side of China. Despite its history (Founded in 200BC) Datong isn’t a tourist destination by any means. It’s known as one of China’s most polluted cities and therefore has been identified as one of the key cities requiring redevelopment. Coal mining is the dominant industry & there was dust blanketing the city when we arrived to the train station at 7AM. Quite a contrast to the bustling, modern landscape of Beijing.
 

Datong

Building an "ancient" wall.

We left our bags at the station and wandered around town. No foreigners anywhere! Ah it was strange to be stared constantly by the locals. At first, I thought we weren’t welcome, but then I realized they were simply curious and fascinated to see westerners walking around their city and eating in their restaurants (A struggle in itself). It was a unique experience to say the least. The massive 14th Century Ming dynasty wall was being rebuilt and we figured there must be some cool things to see within the ancient city. Unfortunately, there wasn’t much of anything. Just rubble, construction work and dilapidated buildings amongst the trash. It reminded me of post-WWII Poland. A sad sight indeed. The wall is an impressive structure and when it’s finished and the town is rebuilt, I’m sure it will be beautiful.  For us though, Datong will always be a symbol of the rapid development of the country.

Disappointment

The main reason we came to Datong was to check out the Yungang Grottoes. Located just outside of Datong & built in the 5th and 6th centuries, these mountain-side caves are filled with 51,000 Buddhist statues! 53 caves in all & the place was remarkable to see first-hand. We met a nice Chinese student who walked around the grounds with us. First, we went through a beautiful temple to get to the start of the caves and I just wasn’t prepared for the grand scale of the place. Buddha statues carved into the stone mountainside of all shapes and sizes gazed out at us. The detail and restoration was incredible. I got a real sense of the massive amount of effort and devotion it must have taken from the builders. After over 1000 years, some of them still looked like new!

Cave of 1,000 Buddhas

Buddha Cave

A great treasure of the past, the grottoes were definitely one of the highlights of our trip. Despite the dirtiness and development of Datong, the thousands of ancient, carved stone structures made the trip well worth it!

Damn, that's a biiig Buddha!

Buddha Cave

Great Wall of China...Check!

We knew going into this trip that the Great Wall was going to be one of the highlights. There’s a reason it’s one of the 7 Wonders of the World. That’s why we rented a private driver for the day to make our experience that much better. He picked us up from our hostel early and drove us out to the Mutianyu section of the wall about 2 hours outside Beijing. There are many different sections of the wall outside of city to see, but after extensive research, we decided to go to Mutianyu and I’m so glad we did! It’s much less touristy than the closer Badaling & the more remote Simatai section was closed for renovations.

After a scenic drive, we arrived around 8:30AM and opted to hike up the stairs to the wall rather than taking the ski lift or cable car. We are young after all. Despite it being spring time and the flowers starting to bloom, it was brisk outside to put it lightly. We could see our breath as the gigantic, winding wall got closer. Once there, we just stood in awe at the thing. It seemed to wind on forever. I couldn’t help but wonder how such a massive, impressive structure was built among such difficult terrain thousands of years ago! Because we got an early start, there was hardly anyone there! We shared the first kilometers of the wall with a group of Chinese students on a field-trip.

We spent those first few hours hiking up and down the steep stone steps, walking through one ancient watchtower after another & just taking it all in. It was spectacular to see the wall as the builders intended it. This section had been rebuilt to restore it to its former glory & I’m glad we got to revel in that.

 About 2 hours into it, we realized that it had started to snow!!! We weren’t expecting that but it turned out to be really special. Hiking the wall in the snow is something not many people can say they’ve experienced and it was indeed mystical! It really started to come down as we approached this particularly steep section which made for a surreal ascend. We were completely comfortable despite the weather conditions because of the exercise. Some parts were very rigorous and difficult for us to complete.

