Day 19 - Xi'an and the Terracotta Warriors

I woke up in the morning at 6 am to bright lights and people screaming what they were selling. Music played as well to ensure everyone was awake. It didn't take long to get to the hotel and get checked in. The water here was horrible though. It stank like sulfur coming out of the taps.

For lunch we went to a local house to have a home cooked meal. The food was great and they had the cutest kids ever. It took about an hour to get there and from there a few minutes to get to the terracotta warriors.

The terracotta warriors were discovered in 1974 by a farmer that was digging for well water. All these warriors were created to be placed in the tomb for emperor Qing, said to be the first emperor of China after unifying the 6 nations in China into one. The tomb took about 37 years to complete and has 3 compartments. The largest is said to have 6000 warriors in it, the 2nd and 3rd chambers are smaller with a few thousand. Not only warriors were in these tombs but terracotta horses as well. Each warrior is different and at one time they were all painted but after they were discovered, the paint oxidized off. Definitely another thing that must be seen in a lifetime. :)

Dinner consisted of a dumpling banquet, probably the best i'll ever have. The dumplings were elaborate and shaped like what was in them like ducks, fish, walnuts, sharks among other. It was very cool. Definitely an art.

After dinner we saw a performance showcasing traditional chinese performance art from instruments to dancing. It had a great variety of acts.