Living.Vicariously.Through: 20Hrs to Xi'an for the Warriors and...

"this is why it takes 20hrs..." stopped for an HOUR here.

We love this 20hr train!

Are we going? Nope, optical illusion: just another train flying by.

The 20-hour, overnight train was surprisingly not horrible at all. We sat at the tiny table in the fold-down chairs for a few hours, looking at the scenery and talking, and then after it had gotten dark, we retired to our bunks and eventually fell asleep. We have decided it’s better to go to sleep when everyone else does (around 10pm) because if we stay up later, it makes the morning difficult and frustrating since they all then wake up and start bustling about around 6am. But with earplugs or headphones in, we managed to scrape out a few more hours of sleep before we had to wake up. Shortly there after, we arrived in Xi’an.

Happy to be in our room complete with soft, comfy bed(s)

The directions to the hotel we’d booked were easy enough—get on the 603, three stops, then get off and…I leave the rest off because on the bus we met a couple staying at the same place (Han Tang House) and they said that someone from the hotel was coming to the stop to meet them, so we just waited with them. All the reviews we read about the place were spot on. The beds were amazingly comfortable, the staff is beyond helpful, and the food is delicious, but expensive, so best to find somewhere else to eat. Plus, all their food is Western.

There is a woman across the street that has fantastic and cheap (5Y) pork stuffed steamed buns, as well as veg stuffed steamed buns (2.5Y) and sometimes some noodles (4-5Y). There’s also a little coffee stand at the opposite end of the block (Missy Milk) that has pretty good coffee for 5 or 6Y. She doesn’t open early in the morning, but is open till around 11ish at night if you need a night fix.

In the Muslim Quarter, just takin it all in

We didn’t feel up to tackling the Terra Cotta Warriors the day after arriving, so we just hung out and tried to figure out the coming days and how to go about getting done whatever it was we might want to accomplish. We also visited the Muslim Quarter for dinner that night.

This isn't far from the ticket area...

The next day we got up early to head to the buses for the Warriors. Easy enough, take the 603 (2Y) from near our hotel to the train/bus station, then look for the 306 to the Warriors. There were no 306 buses, but there were (5)306 buses. We just missed one and the next didn’t look to be leaving any time soon, so we kept walking along the row of buses and not too long later a woman scooped us up onto a green us with Terra Cotta Warriors written on the front and sides. This bus cost 8Y. It got us there in about an hour. Then we got the student discount (half price) on the 150Y tickets to enter the museum. With the 8Y green bus ride back, we spent 96Y. The prearranged tours were around 268Y p/p. Also, there is a 5Y car you can take to the entrance of the museum, but you don’t HAVE to. You can walk around the ticket area and then towards the entrance. Just walk back the same way you came in and then turn right once you’re out of the ticketing area.

But here's why I REALLY took the picture :)

After entering the “park” there are multiple buildings. One museum for the artifacts that were removed and preserved, one that is the history of the museum, and three pits with soldiers and horses in them. Pit 1 is the most impressive, with lines and rows of warriors standing at attention interspersed with horses also at the ready. Pit 2, known as the Command Center, was much smaller in size, but still impressive with the warriors uncovered beneath you. This is the pit that I left my mark in. Let’s just say that I will more carefully secure my belongings from now on thanks to that experience. And Pit 3 was the least excavated pit, but was oddly my favorite. I felt it gave visitors a greater picture of just where these soldiers came from, buried beneath meters of clay and dirt, in their eternal resting place, to guard the Emperor for all of time.

It took us about 90 mins, without a guide, to go through all the buildings. We arrived at about 10am and by 11:30am the place was swarming with visitors. So go as early as you can so you don’t have to push and shove to get in to see them.