At around 11AM, we reached the end of the remodeled wall and I realized we had really made some good time. We wanted to explore further so we decided to go on to the unrestored sections. Our driver had told us that we might not be allowed to go on because they monitor these dangerous sections and don’t let visitors through. Needless to say, I was really bummed. However, at this last watchtower, there was no security, so we simply walked on. We ended up going about 7 watchtowers and another hour further up to this really high, crumbling watchtower where we ate lunch in complete isolation. It was a special moment to share together.

I think I enjoyed these original sections better. Yes the hiking was much more difficult and dangerous, but it felt like a more authentic experience. Stone fragments, bushes and trees were growing on top of the ancient wall which really made it look & feel ancient. We had the entire place to ourselves so we spent a lot of time wandering around the crumbling towers and turrets.

After lunch, we started the long hike back and passed a bunch more people! All the tour buses had arrived in the late afternoon, and we were grateful to have had the place to ourselves for a few memorable hours. There are lots of ways to get back down to the city of Mutianyu from the wall, but one stood out. We heard about the toboggan ride beforehand, and it was a ‘When In Rome’ moment when we decided to slide down the Great Wall on a luge on a metal track. It was very fun and exhilarating to relax & cruise down the wall after 5½ hours hiking it.  Check out the video below!


Sliding Down the Great Wall of China

Arriving in the Far East: Beijing

I'll admit that I had mixed feelings about going to Beijing before we left.  I had no idea of what to expect, and had heard less than pleasant stories from people who had visited.  I had heard that there are TONS of people everywhere, people spit, people stare, it's insanely polluted and communicating is difficult.  All of those things are true, but nevertheless, I LOVED this city!  We packed a lot into the few days we had there, so I'll try not to get caught up and make this post 14 pages long.  Here goes:

We arrived late morning and spent the rest of our first day exploring the hutongs (small narrow alleys that connect locals homes and businesses) surrounding our hostel.  It's so easy to get lost in these tiny streets!  They were packed: people buying street food, taking pictures and exploring the many shops lining the hutong.  A lot of the other people were Chinese tourists, but there were also many locals riding bikes and trying to get a motorbike through the hoards of people.  We tried new street food like some sort of meat (we think either lamb, pork or chicken) marinated and grilled on a stick and milk custard with brown beans.  We played it pretty safe and steered clear of the grilled starfish, seahorses, scorpions and snakes on a stick.

Milk Custard with Brown Beans

You really can't visit Beijing without seeing Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City - they are the two top sites in Beigjing - so they were our first stop.  We took the city bus from our hostel to Tiananmen Square to start.  Tiananmen Square is one of the largest city squares in the world, and has been the setting for some of China's biggest and most memorable events, including the Protests of 1989.  The Square is home to several monuments as well as General Mao's Mausoleum.  We waited in a line of pushy tourists that extended around an entire side of the square to be shuffled and hurried through the mausoleum, which took a grand total of 5 minutes.  But seeing the people's devotion to his memory was interesting, and getting a taste of Chinese culture while waiting in line was even more interesting.  If there is open space in front of you in line, you better run, or someone from behind you will and you'll find yourself several people farther back in line.  Also at the Square is the National Museum.  Since it was so cold, we made a quick stop at the Museum to warm up and use the toilet, which was slightly entertaining because the guard didn't understand toilet, restroom or bathroom, so I had to act it out in order to get directions.  We could have spent a lot more time there, but honestly, it didn't interest us at the time, and we were ready to get over to the Forbidden City, which is now called the Palace Museum (a little more inviting name, but also a little less intriguing.  There is something about entering a "forbidden city" in China that is really exciting to me…)  The Square and the Palace Museum are connected, but we still had to cross a huge street, so we used an underground walkway where people thrust postcard books, Gen. Mao hats and artistic maps for purchase at us, when they weren't laughing at Scott for wearing shorts in 40 degree weather. 

