Fifteen plus years ago we saw a documentary on Australian television showing incredible footage of a vast army of ceramic statues unearthed in 1974 by a farmer somewhere in China. The find was so large, over 8000 soldiers, 700 horses and 130 chariots, and had been buried here totally forgotten by the passage of time – nearly 2300 years, that it intrigued us. It was a place we had to visit one day. Yesterday became that day.
Xian, the city in which the farmer, by sheer luck, unearthed this find is 1087 km from Beijing and to reach it we spend five hours on one of China’s incredible “Bullet Trains”. It’s an anxious start to the journey with Beijing West station having no elevators, lifts or signage in English. Holding E-Tickets which must be turned into paper tickets before departing causes some degree of stress when it becomes very difficult to locate the one English speaking counter.
Perseverance prevails and the next five hours are spent gazing out at the passing countryside. Like we have come to expect from China, this scenery is both incredible and puzzling. Every ten minutes or so – approximately 20 to 30 km, we pass another city of skeleton high-rises still under construction. Cranes dot the horizon and it’s impossible to comprehend how all these high-rises are expected to be peopled.
This time of year is notorious for its high levels of pollution and China doesn’t disappoint. Everywhere we look, every tree and every building, is clouded in grey smog; the air is toxic and our throats itch.
Located an hour’s drive out of Xian City, our visit to the location of the Terracotta Warriors burial site is one we will never forget. After first meeting the farmer who made the discovery, we make our way into the first of the three buildings that house the statues. The size of the building, the number of terracotta soldiers on display, the realisation of what has been unearthed and restored here is mind-blowing.
There are still countless years of excavation, repair and restoration ahead and it’s a testament to both the Chinese people and government that this will occur with the same diligence that has been shown to date.
We spend the remainder of our time in Xian visiting the Muslim Quarter (think our China Towns) and walking its City Walls – like Lucca, a town we visited in Italy, Xian was once a fully fortified city with similar-sized walls.
Dinner is an enjoyable and informative experience where all selections and negotiations occur using Google translate – thank god for iPhones.
Fun facts – always ensure you have tissues with you or locate the toilet paper before you enter the cubicle. The Chinese drive on the wrong side of the road. The roads are watered down continuously due to the high levels of dust (pollution?).
I am currently writing this whilst returning to Beijing on the Bullet Train although we will probably be on the Trans-Mongolian when it gets posted.
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