The Terracotta Warriors and The Muslim Quarter

The end of our tour was the Terracotta Warriors. They were amazing, we got pushed around at bit at first by the police, apparently someone important was coming and needed one side to themselves so we couldn't go on that side. This did not let mom stop her.

The Last thing we did in Xi'an was walk through the Muslim Quarter. It was very different from other markets I have been to. Busy lots of tourists and a lot of food. Most markets I have been to have been clothing markets.

Xi'an

This is the Bell Tower and the center of the old forbidden city in Xi'an.


Next day off to Xi'an, an early flight gave us another day to explore the city. We spend the afternoon walking around the large streets that lead up to the Bell Tower and walking through the Muslim Quarter. I don't think we saw as much as we could have.

On the 27th we took a tour with the city. It was a great tour, saw a lot of things and just enough time to experience it and get to the next. First we saw the Big Goose Pagoda, heard the story of the name and the entrance of Buddhism into China. The name is from when they where building the pagoda the largest goose flying above and stopped at the site, it was killed and eaten but it is the meat eating Buddhism here.

After the Pagoda we stopped at a site of an ancient city, the Bango Neolithic Village.



























After this we left to the hot springs, Huaqing pool, this is where the emperor and this many women stayed during the winter. It was a beautiful place with many pools.









This one was for the First Emperor of the Tang dynasty's favorite women, Li Yang. The picture after was where she dried her hair.

Beijing a second time

Meeting my mom at the airport before we head off on our trip to a few stops in China then to Thailand.

My mom arrived safe and sound ready to experience China at its finest. The cold, cold winter. Best thing about traveling at this time is that hardly anyone else is so it is not as busy. and it is not 40 degrees like it would be in the summer

We went to the Silk market in Beijing where you are haggled by every stall to buy, buy, buy!

Then out to dinner at a great restaurant that was a little hard to find being in an ally behind our hotel.

The next we went to the summer palace. We walked across the frozen lake.

Us walking on the ice, and views around the lake at Summer Palace.

The summer palace is a must in Beijing, a peaceful beautiful place in the middle of dirty smoggy Beijing.

New Years in Beijing

A couple of us spent the long weekend in Beijing. Boy, it was COLD! We arrive late at night to our hotel which was down a dark long ally....it was creepy walking there. Once we got to the hotel they lost our reservations. But luckily they had room for us.

This is our ally.

The next day we woke up to snow, falling and on the ground. So off to the Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden Palace. I was the only one with wool socks, but we still froze. Lauren ended up putting here extra mitts on her feet, and was still frozen. We saw a lot even though we spend a far bit of time in the Starbucks inside Forbidden Palace. In the snow the place was beautiful and it was nice that it was not packed. Later that night we were off to find dinner, a long walk to somewhere, we found not what we wanted but a sizzler. Sometimes you just want anything but Chinese food.

Night out to Packers Hotel bar, where the key motive for going was cheap beer and dancing on tables. Both of which we had to do.

The next day was a day of shopping we split up to go to our various stops. Later our night out for New Years. To Shooters where we consumed a great amount of shooters of various names from Bob Marley to the gong show.

The next day we spent on a quick trip to the Summer Palace before heading back to Dalian. It was Beautiful there. The snow made it slippery and we had little time to see all we wanted to to. But Me and Heidi did our best, wondering around. We went to the tall Buddhist temple and walked near the bridge and the frozen lake.

It has gotten very cold.

So apparently it has been a warm winter, but I am freezing. We go to flag raising and it is so cold you are huntched over trying to keep in body heat. It is the wind with the cold that gets you the most. it is a cold you can't get warm from. So to go out you are bundled up, 5 layers or so. But the moment you get inside somewhere it is way hot! you need ot t-shirt underneath all 5 layers.
To get an idea of the temperature here is a picture of ice on the inside of my kitchen window. it is about 2 to 3 cm thick. Thankfully not an every morning thing.