Tiananmen Square

The Forbidden City used to be the Chinese palace and was home to Chinese emperors for nearly 500 years.  It is a massive complex with what once was housing, government buildings, throne rooms, meeting rooms, etc.  Now it has been turned into the Palace Museum, and the government is restoring and preserving most of the buildings, and using the interiors to display art, artifacts and important relics.  When we arrived it was packed with people, but the complex is big enough that we could explore some of the smaller areas off the side "streets" and avoid the bigger crowds.  The architecture of the buildings is really cool - exactly what I think of when I think of ancient Chinese buildings:  tiled slanting roofs with lots of lions and dragons, and tiered buildings decorated in red, gold, green and blue.  But After exploring for a couple hours the buildings started to blend together and it turned into more of the same.  The Imperial Garden was one of my favorite places, and features huge rock structures, bonzi trees and cherry trees just beginning to bloom. 

Imperial Garden

The Forbidden City

After escaping the crowd of men offering rickshaw rides and tours of the hutongs, we stopped for a quick lunch at a local hole-in-the-wall dumpling place.  We feasted on steamed buns and boiled pork dumplings, and it was perfect!  At the end the owner pointed to a date on the calendar to show me how much we owed :)  Then we headed to several parks in the area that offered spectacular views of Beijing and panoramic shots of the Forbidden City.  Beijing has a ton of parks scattered around the city, and each is a little different.  Most all of them feature an area with water, and have a walking path leading through the park.  People gamble, practice tai chi, dancing, and a game much like hacky sack except it's played with what looks like a giant badminton shuttlecock. 

The Forbidden City from Jingshan Park

We spent the next couple days in Beijing hitting up the other major must-sees.  The Temple of Heaven is another tourist sight in Beijing.  It is a complex of religious structures that the emperors used to visit to pray for a good harvest.  The main feature is the round pagoda-type building in the middle of the park, with a 3-tiered tiled roof, painted with bright colors (much like the Forbidden City.)  We battled a ton of tourists to take a picture on top of a special stone (looking back, I'm not sure why I HAD to have that picture…) and decided to explore the less crowded part of the park. 

Temple of Heaven

Scott's New Hat

The last major tourist site we visited before heading for the overnight train was the Summer Palace.  It was used as, you guessed it, a summer palace for Chinese royalty.  It features several residences and buildings, but the best feature by far is the lake.  We walked several kilometers around the lake and watched people flying kites, dancing and strolling through the park. 

Summer Palace

 We were able to check off most all of the major tourist attractions during our visit to Beijing, and we also saw some great local sights.  The city is a mix of a developing metropolis and ancient tradition, and the transition is exciting to see first hand.  We took the city bus and the subway, and they were both easy, efficient and clean.  More people spoke English than I expected, and were very willing to help us with communicating and directions.  Beijing has become one of my favorite cities, and hopefully we'll be able to go back and visit again some day. 

The Biggest Water Fight In The World!

Every year around April 13-15, Thailand celebrates its New Year. The Songkran festival is one of the most important holidays in this country, and we couldn’t miss out! The holiday is celebrated nationwide, but Chiang Mai is notorious for the biggest celebrations & we happen to live a short 3 hour bus ride away. It would have been a shame if we didn’t go. Living in Thailand, we just had to experience it firsthand before our 3 week adventure in China began.Traditionally, the cleansing of Buddha images with water has been central to the Songkran festival along with paying respects to elders & monks. It’s meant to bring good luck & prosperity for the coming year. While this tradition still occurs, it’s been upstaged by a new one. Over the years, Songkran has evolved into a huge water fight where everybody soaks one another with water & smears chalk-like talc on one another. Coincidentally, the holiday falls during the hottest part of the year so this water fight was just what the doctor ordered! We had a blast!

Weapons

We purchased some protection (Water Guns) and water-proof necklaces for our valuables & headed out. I can’t begin to describe the scene we witnessed in Chiang Mai. It was a full-on war-zone!!! Thousands of people lined the Old City inside & outside the moat. The second we bought our guns, we were sprayed by a drive-by shooting. A sign of things to come. We headed right to the center of the action.

Crazy!

