Rena and Wade Around the World

Our first Round the World trip from Jan 2006 - July 2006.

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Location: Regina/Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada

The adventures of living and working abroad. From Cayman to Europe, a break year and side adventure travels, this is our story.

Wednesday, May 10, 2006

Xi'an (China)

So once again, we avoided taking the train from Chengdu to Xi'an due to unavailability of seats. Given that we are now getting lazy this suited us just fine as we avoided a 17 hour train ride and substituted it for a 1 hour flight. So far our experience has been very good with Air China in comparison with Vietnam Airlines. We read an article in the newspaper the other day that there was a bomb threat on a domestic Vietnam Airlines flight. I'm glad we're not flying with them again!

Xi'an is a city of approximately 6.6 million and the main reason for coming here is to see the 8th wonder in the world, the Army of Terracotta Warriors, which lies about 20 kms outside of the city. Naturally this is also an Unesco World Heritage site.

The mausoleum of Emperor Shihuang of the Qin Dynasty (221 - 207 B.C.) is the largest mausoleum in the world and his tomb can be seen as a mound rising from the earth. It is estimated that 740,000 people worked for a 39 year construction period on the mausoleum (at a time when China's population was only 20 million). According to historical records the tomb was originally 115 meters high, but now due to settlement of the earth is much lower. It is believed to cover 56 square kms. At this point, much is still unknown about the "Underground Palace" as it has yet to be excavated. The tomb is said to be concealed with weapons and booby traps to kill anyone who enters.

It is believed that there are a mass of palace halls underneath the earth that were to serve the Emperor in his next life. Archeologists have found many ruined walls and foundations and multiple burial tombs they believe contain skeletons of the buried alive builders of the mausoleum (as to not disclose its secrets) and the Emperor's many concubines, also buried alive. According to historical records the dome contains astrological constellations made with precious stones and there are imitation rivers, lakes and seas filled with mercury that keep flowing due to mechanical means. Scientists have conducted experiments and have determined that there are very high levels of mercury inside which gives credence to the thought that there are lakes of liquid metal.

Given that the tomb itself has not been excavated and all you can see is a mound of earth from the outside, we did not bother too much with it. Rather we went to see the Terracotta Warriors which have been found about 1.5 kms from the tomb.


The Terracotta Army was discovered in 1974 when some local farmers were digging a well. Since that time, 3 "pits" have been discovered containing terracotta warriors, archers, generals, chariots and horses. The astounding thing is that they are all life size and each warrior is unique. No two are alike. Quite amazing when it is thought that these pits contain 6,000 figures! Here is a picture of Pit 1.

Much of the pits are still unearthed. Of that which has been unearthed, there are thousands of broken pieces. Archaeologists are painstakingly piecing individual figures back together again. Here is a look at some of the figures they have put back together again.


This picture is fairly self explanatory and shows how much work goes into uncovering each figure. Each pit is about 5 meters deep containing a floor of bricks and weight supporting partitions within. Once the warriors were placed in battle formation within a corridor, each corridor was covered with earth and then a timber ceiling. The timber ceiling was then covered with fiber mats.


Here is a look at sections of Pit 2 that are still uncovered and you can see portions of the sagging timber roof.






Also amazing is the fact that each figure holds a bronze weapon. So far 40,000 have been uncovered and removed and separately placed within museums. The interesting part is that the weapons were plated with a chrome-saline oxide coating which has perfectly preserved the sharpness of the weapons. It has also prevented the weapons from corrosion and is the same formula that was reinvented by the Germans in 1937 and the Americans in 1950. Little did they know their invention was hardly novel being 2,200 years old!

Okay, we've rambled enough about this so we'll wrap it up by saying that the terracotta army is just the beginning of what archaeologists still imagine they will find. It is believed that this mausoleum is so great that it may take another 200 years to fully uncover and understand it.

Xi'an itself is a very historical city. It has existed for over 2,000 years and has seen many dynasties rise and fall. At one point the province of Shaanxi was considered the centre of Chinese civilization. The city of Xi'an still maintains its old city walls in the centre of the current modern city. Some sections of the wall are no longer in existence while others have been restored. Originally the walls formed a rectangle with a circumference of 14 kms. There was a gateway on each side and a watchtower at each corner. Here is a picture of a section of the wall by the train station.

Also of historical interest is the Bell Tower and the Drum Tower. As their names suggest they once housed a giant bell and a giant drum. These would sound to communicate to the residents where the Emperor was. Musical performances are still held at both towers. Here is a picture of Wade trying out one of the many drums in the tower.


And lastly, here is a look across the square from the Drum Tower to the Bell Tower. Both are similar in shape and size.

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