9 April 2011

The terracotta warriors is the reason we came to Xian. There are 8000 warriors found buried in what was farming land. They were found by farmers digging for water who unearthed some bronze pots. Archeologists were called and the first warriors were uncovered only as recently as 1974. One of the farmers who discovered them was actually sitting at the entrance way when we arrived autographing guide books. The warriors were built to protect the emperor in the afterlife. During a battle, they were smashed by the enemy and the site lit afire. Over the years the soil buried the site until its discovery. Archeologists have pieced together close to 2000 warriors and horses, but it is a massive painstaking enterprise. For now many warriors remain buried as better techniques are developed to preserve them as they are uncovered.

This region of China is famous for its hand pulled noodles – delicious for lunch – as well as dumplings. We sample about 20 different dumplings at a dinner theater. Almost anything can go into a dumpling we discover from suet to walnuts.

The temperature is warming up for us Canadians – it is very dry here and about 24 degrees. We are glad we are not here at the height of summer when it can get to 45 degrees.