It’s difficult to put into words the grand-scale of the experience. It was simply impossible to stay dry. Every single person we walked by either sprayed us with their guns, dumped buckets of water on us or smeared this talc substance on our faces. The festive atmosphere was addicting. Nearly every vehicle was a pick-up truck with Thais of all ages packed in the back reloading their guns with ice water while spraying, yelling and smiling at us. So much fun!

Our 'Gang'

Some people took it too far and got a little too aggressive. They’d fetch buckets of water from the moat and throw them directly at us at point blank range, or they’d invest in a powerful gun and aim for the eyes. (cheap shot for sure!) It hurt and caught us off guard. However, most people sprayed us in the midsection or gently poured ice water down our backs as a strange courtesy. In a sense, I felt camaraderie with the local people that I hadn’t yet felt. A sense of belonging. We really just enjoyed the few crazy days & soaked it all in. Get it?? I’ll never forget our Songkran experience.

Locked & Loaded!

Sukhothai

Last week our friend Dash was in town so we decided to take a little trip while he was here. We took the 8 hour bus ride down South to the city of Sukhothai. We'd been wanting to check this place out ever since we moved here, so any reason to go was a good one. It's ranked alongside the Grand Palace in Bangkok as one of Thailand's premier places to visit. I'm so glad we went...it was awesome!

Established in 1238, the ancient city of Sukhothai was the capital of the first kingdom of Siam. For 200 years, many kings reigned over the city and its past greatness can be seen all over the place. Many Thais consider Sukhothai to be the beginning of their nation because not much is known of the Thai kingdoms before it. Among its many rulers, King Ramkhamhaeng the Great is considered to be the most influential. Under his rule, the Thai alphabet was created along with the foundations for politics & religion. The Sukhothai domination was short though. The armies of Ayutthaya to the South invaded in the late 14th century and thus began the steady decline of a great empire.



















It was so HOT! April isn't the best time to visit Sukhothai as it's one of the hottest months of the Thai year, but we managed to cope. It helped to arrive early and rent bicycles for 40 baht - definitely the way to go. The old city itself is over 27 square miles and divided into multiple zones with temple ruins and ancient functional buildings scattered everywhere. I was impressed by how clean, well-maintained and easy to navigate the site was. We were free to explore the grounds as we pleased and wander around any of the countless crumbling palaces, temples & other structures.  We visited 3 main areas and covered a good portion of the 27 square miles throughout the day.  One thing that struck me was the amount of water in the area, especially considering how hot and dry this area is.  The entire old city was surrounded by a moat, and several more moats were found various places within the city walls, along with a lake and several other small bodies of water.  Another part of the old city that stuck out was a particular temple where all the Buddha figures were defiled and had their heads cut off.

Headless Buddhas

Definitely a special place that we'll always remember. I figure it's like the Thai version of Angkor Wat in Cambodia. 

Burning Season

Thais say that Thailand has 3 seasons:  the Hot Season, which runs from late March through June, the Rainy Season, which runs from July to October, and the Cool Season, which starts late October through February.  I'd like to add a fourth season:  Burning Season.  Farmers all over Thailand have started burning their fields, mostly rice fields, to clear the land and get ready for the next planting season.  Unfortunately all this burning creates an ashy haze that lingers in the air, and due to Thailand's geography, it has little chance to escape.  Pair that with the fact that Burning Season coincides with the beginning of Hot Season, and it makes Northern Thailand a stinky, sticky and sweaty place to be.  We can feel it when we run in both our lungs and our muscles, and it's definitely apparent just from looking outside.  The problem has become so bad that it has caused serious health problems and has really affected tourism in this region.  People wear masks around town and many residents leave if possible (since most schools have summer vacation from April to mid-May.)  There are technically burn bans in effect, but there is little enforcement and villagers continue to burn.  Scott and I will be leaving for the rest of the month and into May, so luckily we will miss most of it.  But for now, our beautiful view is gone, you would never know there are mountains surrounding our town, and we will just have to deal with running in the ashy air.  Take a look at the haze in these pictures below.  We'll miss the worst of it, so you can imagine how bad it will get if this is what it looks like now...